‘The difference in our professions’: (In)forming collecting and archaeological practice by thwarting antiquities trafficking in Greece, 1860s–1880s

Abstract

Abstract This paper examines how antiquities trafficking and state intervention shaped attitudes to collecting and archaeological practice in Greece between the 1860s and 1880s. Drawing on archival sources – especially the office diary of Panagiotis Eustratiadis, General Ephor of Antiquities – it reconstructs micro-histories that reveal the legal, political and social tensions surrounding the discovery, collection and export of antiquities. The study highlights conflicts between state officials, private collectors, foreign diplomats and emerging archaeologists, showing how efforts to regulate the trade catalysed the professionalization of archaeology. Through detailed case-studies, it explores how debates over ownership, publication rights and ethics redefined the boundaries between antiquarianism and archaeology. It argues that modern archaeology in Greece emerged not solely from scientific progress but from contested negotiations over cultural authority and ownership. By foregrounding human networks and institutional dynamics, the paper offers a more nuanced understanding of the development of archaeology in nineteenth-century Europe.