Watch out, Lara Croft!

Have you ever been sitting in your cubicle and thought that there has to be more to life than just sitting here in my cubicle?  Have you ever wondered how Indiana Jones or Lara Croft got their start as archaeologists (or tomb raiders, as the case may be)?  Have you ever thought that you were meant for more that doing whatever you are doing right now?!?

So, picture it.  You’re helping your dog dig in the backyard looking for a bone when you come across a 14-foot long thigh bone of the dreaded Cratarackatus from the late Crustacean Period.  How do you preserve your find?  More to the point, how do cash in with your find and protect yourself at the same time?  

Well, you are in luck, my friend.  See, not 10 minutes ago I was lost in the jungles of our federal collection and just when I was about to shoot up a flare for help, I came across our copy of Archaeology, Relics, and the Law.  

The thing is, this is not just your ordinary work of fiction.  No, this book actually helps the budding archaeologist protect his finds with helpful tips and laws and cases from both state and federal jurisdictions.  

The first chapter covers Discovery and Acquisition of Artifacts and touches on defining everyone from the Amateur finder and collector to commercial hunters, looters, dealers and exhibitors.  Chapter 1 then goes on to talk about property rights (who owns what is found), and cites a number of cases that address that concept.

Chapter Two continues with Protection and Control of Artifacts.  See, the question is not so much whether you want to make money on your find (of course you do), the questions is whether you can even sell your find.  That's where chapter 2 comes in dealing with restrictions on interstate commerce, restrictions on the sale and possession of relics, regulatory protection of private sites (like the backyard of your home), and custody and curation of artifacts.

Chapter 3 is a doozy in that it covers Recovery and Repatriation of Relics.  I mean, how do you know that someone didn't steal that 14-foot long thigh bone of the dreaded Cratarackatus from the late Crustacean Period from the National Museum of Ubackastand and just last week buried it in your backyard for safe keeping?  You know they're going to be reading Archaeology, Relics, and the Law to know how to get it back (and keep you from profiting from your find).

Finally, Chapter 4 deals with the Protection and Custody of Human Remains (which is fine since the Crataracktatus is not human and, thus, doesn't fall under the protections of this chapter).  If, however, the dreaded Crataracktatus were suddenly classified as human, you could read up on such information as Protection and custody of the body, protection and the place of deposition (i.e. where the thing is buried), disinterment and relocation of human regains, custody, transfer, and repatriation of human remains, and, museum collection of skeletal materials and artifacts.

Yep, if you want to be an Archaeologist of the likes of Lara Croft or Indiana Jones or even, dare I say...Carmen Santiago...then you are going to want to run to your local county law library and demand to read their copy of Archaeology, Relics, and the Law, poste haste!