Ivory Piano Keys from Mastodons: Why Poor Anthropocentric Legislation Endangers Fossils

Abstract

Palaeontological material and sites have faced a variety of challenges in the last half century, often due to inadequate legislation from poorly informed legislators designed for very different objects. The most common problematic scenario is for material to be assessed on anthropocentric grounds that are more traditionally applied to archaeological and art objects as 'cultural', and are fundamentally ill-suited for palaeontology. This paper highlights some of the negative consequences of bad legislation in order to explain why it is a global problem that needs to be addressed by the international palaeontological community through direct engagement with legislative bodies.