Jeffrey Quilter, “Archaeology, Museums, and Tourism in Contemporary Peru”

While the iconic “Modern Wonder of the World,” Machu Picchu, still draws the greatest number of tourists to Peru, new archaeological research programs, museums, and appreciations of the past have grown exponentially in the last 25 years. These changes are taking place within a number of converging and parallel social and political events. The embracing neo-liberal political and economic agendas have occurred at the same time that regional identities are being reinterpreted and reasserted and as spectacular new archaeological discoveries have been made. In this lecture, Quilter explores these changes as they have been expressed in Peru, especially on the North Coast where he has conducted extensive research in the last two decades. Part of the Museum Conversation Semiar Series at the Bard Graduate Center.