Thursday, August 17, 2006

Review: Rescuing the Past

Quite a long review (14 paragraphs) of the book Rescuing the Past, written by Jonathan Tokeley whilst serving out a prison sentence for attempting to smuggle in a piece of ancient Egyptian art:
"What he most wants to challenge is the prevailing orthodoxy among archaeologists, politicians, cultural ambassadors and museum curators which he terms the Cultural Heritage Crusade, or alternatively the Libertarian School. For Tokeley this orthodoxy is similar to a religious cult. It has a central dogma, the notion of cultural heritage which he feels obliged to capitalize in order to draw attention to the status given to it by its naive adherents. This is the idea that a nation’s past belongs to that nation and no other. . . . His proposal to free us from this belief system is to argue that objects from ancient Egypt are a commodity or resource like any other. Like such things, they can be bought and sold, and they can also be privatized. Western dealers and auction houses should be free to operate within Egypt. This would force prices up to international levels, and eliminate corruption and secretive dealing."
The review both describes the contents of the book, and comments on Tokeley's key arguments. A well written and fascinating article in its own right.

Jonathan Tokeley RESCUING THE PAST The cultural heritage crusade, 374pp. Imprint Academic. £25.84

4 comments:

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Some people have no respect for the sacred. Some people think they can go in and take whatever they like, when they like, and then act like a spoilt child who protests when his toys (8.2 million)are taken from him.

Anonymous said...

I quite disagree with the above comment, I have personally met Mr Tokeley and he is one of the most charming, intelligent men I have ever met. He is not a criminal, but a man who gained a 1st in Philosophy at Cambridge and is a highly creative intelligent man who is extremely well read in all matters of philosophy amongst other things. He was a captain in the army and one of the worlds best restorers of ancient antiquities, his knowledge is immense on such things. He writes poetry (some of which Ted Hughes read and liked) which should definitely be published along with his other writing that is published regularly. He is an independent thinker and a very passionate man who challenges people and the way they think about things, he pushes boundaries of accepted thought, and whether you agree with him or not, I consider someone like this very important, someone who is willing to stand up and challenge the system from whichever angle that may be. I believe his main motive for doing what he did was an intense passion and love for these beautiful ancient pieces of Art, I think he has been treated harshly for his actions, and think it is now time for this fascinating man who has been misunderstood through ignorance, to gain credibility for his creative endeavours. I amongst many others eagerly await his next book, his memories, which will be published soon in America.