Sunday, May 26, 2013
Egypt: Knowing Your Source
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One might have thought that collectors buying from those dealers who buy right from the source, from the digger-uppers of artefacts might be saved from the indignity of getting a fake with their "freshly-surfaced" (from underground) items. It seems that one cannot even count on that these days. There is no honour among culture thieves it seems. Over in dug-up land Egypt, we find the source contaminated by fakes, if one can believe the latest report (Nevine El-Aref, 'Seventy Egyptian artefacts found in illegal possession are authenticated', Al-Ahram Tuesday 19 Jun 2012). The Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Police (TAP) was searching for artefacts that were reported missing from several archaeological sites in Egypt in the aftermath of the recent breakdown in order in the country. The... [via Paul Barford]
One might have thought that collectors buying from those dealers who buy right from the source, from the digger-uppers of artefacts might be saved from the indignity of getting a fake with their "freshly-surfaced" (from underground) items. It seems that one cannot even count on that these days. There is no honour among culture thieves it seems. Over in dug-up land Egypt, we find the source contaminated by fakes, if one can believe the latest report (Nevine El-Aref, 'Seventy Egyptian artefacts found in illegal possession are authenticated', Al-Ahram Tuesday 19 Jun 2012). The Egyptian Tourism and Antiquities Police (TAP) was searching for artefacts that were reported missing from several archaeological sites in Egypt in the aftermath of the recent breakdown in order in the country. The... [via Paul Barford]
