tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8972497915033440413.post8117269499676955656..comments2024-03-20T18:15:41.858+00:00Comments on Looting Matters: Egyptian Cultural Heritage: the wider perspectiveDavid Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13164794689385933318noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8972497915033440413.post-49165093667412307592011-02-28T19:19:41.507+00:002011-02-28T19:19:41.507+00:00Frankly, there also needs to be more concern expre...Frankly, there also needs to be more concern expressed about reports that substantial amounts of money was diverted from Egyptian archaeology into the pockets of corrupt Mubarak Government officials. US Government and private sources alone have spent millions in foreign aid and payments for travelling exhibits and TV shows. This should have gone to Egyptian archaeology instead of the lifestyles of Egypt's government elite. It's a bit disconcerting that these allegations stopped after Egyptian Antiquities Minister Hawass announced 1,000 new jobs for Egyptian archaeological students. Such allegations should be investigated rather than swept under the rug.Cultural Property Observerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05924359202414555962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8972497915033440413.post-3038399658821828802011-02-28T06:07:04.459+00:002011-02-28T06:07:04.459+00:00There were and are plenty of archaeologists who ar...There were and are plenty of archaeologists who are all too aware of the connection between archaeology and politics. Riggs just chooses to look selectively. For instance, the role of Zahi Hawas has been discussed/criticized extensively. Anyway, in a crisis situation one has little choice but to focus on the immediate concerns of protection of artifacts and sites. Are archaeologists saints? No. Can some of them be heavy-handed and arrogant? You betcha. Do they betray cultural bias of any kind? Of course, Egyptian as well as foreign ones in this case. It is very easy to halt all discussion by invoking colonialism and such but we don't live in a perfect world. There are greedy museums, art dealers rely too much on looting, quite a few archaeologists seem only interested in their career, some governments of archaeologically-rich countries wield ideological axes: all true. However, give underemployed, continuously-caught-between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place archaeologists a break already.Francis Deblauwehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13297356316149597185noreply@blogger.com