COMMERCIAL VS.
SCIENTIFIC COLLECTING. A
PLEA
FOR "ART FOR ART'S SAKE."
WARREN K. MOOREHEAD,
Curator of Archaeology, Phillips
Academy, Andover, Mass.
It occurs to me that so far as it could
be accomplished with-
out infringing upon the rights of
individuals, museum curators
should combine against dealers in
archeological specimens.
There seem to be two classes of these
men and the one should not
be confounded with the other. Of recent
years the dealers of
archaeologic specimens have increased to
an alarming extent. If
these men confined their wares to
surface-found objects or to
things procured from Tom, Dick and
Harry, scientists could
have no just grounds for complaint.
Sctattered throughout the United States
there are at least
six thousand archeological collectors
most of whom make no
pretension to scientific collecting. A
card index of these names,
which I have compiled during the past
five or six years also in-
cludes some seven or eight hundred
persons who may be con-
sidered as students of science. From
time to time many of these
men become tired of collecting and sell
their exhibits to the muse-
ums, to more pretentious collectors, or
to the dealers. Now that
the museums have more objects thus
obtained than they need,
it is almost impossible for one to
dispose of an ordinary collec-
tion. As an illustration, ten years ago
a gentleman residing in
Indiana had a cabinet made up of
specimens gathered by himself
from all parts of the United States.
Some were recorded, others
were not. He disposed of his exhibit to
one of the museums.
Another collector residing in the same
town has approached all
of the museum curators, so he informed
me, but none of them
cared to buy his cabinet and therefore
he proposed to sell it to
the dealers. These two collections are
but typical of the condi-
tions that obtain to-day. Neither of the
exhibits was of great
value to archaeologic science although
both of them deserved a
place in some fire-proof building.
(112)
Commercial vs. Scientific
Collecting. 113
Naturally the museums prefer to expend
their funds in
original research, and it is not
necessary for one to enter into
either a discussion or an explanation
regarding this preference.
If all the collections that fall into
the hands of the dealers were
such as the two from Indiana just
mentioned, it seems to me
that no one could in justice frown upon
the business of the deal-
ers. Dealers often obtain rare specimens
that were originally
found upon the surface by farmers, were
gathered into the local
collections and then drifted into the
hands of these commercial
gentlemen. Museum curators frequently
purchase such speci-
mens and it is right and proper that
they should do so. But as
I previously remarked, there is a
tendency to-day to "go into the
relic business" on the part of many
persons. That none of them
make as much as they would did they
expend the same amount of
time and energy in some more legitimate
or dignified calling, is
a matter of congratulation to all who
wish to see archaeologic
testimony preserved. But what these men
lack in individual suc-
cess they make up in quantity. That is,
there are at least 1OO
of them and in the aggregate they do an
immense amount of
damage.
The various museums and scientific
institutions desire to
stimulate the study of American
antiquities. To achieve this
end endowments have been made by
self-sacrificing men and
women. And it is discouraging to the
founders and to museum
officials when their motives are
misunderstood. Yet from every
portion of the United States come
letters asking, "What do you
pay for relics?"
In the past most of us have referred
those who wished to
purchase collections or specimens to the
three or four dealers
who were known to be responsible or to
individuals who wish to
sell their collections. Every museum
receives many offers of
collections and it is perfectly proper
for these officials to refer
these persons who wish to sell an entire
cabinet to an inquirer
who desires to buy.
But it seems to me, the more we refer
the one to the other
and the more letters we write, the more
wide-spread becomes this
commercial spirit.
Vol. XIII -8.
114 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
For the local student who collects for
his own pleasure, we
should have nothing but commendation,
for at some future date
his cabinet may be preserved. His
expenditures, his trips to
favorite localities that he may
personally roam over freshly
ploughed fields, his hours spent in
arranging his cabinet during
winter evenings are all labors born of
love. He knows his
region and takes satisfaction in that
knowledge. He places no
fictitious value on his cabinet. That
there is no such thing as an
arbitrary value on a pipe, tube or jar
he is aware. He wishes to
have his cabinet preserved, not
scattered, and when he dies, it
will be of real value to future
generations.
Not so the commercial collector. When
out "exploring"
this person cares not for the
attractiveness of his surroundings.
Neither the songs of the birds nor the
freshness of advancing
spring appeal to him. If he be out in
August he heeds not the
broad acres heavy with fragrant clover.
Nature is nothing to
such a person. And he is bad enough, but
the man who de-
molishes mounds or cliff houses in order
that he may sell the
specimens found therein is worse. The
latter is too lazy to work,
and ekes out a miserable existence by
selling the "relics" of a
vanished people to such as may buy. I
know a score of these
men. They render the lives of curators
miserable by their fre-
quent requests - "buy this" or
"let me sell you that."
To continue the parallel between the
students and the com-
mercial collectors; the latter have
ransacked the graves, mounds
and cliff houses, dragged forth the
humble arts of simple aborig-
ines long since dead and sold them for a
few paltry dollars.
The destruction of archaeological
testimony wrought by these
vandals is something beyond compute.
Speaking of vandals, no state has
suffered more at the
hands of reckless, careless mound
diggers than Arkansas, and
especially the "pottery belt"
of that state. The fine clay ves-
sels found in considerable numbers are
highly prized by
wealthy collectors. Four or five
adventurers, trappers and
men who have a superficial education and
no regard for science,
floated down the Mississippi on house
boats and carried on
explorations in the past. A number of
large collections have
been made, and perhaps twelve or fifteen
thousand pieces
of pottery are now in museums, in the
hands of collectors
Commercial vs. Scientific
Collecting. 115
and otherwise scattered throughout the
country as a result of
their labors. No notes, drawings or
photographs accompany the
specimens. No reports have been
published. One simply sees
the long rows of "pots" on the
shelves and a general label, "From
mounds in Arkansas," accompanying
the exhibit. Future gen-
erations will have only these vessels to
study, and our knowl-
edge of prehistoric life in Southern
Arkansas will be more
scanty than that of any other region of
the country.
