http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite4_24122_24/06/2011_395882
Friday, June 24, 2011
ekathimerini.com | Illicit antiquities trade continues to thrive in Greece
This article highlights the issues of thefts, which are a problem around the world, not just Greece. It's why I'm working on creating a publicly accessible database of photos of looted archaeological artefacts. Looting of archaeological sites and thefts from museums are an ongoing problem, and need to be dealt with before claims of restitution whether of the Elgin Marbles, Rosetta Stone or Nefretiti.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Roman gladiator's gravestone blames poor refereeing for losing a key battle¿ and his life | Mail Online
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2006161/Roman-gladiators-gravestone-blames-poor-refereeing-losing-key-battle-life.html
I always love the Daily Mail coverage of these stories ...
Thursday, June 16, 2011
"Fear" for Libya’s Roman Archaeological Sites
Another day, another news story ...
So here's a clarification via Blackberry:
Anti-Gadaffi Libyan archaeologists have told me that there is graffiti but no damage to the sites in western Libya, and claims of them being used as military encampments by the regime digging in are not true.
From the Allied side I am being told by a very senior aide, off the record, that everything possible will be done to avoid hitting archaeological sites in Libya.
Looting: Egypt, Libya, The Medici Archive etc
I've been working on a database of looted and potentially looted archaeological material, because none seem to exist and after the problems earlier this year in Egypt, and the potential issues in Libya (my latest update is that there is a lot of graffiti at archaeological sites in Western Libya but no serious damage) ... one is badly needed.
Initial conversations seem to be ... well everyone's getting political, and frankly is 'sitting' on their own material without sharing it, which kinda defeats the purpose of having photos as they are not doing any good if others don't know about them.
I've dropped a few people emails as a courtesy to let them know I'm starting to put in Freedom of Information requests to get access to the photographs. If anyone wants to help, either by sharing photos they have or by suggesting where to direct FOI requests, please do drop me a line at Dorothy.lists[at]Gmail.com
Initial conversations seem to be ... well everyone's getting political, and frankly is 'sitting' on their own material without sharing it, which kinda defeats the purpose of having photos as they are not doing any good if others don't know about them.
I've dropped a few people emails as a courtesy to let them know I'm starting to put in Freedom of Information requests to get access to the photographs. If anyone wants to help, either by sharing photos they have or by suggesting where to direct FOI requests, please do drop me a line at Dorothy.lists[at]Gmail.com
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
NATO, Libya, Weapons, etc
I have this information from a Libyan colleague I have known for decades and trust: "
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Disaster in Naples ...
Before (source)
After (source)
After all the problems recently in Pompeii, with houses collapsing, I'm sorry to report that two early Ptolemaic obsidian cups were destroyed at the National Archaeological Museum in Naples in an accident. The exact reason why they 'fell' is unclear, but they are now smashed to smithereens ... They were excavated at the villa San Marco di Castellammare (Stabiae) in 1954, and the full museum record is here. The skythos is shown in the first photograph.
What makes these cups interesting is that they were made in Egypt in the wake of Alexander the Great's conquest, then later collection by a noble Roman family whose villa complex was buried by Vesuvius in AD 79. Egyptian antiquities were also collected by Herodes Atticus, and found at his villa at Loukou in the Peloponnese. Although most of the Egyptian antiquities in Naples Museum were collected in the 19th century, a number were found in Roman contexts, and others seem to have come to Italy even earlier, to the Greek colonies. Another interesting imported item in Naples is an Indian ivory statuette of Lakshmi found in a house in Pompeii (JSTOR) - collecting is nothing new, nor is an active import-export trade.
Obsidian is formed when lava from a volcano meets saline water, but the irony is that Vesuvius' flow had preserved the cups, and modern Italian museum technology has destroyed them. Staff initially tried to cover up the incident last Sunday, but visitor rumours meant that the news finally had to be confirmed.
Napoli, crollano mensole al Museo Nazionale in frantumi due coppe di ossidiana di epoca tolemaica: danni incalcolabili - Il Mattino
After (source)
After all the problems recently in Pompeii, with houses collapsing, I'm sorry to report that two early Ptolemaic obsidian cups were destroyed at the National Archaeological Museum in Naples in an accident. The exact reason why they 'fell' is unclear, but they are now smashed to smithereens ... They were excavated at the villa San Marco di Castellammare (Stabiae) in 1954, and the full museum record is here. The skythos is shown in the first photograph.
What makes these cups interesting is that they were made in Egypt in the wake of Alexander the Great's conquest, then later collection by a noble Roman family whose villa complex was buried by Vesuvius in AD 79. Egyptian antiquities were also collected by Herodes Atticus, and found at his villa at Loukou in the Peloponnese. Although most of the Egyptian antiquities in Naples Museum were collected in the 19th century, a number were found in Roman contexts, and others seem to have come to Italy even earlier, to the Greek colonies. Another interesting imported item in Naples is an Indian ivory statuette of Lakshmi found in a house in Pompeii (JSTOR) - collecting is nothing new, nor is an active import-export trade.
Obsidian is formed when lava from a volcano meets saline water, but the irony is that Vesuvius' flow had preserved the cups, and modern Italian museum technology has destroyed them. Staff initially tried to cover up the incident last Sunday, but visitor rumours meant that the news finally had to be confirmed.
Napoli, crollano mensole al Museo Nazionale in frantumi due coppe di ossidiana di epoca tolemaica: danni incalcolabili - Il Mattino
Opinionated About Dining ...
I've been taking part in Steve Plotnicki's Opinionated About Dining project since it's days as a forum, then as a reviewer on his survey for years now. I rated enough restaurants to qualify for a copy of his newly published guide to North American restaurants, and after years of thinking of Opinionated About as an internet resource it was a bit of a shock to see a printed paper edition today.
Steve's innovation is to scrap the Zagat "one man, one vote" formula and replace it with an algorithm where people who eat out more often at good restaurants are deemed to be better informed dinners whose opinions are therefore weighted to be given priority: the more you eat out and the more you review restaurants, the more your opinion counts. Foodie 'dives' are considered just as important as chi-chi Michelin starred establishments.
The book has already sparked several spirited conversations in our household, and it only arrived this evening! If you like food, you'll love this new guide to America's best restaurants.
Opinionated about U.S. Restaurants 2011
- Amazon.co.uk
Steve's innovation is to scrap the Zagat "one man, one vote" formula and replace it with an algorithm where people who eat out more often at good restaurants are deemed to be better informed dinners whose opinions are therefore weighted to be given priority: the more you eat out and the more you review restaurants, the more your opinion counts. Foodie 'dives' are considered just as important as chi-chi Michelin starred establishments.
The book has already sparked several spirited conversations in our household, and it only arrived this evening! If you like food, you'll love this new guide to America's best restaurants.
Opinionated about U.S. Restaurants 2011
- Amazon.co.uk
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