Post #704849 by White Devil on Fri, Jan 17, 2014 5:30 AM

On 2014-01-16 14:48, King Bushwich the 33rd wrote:
On a larger scale, there is much discussion on how some of the great museums such as the British Museum and the Louvre "acquired" their priceless artifacts from other regions of the world.

But, no, this would not justify an unauthorized acquisition from a business such as a bar or restaurant.

In the instances of museums, the goal of acquisition is preservation, not profiteering (or destruction, in the case of extreme Muslim factions). In many instances those artifacts are repatriated once the originating nation can demonstrate a capability of preserving its own history. Given the brevity of lifespans of most tiki establishments, the ransacking collectors ultimately contribute to the preservation and dissemination of the memorabilia, but that wouldn't justify the non-compensation of the business while it's still viable.