[Aztlan] Mike Ruggeri's Olmec Art Portfolio

[Michael Smith]

I wonder if it might not be useful to provide some kind of introductory
discussion of the purpose of these Mesoamerican art portfolios. I have
trouble imagining how they might be useful for my own research or
teaching activities, but perhaps they are useful for other purposes. The
trouble I have with them is that they are decontextualized images. It's
not clear what sites many the objects are from, or what museum or
collection they reside in today, or the source of the image. Without
this information I can't use them for research, and I hesitate to point
students to them since they lack basic documentation. Furthermore, I
wonder if some of them may have been illegally exported from their
country of origin (something that the basic documentation could clear
up).

Now I realize that my view as an archaeologist probably makes me more
concerned than other potential users with issues like context, material
culture documentation, and the illicit antiquities trade. I would guess
that these image galleries are therefore oriented toward other kinds of
users, and thus it might be helpful to have some kind of statement about
the purpose and uses of the galleries. 

Mike

Michael E. Smith, Professor
School of Human Evolution & Social Change
Arizona State University
www.public.asu.edu/~mesmith9
http://publishingarchaeology.blogspot.com
http://calixtlahuaca.blogspot.com
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