PrepTest 93+, Section 1, Question 14
Passage A is from a newspaper article. Passage B is from UNESCO's 1999 Draft Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage.
Passage A
A North American company that found what is believed to be the HMS Sussex during expeditions in the Mediterranean from 1998 to 2001 has signed an agreement with the British government, which owns the Sussex, to raise what may be history's richest sunken treasure and to split the proceeds. The agreement is a legal breakthrough that could allow the recovery of perhaps US$4 billion in gold coins lost with the Sussex in a storm in 1694.
As robots, sonar, and other technologically advanced gear have opened the deepest oceans to exploration and recovery, governments have begun asserting ownership over their sunken vessels. But governments often lack the money and skills to retrieve cultural riches and, until now, there had been no legal precedent for a private company to join with a government to salvage the government's treasure. This agreement could end the days of freelance treasure hunting and allow nations to oversee the recovery of their lost fleets.
The company, which is funding the venture, agrees with British historians that the ship carried coins, most likely gold, worth $1 million in 1694. The US$4 billion figure is the coins' theoretical value if sold to collectors. The agreement calls for archaeological integrity—a difficult technical feat at such depths and a goal that critics of for-profit archaeology are likely to doubt. Many archaeologists abhor the sale of recovered artifacts, arguing that this inhibits scholarly analysis and public display. The agreement, however, draws a distinction between different classes of artifacts, recognizing that cultural items have greater archaeological value than coins, which it allows to be sold to help pay for the project.
Passage A is from a newspaper article. Passage B is from UNESCO's 1999 Draft Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage.
Passage A
A North American company that found what is believed to be the HMS Sussex during expeditions in the Mediterranean from 1998 to 2001 has signed an agreement with the British government, which owns the Sussex, to raise what may be history's richest sunken treasure and to split the proceeds. The agreement is a legal breakthrough that could allow the recovery of perhaps US$4 billion in gold coins lost with the Sussex in a storm in 1694.
As robots, sonar, and other technologically advanced gear have opened the deepest oceans to exploration and recovery, governments have begun asserting ownership over their sunken vessels. But governments often lack the money and skills to retrieve cultural riches and, until now, there had been no legal precedent for a private company to join with a government to salvage the government's treasure. This agreement could end the days of freelance treasure hunting and allow nations to oversee the recovery of their lost fleets.
The company, which is funding the venture, agrees with British historians that the ship carried coins, most likely gold, worth $1 million in 1694. The US$4 billion figure is the coins' theoretical value if sold to collectors. The agreement calls for archaeological integrity—a difficult technical feat at such depths and a goal that critics of for-profit archaeology are likely to doubt. Many archaeologists abhor the sale of recovered artifacts, arguing that this inhibits scholarly analysis and public display. The agreement, however, draws a distinction between different classes of artifacts, recognizing that cultural items have greater archaeological value than coins, which it allows to be sold to help pay for the project.
Passage B
"Underwater cultural heritage" (UCH) means all traces of human existence that have been partially, totally, or periodically situated underwater for at least 100 years.
1. The protection of UCH is best achieved through in situ (original site) preservation, which should be considered as the first option. Accordingly, activities directed at UCH shall be authorized by the competent authority of the concerned State only when they make a significant contribution to knowledge, protection, and/or enhancement of UCH.
2. The commercial exploitation of UCH for trade, sale, barter, or speculation...is fundamentally incompatible with the protection and proper management of the UCH.
3. Activities directed at UCH shall not adversely impact UCH more than is necessary for the objectives of the project;
4. must use nondestructive techniques and prospection and limited sampling in preference to recovery of objects. If excavation is necessary for the purpose of scientific studies, the methods and techniques used must be as nondestructive as possible and contribute to the preservation of the remains;
5. shall avoid the unnecessary disturbance of human remains or venerated sites;
6. shall be strictly regulated to ensure proper recording of historical, cultural, and archaeological information.
7. Public access to conduct activities relating to UCH that are nonintrusive (such as photography) should, where practicable, be encouraged.
Passage A is from a newspaper article. Passage B is from UNESCO's 1999 Draft Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage.
Passage A
A North American company that found what is believed to be the HMS Sussex during expeditions in the Mediterranean from 1998 to 2001 has signed an agreement with the British government, which owns the Sussex, to raise what may be history's richest sunken treasure and to split the proceeds. The agreement is a legal breakthrough that could allow the recovery of perhaps US$4 billion in gold coins lost with the Sussex in a storm in 1694.
