October 19, 2004

• If the museum staff looks at them, will their faces melt like in Raiders of the Lost Ark?
• But - A loan, renewable every five years... The museum also said that the tabots would have to remain in London. I'll lend you my marbles too, but they're staying in my pocket. Sure would like a look at these - just a photo, that wouldn't be sacrilegious would it?
• This is getting some big press recently. (economist). Seems silly - britian should obviously return them. Why they can't has to do with the elgin marbles.
• The elgin marbles aren't nearly as cool as they sound. I was expecting some really old glassies and cat's eyes, not some carvings!!!
• nicola: One problem that makes it less simple thant it sounds is to think about the amount of stuff that would have been destroyed if the Europeans hadn't nicked it. Egypt, for example, was still demolishing its artefacts into Nasser's time, and there's still conflict there over Arab/Islam vs Egyptian/Pharonic culture; similarly Ethopia has been in a state of civil war for large chunks of the last century, and, like much of Africa, there's a tension between Christianity and Islam.
• If the issue is how Ethopia would store them, can't the British museum/government provide that? They've held them for over 100 years, in a warehouse??? What's the point to that, even it it is environmentally protective, if no one can look at them? And, wouldn't they spend about the same to protect these artifacts in their country of origin? As much as I love going to US museums to see stuff that was looted from other places, I'd prefer that artifacts be returned to their origins to whatever extent possible. I'm a Greek artifact junkey, and have dreamed about visiting the European museums that have all those beautiful things in their inventory. But, would mean so much more to see them in Greece. And, it would be cheaper. (Well, maybe not for the western Europeans on the face of it, but don't a lot of you vacation in Greece, anyway? Or, would't it be a good excuse to to so?)
• Great — a fight over a dozen pieces of wood. What enlightened times we live in! Why don't they just ask George Dubya? He's got plenty of wood to spare.
• They should make a shiv out of themselves and jump off the shelves and jimmy the lock and cut the guard and escape and record an album at Abbey Road studios.
• More: According to the Economist, this is part of a drive on Ethiopia's part to reclaim heritage and jump-start tourism.
• path: People aren't allowed to look at them because the Ethopian Christians don't want anyone to see them, not because the Museum is hiding them. I imagine the Museum would be happy to display them, otherwise.
• hey rogerd, "saving the artifacts" is the line that led to the development of every great museum collection in the western world, from the Louvre to Victoria, B.C.'s outstanding collection of native work. As a white imperialist museumgoer, it's been of great benefit to me. But "they abandonded them to looters and the bombs of the Turk" has always been self-justifying crap. That said, if the ark is in Britain, why is the ark still guarded at Axum? Great link, Wolof.
• what rodgerd said. Like it or not, the British Museum has provided an important service, keeping them preserved at, no doubt, great expense for all these years. I don't think the answer's as simple as "give them back"! Though, no doubt, politics are also involved.
• Sorry for my plebian question but what kind of religious artifact would a church want kept secret? Biblical errata?
• Good pick up, I missed that mwhybark from the article: "They are regarded as representing the original Ark of the Covenant". Not even originals and you still can't look at them.
• Saw a PBS special years ago where an archeologist traced rumors of the Ark down through Egypt, into Ethiopia. There were great scenes of old Ethiopian men showing ancient altars which matched exactly the old testament description of a sacrificial altar, and many, many other parallels. Evidently, it was stolen by the Queen of Sheeba (Ethiopia) or her son from Solomon, and curiously is never mentioned after this in the Old Testament. Recently, Israel allowed certain Ethiopians to immigrate to Israel as a lost offshoot. Many feel that the Ethiopian Jews preserve a far older version of Judiasm than any other extant group. It is considered fact to most Ethiopians that the Ark of the Covenant is kept in a certain church there, where no one but one man is allowed to visit. They feel that Jews migrated there during a schism with the Ark and preserved the "true faith". There's a book and a PBS video on all this, but I don't feel like digging around for the particulars.
• Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes.
• "What's this?" "Ark of the Covenant." "Are you sure?" "Pretty sure." I am now filled with craving for Indiana Jones. Damn you kitfisto!
• My work here is done...
• mwhybark: Feel free to explain why it's "self-justifying crap". Otherwise people with any knowldge, of, say, Egyptian history might think you're a rude dickhead with a poor grasp of fact.
• tellurian: People weren't allowed into the Temple at Jerusalem, on the grounds it was too holy. Some things are just not meant for the laity (much less the eyes of unbelivers!) in many faiths. The Catholic Church is a good example; it has a huge archive of materials it won't allow most Catholics access to - never mind non-Catholics.
• a rude dickhead with a poor grasp of fact. Let's, ah, play the ball and not the man, shall we?