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Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Cary Salsberg who wrote (70263)	5/7/2003 1:57:33 PM
From: Sun Tzu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

Interesting perspective. I suppose one can always counter that future generations may have research in mind that has not been done yet. Because the Baghdad museum had artifacts that went back to the dawn of civilization, they serve as a reference point in all respects. For example it is not just the artistic expression that is important, nor even the anthropological references to gods and what not. Studying the material these artifacts are made of also serves as a reference point for industrial development. But you do make a good point. I would say that museums which are hard pressed for cash, should consider recreating the artifacts and selling the originals if they can use the money to do research which will further the human knowledge in their area. ST

To: Cary Salsberg who wrote (70263)	5/8/2003 4:42:59 AM
From: zonder	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

make permanent recordings and/or copies of the artifacts to be kept for posterity, sell the artifacts to the highest bidder, and use the money to improve the lot of the world and its people. (1) Not everything is money, you know. Some of us would say that enabling millions of visitors to see the cultural heritage of the world in museums has no price. (2) What does "Improve the world & its people" mean exactly? Sell archeological treasures, get money. And then, uh, build schools? factories? food aid? Is there no money available for such charitable work in the world? British Museum in London and Louvre in Paris are the literal centers of cultural life, not to mention the millions of tourists whose lives are richer after the two days or so it takes to visit these museums. In fact, these museums do the exact opposite of your proposition - they keep the originals and sell exact copies. Isn't that a better idea?