Cultural Terrorism

Huge and ancient, beautifully carved statues in the side of a rock face. . . in the middle of Afghanistan, stood the towering Buddha for Bamiyan. An excellent tourist site, a prize to the locals. How could it be possible that this incredible and unique world heritage site could become a target for terrorism? Buddhism is known in much of the world for its peaceful nature, so why would its cultural relics become a target for such hatred and destruction? Well part of it has to do with who was targeting it. . .


In 2001 the Taliban targeted this unique and historic site completely destroying the Buddha. The Taliban are well known for their violent actions based on their extremist beliefs. In this case
they made a statement that was heard around the world, by Mullah Omar:

"The real God is only Allah, and all other false gods should be removed."

The Taliban made a statement in 2001 claiming that they would destroy all pre-Islamic statues in the country. Not only did they destroy this site but they went on a rampage defacing as many icons as possible associated with the pre-Islamic cultures.

What I find especially interesting is the insight into the perspective of the Taliban who targeted this artifact to terrorize and destroy the livelihood of the locals who lived there. It is really truly disturbing what they did in order to make a point. Talk about the ethical issue here. This is a blatant attack on a specific group of people and a cultural identity. It was such a statement that some of the locals were forced to plant the dynamite in their very own religious icon.

Such actions are referred to as cultural terrorism: one of the other issues facing archaeologists is the definition of cultural terrorism and how exactly is the best way to stop it. There are many such instances of defacing artifacts that have some sort of cultural affiliation with a group of people who become targeted by a terrorist group. Even misunderstandings of their own cultural history can cause people to deface their own history. When I was in Belize, our tour guide pointed out the machete marks all over different stela (historical markers of the Mayan civilization). He then explained that local gangs would destroy these artifacts to prove a point. This is at a much smaller scale than what happened with the Buddhas. But it does pose a question:

What can we do to stop such discrimination and violence?  It really becomes an interdisciplinary problem. Archaeologists cannot do this alone. As a UNESCO world heritage site this holds a level of universal problems because it is not just one country it involves multiple countries and cultures.

Even over ten years later the questions still rage, what is to become of the Buddha's?  The livelihood of the people who live there. . . Rebuild or not? Rebuilding what does that mean? It may be a slight band aid on the bigger problem. Does rebuilding solve the problem of the Taliban? Does it solve the problem of cultural terrorism? What do you think??

Nazi or Nice?

Holocaust Memorial in Berlin

Okay so obviously I am posting a lot today. . . But anyway, remember how I said earlier that thing about Nazis stealing your artifacts? Well now I've got a bigger ethical problem for you, and it's pretty reminiscent of Indiana Jones's famous quote (probably only famous to the avid Indiana Jones fans here but whatever) "Nazi's I hate Nazis." And all joking and movie referencing aside, the horrors that the Nazi's inflicted on fellow humans was atrocious and still influences our society today. Recently there has been a trend in the excavation of Nazi extermination and other camps. And if you find yourself nodding along with the need to understand the ins and outs (every little contextual detail) of what went on in these camps. . . then this is where we get to the ethical question. (Here's some very very detailed information on the topic: http://www.presentpasts.info/article/view/pp.12/2)




Excavation of Sobibor

Last semester one of my fellow archaeology buddies and I discussed ethical issues of archaeology and ones that we felt were important to us personally. It ranged from someone who had encountered an issue of how to deal with a body while on excavation (and the field excavation leader didn't handle it well at ALL) to an issue of a stolen artifact that was on display in a local museum. While discussing we came to the topic of post WWII excavations of extermination camps.  Not a topic one really thinks about when you think archaeology. Usually archaeology people think OLD and really WWII wasn't that long ago (my grandpa is still alive and he was in US air force). How can something so recent become an archaeological project? Well as a matter of fact archaeology can be very very recent. However, when it gets to be so recent more problems arise. The remains of people you are digging up probably have living relatives, and what about their things that you find when you are excavating? Do those get returned to the family, as a sort of 'I'm sorry' and here's something to remember them by? Or do they get put in a museum? Such questions aren't always as difficult as in this situation. . . because when it comes to the Nazi's very deliberate extermination of the Jewish people and political enemies. . . there is no way to truly comprehend or make up for the horrors that happened there. 

Skeleton from Auschwitz

If I'm going to be brutally honest, there is absolutely NO need to go and excavate any of these death camps any further.  Why? You ask. Surely we are losing some sort of valuable information.  And so I ask you. . . is that all archaeology is? Getting information without thinking or feeling the moral repercussions of your actions? If you say yes then. . . we will have to agree to disagree. But I honestly think it is unwise if not impossible to separate your morals and emotions from such a charged topic.  As an archaeologist can you be okay with excavating a mass grave, where the descendants of those buried there want them to remain undisturbed and in peace?

Excavating mass graves will only provide a more exact body count. The Nazis were meticulous in their destruction and documentation. We DON'T need to know any more, we have so much already documented. . . and we have first-hand accounts. Why disregard the phrase "rest in peace" and dig up a history we already are well aware of. I'm not saying don't acknowledge the Holocaust, not at all! Because it is important to know and to be aware of that human history. . . but to dredge up the bones of people merely to get some sort of satisfaction out of excavating a extermination camp is completely unnecessary, and quite possibly immoral.

If it is knowledge you seek, we have it. . . if there is something else you seek in your excavations. . . perhaps think before you shovel.

