NATION : Bush Bans Peru Artifact Import

WASHINGTON — The Bush Administration announced a ban today on the importation of archeological treasure from Peru to help discourage looting linked to a growing illegal market for pre-Columbian artifacts.

White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater said the action was taken at the request of the Peruvian government after the discovery of a rich new archeological find “unfortunately generated intense demand for these treasures.”

“The tombs of the Moche nobility, which have produced gold artifacts unlike any previously seen in the pre-Columbian cultures of Peru, have prompted looters to engage in rampant destruction of these sites in order to satisfy the illegal trade in archeological artifacts,” he said.

This is the third time the United States has taken action under federal law and a 1970 U.N. convention to crack down on trade in cultural property. Emergency restrictions were imposed in 1987 on certain articles from El Salvador predating the voyage of Christopher Columbus. In 1989 restrictions were imposed on some antique Andean textiles from Bolivia.