Arcadia Discussion Zone

BOOK REVIEW
Looters

Jenifer Neils

LOOT: The Battle over the Stolen Treasures of the Ancient World.
Sharon Waxman. xvi + 414 pp. Times Books, 2008. $30.

WHO OWNS ANTIQUITY? Museums and the Battle over Our Ancient Heritage.
James Cuno. xl + 228 pp. Princeton University Press, 2008. $24.95.

On April 19th, 2005, a Russian Antonov 124 transport touched down on a
runway in Axum, Ethiopia. Its cargo was the middle section of a
1,700-year-old, 78-foot-tall, 160-ton granite obelisk, which had been
removed from Ethiopia in the 1930s by Benito Mussolini, who erected it
in front of his newly built Ministry of Italian Africa in central
Rome. The cost to the Italians for disassembling this monument and
transporting it back to Ethiopia in three parts was reportedly $7.7
million.

The obelisk of Axum was not the only piece of cultural property
returned to its country of origin in 2005. The British Museum, which
since 1944 had had in its possession a red cedar ceremonial mask that
Kwakwaka'wakw tribesmen of British Columbia had worn at potlatches in
the early 20th century, sent this artifact back to British Columbia on
long-term loan to the U'Mista Cultural Society in Alert Bay.

These two voluntary acts have garnered little publicity and rate
barely a mention in the proliferation of new books devoted to the
"battles" over heritage. Yet they demonstrate that the tide is turning
in favor of countries and peoples who seek to reclaim objects that
they consider to be their cultural patrimony, regardless of whether
the object was removed legally.

Loot, by journalist Sharon Waxman, and Who Owns Antiquity?, by James
Cuno, take decidedly different approaches to the complex problems
relating to the archaeological material that is at the forefront of
the disputes over cultural property. Waxman focuses on spectacular
cases involving high-profile museums—for example, the Metropolitan
Museum of Art in New York and the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles,
which have recently returned valuable works of ancient art to Italy,
Greece and Turkey. Having previously authored a book on maverick
Hollywood directors, she here turns her attention to some of the more
flamboyant personalities of the antiquities world, detailing the
exploits of notorious thieves (or saviors of the past, depending on
your perspective) as well as those of contemporary players—namely,
well-known museum directors, curators and dealers.

Cuno, who is director of the Art Institute of Chicago, is the only
person holding such a post who actually writes books defending the
mores of his profession. His approach is more scholarly than Waxman's
but also more irritating, because the book consists mainly of a
diatribe against increasing nationalism throughout the world, which he
believes has prompted the actions that archaeologically rich countries
have taken to protect and retain their antiquities. Although he
strives to be ecumenical, pulling his examples from China, Nigeria,
Turkey and Italy, his arguments are one-sided and hence surprisingly
narrow. He supports the now outdated and largely rejected practices of
museums that acquire antiquities without documented provenance. And he
utterly fails to provide any other perspectives, especially those of
archaeologists.
Both books deal with personalities. Waxman retells the much-rehearsed
story of Lord Elgin, the ambassador to the Ottoman empire who
despoiled the Acropolis not only of the well-known Parthenon
sculptures but also of random columns and sculptures from other
monuments of classical Athens; these are now the jewels of the British
Museum. Cuno describes the travels of more recherché individuals, such
as Langdon Warner, a Harvard professor of Chinese art. In 1924 Warner
visited the Mogao cave temples in northwest China, which have the
largest collection of Buddhist mural art in the country. He came home
with a Tang Dynasty stucco sculpture of a kneeling bodhisattva from
one cave (this was a purchase he negotiated) and 12 painted wall
fragments from another (Cuno says that these were "rather awkwardly"
removed). Today, both the Acropolis and the Mogao caves are World
Heritage sites.

The value of these archaeological sites resides not only in their
artistic achievements, but also in the wealth of information they
provide about the culture of their age. The Acropolis once had
inscriptions carved on marble slabs detailing the transactions of the
treasury, and the Mogao caves contained hundreds of Buddhist
manuscripts; much of this site-specific material was removed long ago
by European travelers and collectors. That's a great shame: Had these
sites remained more complete, archaeologists would have more readily
been able to understand their impressive past.

Both books organize their material along geographical lines. Waxman
devotes part 1 of Loot to Egypt and its despoliation by the likes of
Napoleon (under whose command the Rosetta Stone was brought to light)
and Giovanni Belzoni, the Italian weight lifter who discovered the
Temple of Abu Simbel. Belzoni also managed to cart off from Thebes a
colossal head of Ramses II, which now resides in the British Museum.

