Today's stereotype archaeologist is a whip-bearing, fedora-wearing Indiana Jones who spends most of his time finding treasures and battling the bad guys who want to steal them.
Well, it turns out that there are real treasures, and real bad guys who steal them. Want to get the true-life story? On Nov. 23 the Arizona Senior Academy will present Juliet Wiersema discussing "Red Hot Objects: Smuggled and Falsified Antiquities from Ancient Peru."
Her talk will be held in the Arizona Senior Academy Building adjacent to the Academy Village Community Center. Academy Village is an active-adult community located off Old Spanish Trail six miles southeast of Saguaro National Park East.
Wiersema has done archaeological field work in Peru, including investigating temples found among the remains of an ancient capital. In her talk she will focus on the dark side of excavating: the exploitation of looted artifacts by people who traffic in stolen originals and fabricated copies.
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This illicit business entails both high- and low-end activities. Archaeological artifacts are in great demand by private dealers, collectors and auction houses around the world, and they can command extraordinary prices.
On the other hand, robbers in poor areas of Latin America loot ancient graves for meager amounts of cash, serving as the first link in a black-market antiquities trade that is profitable at many levels.
Wiersema specializes in the art, archaeology and architecture of the ancient (pre-Columbian) Americas, specifically the Andes and Mesoamerica. She holds an M.A. degree from New York University's Institute of Fine Arts and a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland. Last year, she received a fellowship at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York where she is currently pursuing research work.
Due to the increasing popularity of the Arizona Senior Academy's educational and cultural events at Academy Village, non-residents who wish to ensure priority seating are advised to make advance reservations. For more information or to make a reservation, call 647-0980.
If you go
• What: Lecture - "Red Hot Objects: Smuggled and Falsified Antiquities from Ancient Peru"
• When: 2:30 p.m. Nov. 23
• Where: Arizona Senior Academy Building at Academy Village, 13715 E. Langtry Lane
• Cost: Free; contributions welcome
• Reservations: Recommended; call 647-0980
To contribute a story, go online to azstarnet.com/east
