Maizi Swenson-Heussi
Rough Draft
Mr. Walliman
The modern world grows more advanced with each second. A new
product easily surpasses its previous model and replaces it. Old products are
then discontinued and recycled to make way for the new. It’s the evolutionary
cycle that has been happening since the beginning of time. The old is replaced
by the new until that new has become outdated and so on. Stick tools were
replaced by stone, which were then replaced by metal. It’s also present in the
circle of life as new generations replace the ones that have aged. This process
is the natural and practical system of creation. Why then is it important to
preserve things of the past? Old machines that no longer function are showcased
regardless of its perceived uselessness. There are many reasons any given
artifact is kept like for selling, collecting, or study. There are even people
that will spend money and time on something in order to bring it back to its
original shine. But why are humans so intent on keeping and repairing dated
objects? That’s because they still retain value. There’s basic monetary value
that give something a literal price so that it may be bought and sold.
Purchased antiques are usually used for decorational purposes, rather than use
the vase to carry water it will be displayed in a room to be seen instead of
used. Sentimental value is not a price value and most likely isn’t sold because
it represents something personal to the owner and no amount of money is
guaranteed to get the owner to make a trade. Items of historical significance
are valuable in the field of study. Even if a piece of machinery from the
beginning of the Industrial Revolution no longer functions it still has value
to a museum that wishes to examine and showcase it. That same machine, once
thoroughly studied, can then teach visual learners about its time of origin
giving it educational value. In this age where everything has a price tag; some
things get more expensive with age. Overall, the purpose of preserving antiques
is to aid in the effort of maintaining items of historical significance as well
as the sacred and cultural importance those items represent.
The topic of preserving the past is important because it is paradoxical
how in the modern world everything is constantly being updated but there are
just certain items of interested that shouldn’t be destroyed. The computers and
phones are always being modified to be faster and more efficient. Outdated
electronics are typically discarded, destroyed, and recycled. But, what causes
someone to keep that old Nokia in that box in the basement? Why is it that in a
world where upgrades are so valued and the old is so easily discarded we still
have historical museums, antique shops, and restoration businesses all working
to keep the outdated intact? Items of the past don’t serve any immediate
purpose and chances are they aren’t even able to perform the function it was
built to do anymore. This will defend why society contradicts itself by destroying
the outdated but at the same time preserve something that is beyond outdated.
Why do auctioneers spend so much money to restore a china set when it isn’t
going to be used for its intended purpose but to instead sit on a shelf on
display? Why would the collector throw away their iPhone 3, buy the upgrade,
and then buy a barely functioning Model T Ford even though they have a brand
new convertible? It’s curious especially when it’s realized that what’s
considered garbage to most people are treasures to others. Realize that the
shoes in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum were considered garbage to
the soldiers that confiscated them from the death camp victims. Now those shoes
are representatives of the very people who lost their lives in those camps.
Those very shoes are the focal point of a lesson used to teach generation in
the futures the devastation of discrimination and war. Hundreds upon hundreds
of ‘useless’ shoes are used to represent an unforgettable point in history.
Those shoes are just one example of how an outdated artifact or antique has
value. In the case of the shoes; they have historical significance and are a
valuable teaching tool.
Items with history and importance ingrained in its very
creation are sought after by many collectors and consumers around the world.
Merchants auction and sell items of historical value all the time and are the
ones that put monetary value on such things. The monetary value of antiques and
vintage items can keep something cycling in trade for decades or even
centuries. The oldest and best preserved items sell highest. Antiques also
cycle through the restoration business often as well as they get broken.
