Where should archeological finds be shown?

[Caballo]

Chris,

You could be making one of several points by your brief example and I'm not sure which:

a) You visited Autun museum and found that it was small and badly organised
b) You visited a large museum in the area, like the one at the internatinal centre in Bibracte, and expected to see the helmet there instead
c) You never heard of Autun and wonder why the helmet isn't in the national museum in Paris

or some other option that I didn't think of. Without knowing what you meant, i can't really discuss your point

The point I was making was close to C/-i.e Autun is a place I (and most others ) would have difficulty finding on a map. I was once within 2 hours drive (France is a big place) and seriously considered a four hour round trip to see the helmet, but was persuaded out of it. It needn't be in Paris, but (personally) I'd prefer if it were in a major population centre where more people could see it, and more people from abroad could see it.

Using Britain (where I live and know best), this would mean finds concentrated in major museums in places such as London, Cardiff, Oxford, Cambridge, Birmingham, York, Newcastle etc.

Enthusiasts like me (and you, I'm sure) would always visit the small museums, but I think we also owe a duty to the more general public (and international visitors) and the enthusiasts of the future to put the major pieces in places where more people will see them and where they wil have the funds and expertise to properly conserve them. Just my personal opinion.

[Epictetus]

I’m going to say something that I imagine will be unpopular. :wink:

We have a limited amount of resources. The best method humanity has found (so far) for distributing limited resources is money.

Here our limited resources are archaeological finds, so money should here be used as a gauge of demand. Whoever pays the most, and therefore has the highest demand, should be able to display finds.

On the surface, this may seem that all finds will gravitate towards capital cities or large metropolitan areas, but this isn’t necessarily the case. Each find is different and will have different demands from different areas. Local finds may be more important for local institutions who would therefore bid more.

The free market has serious problems, but it is still works better than alternatives.