Whose Culture? The Promise of Museums and the Debate Over Antiquities

•Exhibiting Indigenous Heritage in the Age of Cultural Property, by M. F. Brown

We have reached a state in identity politics where insider knowledge is all that counts. Politically correct neologisms present translation problems, but are preferred to terms that might be felt patronizing. Museums are looked on as theaters of power. Every tribe and idea is considered equal, so monotony sets in at exhibits of Native American cultures. Basic facts, counted culturally insensitive, are unsuited for discussion. Only generic spirituality can be described, not actual religious beliefs. While a universal culture makes sense, there is resistance because of past ill-treatment of indigenous people. Brown says museums need to help us appreciate cultural differences.

•Heritage and National Treasures, by Derek Gillman

Derek Gillman shows that the Bamiyan Buddhas were part of an international culture honored as far away as China and as early as the 7th century. Context of the artifacts of pre-Islam Afghanistan was deemed less important than saving the objects from obliteration. UNESCO resolved to protect mankind's heritage, but this raised other issues, such as who is included in Afghani heritage. Protecting items from destruction for the sake of all mankind conflicts with the fact that things are claimed by particular cultures or privately owned.

The Elgin Marbles, currently in the British Museum and wanted by Greece and the Landsdowne portrait are connected with history and ideals that may go beyond national borders.

•The Nation and the Object, by John Henry Merryman

Merryman looks at the issues of when museums and collectors may provide markets for artifacts taken from a country contrary to its laws. One way of handling illegal export is to make it theft, for which countries have clearer reciprocal responsibilities to take action. Since WWII people have been sympathetic to source nations' demands for the return of their cultural artifacts. Another approach is to adopt an object-oriented policy that considers preservation of the object, truth, and access as criteria for decision making.