Part 2 is devoted to Turkey and the intriguing tale of the Lydian
hoard, which consists of 219 Greek gold and silver objects that the
Metropolitan Museum of Art bought in the late 1960s. The museum left
these to cool off in its basement for years before exhibiting them, at
which point Turkey sued for their return. Part 3 deals with Greece and
its long controversy with the British Museum over the marbles taken by
Lord Elgin. And the focus of part 4 is Italy and its pursuit of the
looted objects the Getty Museum acquired, as well as the ongoing
prosecution in Rome of the Getty's former antiquities curator.

Cuno covers some of the same ground (his third chapter deals with
Turkey), but he goes farther afield (China) and also delves more
deeply into the rise of nations such as Italy, Turkey and Iraq. He
attempts to demonstrate that their cultural identities are modern
constructs. He points out, for example, that the Egyptians formerly
thought of themselves chiefly as Muslims and only more recently as a
people whose ancestors were responsible for the pyramids. He seems to
argue that because these identities are recent and nationalistic they
should have no bearing on claims for antiquities, which he believes to
be the heritage of all.

rest at

http://www.americanscientist.org/bookshelf/pub/looters

Is it the country and the people's ?

the finders?

or the Buyers

I really think what has happened in Iraq and to their artifiacts is criminal

Many countries were conquered by other nations and treasures stolen
its nice to see the countries getting them back

now I do agree if a religious group wants to destroy or destroyed scrolls or sculptures because of their religion
well then they don't deserve the artifacts


I think another example of a private buyer and the vatican holding up the translation of the Dead Sea Scrolls is a prime example of abusing their power

A very good question. Britain's museums are full of objects taken from all over the world, at a time when Britain ruled much of the world. Whether we have a right to continue to hold on to them in light of the more enlightened attitude to antiquities today is a huge question. If we gave everything back our museums would be empty, and I don't think that makes a lot of sense.

My feeling is that in most cases nations have quietly agreed to draw a line under the past -- with a few exceptions such as the Elgin Marbles, which have huge cultural significance, and Australian Aboriginal artefacts, with their religious significance.

But there are different conventions today, both national and international. I don't think any longer we can get away with "Finders, Keepers". Britain has laws about what can be kept by the finder (little if anything), what has to be sold to museums, and what belongs to the State. I have no idea of the details, but I'd imagine France has similar laws.

Actually, what is more important is how people and govenrments use archaeology to bolster their ideologies.

Antiquities that are found belong to humanity.

The question of who actually owns the past is in my view much more important?

Not where the antiquities reside now. Its kind of 'that was then, this is now'.

Let us speculate on if the lost treasure of Alaric was found today? In France?

Who would it belong to?

This topic of relics is of close personal interest to me because I have witnessed destruction and loss of absolutely priceless antiquities for no reason other than stupidity or religious and cultural intolerance.
The article discusses the return of the stele to Axum, Ethiopia. I have stood among such stele in Axum. They lay toppled and broken on the ground, where they have been for centuries (?) No effort is made to restore them or repair them. So why in the world all this fuss to return just one?
The nose of the Sprinx was busted off by Sufi s who believed it was an affront to God to recreate a human face...same goes for most of the mummies in the Cairo Museum. They are missing hands and faces, hacked off on religious grounds.
In Jerusalem antiquities found under the Temple Mount were simply hauled to the dump and thrown away.
In Srinagar is the old tomb I have written about, Roza Bal. Inside was a wealth of information about Yuz Asaf. The manuscripts, the Rod, the carved footprints, the ancient scrolls and geneology. For a long time the tomb was under private family control, a hereditary position passed down for generations. Then some loose 'Board of Directors" was established to manage the tomb as it still atttracted visitors and film makers every year.
But the Board was all of another religion, and they do not want other religions attracted there who might "venerate" the tomb, so all artifacts and historical clues to identity have been ripped out and have dissapeared. The Government shows little interest in the fact the tomb is documented to be 2,000 years old and held priceless antiquities. It remains under private Board control, who in turn are dominated by local cleric.
Local families feel their rights have been pushed aside by this Board. Archeologists and historians feel the Government hasn't taken enough interest simply because it's an old Christian tomb. They yawn as priceless stolen relics go on sale at EBay.
Who "owns" the Loot? That is a good question.
Shasta

Shasta,

I must just say that Islam might be destroying religious sites today .... but remember Christians did that too.

