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Evolving New Strategies for Conserving Cultural Properties,  a special seminar organized by Duane Anderson, School for Advanced Research, May 18-22, 1997

Participants

Michael Cernea
Sociology & Social Policy, World Bank, Washington, DC
"Economics of Conserving Cultural Heritage"

Margaret MacLean
Getty Conservation Institute, Los Angeles, CA
"Fostering Preservation and Conservation of Cultural Heritage"

David Matsuda
California State University, Hayward, CA
"Huecheros: The Anthropology of Looters"

Souren Melikian
Art Editor, Paris Herald-Tribune
"Collector's Philosophy"

Jolm Morris
Commissioner of Archaeology, Belize
"Relationship of Cultural Heritage to National Economies"

Richard A. Shweder
University of Chicago, IL
"Understanding 'Cultural Heritage' within Diverse World Views"

Gerald Stiebel
Owner, Rosenberg & Stiebel, New York, NY
Dealer's Perspective

Martin Sullivan,
Director, Heard Museum, Phoenix, AZ
"Museums and the Public Interest"

Rina Swentzell
Lecturer, educator, and consultant, Santa Fe, NM
"Conservation and Preservation: An Indigenous Perspective"

Alison Wylie
University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario
"Cross-Cultural Perspective on Philosophical Issues"

Vernon Scarborough
University of Cincinnati, Ohio
"An Archaeologist's Perspective"

Summary

Conserving Cultural Properties

A special seminar was held in May 1997 to examine the worldwide crisis brought about by the market for antiquities illicitly removed from ancient sites. Ten individuals representing widely different points of view met at the School in an effort to understand the broad issues related to the loss of cultural properties worldwide. Participants were selected to represent Native peoples, strategies of developing countries, collectors, dealers, subsistence diggers, museums, archaeologists, conservationists, economic development strategies, and cross cultural perspectives on ethical philosophical issues. "Cultural property" is seen as a highly constructed (primarily Western) concept with different meaning to different interest groups across the spectrum examined by conference participants. Participants' perspectives ranged from doing nothing to stem the rampant looting across the globe, to massive economic programs  and other forms of intervention. The group is currently preparing a volume on the seminar discussing various issues underlying the cultural properties debate.

The seminar was sponsored with a grant from the Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw Charitable Trust.

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