Restoration is used to make antiques look as good as new in order to increase
the price. Museums won’t restore something to its original state because it is
costly and museums don’t typically sell their artifacts. Dealers don’t look
into the story or historical significance of a particular item as much as
museums, unless it has potential to increase the price. In all cases antiques
still rely on the supply and demand economics. Low demand will drive a price
down while the rarity of an antique will cause the price to go up. The restoration
and preservation that goes into antiques for trade is only there to maintain
the highest profit as possible. The trade itself is good for the economy and
surrounding community. Not just handle able items are put in into trade or
display. Many communities rely on historical monuments and buildings to attract
tourists and scholars from around the world. With the tourists comes revenue
which is earned through the tourist industry. Foundations all over the world
are dedicated to protecting building including but not limited to Ipswich
Historical Society, Wisconsin Historical Society, and Historic Hawaii
Foundation. According to the Historic Hawaii Foundation “a community benefits
from increased property values and tax revenues when historic buildings are
protected and made the focal point of revitalization and when the community is
attractive to visitors seeking heritage tourism opportunities”. Historical
remnants have economic advantage over modern remakes or other similar
recreations because of its significance. Consumers who buy antiques see this
and use antiques to decorate or keep as an investment for resale.
Pieces bought from antiques shops and auctions are
typically used for special occasions and as decoration. Dining sets originating
from ancient China can be bought for private display in a home or the owner can
afford it breaking then for use on occasion or regularly. Antiques show the
lineage of a family is if they are inherited or it can be bought to express the
owner’s wealth. Many interior designers decorate with antiques, authentic or
otherwise. (will elaborate, this was a last minute added paragraph)
Inherited antiquities for most will not be sold due its
personal connection. Sentimental value is fueled by emotion and for many is
stronger than their financial need. Items associated with a certain person or
scene are sacred and cannot be priced by their owners. A person keeping a
1920’s quilt because it was used by their grandmother in her infancy is
socially acceptable. According to Katherine Chasen of Ipswich Museum “It's
human nature [to keep sentimental items]. Many people privately keep objects
that have outlived their original intended use. My theory is that it's
because the majority
of us don't have perfect recall
for our memories. Treasured objects often help summon those forgotten or foggy
memories and over time the person who kept the object dies but the object
remains and before you know it, we're preserving the past.” There even have
been studies to prove that keeping and interacting with sentimental objects can
be therapeutic. It helps activate nostalgia which in the past was considered a
mental disease and a psychological disorder. Now nostalgia is considered
a treatment for the feeling of loneliness as well as promoting positive
emotions. “Another important function of nostalgia may be in providing a link
between our past and present selves—that is, nostalgia may provide us with a
positive view of the past and this could help to give us a greater sense of
continuity and meaning to our lives. The researchers surmise that nostalgia may
also acquire greater significance in old age—elderly adults are especially
vulnerable to social isolation and nostalgia may help them overcome feelings of
loneliness.” according Science Daily. It’s important down to the personal level
of individuals as much as it can be for a community if it has historical value.
Inherited
antiques can provide an even more valued service than just trade or nostalgia.
Historical importance is what differentiates something from a dusty heirloom to
a priceless artifact. Not all items of historical importance come from being
hoarded away in the attics of family homes, most are recovered through the
archaeology profession. Historical value in an item helps a great deal in
uncovering the history itself. A hieroglyph or a vase from the Mesopotamian
period can tell a historian hints to what was happening at the time of the
artifact’s creation or even about its destruction. To the untrained eye a stone
sphere dug up from a backyard is just that. A historian would be able to
identify what purpose it was intended for and its approximate creation date.
After something is thoroughly studied and identified then it can be utilized as
a teaching tool.
Museums
are made to visually teach people about history. Sometimes learning history
takes more than words and pictures on a page to get the most of the lesson.
According to Katherine Chasen people need to see historical artifacts in person
because “humans are experiential creatures. Objects evoke feeling and meaning
in people, similar to how artwork or music can create experiences.
Anytime
that you can get a person to
experience, feel or think about something in a museum, we've achieved our goal.
Granted, as a curator, we often have an intended message that we want to
share with a visitor to our exhibit, but any connection that's made is
important, even if it's a negative reaction.” Memorials only have a fraction of
their impact when they are just a small picture in the middle of an article.