As robots, sonar, and other technologically advanced gear have opened the deepest oceans to exploration and recovery, governments have begun asserting ownership over their sunken vessels. But governments often lack the money and skills to retrieve cultural riches and, until now, there had been no legal precedent for a private company to join with a government to salvage the government's treasure. This agreement could end the days of freelance treasure hunting and allow nations to oversee the recovery of their lost fleets.
The company, which is funding the venture, agrees with British historians that the ship carried coins, most likely gold, worth $1 million in 1694. The US$4 billion figure is the coins' theoretical value if sold to collectors. The agreement calls for archaeological integrity—a difficult technical feat at such depths and a goal that critics of for-profit archaeology are likely to doubt. Many archaeologists abhor the sale of recovered artifacts, arguing that this inhibits scholarly analysis and public display. The agreement, however, draws a distinction between different classes of artifacts, recognizing that cultural items have greater archaeological value than coins, which it allows to be sold to help pay for the project.
Passage B
"Underwater cultural heritage" (UCH) means all traces of human existence that have been partially, totally, or periodically situated underwater for at least 100 years.
1. The protection of UCH is best achieved through in situ (original site) preservation, which should be considered as the first option. Accordingly, activities directed at UCH shall be authorized by the competent authority of the concerned State only when they make a significant contribution to knowledge, protection, and/or enhancement of UCH.
2. The commercial exploitation of UCH for trade, sale, barter, or speculation...is fundamentally incompatible with the protection and proper management of the UCH.
3. Activities directed at UCH shall not adversely impact UCH more than is necessary for the objectives of the project;
4. must use nondestructive techniques and prospection and limited sampling in preference to recovery of objects. If excavation is necessary for the purpose of scientific studies, the methods and techniques used must be as nondestructive as possible and contribute to the preservation of the remains;
5. shall avoid the unnecessary disturbance of human remains or venerated sites;
6. shall be strictly regulated to ensure proper recording of historical, cultural, and archaeological information.
7. Public access to conduct activities relating to UCH that are nonintrusive (such as photography) should, where practicable, be encouraged.
Passage A is from a newspaper article. Passage B is from UNESCO's 1999 Draft Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage.
Passage A
A North American company that found what is believed to be the HMS Sussex during expeditions in the Mediterranean from 1998 to 2001 has signed an agreement with the British government, which owns the Sussex, to raise what may be history's richest sunken treasure and to split the proceeds. The agreement is a legal breakthrough that could allow the recovery of perhaps US$4 billion in gold coins lost with the Sussex in a storm in 1694.
As robots, sonar, and other technologically advanced gear have opened the deepest oceans to exploration and recovery, governments have begun asserting ownership over their sunken vessels. But governments often lack the money and skills to retrieve cultural riches and, until now, there had been no legal precedent for a private company to join with a government to salvage the government's treasure. This agreement could end the days of freelance treasure hunting and allow nations to oversee the recovery of their lost fleets.
The company, which is funding the venture, agrees with British historians that the ship carried coins, most likely gold, worth $1 million in 1694. The US$4 billion figure is the coins' theoretical value if sold to collectors. The agreement calls for archaeological integrity—a difficult technical feat at such depths and a goal that critics of for-profit archaeology are likely to doubt. Many archaeologists abhor the sale of recovered artifacts, arguing that this inhibits scholarly analysis and public display. The agreement, however, draws a distinction between different classes of artifacts, recognizing that cultural items have greater archaeological value than coins, which it allows to be sold to help pay for the project.
Which one of the following is most strongly implied by passage A?
A government's property rights in a ship that sank several centuries ago are not forfeited merely by their not having salvaged the ship during the intervening time.
Governments have a legal obligation to ensure the archaeological integrity of efforts to salvage or explore old shipwrecks.
Gold coins salvaged from an old shipwreck should not be regarded as archaeologically significant cultural property if they can be used to fund the exploration and recovery of the shipwreck for scientific and cultural reasons.
If neither the original owner of a sunken ship nor any legitimate heirs of the owner still exist, the ownership of that ship devolves to the government under whose laws it was originally owned.
When there is no salvage agreement between the owner of a sunken ship and some other party, then freelance treasure hunters have a legal right to salvage the remains of that ship.
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