Texts on Treasure Hunting

"The Trouble with Treasure – A Preservationist View of the Controversy"

by William A. Cockrell, in American Antiquity vol.45, no.2 (1980):333-339.

In recent months, we have seen treasure hunting glorified in Saturday Review, Newsweek, Playboy, National Geographic, on NBC, CBS, and ABC television as well as on public television. There is no denying that the search for sunken treasure has long been romanticized in the United States. Widely circulated stories of easy riches have met with receptive audiences, yet no major media vehicle has presented the attendant story of the massive irreversible destruction of these irreplaceable elements of the past.

Sadly, I find many archaeologists do not view historic shipwrecks as deserving the same degree of protection as land sites. This position arises from an ignorance of the sophisticated exploration, recovery, and interpretation presently being done by those such as George Bass and his associates at the Institute of Nautical Archaeology or that done by Carl Clausen and Barto Arnold under the auspices of the Texas Antiquities Committee.

In 1975, a redefinition of Florida's territorial waters in the Florida Keys placed an entire hitherto protected fleet (lost in 1733) outside Florida's jurisdiction. At this time unbridled depredations began: today [5 years later] none of those wrecks formerly protected by Florida law have escaped massive looting or total destruction.

Whether or not we knew better in the past, we know today that we are committing wrongs: destroying archaeological sites, archaeological data, and artifacts. The archaeological profession may no longer in good conscience allow the destruction to continue unremarked. In an era of concern for the destruction of nonregenerative natural resources, it seems especially criminal to destroy the last vestiges of a significant period of Western history for the fun and profit of a few, at the expense of the irrevocable loss of knowledge for all subsequent generations.

"Treasure salvage, archaeological ethics and maritime museums"

Johnston, Paul Forsythe, International Journal of Nautical Archaeology (1993) 22.1: 53-60.

In this article, Paul Johnston "discusses maritime museum and museum association positions on treasure hunting, and explores some of the issues and possible solutions to what has become one of the most significant and controversial problems in the profession."

He discusses the positions of two of the world's most prominent museum organizations, the Council of American Maritime Museums, and the International Congress of Maritime Museums. He examines their mission statements, applauds the efforts currently being made, and criticizes their shortcomings.

Statutes of the International Council of Museums (ICOM)

Code of Professional Ethics. 1987.

A museum should not:

3.2. Acquire by purchase objects in any case where the governing body or responsible officer has reasonable cause to believe that their recovery involved the recent unscientific or international destruction or damage of ancient monuments or archaeological sites.

Each museum should develop policies that allow it to conduct its activities within appropriate national and international laws and treaty obligations, and with a reasonable certainty that its approach is consistent with the spirit and intent of both national and international efforts to protect and enhance the cultural heritage.

3.3. All planning for field studies and field collecting must be preceded by investigation, disclosure, and consultation with both the proper authorities and any interested museums or academic institutions in the country or area of the proposed study sufficient to ascertain if the proposed activity is both legal and justifiable on academic and scientific grounds.

Bylaws of the Council of American Maritime Museums (CAMM)

As amended and approved September 26, 1978, April 25, 1987, May 21, 1988, April 28, 1989, and April 20, 1990.

"CAMM member institutions shall adhere to archaeological standards consistent with AAM/ICOM."

"CAMM member institutions shall not knowingly acquire or exhibit artifacts which have been stolen, illegally exported from their country of origin, illegally salvaged or removed from commercially exploited archaeological or historical sites."

Archaeological Societies' Position Statements

From Underwater Archaeology: The Proceedings of the 14th Conference on Underwater Archaeology, edited by Calvin R. Cummings, San Marino, CA: Fathom Eight Special Publication 7, 1986.

Calvin R. Cummings states that throughout history, "(…) nothing clouds intellectual reason more than the "flash of gold" (greed). Eyes glaze over, minds become fogged, and reason evaporates. In chasing the "lure of gold" individuals and groups invent amazing rationales to explain their departure from societal order."

Society for American Archaeology (SAA)

"To advocate and to aid in the conservation of archaeological data; to discourage commercialism in the archaeological field and to work for its elimination."

"The practice of collecting, hoarding, exchanging, buying, or selling archaeological materials for the sole purpose of personal satisfaction or financial gain are declared contrary to the ideals and objects of the Society."

Society of Professional Archaeologists (SPA)

"A professional archaeologist has the responsibility to:

Conserve the total cultural resource base.

Discourage, and if possible prevent, destruction of archaeological sites, or portions of sites for the purpose of acquiring materials for other than scientific purposes.

An archaeologist shall:

Actively support conservation of the archaeological resource base;

Avoid and discourage exaggerated, misleading, or unwarranted statements about archaeological matters that might induce others to engage in unethical or illegal activity;

Support and comply with the terms of UNESCO Convention on the means of prohibiting and preventing the illicit import, export, and transfer of ownership of cultural property."

Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA)

"The collecting, hoarding, exchanging, buying, or selling of archaeological artifacts and research data for the purpose of personal satisfaction of financial gain, of the indiscriminate excavation of archaeological sites, including underwater wrecks, are declared contrary to the purposes of The Society. To support this position, The Society shall initiate or endorse efforts to discourage unnecessary destruction of archaeological resources by public and private institutions, agencies, and corporations."

Archaeological Institute of America (AIA)

"The Archaeological Institute of America condemns the destruction of the material and historical records of the past by the plundering of archaeological sites both in the United States and abroad and by the illicit export and import of antiquities."

Statement by The American Association of Museums (AAM)

Submitted to the Subcommittee on Oceanography of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries of the U.S. House of Representatives, on H.R. 74, The Abandoned Shipwreck Act. April 21, 1987.

Historic shipwrecks attract archaeologists, sports divers, and treasure salvors for a variety of reasons – exploration, scientific inquiry, and recreation. Yet, if commercial mining of these wrecks remains unchecked and they continue to fall prey to any and all who may assert claim to them, few historic underwater sites will be left for current and future generations of scholars, underwater enthusiasts, and the general public.

The United States may be the only nation with a substantial number of historic shipwrecks that has not enacted legislation recognizing the importance of protecting these resources. As a world leader in the development of human achievement and the preservation of its heritage, the United States must establish a responsible federal policy on historic abandoned shipwrecks that provides for the orderly and archaeologically sound excavation of sites when salvage takes place.