Some years ago I published "The
Bird Stone Ceremonial,"
a monograph of 32 pp. But 800 copies
were printed and the
edition was soon exhausted. Now, the
purpose of the discourse
was to call attention to these peculiar
stone objects and to in-
terest students in their preservation.
However, the paper had
a curious effect. The dealers sent out
circulars broadcast, bought
up all bird-stones available and then
sold them at exhorbitant
prices-now plain ones are quoted at $15.00 each. Advanced
collectors took them greedily and to-day
none are to be had.
Curators are continually requested to
pass opinions on speci-
mens. As this may be considered a part
of their duties most
curators cheerfully accede to such
requests, but it is very dis-
couraging when one discovers that his
opinion has been used
as a club by some dealer or commercially
inclined collector to
extort more money from purchasers. This
evil is increasing.
The remedy lies with the curators. If
they would refuse to
pass opinions on specimens in the hands
of dealers, the nuisance
would be reduced to a minimum.
Many students and collectors exchange
duplicates with each
other or with the museums. The
Department at Phillips has
made more than 160 such exchanges during
the past two years
and, with two exceptions, the parties
concerned have all been
satisfied. This is a high average. Our
correspondence indicates
a general honesty and generosity and an
appreciation of the
aims and purposes of museums. Over 900
collectors had noth-
ing available for exchange or to donate,
yet they expressed
themselves as friendly to the museums
and not a few said that
when through collecting their cabinets
would be presented to
local, historical, or scientific
institutions.
While the above is true, it must be
recorded that more than
5000 collectors
whose names are in our card index are prompted
116 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
by entirely different motives. No
curator would expect them
to present their exhibits to his museum,
but he could reasonably
expect them to co-operate with him as
far as possible. But they
will not. They receive pamphlets,
reports, and communications
and these are of no little value in
assisting them to better under-
stand the artifacts, etc., in their
possession. Yet if one writes one
of these men and endeavors to obtain a
certain object, the very
fact that he wants it causes the
collector to refuse to either sell
or exchange. That he has a perfect right
to do so, no one can
deny. On the other hand, he is indebted
to the curator or author
and his attitude is one of pure
selfishness.
What the museums need (as of great value
to archaeologic
science) are collections from a special
section, including every-
thing found in that locality. They want
the finds of the village
sites, the studies in unfinished
specimens, the poor and the good,
the imperfect as well as the perfect. In
this regard the col-
lectors make a great error. Most of them
do not save every-
thing, but cling to the "pretty
relics" and discard the rough and
the rude. Personally, I would give more
for a collection, pro-
vided it contained all the finds of a
certain valley, than for just
the fine, perfect objects of that
valley. From a collection of the
latter I would be misled, for, if I
accepted as indicative of the
status of culture of the people of that
valley, I would say that
they made most beautiful works of
aboriginal art, nothing rude
or unfinished being turned out by their
artisans. In such a state-
ment I would be unpardonably wrong.
Correspondents frequently ask: What are
specimens worth?
They have no standard value. They are
worth to a museum just
what the buyer and seller agree upon.
The catalogues of dealers
give not only fictitious values, but no
museum recognizes them.
The cash values should be discouraged.
They are incentives
to fraud and conducive of destruction of
monuments. As an
instance of the latter, I know a man in
Tennessee who has be-
come active in the destruction of mounds
and graves, and has
done archaeologic science an injury. He
makes a specialty of
"mound and grave relics," and
has destroyed more than a hun-
dred monuments.
Imagine a beginning collector or one who
has spent some
time in gathering specimens. If this
young man wishes to
Commercial vs. Scientific
Collecting. 117
accomplish something of real worth in
the world, let him fit him-
self through a liberal college
education, followed by a two or
three years course in some museum. Then
he is prepared to
occupy a dignified position in his
chosen profession. There
are opportunities for all who will do
this, new museums are
building and curators and assistants are
needed.
The specimens are gradually drifting to
the permanent mu-
seums. Every year sees new museums
founded. Each season
an increasing proportion of
archaeological cabinets finds its way
into permanent quarters in fire-proof
buildings, and there these
things can be studied and protected. The
collector, who faith-
fully preserves with correct data the
material discovered in his
neighborhood, enjoys through many years
his archaeologic pur-
suits, and when he is through with his
collection presents it to
a worthy institution, renders science a
service and perpetuates
his own name.
Persons having these ancient specimens
in their possession
should be influenced by that sentiment
or quality recognized
by the patron of art - and the art
collector - who wish to pre-
serve a painting or other object not
because of its monetary
value but because it is a thing of
beauty and interest and deserves
a better fate than to fall into the
hands of some sordid dealer
who will regard it merely as so much
merchantable property and
sell it as he would a load of corn or a
horse!
In this commendable work of preservation
are all the mu-
seums and scientists interested and
while sometimes they do
buy collections it is only to prevent
their becoming scattered,
and not because those collections have
any especial value in dol-
lars and cents.
It is to be hoped that collectors will
appreciate the motives
that inspire the collecting and study of
pre-historic material by
scientific institutions. In this
prosperous age it is not necessary
for any person to regard his cabinet as
a commercial asset. I
would that all students might be
persuaded to place their collec-
tions in state or local fire-proof
buildings. Thus they will be
assured of a worthy and lasting memorial
to their interest in the
subject; and last, but by no means
least, they will advance science
and confer a favor upon future generations.