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That museum placard about 'ritual purposes' needs to stop

I was at the Field Museum last weekend reading about a bronze axe head from 1200 BC, and the placard said it was 'likely used for ceremonial purposes.' I asked the docent why, and she admitted they just don't know and that's the default line. It feels like half the artifacts in every museum get the same lazy label when they can't figure out the real use. Anyone else think we'd learn more if they just said 'unknown use' instead of pretending it was a ritual object?
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3 Comments
simonlee
simonlee1d ago
Come on, "ceremonial" at least hints at something meaningful to those people.
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the_rose
the_rose1d ago
Why would "ceremonial" mean anything when they already admitted they don't even know what it was for?
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troyc17
troyc171d ago
Wait, the docent actually ADMITTED they don't know?!
4