This timely volume explores past, current, and future policies and trends concerning the sales of antiquities from pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, which are among the most popular items on the international antiquities market
This timely volume explores past, current, and future policies and trends concerning the sales of antiquities from pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, which are among the most popular items on the international antiquities market Informed by the fields of anthropology, economics, law, and criminology, contributors critically analyze past practices of research and collecting in Central American countries. They assess the circulation of looted and forged artifacts on the art market and in museums and examine government and institutional policies aimed at fighting trafficking. They also ask if and how scholars can use materials removed from their context to interpret the past. The theft of cultural heritage items from their places of origin is a topic of intense contemporary discussion, and The Market for Mesoamerica updates our knowledge of this issue by presenting undocumented and illicit antiquities within a regional and global context. Through discussion of transparency, accountability, and ethical practice, this volume ultimately considers how antiquities can be preserved and studied through effective policy and professional practice.Contributors: Cara G. Tremain | Donna Yates | Martin Berger | Allison Davis | James Doyle | Rosemary Joyce | Nancy L. Kelker | Guido Krempel | Christina Luke | Sofia Paredes Maury | Adam SellenA volume in the series Maya Studies, edited by Diane Z. Chase and Arlen F. Chase
