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A review by absentminded_reader
Finders Keepers: A Tale of Archaeological Plunder and Obsession by Craig Childs
4.0
What a fascinating read!
The book is strongest when Childs is relating personal stories and least interesting when he is pontificating, but the questions he raises are worthy of the topic. I would love to go out on a hike one day and find a Native American arrowhead on the ground. I wouldn’t like to climb into an ancient dwelling, smash open a chamber seal, and help myself to a treasure trove of arrowheads. The justification that we should take something before somebody else comes along and takes it is a weak one. After all, wouldn’t you object if I helped myself to the money in your purse or wallet while you slept? Would you feel better if I said, “If I didn’t take it, somebody else would have”?
The obvious difference between your wallet and an ancient abode is that you are alive and still use that wallet. The dead don’t need arrowheads and potsherds. Childs explores his conflicted feelings on this subject while addressing the controversies and crimes surrounding the world of archeological digs.
The book is well researched, filled with news stories brought to life by Childs. It is also filled with interviews with various individuals across the spectrum from academics to opportunists. I especially liked the Notes at the end with its wealth of cited resources. Also, be sure to read the conversation with Craig Childs at the end.
I found Childs to be a conflicted individual who both resented and admired the people who hoarded these sun-kissed treasures. Since the book’s narrative jumps around his life, the timeline can be confusing in regards to his stance on “Finders Keepers”. However, over the course of the book, his feelings consistently point to a stance of leaving the memories of the past in the ground where they were buried. It isn’t a popular opinion, especially when he refuses to share the locations of major finds. His response? Finders keepers. To Childs, the finder determines the fate of the find, even if that means leaving it unfound.
Other reviewers hated this book, especially if they came from an academic background. Childs alludes to animosity some academics have with his approach. The angry one-Star reviews make his case. The purpose of the book—to explore archeology from all points of view, not only an academic one—will not be popular with all readers, but for those interested in the seedy underside of the relics industry, Finders Keepers is an entertaining and informative read.
The book is strongest when Childs is relating personal stories and least interesting when he is pontificating, but the questions he raises are worthy of the topic. I would love to go out on a hike one day and find a Native American arrowhead on the ground. I wouldn’t like to climb into an ancient dwelling, smash open a chamber seal, and help myself to a treasure trove of arrowheads. The justification that we should take something before somebody else comes along and takes it is a weak one. After all, wouldn’t you object if I helped myself to the money in your purse or wallet while you slept? Would you feel better if I said, “If I didn’t take it, somebody else would have”?
The obvious difference between your wallet and an ancient abode is that you are alive and still use that wallet. The dead don’t need arrowheads and potsherds. Childs explores his conflicted feelings on this subject while addressing the controversies and crimes surrounding the world of archeological digs.
The book is well researched, filled with news stories brought to life by Childs. It is also filled with interviews with various individuals across the spectrum from academics to opportunists. I especially liked the Notes at the end with its wealth of cited resources. Also, be sure to read the conversation with Craig Childs at the end.
I found Childs to be a conflicted individual who both resented and admired the people who hoarded these sun-kissed treasures. Since the book’s narrative jumps around his life, the timeline can be confusing in regards to his stance on “Finders Keepers”. However, over the course of the book, his feelings consistently point to a stance of leaving the memories of the past in the ground where they were buried. It isn’t a popular opinion, especially when he refuses to share the locations of major finds. His response? Finders keepers. To Childs, the finder determines the fate of the find, even if that means leaving it unfound.
Other reviewers hated this book, especially if they came from an academic background. Childs alludes to animosity some academics have with his approach. The angry one-Star reviews make his case. The purpose of the book—to explore archeology from all points of view, not only an academic one—will not be popular with all readers, but for those interested in the seedy underside of the relics industry, Finders Keepers is an entertaining and informative read.