Artistic and Cultural Patrimony in Mali

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Passage

The government of Mali passed a law against excavating and exporting the wonderful terra-cotta sculptures from the old city of Djenne-jeno, but it could not enforce it. And it certainly could not afford to fund thousands of archaeological excavations. The result was that many fine Djenne-jeno terra-cotta sculptures were illicitly excavated in could have learned had the sites been preserved by careful archaeology—may now never be known.

It has been natural to condemn such pillaging. And, through a number of declarations from UNESCO and other international bodies, a protective doctrine has evolved concerning the ownership of many forms of cultural property (the “UNESCO doctrine”). Essentially the doctrine provides that cultural artifacts should be regarded as the property of the all antiquities that originate within their borders to be state property that cannot be freely exported.

Accordingly, it seems reasonable that the government of Mali, within whose borders the Djenne-jeno antiquities are buried, be the one to regulate excavating Djenne-jeno and to decide where the statues should go. Regrettably, and this is a painful irony, regulations prohibiting export and requiring repatriation can discourage recording and preserving information about objects taken illegally out of Mali have the very evidence they need to seize the figure.

Suppose that from the beginning, Mali had been helped by UNESCO to exercise its trusteeship of the Djenne-jeno terra-cotta sculptures by licensing excavations and educating people to recognize that such artifacts have greater value when they are removed carefully from the earth with accurate records of location. Suppose Mali had required that still have avoided the rules. But would this not have been better than what actually happened?

What this question is testing

Author Opinion

Your task

Pin down exactly what the question asks about the passage — a detail, the author's view, the structure, or the main point — before looking at the choices.

Common trap

Answers that restate a true detail from the passage but don't answer the specific question being asked.

Winning move

Anticipate the answer in your own words from the passage, then find the choice that matches that prediction.

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The question

10.

The author of the passage would be most likely to agree with which one of the following

Answer choices

Correct75% picked this
It can play an important role in stemming abuses that arise from the international trade
Why this is right
This is so weakly worded that it's very lovable at a glance: UNESCO can play an important role? We'd support this with what the author is saying in the final paragraph. She's suggesting a course of action that would have been better than the debacle in Mali, wherein tons of precious terra-cotta sculptures were dug up and exported, by amateurs who didn't keep track of what they were digging up. The 4th paragraph begins: Suppose that from the beginning, Mali had been helped by UNESCO ... Suppose Mali had done XYZ. Such a system would have encouraged excavations that aren't as good as those done professionally, but would this not have been better than what actually happened? Since the author wants UNESCO to be part of the solution, she thinks that UNESCO can play an important role in averting the type of crappy stuff that went down in Mali.
Skill tested: Author Opinion · how this choice captures the passage's function is the move to repeat next time.
75%
Too Strong4% picked this
Its stance on cultural artifacts emerged for the most part in response to Mali's loss of
Too Strong: for the most part Unsupported Causal Claim The beginning of the 2nd paragraph transitions from talking about what went down in Mali to talking about UNESCO creating protective doctrines to try to prevent such stuff. But it never assigns a direct causal connection between those two things. We don't hear that UNESCO's feeling about cultural artifacts was mainly caused by the Mali situation.
4%
Unsupported Comparison: individual vs. several5% picked this
It is more effective with initiatives that involve individual states than initiatives that
The author never compares the efficacy of UNESCO's doctrine with individual states to that with several states.
5%
Wrong Objection10% picked this
It pays too little attention to the concerns of countries
The author is never saying that UNESCO cares too little about countries like Mali. She is saying their caring response kind of backfires because it's too prohibitive and restrictive (it encourages bad behavior to get around their regulations). She wants UNESCO to express its concern in a different way (help countries like Mali find a way to minimize the damage that amateur excavators can do by allowing them to pay for licensed digs).
10%
Out of Scope: inadequate funding5% picked this
Its effectiveness in limiting the loss of cultural knowledge has been hampered
Nothing the author says about UNESCO suggests that they are inadequately funded.
5%

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