PLUNDERING PALESTINE - Jerusalem Quarterly

epatriating antiquities are still extremely divided. The Palestinians say that the
Israelis promised them a list of all artefacts taken from the territories in preparation
for repatriation, while the Israelis say the list is only for archaeological sites that
have been excavated, which has been already provided to the relevant Palestinian
authorities.
Palestinians use the Egyptian example as precedence for their claims. In 1994, Israel
returned to Egypt all antiquities from excavations conducted in Sinai since 1967, up
to the last pottery sherd, accompanied by scientific reports, drawings and photos. The
Israeli government recognized that the proper place for those antiquities is in Sinai,
but it remains to be seen if the antiquities of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip will be
repatriated in the same manner.
In the meantime, measures must be taken to prevent looting and the loss of
irreplaceable archaeological sites to the advancement of the Wall. Isolating sites
from their natural surroundings and excavating them in a hasty manner are not
acceptable archaeological preservation and protection methods. The Wall is damaging
archaeological sites and alienating the Palestinian people from their cultural heritage.
The World Archaeological Congress warned of this in 7 January, 2004, to no avail. If
left unchecked, these problems will evolve into a diminished future for a people that
have long flourished from their rich cultural heritage.
Adel H. Yahya is the director of the Palestinian Association for Cultural Exchange (PACE). For
more information, see www.pace.ps.
Endnotes
1
See David Ilan, U. Dahari and G. Avni, “Plundered!
The Rampant Rape of Israel’s Archaeological Sites,”
Biblical Archaeological Review (March/April) 38-
41.
2
Morag Kersel, “Archaeology’s Well Kept Secret:
The Managed Antiquities Market,” in SOMA 2003,
Symposium on Mediterranean Archaeology, eds.
C. Briault, J. Green, A. Kaldelis, Anna Stellatou
(Oxford: BAR International Series 1391, 2005) 81.
3
L. Borodkin, “The Economics of Antiquities
Looting and a Proposed Legal Alternative,”
Columbia Law Review 95, 377.
4
Dan Ephron, “The Tomb Raiders,” 2001,
http:www.msnbc.com/news/585402.asp?cp1=1.
5
See Megan Goldin, “Grave Robbers Ransack
Holy Land History. Hundreds of Archaeological
Sites Raided Every Year. http://www.msnbc.msn.
com/id/6718151, accessed 3 Sept., 2005.
6
Mark Schulman, “Rise in Antiquities Theft
Vexes Israel’s Indiana Joneses,” Christian Science
Monitor, 14 November, 2001, http.//www.csmonitor.
com/2002/1114/p18s01-stgn.html.
7
James Pritchard (1909-1997) led excavations in
al-Jib (Gibeon) from 1957-1962. A highly-respected
archaeologist and professor at the University of
Pennsylvania, Pritchard would almost certainly
not have engaged in activities he considered illegal.
However, the villager’s comment highlights the
way that a zeal for acquisition of artefacts –perhaps
particularly in the school of Biblical archaeology
–creates a demand that encourages illegal digging,
whether in the 1950s or today.
8
Scholman.
[ 54 ] FEATURES VieLooting and ‘Salvaging’