A fresh look at Cultural Racketeering in Egypt

"Cultural Racketeering in Egypt — Predicting Patterns in Illicit Activity: Quantitative Tools of the 21st-Century Archaeologist" Katie A. Paul of The Antiquities Coalition has been looking into recent (post-Revolution) looting in Egypt. A good piece of work. The aim is laudable.

The cyclical and repetitive nature of these heritage threats has an additional benefit of creating a means of emergency preparedness that can be employed during periods of sudden conflict caused by a crisis catalyst. By understanding the types of patterns that occur in the looting of heritage sites following a tumultuous event governments and organizations can be better prepared in having a footprint of what may take place next so that resources can be allocated most efficiently.

Of course a paid lobbyist of the no-questions asked antiquity trade does not think so. But actually, the dealers long since alienated themselves from the heritage debate due to their support of the crude sniping, intellectually bankrupt pseudo-arguments and outright denialism of such mouthpieces.