Christianity and what they did in the name of 'God' needs to be remembered too.

Yes, bergeredearcadie, and when Genghis Khan swept down from Mongolia, he flattened everything in his path...and the list of atrocities goes on...and here we are in "modern" times and things to seem to have changed little.
This is why I believe that Ben Hammot handled things in the best way possible regarding the tomb he found...

-

Did I say there were easy answers?

Three thoughts about the (fabled) treasure of Alaric.
1. I think the first accounts of its burial with him were from about 150 years after his death, so how reliable are they?
2. The treasure was from his sack of Rome, and Calabria, where he and it are supposedly buried, is in southern Italy, so no nationality problem there. But (and this is obviously the big but)...
3. If the treasure is found, if it was buried with him, if it was really all the treasure of Rome, and if it really included the sacred treasure of the Jews from the sack of the Temple, then the Menorah et al should probably be returned to Jerusalem because of their huge religious significance.
But there are a lot of "ifs" in there.

But you mention it being found not in Calabria but in France -- I presume you mean in Arques. May I ask if there is any actual evidence that the treasure of Alaric is in a cave in Arques? If you look at web-pages like http://www.rennes-le-chateau-la-revelat ... er8-uk.htm you find statements like "The Arques cavern contains the treasures of three kings - Jesus, Solomon, and Alaric I". There's a lot of assertion there, but nothing that I can see that constitutes actual evidence. I'm sure there'll be some here who will challenge me on this!

That 'bout brought tears to my eyes. I wish I had been so successful. I feel like an abyssmal failure in my efforts to save Roza Bal tomb and artifacts. All things in my life have taken back seat. It has become my full-time job and passion in life to save just this one tomb for posterity.

Well, that's another long story not suited for here.....but suffice to say that I do understand and Ben has my respect for his correctly guided conscience and efforts. We could dash off to give interviews and sell books and make a lot of money quickly, but sometimes there are more important things in our lives.

-

WOW...sounds like the plot from my books! Only in my version, the treasures are hidden in Kashmir. This is getting inetersting.

But you mention it being found not in Calabria but in France -- I presume you mean in Arques. May I ask if there is any actual evidence that the treasure of Alaric is in a cave in Arques? If you look at web-pages like http://www.rennes-le-chateau-la-revelat ... er8-uk.htm you find statements like "The Arques cavern contains the treasures of three kings - Jesus, Solomon, and Alaric I". There's a lot of assertion there, but nothing that I can see that constitutes actual evidence. I'm sure there'll be some here who will challenge me on this!

Hello David,

I do not look at RLC 'lore' (law? ) for this. I look at the historians who documented this 'treasure' of Alaric.

The sacred treausre of the Visigoths was at Toulouse. We know the Merovingians obtained some of it when portions of it were at Carcassonne (of course, this is if you believe the ancient writers ). We know portions of the treausre were used at the wedding of Placida. So, i believe the treasure' exists. There is also other treasure reputed to be buried in the Toulouse area (that stole by the Tectosages when they rampaged through Greece). A Roman soldier captured the silver haul, and took it back to Rome, but he apparently didnt get the gold.

Archeology has shown that the Visigoths did not do massive burials in the way it is reported for Alaric .....and that he would not have been buried with all the treasure - which is common sense really.

As for the Menorah etc, if it exists, would you let Israel have it right at this moment?

I belieb the treasure exists. It is of course, an act of faith. Did you ever read how Heinrich Schliemann found Troy? He read Homer over and over, everyone thought he was quite mad. But he went on to find Troy using that poem, and all that archaeological treasure .... maybe we can do the same ?

OK now here's where we dovetail. For the Third Temple to be built, certain things must come together again....that were part of the First Temple. The Ark, The Menorah, the Rod of Moses, and the ashes from a pure red heifer. Israel has been breeding pure red heifers for past few years so when the other elements come together the calf will be readily available.. I am certain beyond any doubt that I have found the Rod in Kashmir...so if the Ark is in Axum, we need only the menorah to see the prophecy fullfilled. Wow.

But Judaism is no longer a temple-based priestly religion; rabbinical Judaism is a very different version of the religion. If they rebuild the temple, would they go back to having priests, and to sacrificing lambs and doves on the altar?

