Jeevan S. Panesar of Leiden University is currently at the NIT for his research concerning Art Market and Illicit Antiquity in the Eastern Mediterranean.
As Heritage practices move firmly into the 21st century, the residual traces of deprived ownership can still be found in the field, in the city, and even the academy. “Ownership” of things is difficult to nail, even more so as post-modern ideas such as object agency grow into their own field of scholarship, but that does not stop those who want to possess art or antiquities to acquire them via any means possible. Focusing on the Eastern Mediterranean region, Jeevan hopes to shed more light on the prevalence of “unprovenanced” goods in museums, art markets, and private collections, based in a firmly entrenched theoretical understanding of the differences between the art markets and the antiquity markets.
During his residence at the NIT for the month of January, Jeevan will be partaking in museum visits and desk research at the two libraries located here at the NIT.