Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Ian · 6th August 2006, 08:14 PM

Hi Willie:

You are, of course, free to express your opinions as freely as anyone else here. I think Rick was asking you the questions he did because your answers have been somewhat cryptic and it was unclear what you were getting at a few times. I don't think anyone was taking offense with you, just trying to clarify what you meant.

That said, I think you have answered Rick's question in that you do seem to have some issues with the collecting community for driving up prices on items that might otherwise be affordable to individuals within the original culture from which they came.

We have actually had similar discussions here in the past. One point that has come up repeatedly is that many of these heirloom items may never have survived at all were it not for the collecting community who have patiently maintained them for many years. We have often remarked that museums do not value edged weapons very highly unless they are of exceptional quality or historical significance. Even exceptional quality is not a high enough priority for many museums to spend large sums maintaining them in the condition they deserve. The collecting community actually does that, and more. So there are pluses and minuses to the way things have evolved.

If these items were valued as highly as you suggest within the host culture, I suspect some way would be found to repatriate them through a concerted buying back program, much as happened with Japanese swords. I'm not seeing that with Moro swords, which is a pity. Perhaps you could work on organizing such a program. Unfortunately, the market place has its own momentum, and there is not much anyone can do about that, much as we might like to.

Regards,

Ian.

6th August 2006, 08:14 PM	#15
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,194	Hi Willie: You are, of course, free to express your opinions as freely as anyone else here. I think Rick was asking you the questions he did because your answers have been somewhat cryptic and it was unclear what you were getting at a few times. I don't think anyone was taking offense with you, just trying to clarify what you meant. That said, I think you have answered Rick's question in that you do seem to have some issues with the collecting community for driving up prices on items that might otherwise be affordable to individuals within the original culture from which they came. We have actually had similar discussions here in the past. One point that has come up repeatedly is that many of these heirloom items may never have survived at all were it not for the collecting community who have patiently maintained them for many years. We have often remarked that museums do not value edged weapons very highly unless they are of exceptional quality or historical significance. Even exceptional quality is not a high enough priority for many museums to spend large sums maintaining them in the condition they deserve. The collecting community actually does that, and more. So there are pluses and minuses to the way things have evolved. If these items were valued as highly as you suggest within the host culture, I suspect some way would be found to repatriate them through a concerted buying back program, much as happened with Japanese swords. I'm not seeing that with Moro swords, which is a pity. Perhaps you could work on organizing such a program. Unfortunately, the market place has its own momentum, and there is not much anyone can do about that, much as we might like to. Regards, Ian.