The Importance Of Art Artifacts

In the second story that I’ve read called Museums Preserve the Cultures of The World says that “sometimes museums agree that it is appropriate to return these items, but sometimes the other museums don’t return the items back to the right museums that

Historic treasures and artifacts are often donated to or purchased by other nations to place in their museums. Often museums are given the objects with full cooperation from the originating country, but sometimes they are stolen or given for protection such as in a time of war. When nations want the artifacts returned it can cause a disagreement with the other nations of who the rightful owner is.

In December 2002, the directors of 18 museums located throughout Europe and the United States issued the Declaration of the Importance and Value of Universal Museums. The declaration is an attempt, by the directors of major Western museums, to defend against demands for restitution of museum objects by defining themselves as “universal museums” which are of value to all of humanity. This document fails as a convincing defence against restitution claims for several reasons. First, it dismisses circumstances of older acquisitions without considering the ethics or legality of surrounding the acquisition. Second, while it pronounces these museums “universal,” it approaches this from a distinctly Western perspective and perpetuates colonial and imperialist ideas. Finally, it ignores important debates that are occurring between and within scholarly, professional, and activist communities.

Many people visit museums to view antiquities. They enjoy seeing these relics of the ancient world as a way of understanding past cultures and sometimes connecting with their own heritage. This evidence was found in the passage, “Returning Antiquities to Their Countries of Origin” by Joyce Mortimer paragraph 1. Cultural artifacts should not be returned to their region of origin because some people don’t have enough money to travel to China or Brazil to go look at ancient artifacts from the past. So they should bring these ancient trinkets to places like America and Canada so people around the world can study different cultures to learn more about the life around use.

Museums are filled with unique,historical artifacts that are precious to our history throughout the world. These “traveling exhibits” give people around the world an opportunity to see how our ancestors lived in many different regions of the world. Many artifacts are far away from their country of origin 7.In the articles “Bring Them Home”and “Museums Preserve the Cultures of the World,” people argue that museums should return certain artifacts to its original country, while others believes it’s only right to keep them considering the originating country rightfully sold those artifacts.In my opinion, countries should bring some artifacts back to their originating country.

These issues with museums and other institutions has led many tribes to not only protest these collections and demand the most sacred items back, but to also develop their own institution that not only tell the real story of their people from a non scientific point of view, but also show the proper resect for the sacred and religious artifacts. Religious sights and objects are a piece of many different groups culture, many of which require a certain level of respect. Within the United States Native American groups are reclaiming these objects for their own

Countless art has been sought-after throughout history. Explorers, scientists, art collectors, politicians, and entrepreneurs from Western nations have sought out and removed art from the lands of great civilizations, often with the assistance and participation of local people and governments. Even as cultural property faces immediate danger today in conflict zones like Syria and Mali, there is circumstantial evidence that some nations are awakening to the political and foreign policy benefits that can flow from the repatriation of cultural patrimony. While on a different scale from World War II, historic structures, religious monuments, and other priceless ancient times continue to suffer collateral damage and manipulation in armed conflict. Relics have been stolen, smuggled and sold in what is a reported multibillion dollar underground market. They have become the illicit prizes of private collectors and the subject of legal claims against museums. Of the countless museums subject to legal claims, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City happens to be one of them. “The Metropolitan Museum has acquired thousands of works and objects of art from the antiquities”. “For the past several years, the government of Turkey has warned U.S. and foreign museums (including The Metropolitan Museum of Art), that unless ancient objects from Turkish soil are given up on demand, Turkey will stop lending artworks” (The Committee for Cultural Policy, 2015). Turkey continues to up the

The issue of artifacts that have been taken from their original homes has started some global debate. Some may say that the artifacts need to be returned to their place of origin or who found them. They may also say that there are laws saying that the artifacts should be returned. Others may say that no matter who the objects belong to the artifacts should remain in museums around the world. Artifacts should not be returned to their nations of origins.

Politics within nations and communities influences the finding of art artifacts and the eventual explanation of the art artifacts because they decide who has the right to claim it. If an archeologist finds an artifact that belongs to a nation or community and has significance, then the archaeologist can’t claim it. This can cause archaeologists and art historians to feel a certain pressure within their research projects because they can’t retaliate if a community claims the artifact they’ve been researching and studying. However, when the rightful community claims the artifact, they may be able to add insight into the meaning of the artifact because it belongs to them so they may know more about

Many works of art can be considered artifacts that hold volumes of information regarding the culture of the people that created them and the historical context in which they lived.

In Steven Lubar’s book, Inside the Lost Museum: Curating, Past and Present, the recurring idea that museums are “more than the sum of their parts” plays a critical role in the overall argument (329). Lubar notes many aspects that make up a museum, the collection, for example is an essential part of any museum, but the community, as well as the experiences of the patrons create a lasting museum experience. Additionally, Lubar aptly utilizes real-world examples, contemporary and historical, highlighting the work of individuals in museums and establishing a connection between past and current events. Central to this narrative is the example of the lost Jenks Museum. Lubar uses this museum to argue that museums of the past can educate museum goers

Antiques, they are hundreds, maybe thousands years old, but what if someone just took them from you. You would want them back, right? This valuable prized possession, someone just, stole. Well, imagine it a bit more extreme. That has been the major problem in Egypt for many years. Britain, France, and other surrounding countries have been stealing major antiquities from Egypt illegally for a long time. These countries should give back Egypt’s antiquities because, they deserve to be in their country of origin, these artifacts represent Egyptian culture, and Egyptian antiquities are not only limited to staying in the pyramids.

Throughout the experience, I learned the importance and care of working with an artifact along with operations within a museum. As I toured Heartland Museum, I witnessed all of the items that are stored behind the scenes because museums only keep a small percentage of the belongings on display. I also learned about the process of creating a display, which includes piecing together many details like attraction, relevance, and of course history. Museums must worry about the community’s interest in the displays. Lastly, I learned about the importance of an artifact by working with some of the items. It is important to handle artifacts with care because of the fragility of the item. After the information I learned at the museum, it was my turn to experience the public

However, artifacts should not be repatriated to the countries of their origin because museums are to educate people about different places, things, objects, cultures, and eras. If the artifact is donated then the museum’s highest priority is to honor the donor’s wishes. And if the museum found the artifact(s) in a foreign country, then it should stay with museum

In the article, Conspicuous Consumption by Melanie Townsend, she talks about how, as a society, we have developed a compulsive need towards accumulating collections and material items without any regard for the repercussions of our actions. Museums are caught between keeping relevant in today’s changing global environment and the need to protect, preserve and be the keeper of public collections in a way that upholds their mandate. One of the points that I found most interesting was about the Glenbow Museum and Smithsonian actively linking their collections. However, it was also pointed out that even though the Glenbow has been a leader in beginning repatriation, they then turned around and hosted an exhibition that conflicts with the good things