TO WHAT EXTENT PRESERVING THE GREEK AND ROMAN ANTIQUITY HERITAGE CAN BE CONSIDERED AS A MAJOR CHALLENGE FOR THE 21th CENTURY? Medarchnet, Mediterranean Heritage Sites Cicero against Catilina for having betrayed the Republic Oedipus and the Sphinx The Age of PericlesArchaeology according to Hollywood industry I. HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT 1. Greek and Roman Remains It was fundamental to Plato, and to the mainstream of classical Greek philosophy after him, that men are created unequal; not merely in the superficial sense of inequality in physique, wealth or social position, but unequal in their souls, morally unequal. A few men are potentially capable of completely rational behaviour, and hence of correct moral judgment; most men are not. Moses I. Finley, The Ancient Greeks "The Greeks, or more correctly the Athenians, invented the idea of theatre, as they invented so many other social and cultural institutions which the west then came to take for granted. There is nothing self-evident about the idea of theatre, of plays and players through whom private individuals, lacking priestly or other authority, publicly examined man's fate and commented on it by a poetic play which, despite the many traditional elements, was in its essential qualities a creation of the playwright. Moses I. Finley, The Ancient Greeks Krak Des Chevaliers, a crusader castle in Syria - The classic castle within a castle Below: Petra city in Jordania 2. European Heritages in the Middle East In 2011 And in Geographical characteristics of the Middle East TOOLBOX II. CULTURE HERITAGE THREATENED The Christian missionary, St. Boniface, cutting down the sacred great oak tree of Geismar, Hesse, in 724 AD. The oak tree was sacred to the god Thor, and was one of many pagan sites which the Christians destroyed in their ultimately successful campaign to extinguish the pagan religions. Similar acts of desecration were carried out against numerous non-Christian sites, with Roman temples singled out for destruction. Despite this, many of the original customs remained, such as the celebration of the spring and winter solstices. The Christians took the celebration of the pagan goddess of fertility, Eoster, and turned it into the Christian rite of Easter. The winter solstice, which marked the longest night of winter, was turned into the festival today known as Christmas. Calvinists in a Catholic Church, No Hobbseans in sight dailykos.com 1. A brief History of Iconoclasm 2. Islamist destructions of Ancient sites Archeological sites damaged location in Syria and Iraq either by the Syrian Civil War or by ISIS (Davide Calzoni, May, 24th, 2015) 3. Fundings for archaeological works: lack of money, lack of interest? The glories of the ancient past remain perhaps the greatest source of national pride in Greece. And in the past, the government could support archaeological research and digs. But the debt crisis and subsequent austerity budget have slashed the Ministry of Culture's budget in half since So more and more Greek archaeologists are scrambling for private funding to underwrite their work. They face strict laws mandating national ownership of the country's 19,000 archaeological sites. And these days, it's also hard to find sponsors, who have been hit by the recession. () Themelis says resources are scarce, and the Greek state should encourage more private involvement in the management of archaeological sites. "I think it's the only way for these huge sites to live and have profit for our state," he says. "And if the site of Messene manages to live with its own money, then the rest of it[the funds] can go to some other sites that suffer, that are very poor. Archaeologists Chase Private Funds To Preserve Greek Antiquities , Joanna Kakissis september 08, 2014 The Archaeology Data Service supports research, learning and teaching with freely available, high quality and dependable digital resources. It does this by preserving digital data in the long term, and by promoting and disseminating a broad range of data in archaeology. The ADS promotes good practice in the use of digital data in archaeology, it provides technical advice to the research community, and supports the deployment of digital technologies. III. PARADOXICAL WAYS TO SAVE THIS HERITAGE 1. Looting and antiquities traffics Militants fighting for the Islamic State in Syria are making millions of pounds selling ancient statues and mosaics to wealthy Westerners using a complex system of smugglers and middle men. Looted from ancient buildings in ISIS strongholds, such as the group's de facto capital city Raqqa, the antiquities are up to 10,000-years-old and can exchange hands for more than $1 million each. The most expensive items are covertly smuggled overseas - usually on the orders of wealthy Europeans - but there is also a lucrative trade in less historically important objects, which often find their way into tourist shops and markets in neighbouring Lebanon and Turkey. The trade in antiquities is one of ISIS' primary sources of funding, along with oil and ransom payments, and is estimated to fills the