I don't know DVB, but if they don't believe in this prophecy, then why are they breeding red heifers in anticipation? I am gazing out the window now, are the four horsemen appearing on the horizon? I don't know. I don't know.

DVB I had a great picture of the Four Horsemen but I don't know how to post a picture here.. Please advise. Thank you.

Someone explained it to me once, but I've forgotten. You join a picture-sharing group of some sort, like Photobucket or Imageshack, and create a library, and upload your pic there -- and then you download it from there to here using the HTML coding provided. I think. I'm sure I'm getting more computer-illiterate every day...

As for the Four Horsemen... Binyamin Netanyahu has been invited to be the next prime minister of Israel. Your countdown starts now...

OK I'll make fresh brownies and lemonade to pass to them as they go racing by...I'll be cheering them all the way because at least one prophecy came true.

France will be better at handling than other countries

The case of Geronimos skull is coming up in the courts
http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/27775

The heirs of an Apache chieftain whose remains are rumored to be held inside Yale's oldest secret society filed a lawsuit today demanding the return of their ancestor's skull.

Twenty descendants of the legendary Apache chieftain Geronimo are suing government officials, the University and the society Skull & Bones in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to seek the return of his remains as well as punitive damages.

One hundred years ago today, Geronimo died of pneumonia at Fort Sill, Okla., but the suit alleges members of the society exhumed his remains in 1918 or 1919 and transported them to the society's High Street tomb in New Haven. The group rumored to have stolen Geronimo's skull, bones and other items from his gravesite is said to have included Prescott Bush, the father of former President George H. W. Bush '48 and grandfather to former President George W. Bush '68.

"To assure that all existing remains of Geronimo and funerary objects are recovered by Geronimo's lineal descendants, the Order of Skull and Bones and Yale University must account for any such articles that are or have been in their possession, or on their property," the formal complaint states. "And persons with knowledge must provide any facts known to them concerning the claims."


I don't want ANY OCCULT to get these remains... though I have no doubt they will try

And I think a Shaman should be present when they open it up fully to respect the spirits that were buried there

Lov, Here's the problem facing American archaeologists: Every time ancient bones are recovered, Native Americans scream and yell and demand they be returned for Indian burial on sacred Indian grounds...
The problem with this is many ancient bones in America are NOT Native American! In fact among the oldest are identified with European plus Finnish and Scandinavian peoples, and some bones have tested to be 25,000 years old. Native Americans have only been here via the Bering Land bridge for 11,000 years.

This means there were other people here before them. Either they were killed and replaced by them, or simply died out. For certain they did not breed because no trace of unexpected DNA has ever been recovered from the Native Americans..who migrated directly from Mongolian Asia.

So when Native Americans clammer for the bones, I would demand the DNA tests before handing them anything.

Shasta

Thanks for such a full response, Roger. I was sure that someone here would know about this particular website (which struck me as, ahem, a little unsound!) -- and would also be considerably more knowledgeable than I am about Alaric's treasure. By listing a number of "if"s I was testing how plausible or implausible the reasoning from a number of variables ("A+B+C... therefore XYZ") behind the conclusion "The Temple Treasure is buried near RLC" might be.

good to see you posting roger...

at least one necropolis with centuries' worth of valuable offered up to the dead

Is this the necropolis that Cherisey talks of in Circuit, do you think?

[quote="Roger
The real problem, David, is that in reality, we know very little of the fate of Jerusalem's treasure, what survived the cutting down and smelting, to pay for the extravagant construction spree that included the Coliseum. Did the Menorah survive? Perhaps.. The "golden sea", the huge gold basin almost certainly did not. So what did the Wisigoths actually get? Lots of loot, we know, but it's strange that such chronic braggarts never waved the Menorah around, if they captured it...[/quote].

Much of the gold pilaged from Jerusalem was used by Vespasian to establish his dynasty after his son, Titus sacked Jerusalem.
There is certainly evidence of considerable Visigothic occupation in the region round about Rennes-leChateau, for example the Capitalles stone huts and stone walls. Historically there appears to have been a stronhold at Rhedae. It would appear to be a more secure hiding place for their loot than at Carcassonne.
Marie Denarnaud is reported assaying that they were 'walking on gold'.
I have amassed substantial evidence as to the location of one of their treasure and would of course require the full agreement from the DRAC to proceed with even a limited excavation. But I believe Saunire was aware of the location of at least the Royal Treasure.