Plundering Africa's Past

by Schmidt, Peter R.; McIntosh, Roderick J.

• ISBN13: 9780253210548
• ISBN10: 0253210542
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1996-07-01
• Publisher: Indiana Univ Pr

Summary

"An important book at a time when the booming illicit trade in African antiquities and the despoiling of some of the continent's prime archeological sites generate little concern in the art world." -- Foreign Affairs"This benchmark publication challenges all of us to be part of the solution. Plundering Africa's Past cannot help but raise the level of discourse and consciousness about the looting problem, what needs to be done to stop it and about the relationship between Africa and the West." -- African Studies Review"Plundering Africa's Past should be required reading for all archaeologists, historians, art historians, museum curators, and government officials involved in the cultural heritages of Africa, as well as most countries and continents with a disappearing past." -- H-Net Book ReviewAfrican government and museum officials, members of international agencies, academics, and journalists examine why the African past is disappearing at a rate perhaps unmatched in any other part of the world. Each looks at the international network of looting and trafficking from a different perspective. Here, for the first time, is a frank indictment of African contributions to the problem -- voiced by the distinguished African essayists. The book concludes with a discussion of specific steps that could halt the disappearance of Africa's art and antiquities.

Author Biography

PETER R. SCHMIDT is the former Director of the Center for African Studies and Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Florida. RODERICK J. MCINTOSH is Professor of Anthropology at Rice University.

Table of Contents

Preface
The African Past Endangered	p. 1
The Human Right to a Cultural Heritage: African Applications	p. 18
Saving the Heritage: UNESCO's Action against Illicit Traffic in Africa	p. 29
Just Say Shame: Excising the Rot of Cultural Genocide	p. 45
A View Inside the Illicit Trade in African Antiquities	p. 63
The Fight Against the Plundering of Malian Cultural Heritage and Illicit Exportation: National Efforts and International Cooperation	p. 79
U.S. Efforts in the Protection of Cultural Property: Implementation of the 1970 UNESCO Convention	p. 87
Africa's Vanishing Cultural Heritage: Reflections of an American Cultural Diplomat	p. 94
A Conservation Dilemma Over African Royal Art in Cameroon	p. 99
Past as Prologues: Empowering Africa's Cultural Institutions	p. 110
Nigerian Art as Endangered Species	p. 125
Coping with Collapse in the 1990s: West African Museums, Universities, and National Patrimonies	p. 143
How Accurate are Interpretations of African Objects in Western Museums?	p. 161
Whose Cultural Heritage? Conflicts and Contradictions in the Conservation of Historic Structures, Towns, and Rock Art in Tanzania	p. 170
The Deterioration and Destruction of Archaeological and Historical Sites in Tanzania	p. 191
Kenya's Destruction of the Swahili Cultural Heritage	p. 201
Preservation of Cultural Heritage on the East African Coast	p. 225
Starting from Scratch: The Past, Present, and Future Management of Somalia's Cultural Heritage	p. 250
List of States Party to the 1970 UNESCO Convention	p. 261
Contributors	p. 263
Index	p. 266
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