terrorists coffers with tens of millions of pounds every year. The finer points of ISIS trade in antiquities was uncovered in an investigation by the BBC. It revealed that ISIS militants charge smugglers 20 per cent on the sale of ancient items found or looted in territory under its control. If the smugglers decide not to buy the items, they are promptly smashed to pieces as examples of idolatry, regardless of their historic significance. () The ISIS smugglers making up to $1million per item selling ancient antiquities looted from the rubble of Syria , John Hall, 17 february 2015 Poster of the exhibition "Trafficking of antiquities: Stop it !!!" (Thessaloniki Museum) Archaeologists working in Pompei 2. When natural hazards safeguard Antiquities against deteriorations The site of the Roman Imperial villa at Piazza Armerina was buried by a landslide in 1161, and the remains went unnoticed until Serious investigation did not begin until 1881, and there were then professional excavations in 1929 and It was not until the long campaign of Gino Vinicio Gentili in , however, that the main villa complex was exposed. A cover building was then constructed so that the mosaics revealed could be put on permanent display. The landslide had limited stone-robbing and preserved in situ an astonishing collection of Late Roman art. () The mosaics are likely to have been executed by African mosaicists. The style, the themes, and what Gentili calls that taste for presenting anecdote and episode in pictures are all characteristic of Late Roman mosaic art in North Africa, particularly that of the Carthaginian school. Great excavations: Gentili at Piazza Armerina , Sept , The guiding principles for responsible archaeological tourism: Preserve and maintain the site: Proper practices should minimize impact on the site and ensure its protection and preservation. This includes making sure that the site has adequate infrastructure to support visitors. Support site preservation efforts: Dont do anything that would negatively impact local efforts to preserve the site. Support these efforts and encourage visitors to also support them. Balance economic considerations with cultural heritage concerns: Make certain that the site can accommodate your group without being adversely affected. Encourage and support community involvement: Ensure that the local community is involved in the creation of tourism guidelines. Encourage the participation of local civic groups and businesses in planning the future of the site and make sure that they benefit from the efforts. Local investment in a site, financially and philosophically, will aid site preservation and protection efforts greatly. ()3. Touristic activities: damaging and restoring at the same time UNESCO MISSIONS UNESCO's World Heritage mission is to - Encourage countries to sign the World Heritage Convention and to ensure the protection of their natural and cultural heritage; - Encourage States Parties to the Convention to nominate sites within their national territory for inclusion on the World Heritage List; - Encourage States Parties to establish management plans and set up reporting systems on the state of conservation of their World Heritage sites; - Help States Parties safeguard World Heritage properties by providing technical assistance and professional training; - Provide emergency assistance for World Heritage sites in immediate danger; - Support States Parties' public awareness-building activities for World Heritage conservation; - Encourage participation of the local population in the preservation of their cultural and natural heritage; - Encourage international cooperation in the conservation of our world's cultural and natural heritage. THE CAIRO DECLARATION Recognizing the continuing threat to our economic, cultural well-being and national security as a result of antiquities looting, trafficking, and destruction by criminal networks and extremist groups of our cultural property that is either registered, unregistered or submerged, the Governments of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Sudan and Sultanate of Oman agreed at a Ministerial Conference held in Cairo on the 13th and 14th of May 2015, to launch immediate joint efforts to stand against the above mentioned threats. The Middle East and Northern African region is home to the beginnings of human civilization due to its long and rich history. Criminal networks and terrorists groups have systematically looted historic sites and profited from the sales of these antiquities in international black markets. In addition, as a means to intimidate local populations, these looters have intentionally destroyed historical relics. We deplore their actions, and view this as a crime against human civilization. () Initiate an awareness campaign in demand countries to discourage purchases of looted antiquities. () Raise awareness campaigns aiming to protect cultural property against illegal digging, smuggling and dealing, while implementing harsher sanctions on those who attempt such illegal activities. () Released in Cairo, Egypt, May 14, 2015 AND SOLUTIONS