Death counts are just numbers unless you give it a visual representation. To
properly represent a historical event its important to expose the students to
actual remnants of the past. Lessons on history aren’t just for academic
purposes either the Historic Hawaii Foundation states that “a community benefits through teaching local heritage and
the understanding of the past and the resultant cultural respect by its
citizens.” Historical monuments and memorials sustain a community’s identity by
representing the community’s history to future generations.
Historic Hawaii Foundation adds that “a community is
richer for having the tangible presence of past eras and historic styles. [And]
citizens take pride in its history and mutual concern for the protection of the
historic [] fabric.” The cultural value of a piece; be it a memorial commemorating
a hometown hero or a painting submitted to a museum by a local artist, it
becomes a representative of its particular culture of origin. Having a physical
object that represents a culture is valuable to said culture because it helps
paint a picture that becomes an accurate depiction of the people, places, and
history of a particular fraction of society. What would represent Gloucester if
the fisherman statue was never created?
In the modern world everything is constantly being
updated. The computers and phones are always being modified to be faster and
more efficient. Outdated electronics are typically discarded, destroyed, and
recycled. But, what causes someone to keep that old Nokia in that box in the
basement? Its curious especially when it’s realized that its considered garbage
to most people. Its also curious to realize that the shoes in the United States
Holocaust Memorial Museum were considered garbage to the soldiers that
confiscated them from the death camp victims. Now those shoes are representatives
of the very people who lost their lives in those camps. Those very shoes are
the focal point of a lesson used to teach generation in the futures the
devastation of discrimination and war. Hundreds upon hundreds of ‘useless’
shoes are used to represent an unforgettable point in history. Those shoes are
just one example of how an outdated artifact or antique has value. In the case
of the shoes; they have historical significance and are a valuable teaching
tool.
Value is what convinces people to keep or to discard
something. The monetary, sentimental, cultural, and historical values give an
artifact its price or pricelessness. The value of that gaming console will go
down, especially when its successor is released with bigger and better
features. The console will then lose its monetary value until it is officially
dubbed a classic. The sentimental value will increase and with it the price
until its cultural and historical value begins to kick in. In a hundred years
or less that bit of gaming technology will no longer be played but instead
displayed in a museum. A tour group of futuristic elementary school students
will look at it and learn that that dusty old hunk of plastic is solely
responsible for almost every case of procrastination for an entire generation.
In that very same museum would be a gallery displaying a collection of a
billion selfies from one girl that successful showed her age from her first
selfie at her 12th birthday and her last that she took in her hospital bed at
age 130, duck face and all. Those pictures would not only successfully depict
this one person’s life but also show them the trends of style and behavior of
the people of our time. In the end, preservation of the past is what documents
human life be it beneficial to mankind in the present or the future. The value
is what convinces people to hold on to that original iPhone and ultimately it
truly benefits the historians of tomorrow.
Citation:
Chasen, Katherine.
Personal Interview. 8 May. 2013.
Wade, Amanda E. Balancing Preservation and
Interaction in the Museum Setting. 2007, Print Book via Website
“Why Historic Preservation?” Historic Hawaii.
Historic Hawaii Foundation. 2003-2010 <http://www.historichawaii.org/WhyPreserve/WhyPreserve.html>
Rypkema, Donovan. “Why Historic Preservation is
Smart Growth” Wisconsin History. Wisconsin Historical Society.
1996-2013. <http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/hp/smartgrowth/rykema.asp>
Newel, “Antiques Economics.” Newel’s View of
Decorative and Fine Arts World. Newel’s Antiques Blog. Web. August
18, 2008. < http://newelsantiqueblog.com/?p=75>
Association for Psychological Science.
"More Than Just Being A Sentimental Fool: The Psychology Of
Nostalgia." ScienceDaily, 14 Dec. 2008. Web. 10 May 2013.
will lengthen paper for final draft
