Salvage anthropology

Salvage anthropology is related to salvage ethnography, but involves the collection or salvage of cultural artifacts and even human remains as its method. In the late 19th century native populations were on the decline and early anthropologists feared that native societies would go extinct. This caused a worldwide collecting fervor among museums who purchased cultural artifacts to complete their collections on primitive societies. Anthropologists, amateur researchers and other scholars traded, purchased and even stole cultural artifacts from indigenous societies throughout the world, but particularly in North America, to finance their research and expenses.[1] Salvage Anthropology developed largely in response to destruction of habitations and force movement of people in cases of large scale new construction of roads, buildings, dams, etc.[2][3]

References

  1. ^ [Cole, Douglas, Captured Heritage: The Scramble for Northwest Coast Artifacts, 1995]
  2. ^ Pioneer Methods in Salvage Anthropology, James J. Hester, in Anthropological Quarterly Vol. 41, No. 3, Jul., 1968, page 132
  3. ^ Cultural Anthropology: An Applied Perspective, Gary Ferraro, ISBN 0495030392