Petroglyphs vs GPS

With exact GPS coordinates displayed across the Internet, are too many people now walking in those footsteps? Most of the ancient artwork carved and painted into the rock walls and boulders of the American West have survived for thousands of years in quiet obscurity. But technology has changed that. These days, art that once took years for a person to stumble upon can be quickly pinpointed with a GPS, and discoverers can post the coordinates on the Internet. That leaves the ancient, priceless art vulnerable to what the Bureau of Land Management calls "digital vandalism."

"It certainly has changed how we think about our jobs. There's a breathless feeling that the public is ahead of us now," said Dale Davidson, a BLM archaeologist based in Monticello, Utah. A quick peek at the Internet auction site eBay confirms the ancient art is being plundered and sold piecemeal, said Kevin Jones, Utah's state archaeologist. It's not just the treasure hunters who concern the rock-art aficionados. Some of the sites simply can't withstand public adoration. The use of GPS "hasn't changed the nature, but the scale" of those who are finding the sites, Jones said. . .

Sometimes, by the time archaeologists can get to a previously unknown site posted on the Web, it's already been damaged and information has been lost. "Not only are we playing catch-up, but we're trying to record something that's already been impacted," Davidson said. There is a lot of talk about how to deal with this clash between archaeology and technology, but no answers.

Sounds as if there needs to be more of an outreach effort by BLM and other archeologists to the petroglyph-spotter hobbyist world; those bent on plunder won't be deterred, of course, but the benign majority would likely be happy to notify archeologists of new finds before posting them to public websites. Read more here.

Posted by David on April 7, 2003 2:32 PM