How can western ‘universal’ museums acquire and display artefacts without stoking the illegal arts trade and reproducing colonialist narratives? The headlines generated by such scandals threaten the very acquisitive enterprise of western museums; mounting demands for repatriation make more difficult the project of building “universal” institutions presenting the art and history of the world. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. In the last 10 years, public collections including the Getty Museum in Los Angeles and the Met have given up hundreds of tarnished objects. It is a mistake to think that property values, infrastructure, etc. Critics of western museums accuse them of complicity in the illicit trade, and at a more general level, of perpetuating the gross inequalities between the west and the rest of the world. The prestigious Ivy League school brought the criminal in to teach a two-day course on…wait for it… “The ethics of looting.”. Renfrew, C & Elia, R 1993, ‘Collectors are the Real Looters’, Archaeology, vol. WHEN THE SECOND REVOLUTIONARY WAR COMES,THE LOONY LEFT WILL LOSE EVERYTHING AND NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN. “Many collections were built during colonial times, but I’m not tilting at windmills, trying to undo history,” he said. 69-94. Whenever people worry about looting, there is an implicit sense that the looter must necessarily be acting selfishly, ‘opportunistically,’ and in excess.”. Isis’s cultural atrocities “will put an end to the excess piety in favour of the repatriation model”, he told the New York Times. “On a less abstract level there is a practical and tactical benefit to looting. Black lives splatter! As for the second group, the DCMS is offering a more formal form for businesses to fill out in order to provide their perspective on the ethics of making money off loot boxes. This is so sad. One Author's Controversial View: 'In Defense Of Looting' : Code Switch In her provocative book, writer Vicky Osterweil argues that looting is a tool to bring about change in society. Zane In acquiring these illicit antiquities, museums failed to do due diligence in determining the authenticity and provenance of objects. “The Hanuman first surfaced on the market while Cambodia was in the midst of a war and facing genocide,” she said. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. I don’t blame you, JAS. case studies and encourages active engagement with your instructors and fellow learners, just like an actual class. When it comes to my neighborhood, I’m shooting anyone that evens strikes a match in close proximity of my property.