2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony

The 2012 Olympics have gobbled up so many funds that would otherwise have gone elsewhere, including culture. Anyhow after seven years of planning, the Games have finally got underway and even the die-hard sceptics like myself were probably agreeably impressed by the workmanlike job and finish of the opening ceremony celebrating these "Isles of Wonder" with some jaw-droppingly how-did-they-do-that amazing moments. The first part was a dramatisation of the industrialisation of Britain ("the Workshop of the World") following a rather romanticised depiction of British country life with a nod to the older traditions (Glastonbury Tor).

 But what are the two guys in the left middle foreground doing? On permanent pasture?

More Bogus Bunkum from the Bogus Blonde Bunkum Monger

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Bogus blonde "legal secretary who is not really a metal detectorist" takes issues with me treating the antiquities trade as a conservation issue and by way of analogy comparing it with the trade in other items leading to the depletetion of a resource (such as ivory). He denies that the issue with looting of archaeological sites is a conservation issue. The reason? "There are millions of artefacts" so artefacts are in no danger of disappearing.

The issue with the ivory trade is ivory comes from elephants and we want to protect the elephants from disappearing, not the ivory.

The issue with archaeological artefacts "surfacing" on the market is that they are coming out of the archaeological record, we want to protect the archaeological record from disappearing, not the artefacts. Duh.

I think to reach some collectors we are going to have to use comic books or something simple they can understand.

This of course in the case of members of the British public like "Candice Jarman" whether or not they are metal detectorists is the job of the PAS. It would be nice if "Candice's" FLO (Ciorstaidh Hayward Trevarthen Finds Liaison Officer - Dorset Historic Environment Team, Dorset County Council County Hall) were aware of this "People's Archaeology" blog and the misinformation it is spreading and could take the time to write to him and explain the rudiments of conservation instead of leaving the task up to a lone archaeologist from Poland who unlike her is not being paid to do outreach to members of the Dorset public.