ABSTRACT
When considering the influence of the antiquities market on the development of archaeology in China, we have to take a historical point of view, as the effects have been different in different periods. In other words, the damage to ancient remains and artifacts that has ensued as a result of the trade in antiquities and the negative effects of this trade for archaeology can be shown to have occurred on different scales. The antiquities market I refer to here is the international trade in antiquities, especially for people in Western countries (and other developed countries such as Japan). For customers in these developed countries the desire to possess cultural relics from ancient civilisations has led to the creation of a large, well developed antiquities market.
