How might looting affect archaeological interpretations? (use
specific examples from the documentary)
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Looting prevents proper archaeological interpretations by destroying
contextual data that is essential for understanding the historical
importance of items and locations. It eliminates the historical
framework that historians need in order to reconstruct events in terms
of time, place, and culture.
How has looting been unintentionally beneficial to a study of Maya
archaeology (use specific examples from the documentary)
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Although looting is essentially harmful to archaeological study, it has
accidentally helped researchers gain some understanding of Maya
archaeology by bringing to their attention previously unrecognized
objects. When properly recorded and analyzed, recovered stole objects
have occasionally enhanced our understanding of Maya culture and
trade networks by illuminating aspects of their society that traditional
investigation could have missed.
Imagine you are a graduate student studying Maya hieroglyphs (in a
world where jobs are few and you have significant student loans).
Suddenly a ceramic vessel appears in a private collection in
Guatemala that you become aware of. On the surface of this ceramic
artifact is a hieroglyphic sequence that appears to allow you to
translate the verb "to go to war" for the first time. Do you use this
artifact in your research, dissertation, and publications knowing
that the artifact has been looted from an archaeological site? If so
why? if not why? (You may want to utilize the Society for American
Archaeology Ethical Guidelines. in your response, but you don't have
to)
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Because of the ethical standards established by the Society for
American Archaeology, I would not utilize the stolen item in my
research, dissertation, or publications. The importance of maintaining
archaeological context, honoring cultural heritage, and deterring
unlawful behaviors associated with looting are emphasized in these
principles. Utilizing such an artifact would go against these ideals and
might support the continued illicit antiquities trade, hurting attempts to
preserve cultural heritage and indigenous people.
