Research on archaeological poaching and methods for its police and legal pursuit

Police identification of three suspects of archaeological poachers in Cadaqués (Girona). Photo: Catalan police force. Archaeological poaching, crimes against archaeological heritage, are the object of a university research study. These are crimes that go back to the sacks in Ancient Egypt tombs and reach the current traffickers who trade stolen goods online. The operation and typology of these criminals, as well as the methodology for their police and legal chase, are gathered in a new university manual published by the Prehistoric Studies and Research Seminar (SERP) of the UB and the Catalan Society of Archaeology. The author, SERP researcher Joan Carles Alay, notes that while the "treasure hunters" that are driven by the pleasure of the discovery tend to disappear, traffickers who aim to profit will continue to proliferate with the help of new technologies. Alay analyses the historical, economic, legal, and criminal aspects of these illegal trade activities that endanger or destroy one of the bases of the identity of societies: the archaeological heritage.