Illegal excavations represent one of the main risk factors which affect the archaeological heritage in Peru, in general, and in Nasca region, in particular. Looting in Peru has an ancient "tradition" starting from the Spanish Conquer (and before); but since the 1960s it has been strongly intensified supplying the national and international markets. After the famous plundering of Sipán an agreement was reached with the United States in 1997 restricting the import of Pre-Columbian and ethnographic material from Peru. But, unfortunately, since the signing of the bilateral agreements with the United States the traffic was directed more towards north and central Europe. Actions were made to prevent illegal diggings through the return of looted archaeological objects; but they only partially faced the problems because even if the objects have been returned, the archaeological context from which they were stolen cannot be recovered. To stop, or at least limit, the illicit trades, it would be necessary to improve the present national and international laws and make available the resources necessary for their enforcement and for a wider understanding and systematic monitoring of the archaeological areas by using effective techniques of surveillance including remote sensing. This chapter deals with the results obtained by using an automatic procedure applied to a multitemporal satellite images on some areas in the Rio Grande de Nasca Drainage for the detection of looted areas. The rate of success in detecting changes related to the archaeological looting has been successfully tested in significant selected areas using complementary tools as Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), Global Positioning System (GPS), Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and field survey. Satellite technologies can provide reliable information: (i) to quantify the looting phenomenon even if it is at an "industrial scale" over large areas, (ii) to set up a systematic monitoring tool to contrast the illicit trade in antiquities This study has implications for the protection of archaeological sites not only in Nasca but also across the world.
Combating Illegal Excavations in Cahuachi: Ancient Problems and Modern Technologies.
Lasaponara R;MASINI N
2016
Abstract
Illegal excavations represent one of the main risk factors which affect the archaeological heritage in Peru, in general, and in Nasca region, in particular. Looting in Peru has an ancient "tradition" starting from the Spanish Conquer (and before); but since the 1960s it has been strongly intensified supplying the national and international markets. After the famous plundering of Sipán an agreement was reached with the United States in 1997 restricting the import of Pre-Columbian and ethnographic material from Peru. But, unfortunately, since the signing of the bilateral agreements with the United States the traffic was directed more towards north and central Europe. Actions were made to prevent illegal diggings through the return of looted archaeological objects; but they only partially faced the problems because even if the objects have been returned, the archaeological context from which they were stolen cannot be recovered. To stop, or at least limit, the illicit trades, it would be necessary to improve the present national and international laws and make available the resources necessary for their enforcement and for a wider understanding and systematic monitoring of the archaeological areas by using effective techniques of surveillance including remote sensing. This chapter deals with the results obtained by using an automatic procedure applied to a multitemporal satellite images on some areas in the Rio Grande de Nasca Drainage for the detection of looted areas. The rate of success in detecting changes related to the archaeological looting has been successfully tested in significant selected areas using complementary tools as Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), Global Positioning System (GPS), Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and field survey. Satellite technologies can provide reliable information: (i) to quantify the looting phenomenon even if it is at an "industrial scale" over large areas, (ii) to set up a systematic monitoring tool to contrast the illicit trade in antiquities This study has implications for the protection of archaeological sites not only in Nasca but also across the world.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
