Hipster Internet Art Newsletter Raises Alarm About Antiquities being "Weaponized" for Political Purposes

"Hyperallergic,"  an Internet "forum for playful, serious, and radical perspectives on art and culture in the world today" has joined the Committee for Cultural Policy in taking on fantastical claims about ISIS funding itself with looted antiquities, albeit from a far different perspective.  Tellingly, the post by archaeologist Michael Press -- though well researched-- avoids the elephant in the room.  Who was responsible for "weaponizing" antiquities in the first place?  The ISIS killing machine was bad enough to justify military intervention, particularly given its terror threats not only in the region but to Europe and the US as well.  

Of course, the answer is quite apparent to those who represent the interests of collectors, museums and the trade.  It is the State Department's Cultural Heritage Center, which worked along with ASOR, the  State Department contractor mentioned in the article, and the Antiquities Coalition, a well-funded archaeological advocacy group with ties to ASOR, the Archaeological Institute of America, as well as authoritarian Arab regimes. These groups were quite successful in laundering their dubious narrative not only through mainstream media (NY Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CBS, etc.) but through the foreign policy establishment as well (think tanks and Foreign Policy Magazine).  The goal was threefold.  First, getting Congress to pass permanent import restrictions on Syrian cultural goods (which was achieved through these scare tactics).  Second, creating and funding an "Antiquities Czar" position that would elevate these groups' influence even further within the US Government.  (A goal that was not realized.)  Third, convincing Congress to lower the bar for criminal prosecutions based on foreign cultural patrimony laws.  (Another  goal that was not realized.) Meanwhile, those representing the interests of collectors, museums and the trade that raised the exact same issues about the credibility of these fantastical numbers early on have become targets for abuse from some of the very same individuals Press acknowledges for their contributions in exposing the truth.  

Special Report on Grossly Overstated Claims that ISIS Funds itself with Antiquities Sales.

The Committee for Cultural Policy has issued a report demonstrating how news media and advocacy groups associated with the archaeological lobby have spread disinformation (including some from Russian and Syrian sources) about the value of artifacts looted by ISIS.  A must read.

Reality or Just More Russian Propaganda?

Russia's UN Ambassador is pointing his finger at Turkey as the trans-shipment point for $150-$200 million in antiquities stolen by ISIS.  The material is then supposedly sold on Western (not Russian) Internet auction sites.  But the total value of all artifacts of possible Middle Eastern origin listed on those sites must be a very small fraction of this number (which itself appears greatly exaggerated).

Are the Russian UN Ambassador's claims based on reality or are they just more propaganda aimed at Assad's enemy, Turkey, and the West and its Internet-based economy?

Update (4/10/16):  It looks like Russia's UN Ambassador has mistaken the value of the legitimate trade for the value of antiquities looted by ISIS.   CPO will let its readers decide whether this was an honest mistake or not.

Assad No Friend of Palmyra and its People

French archaeologist Annie Sartre-Fauriat explains that Palmyra is just another pawn for Assad and his regime.  According to Sartre-Fauriat, Assad's military first bombarded the site and then looted it, before abandoning it to ISIS in the hopes that what ISIS would do to the site would help encourage Western intervention on Assad's behalf.  That didn't happen, but Assad's and Putin's propaganda machines have made the most out of Palmyra's recapture.   Of course, Palmyra and its modern population are best out of ISIS' hands, but Assad's record is far from ideal.