Word: goldwork
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Exquisite Profession. This dissolution of the art and artifacts of a whole culture to the crude denominator of bullion was especially ironic in view of the sheer multiplicity of use and image in pre-Columbian goldwork. No two figures are ever the same, and the range of imagery is as profuse as Colombian nature itself: alligators, jaguars, condors, deer, owls, lizards, macaws, and even hallucinogenic mushrooms. To the gaping Spaniards it seemed that anything, among these singular people, could be made of gold, from cooking pots to ceremonial masks and lime holders for coca chewing...
...deterrent to illicit trade is a U.S. law passed by Congress last fall prohibiting the import of pre-Columbian monumental sculpture and murals without the approval of the country of origin. This is a start, but not an end; it does not apply to smaller pieces like pottery and goldwork, and thieves in Latin America will destroy a whole site to find one Mayan gold ornament. One thing is clear: as long as astronomical prices are offered by rich countries, no local laws will keep robbers from plundering...
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