<p>I thought posterx might like this one, considering he is always quick to stick up for Yale and his beloved New Haven.</p>
<p>OK!</p>
<p>Not too shabby for "beloved" Yale</p>
<p>Personally, I wish Yale had dug in its heels. Peru (like Greece and the Elgin Marbles) had dubious claims to the objects and is mostly jumping on the patrimony bandwagon.</p>
<p>Well...I would love to hear why Peru would have dubious claims to the objects taken from Machu Pichu....the Citadel which was part of the Incan Empire.....near Cusco..........PERU</p>
<p>Gee Movie Buff - I just knew you'd be on this! I can't believe it took you a day and a half to jump into the Yale bashing!</p>
<p>^^^ Just a question dude. I am sure the answer is not as obvious. There is probably some "deep legal deal" going back to early 1900s...Otherwise, I do not think warblersrule86 would have made a comment like that.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Well...I would love to hear why Peru would have dubious claims to the objects taken from Machu Pichu....the Citadel which was part of the Incan Empire.....near Cusco..........PERU
[/quote]
It was quite common in the early days of archaeology for many objects to be taken back to American or European museums. The usual arrangement was either that the artifacts were split 50/50 between the home country and the excavators or that the home country got the pick of the litter. It was all very legal until the 1970 UNESCO convention made it illegal to export antiquities. That's why the bust of Nefertiti remains in Berlin and the Rosetta Stone in London, although the director of Egyptian Antiquities would dearly love to get his hands on them; he has no legal claim to them.</p>
<p>
[quote]
There is probably some "deep legal deal" going back to early 1900s
[/quote]
There is indeed. :) Yale sent several expeditions to Peru. The first expedition (in 1912, I believe) was given full rights to the objects it excavated. The subsequent expeditions (notably in 1915) were released to Yale's care as lent objects. Most of these objects were returned in the mid-1920s, although many were returned recently. The objects Yale is returning now are the artifacts from the first season- the pieces to which it has full claim.</p>
<p>^^^ As a matter of fact, Harvard had something to do with the failure of negotiations between Yale and Peru around 1912. Bingham was working on a 10 year concession with the Peruvian government that would allow him to bring to the US "whatever" he found. But the deal fell through after Harvard complained that Yale was trying to shut out its archaelogists out of Peru. Still, in October 1912, Bingham managed to secure a decree allowing him to take the contents of some 170 tombs he excavated.</p>
<p>As a condition, the decree stated that Peru "reserves the right" to ask for the return of the objects, but did not state a specific time period for such a request to be made. Apparently, Bingham understood that he had the right to keep the objects from 1912 in New Haven for research, and that he had fulfilled his obligations. Part of the argument now from Peru's Cultural Department is that " after 90 years, Yale has had all the time it needed to research the artifacts and does not need them anymore".</p>
<p>In the last few decades, Peru has made great progress cleaning up Machu Pichu and protecting its cultural heritage. There is no question that the collection should go back.</p>
<p>At the end, this is just another example of exploitation and colonialism. That was my point.</p>