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  3. Archaeology as a profession faces two major problems. First, it is the poorest of the poor. Only paltry sums are available for e

Archaeology as a profession faces two major problems. First, it is the poorest of the poor. Only paltry sums are available for e

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问题     Archaeology as a profession faces two major problems. First, it is the poorest of the poor. Only paltry sums are available for excavating and even less is available for publishing the results and preserving the sites once excavated. Yet archaeologists deal with priceless objects every day. Second, there is the problem of illegal excavation, resulting in muse- um-quality pieces being sold to the highest bidder.
    I would like to make an outrageous suggestion that would at one stroke provide funds for archaeology and reduce the amount of illegal digging. I would propose that scientific archeological expeditions and governmental authorities sell excavated artifacts on the open market. Such sales would provide substan- tial funds for the excavation and preservation of archaeological sites and the publication of results. At the same time, they would break the illegal excavator’s grip on the market, thereby de- creasing the inducement to engage in illegal activities.
    You might object that professionals excavate to acquire knowledge, not money. Moreover, ancient artifacts are part of our global cultural heritage, which should be available for all to appreciate, not sold to the highest bidder. I agree. Sell nothing that has unique artistic merit or scientific value. But, you might reply, everything that comes out of the ground has scientific value. Here we part company. Theoretically, you may be correct in claiming that every artifact has potential scientific val- ue. Practically, you are wrong.
    I refer to the thousands of pottery vessels and ancient lamps that are essentially duplicates of one another. In one small excavation in Cyprus, archaeolo- gists recently uncovered 2,000 virtually indistinguishable small jugs in a single courtyard. Even precious royal seal impressions known as l’melekh handles have been found in abundance—more than 4,000 examples so far.
    The basements of museums are simply not large enough to store the artifacts that are likely to be discovered in the future. There is not enough money even to catalogue the finds; as a result, they cannot be found again and become as inaccessible as if they had never been discovered. Indeed, with the help of a computer, sold artifacts could be more accessible than are the pieces stored in bulging museum basements. Prior to sale, each could be photographed and the list of the purchasers could be maintained on the computer. A purchaser could even be required to agree to return the piece if it should become needed for scientific purposes.
    It would be unrealistic to suggest that illegal digging would stop if arti- facts were sold on the open market. But the demand for the clandestine product would be substantially reduced. Who would want an unmarked pot when another was available whose provenance was known, and that was dated strati-graphically by the professional archaeologist who excavated it?
The author’ s argument concerning the effect of the official sale of duplicate artifacts on illegal excavation is based on which of the following assumptions?
选项 A、Prospective purchasers would prefer to buy authenticated artifacts.
B、The price of illegally excavated artifacts would rise.
C、Computers could be used to trace sold artifacts.
D、Illegal excavators would be forced to sell only duplicate artifacts.
E、Money gained from selling authenticated artifacts could be used to investigate and prosecute illegal excavators.
答案A
解析 作者在出售文物复制品对非法发掘造成的影响的论证中做了哪一假设?assumption类型逻辑题。作者推论，有标有明确年代的合法文物出售，人们对无标志产品需求将减少。A．正确。买主都更喜欢买真文物。正是指出了这一推理中的潜在假设。B．非法开掘的文物会涨价。无。C．计算机跟踪已售出文物。这是作者肯定的事实。D．非法盗掘者将被迫出售复制文物。无。E．卖真文物的钱可被用来调查，检举非法开掘。无。
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