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Article 1- Excavating Egypt (Newsprint) This article tells of a typical
working day for an archaeologist in Egypt. It tells of an experienced
archaeologist named, Dr. David O’Connor. He speaks of his working site, Abydos,
and tells of what he has discovered since he started working on the site. In his
30 years of working there, he has uncovered 12 wooden boats, each about 60 feet
long encased in 96-foot graves.
He has also found the remains of an entire
settlement covering about 16 acres. He annually spends up to $150,000 to pay of
his fellow archaeologists and his laborers.
He does receive funds from private
institutions and government agencies to help support his effort in Abydos. In
reading this article, I have become puzzled as to how so many people working
there can split $150,000. It says that 20-25 scientists and 30-60 laborers are
employed.
I understand that he does receive funds from institutions, but I would
not think that it would be upwards of enough money to support so many people. I
have always respected archaeologists for what they do but now I have a deeper
respect for Egyptian archaeologists. I do hope to visit Egypt someday though and
experience what it is like firsthand.
Article 2- Cosmetic Surgery Discovered on
Ancient Roman Portrait (Newsprint) This article tells of artists in the modern
day performing work on damaged ancient artifacts. It specifies on a head statue
that was received as a gift by the Nelson-Atkins Museum. Scientists noticed some
unusual features on the statue’s head and investigated it to discover that
somebody had fixed it up before it was given to them.
They used
gamma-radiographs to find that somebody had fixed the head’s broken neck with
metal dowels and clamps. I found it pretty remarkable that some people may get
away doing this without anybody knowing of it. It makes me wonder if some of the
great artifacts that we have on display today have been tampered with and that
they may not be 100% ancient. I don’t see that there is anything wrong with
this. I’d rather look at a fixed up display than view one that has been badly
damaged and is hard to make out.
Article 3- Faking It: A Forger’s Biography
(Newsprint) This article tells of a modern day man, Alceo Dossena (1878-1937),
and his ability to create artificial art pieces of ancient civilizations. He
created sculptures in almost every style: Greek, Etruscan, Gothic and Italian
Renaissance.
He would sculpt them, then age them by giving them acid baths and
then would proceed to bury them, allowing them to age. He was able to fool some
of the greatest historians and scientists in the world. One of his art pieces
was sold to a dealer who then sold it for $225,000, the highest price of any of
Dossena’s artworks. Dossena claimed that he did not make his art to cheat people
out of their money. He then sued his dealer and won.
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