For those of you not on elanya's friends list

[mousme]

Dear colleagues,


I have the great misfortune of having to relate to you some very bad news. It has recently come to the attention of the OAS that on or about the date of 1 May 2003, a disposal crew was directed, to knock
down the walls of the secure, locked storage cages which housed the inactive artifact collections at the University of Toronto at Scarborough. The contents of those cages were loaded into dump trucks
and disposed with the Toronto garbage in Michigan. All of this was carried out without the knowledge or permission of the steward of those collections, Dr. Marti Latta.


You must be feeling the same profound sense of loss and "this can't be happening" that I felt when Marti first told me. The scope of the loss is staggering. Its full extent is still being determined.


The current inventory: some or all artifacts from 23 sites, of which 21 are aboriginal and two are colonial. The lost material - 289 boxes of various sizes - included field records, analysis data, lithic raw material, and personal books and papers as well as artifacts, faunal bone, and botanical remains. An estimated total of 433,000 artifacts
(not all diagnostics), have been destroyed.


Most of the sites excavated by members of the OAS in our early years are utterly gone.


We will be posting more details on this tragedy as they become available. In the meantime, let me go on record as stating that the OAS does not hold Dr. Latta responsible for this disaster in any way.
Indeed, if anything, she is a victim. We support Dr. Latta wholeheartedly and trust that the rest of our community does as well.



Sincerely,
Christine Caroppo
OAS President

Comments

[paganmommy.livejournal.com]

there are no words

Re: artifacts

[wolfieboy.livejournal.com]

I *don't* like finding corroborating evidence that other gov'ts can be as stupid as the US.

Can you keep us informed as to what actually happened when you know? What at least the purported reasons are?

What's the OAS?

Re: artifacts

[mousme.livejournal.com]

I will keep everyone posted as soon as I get more information from elanya and forthright.

The OAS... err, don't remember offhand. Organistaion of Archaeological something-or-other.

Will ask and let you know. :)

Re: artifacts

[forthright.livejournal.com]

OAS: Ontario Archaeological Society.

I'm on the case; look for more information tomorrow.