Looting and vandalism around a World Heritage Site: Documenting modern damage to archaeological heritage in Petra’s hinterland

Abstract

In 2012 the ancient city of Petra celebrated the 200th anniversary of its Western re-identification. The Brown University Petra Archaeological Project (BUPAP) has sought to document the northern hinterland of Petra through a multi-component methodology that includes intensive field survey, feature documentation, and limited test excavations. The iconic site of Petra has a long and storied history, and it is a site that presents many challenges to archaeologists and cultural heritage managers. During a series of test excavations, meant to ground truth locations earmarked by the overlapping intensive field survey and feature documentation, several patterns of looting were identified. These instances of looting were often paralleled by observed vandalism that defaced archaeological heritage, within and outside the Petra Archaeological Park, with archaeological artifacts being sold to tourists at nearby shops. This study provides crucial documentation of these processes of vandalism and looting recorded over the last three years. We propose that only through continued monitoring can local authorities be provided with ample evidence calling for additional cultural heritage protection.     

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting for the Palestine Exploration Fund, 9 June 2016

Abstract

Palestine's archaeological heritage is facing a serious crisis due to the prevalence of illicit digging. Antiquities looting is a widespread and flourishing phenomenon throughout the Palestinian National Territories (PNT) and has resulted in a large number of primary and secondary archaeological sites and features being damaged, disfigured, or completely destroyed, and in the extraction of at least hundreds of thousands of heritage items. The main aim of this research project is to explore the physical hazards encountered by the Palestinian antiquities looters. To this end I interviewed 53 antiquities looters residing in 41 different villages in the West Bank. The physical hazards which they encountered are classified by type as follows: cave-ins; the use of equipment, including heavy machinery (back-hoes, front-end loaders, bulldozers, etc.), other power implements, and traditional excavation tools; falling stones or tools; contact with insects, snakes, scorpions, and spiders; work during inclement weather; and attack by the jinn.     

Ancient coins,find spots,and import restrictions: A critique of arguments made in the Ancient Coin Collectors Guild’s “test case”

Abstract

The Ancient Coin Collectors Guild (ACCG) has launched multiple legal challenges aimed at undermining import restrictions on ancient coins into the United States in bilateral agreements with foreign countries. One key component of the ACCG’s argument is that the State Department has inappropriately restricted certain types of coins according to where they were made rather than where they are found, as mandated by the 1983 Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act. Although the ACCG has thus far been unsuccessful, it has not been pointed out that existing import restrictions on coins, in fact, have been written to include coins that tended to circulate locally and that are found primarily within the borders of the country with which the bilateral agreement is made. The ACCG’s argument is thus on shaky ground. As the ACCG continues to press ahead with new litigation, it is worth drawing attention to realities and probabilities of ancient coin circulation as they pertain to protected coins.     

Museum salvage: A case study of Mesoamerican artifacts in museum collections and on the antiquities market

Abstract

Museum salvage refers to critical studies of museum collections with little or no provenience information that seek to glean useful archaeological information from these artifacts and examine the nature of their origins and possible connections to the illicit antiquities trade and the art market. Our case study focuses on artifacts from Mesoamerica and objects from the ancient capital of Teotihuacan in particular. We take a multi-scalar approach, including a quantitative analysis of Sotheby’s auction records for Mesoamerican items from 1966 to 2010, a survey of Teotihuacan attributed items in U.S. museums, and a more detailed examination of Teotihuacan-style artifacts in the Denver Museum of Nature & Science collections. The study tracks and attempts to explain diachronic patterns in the Mesoamerican antiquities trade, connections to museum collecting practices, and looting behavior. The study illustrates the potential benefits of museum salvage, while also revealing the clear limitations of research on poorly documented archaeological material.     

