Frontline: Plunder!

Armed U.S. Customs agents with attack rifles raiding the homes of art dealers? Whoa. After arms and narcotics, ancient artifacts represent the biggest category on the black market. Frontline reporter Karl Nagan presents this fascinating expose/mystery which begins with Peruvian Indians raiding ancient tombs for precious artifacts while elsewhere an archaeologist shakes his head over the destructive looting which make the sites worthless for the study of history after they've been raided. Next, we follow the circuitous journey of these objets d'art from the indigent hands of a starving Indian who sells them for a pittance to the auction block at Sotheby's for mega-bucks. The problem is that the goods take anything but a straight line, considering the fact that it is illegal to export pre-Columbian art and artifacts from Peru. After an eye-opening overview which establishes the principal players in the game (including museums in major cities, whose directors declined to speak with Frontline, the program zeroes in on the case of David Swetnam, Fred Drew, and Michael Kelly--the three men who brought a massive haul from the Sipan treasure into the U.S. Rather than simply a rote recital of the facts, this documentary digs into the psychological motivations of the principals, and how their parts changed as the drama unfolded. Eventually, Swetnam's home would be raided by U.S. Customs officials and the case would land in court. An excellent documentary and an intriguing and well-told mystery tale, Plunder! is highly recommended for those libraries who can afford it. (See AMAZING GRACE: WITH BILL MOYERS for availability.)