Professionals and Amateurs

When it gets down to the nitty-gritty of archaeology and excavations the difference between having experience/professionalism and having none at all (aka destroying a site) can be very problematic. I’ve been on a ranch where the owner of the ranch gave some children a pick and said "happy hunting." With huge grins on their faces these kids immediately began to hack away at the dirt with gusto. On a ranch so well known for their fossils it wasn’t long before they’d found something. Grown-ups crowded around and cheered as the kids began to uncover bones. All were enthusiastic, not one paused to think about what was actually happening as the kids hacked the bones to pieces in their eagerness . . . When it was through all that remained were small pieces of bones. It had once been a frill of a triceratops (not archaeology but rather paleontology, however . . . similar principles apply here). Do you see a problem with this picture?

It wasn’t so much the fact that the kids were doing the excavation, as it was the whole experience and lack of instruction. I mean I’m all for hands on experience and for kids being involved in the excavation process . . . Growing up I would definitely be one of those kids -- excavations and buried treasure were completely fascinating to me. But seriously there are some things that need to be kept in mind. And there is a difference between good excavation experiences and bad ones. No matter your level of education in archaeology or paleontology, there is one thing that should be universal, and that is education. In order to be a "professional archaeologist" you go to school and are taught proper techniques. But that shouldn’t limit or exclude others from being involved in the learning and in the fun. What should matter IS the supervision during the excavation and the use of that time to teach proper field techniques and ethics. There are some excavations where yes primarily professional archaeologists should probably be the only ones in charge (due to the sensitivity of the excavation or the technical difficulties for inexperienced) . . . but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t opportunities to teach people interested in archaeology the necessary techniques of proper excavation. After all that’s how professional archaeologists learn, they are taught by others who had more experience and who were "experts."

But just because people have experience doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ve been properly trained. There are people who have a lot of experience doing something but who use antiquated methods or don’t take into account important aspects of excavation (including the perspectives of the locals who live near or sometimes even on or in the site of interest and whose livelihoods could be affected by the excavation process). Some different terms are connected loosely with these different types of people (and depending on the term used can have a positive or a negative connotation): professional archaeologist, amateur archaeologist, artifact collector, and antiquities dealer. All of these people are involved in archaeology to some extent and find the concept to be a fascinating one either from the knowledge they gain, the experience they have or the profit they get through the sale of antiquities.

Anyway what I guess I’m trying to get at, is there are all different kinds of people involved in the field of archaeology, and just because it says professional doesn’t mean you conduct excavations ethically and just because it says amateur does it make you any less qualified in the field . . . what really matters is the education, the true attention to detail, and respect (for the site, the documentation and people). The article that got me thinking: (http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.usc.edu/stable/25670987?seq=1)

Hello World!

Clinging for dear life, I bounced around in a passenger van. . . which was certainly not prepared for these types of roads -- or rather lack of road-- I couldn't help but stare out at the scenery and think: "This is it! I am Indiana Jones." There was no denying it. I was living the life of the great adventurer I'd enjoyed watching so many times on TV. True, I was lacking the fedora and whip, but I was armed with the first of my archaeology degree classes under my belt. We were rapidly approaching Mayan ruins in the jungles of Belize: Lubaantun. It was pretty un-belize-able.

Then we had to get out of the van and I was smacked with the realization that all this was NOT as glamorous as it seemed. A layer of perspiration and sweat immediately covered everyone without  much physical activity and then the flies descended!  Being food for flies and swimming in your own sweat don't really make the list of things a person thinks about when it comes to Indiana Jones -- or archaeology. Reality hits hard on that first dig.

But the view, oh it was wonderful! The jungle canopy opened to reveal mounds upon mounds of stone rubble and in other areas, reconstructed ball courts and walls. Thinking back now it still takes my breath away. It was more than just the awe-inspiring monuments that surrounded us on all sides; it was about being a part of history. We were a part of uncovering and paving a path for others to learn from what we had documented on our trip (and the valuable knowledge we gained from archaeologists like Keith Prufer). Now THIS was archaeology.

To be honest, this is how it has been for me since I lifted the veil on the field of archaeology. The journey has never been disappointing it has been full of surprises and more complications than you'd initially think (kinda like booby-traps). You learn to take those trade-offs of sitting in the sun, baking, hours on end, the back-breaking work of shoveling or sifting the dirt you shoveled just in case you missed some microscopic nothing (which could actually be something so huge that it could be THE thing to make your site or research unique) in order to find that new site or even just brush some dirt off of an old stone. . . because hey, you probably are the first to see it since the place fell to ruin. And that's when you know you've got the bug.

This blog will focus on some of the moral and ethical questions facing archaeologists and the future of archaeology. Surprise you? What kind of ethical issues could possibly be associated with good ole Indiana Jones? Well I've got some news for you! The ethics associated with archaeology are a lot more complicated than you would imagine. It really seems so straight forward; I mean outside of the "bad guys" and Nazi's trying to steal your artifacts what other problems could you run into? Through looking at current and past news articles, and even citing some of my own personal experiences, my blog will explore the current hot-button issues of archaeology. I will address looting, the black market and artifacts, cultural and burial practices versus excavation, targeted attacks of World Heritage sites and use of archaeologically protected sites for military camps, as well as museum displays built by stolen and controversial artifacts (like the Getty Villa).


Last semester I was introduced to the ethics of archaeology for the first time. In that class we used the book by Jason Felch and Ralph Frammolino "Chasing Aphrodite": The Hunt for Looted Antiquities at the World's Richest Museum," as a case study. Their research into the Medici and other black market ties with the Getty Museum became a spring board for us as we were catapulted into a semester long adventure attempting to find controversial archaeological issues. And then we would discuss the ethics of how we (as the future of archaeology) thought these situations should be handled, or to applaud the work of those who had made good decisions.


Anyway that's about it for now! I hope you got a good hold of your whip and fedora because this is going to be bumpier than Disneyland's Temple of the Forbidden Eye.