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From Reddit and YouTube to collector forums and live auctions, the avenues through which cultural heritage can be bought and sold are rapidly growing alongside new digital technologies. Considering anew the implications of this digital expansion for the online trafficking of cultural property and human remains, Investigating Online Heritage Crime conducts an exacting examination of these relatively under-researched "sites" of heritage crime. The chapters address how networks operate within and because of the interconnected social media and e-commerce landscape. Through doing so, this volume highlights where markets for online heritage are headed, especially given the ever-prevalent adoption of AI and LLM (Large Language Models) technology that is profoundly reshaping all aspects of online life, including licit and illicit commerce.
“This book is an excellent introduction to a crucial new field of interest to all heritage researchers.” • Erin L. Thompson, John Jay College, City University of New York
Damien Huffer is a research fellow with the Wildlife Crime Research Hub, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide. An osteoarchaeologist and interdisciplinary illicit trafficking researcher, he was previously a lecturer in criminology, School of Social Science, University of Queensland, Brisbane. He has also lectured on topics in osteoarchaeology, paleoanthropology and forensic anthropology, most recently for the University of New England, Armidale, NSW. His current research investigates how and why heritage crime and wildlife crime overlap on and offline. He is one of the cofounders of the Alliance to Counter Crime Online.
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Damien Huffer
Chapter 1. How to Sell an Ancient Manuscript on YouTube: Investigating a Hidden Corner of the Internet Market in Antiquities
Evie Handby
Chapter 2. Amateur Archaeology or Looting? Exploring Heritage Gray Zones on Reddit
Calum Farrar
Chapter 3. Who Are the Trafficked Dead? An Examination into Personhood and Postmortem Narratives in Skull Sales on eBay
Christine L. Halling and Ryan M. Seidemann
Chapter 4. Online Social Organization of Cultural Goods Trafficking: New Evidence from Old Forums across Europe
Samuel Andrew Hardy
Chapter 5. Cybercrimes and Chinese Cultural Relics: Status Quo, Legal Issues, Future Criminal Legislation, and Regulation
Hao Liu
Chapter 6. The Auction of Human Remains: Challenges, Case Studies, and Reflections
Amy E. Rattenbury and Paige Tynan
Chapter 7. Culture of Oddities: The Appeal of the Human Remains Market on Facebook
Evelyn Breda
Conclusion
Shawn Graham
Appendix: Biological and Demographic Profiles of “Known” eBay Skulls
Index