Excavations at Bishop's Street Without: 17th Century Conflict Archaeology in Derry City

Abstract

Excavations on this site, undertaken by Paul Logue for EHS: Built Heritage DOE: NI, produced evidence for at least two phases of occupation outside Bishop's Gate, Londonderry during the 17th century. This occupation came to an end with a phase of activity dated to the commencement of the Jacobite siege in A.D. 1689. Further evidence of that siege was uncovered in the form of a ravelin ditch 2.8 m wide and 0.57 m in depth, constructed in early 1689 to front Bishop's Gate. The extant remains of a sally port interrupted the ditch. A nearby larger ditch, scarped from the sloping ground outside Double Bastion, measured a maximum of 8.4 m in width and 1.4 m in depth. This larger ditch may have been part of efforts to improve the City defences in the wake of the 1641 rebellion. Further evidence of conflict archaeology was recovered in the form of lead shot, weapon furniture and flint gunspalls.     

Investigating absence: Assessing the cumulative effects of casual collecting at a 19th century Bahamian plantation

Abstract

Recent archaeological work at Prospect Hill, a 19th century plantation in the Bahamas, revealed artifact patterns that are inconsistent with expectations for a plantation site. The quantity and quality of artifacts in residential areas associated with the planter family and the enslaved population were inverted and suggest significant post abandonment changes. The site of Prospect Hill has been a destination for tourists and student groups since the mid-20th century, and the areas of the site most accessible to these visitors are also those with surprisingly low artifact counts. I investigated the possibility that regular visitation involved casual collecting using historical data as well as artifact assemblages from archaeological work at Prospect Hill. My analysis suggests that the archaeological record has been altered significantly through casual, opportunistic collecting, and it offers insights for identifying casual collecting elsewhere.     

农村社区选址适宜性的空间分析研究——以株洲市云田镇为例

农村社区的科学选址建设,是改善农民生产生活条件、降低建设与环境成本、提升农村基础设施与公共服务设施覆盖率的重要途径。根据国内外理论动态及我国农村实际情况,以株洲市云田镇为例,建立了一套完整的方法体系。该方法体系涵盖图面矢量化、六边形格网系统、空间标准化、因子分析、综合加权、两步聚类等要素。利用该方法体系,以及国标所规定的地形、水体、绿地、农田、道路、建成区、农村居民点、基础设施8项指标,对云田镇农村社区的选址适宜性进行综合分析。得出8项指标权重,并通过综合加权运算,得到最适宜、适宜、较适宜、不适宜、禁止选址区的分布等结果,以三维柱状图形式进行直观表达。本文的方法将为我国乡镇农村社区选址提供方法论支撑。     

Community Participation and the Enhancement of the Roman Thermae of St Thomas,Mesolongi

Abstract

This paper examines the process of enhancing an archaeological site and rendering it accessible to the wider public within a very tight time schedule, and will contemplate the role of the local community in this process. Focusing on the case study of the Roman Thermae of St Thomas (Agios Thomas) near Mesolongi, Western Greece, the various challenges and problems encountered during the excavation, partial restoration, and enhancement of the site (funded by the INTERREG II cross-border program of the 2nd Community Support Framework) will be addressed. Issues of community participation will be highlighted through the crucial involvement of the local people in the project and with a reflective outlook on the way heritage management is operating in Greece.     

世界遗产申报对居民地方感的影响——以湖南崀山为例

地方感已成为旅游研究的新热点,国内外关于旅游者、旅游地居民的地方感实证研究不断涌现,但关于重大外部事件对居民地方感的影响研究较少.本文以湖南崀山为例,通过设计量表以测量世界遗产申报作为外部事件对社区居民地方感的影响,通过发放问卷和访谈等方式进行实地调研.研究发现,世界遗产申报使居民对崀山有了全新认识,并对地方认同、地方依赖、自然环境感知和社会文化感知等4个方面产生了较大影响.虽然不同利益群体的居民对待申遗和旅游业的态度不同,但总体上世界遗产申报强化了居民的地方感,提高了其对当地旅游发展的期望和支持度.