古物

古物指与考古学、历史学、古生物学及其他文化有关之物,其范围广、种类多,其保存价值以其时代、数量及其所具备的科学、历史和艺术价值为标准。我国的古物收藏,起自殷商,历经各代,在宋清两朝尤其兴盛,至西方学说传入后,古物被视为公有而供公众观赏。收藏古物,要重视其科学价值,不可收藏的古物应就地保存,可收藏的古物要遵循科学的方法。要认识古物的价值,用近代的方法研究、保存。     

The Antiquities Market

Abstract

Excavations in 1988 at Neolithic 'Ain Ghazal in central Jordan have recovered a well-preserved specimen of a plastered human cranium. This conforms to other examples known from Levantine Neolithic sites, notably Jericho. The 'Ain Ghazal skull adds to a very limited assemblage of comparanda, and allows rare insight into both ritual and artistic behaviors.     

The Antiquities Market

Abstract

The computer has not been widely used for the study and analysis of Greek and Roman pottery. Recently at Stobi in Yugoslavian Macedonia a considerable quantity of pottery has been coded according to a system devised specifically for the rather complex situation presented by the wide-reaching market for ceramics in the Greek and Roman periods. The system and coding procedures, as well as the preliminary results of the analysis, are published here in the hope that they will serve as an aid to others working with similar material.     

The Antiquities Market

Abstract

The fluting of Early Paleo-Indian bifaces and associated failure rates have received considerable archaeological attention—perhaps at a scale exceeding its comparative importance. Nonetheless, if we are to properly evaluate explanations of the origins and purpose of fluting and the function of particular sites in Paleo-Indian settlement systems, estimates of failure rates are required. To date, such estimates have been based largely on experimental replication and rarely on a1Achaeological data, and it is suggested the experimental estimates are inaccurate. In order to overcome these problems, three interrelated, yet independent, methods of estimating fluting failure rates from archaeological data are developed and applied to data from the Parkhill site in Ontario and the Windy City site in Maine. The consistency in the results obtained by these methods inspires faith in their relative accuracy. The results suggest failure rates, at least at these sites, were not on the scale often assumed by previous investigators, being on the order of only 10–15% or less.     

The Antiquities Market: News and Commentary on the Illicit Traffic in Antiquities

Abstract

Wind God Foils Smuggler's Breeze through Customs

Laura Scanlan's article describing the seizure at U.S. Customs and the eventual return to Mexico of several important Precolumbian artifacts is reprinted here with permission from Customs Today, 17:2 (1982) 2–3. Both the story itself and the act of reprinting emphasize the growing cooperation between archaeologists and the U.S. Customs Bureau in cases involving antiquities. Karen Bruhns and Connie Fenchel (see below) have been an effective team in pursuing cases involving antiquities smuggling in the San Francisco area. In the Bernstein case (see below “A Lawyer Looks at U.S. Antiquities Laws”) archaeologists also provided professional evaluations and consultation to customs officials. Both the Mexican case described here by Scanlan and the Bernstein case were initiated through improper customs declarations, which were recognized by alert customs inspectors familiar with the value of antiquities and the significance of the illicit trade.

These cases suggest a way for many archaeologists who have said they would like to help curb the illicit trade but did not know how to do so. There are customs offices in most large U.S. cities. They are the places where antiquities enter this country. Special Agent Fenchel pointed out, during her presentation at the Legislative Session of the AIA in San Francisco, that most antiquities cases in this country have begun with an improper customs declaration. If this is so, the effectiveness of existing law governing the antiquities trade depends largely on the ability of customs inspectors to recognize antiquities and to evaluate their accompanying declarations. Even when/if the UNESCO Convention is implemented, its enforcement will be largely in the hands of customs inspectors. Thus, professional archaeologists could make a substantive contribution toward curbing import of illicit antiquities by introducing themselves at their local customs office and offering to make available their professional advice on cases involving antiquities. Local archaeological societies might consider offering seminars for their local customs inspectors on ancient art and archaeology and the pertinent laws and market values, to help increase the ability of customs inspectors to recognize antiquities in the course of their work. Just knowing that there is expert help available locally to identify and evaluate antiquities, or to find another expert who might be able to do so, could make local customs inspectors more sensitive to the issues involved and more likely to catch violations.