A Case of Looting and Alteration of Archaeological Objects: An Andean Dressed Figurine at Harvard’s Peabody Museum

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2025: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Looting is a significant issue in archaeology, particularly in the Andes, where it has led to the decontextualization of numerous archaeological artifacts. This paper presents a case study on an Andean figurine dressed in beautiful textiles that was donated to the Harvard Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology in 1940. The figurine and its textiles notably correspond to different pre-Hispanic Andean cultures and contexts. This analysis exemplifies how various archaeological objects were manipulated and altered to create the final object. The aim of this study is to investigate the provenance, original function, and meaning of the components that comprise the piece, enhancing our understanding of the cultures that produced them. Analyzing this figure provides valuable insight into the dynamics and mechanisms of looting that occurred over seven decades ago. Identifying previously looted objects in museum collections can help highlight the impact of large-scale looting, the accumulation of archaeological artifacts, and their transformation into marketable items, both historically and currently. Looting not only affects our understanding of Andean history and culture but also poses challenges for the conservation and preservation of cultural heritage.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• SAA 2025: Individual Abstracts

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 53979