Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- List of illustrations
- Introduction
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 Archaeology and the 1948 War
- 2 Abandoned places, new places
- 3 Foreign aid
- 4 Frozen funds
- 5 A battalion of guards
- 6 Relief work
- 7 Man robs his land: “agreement” with General Dayan
- 8 “Gold of Ophir for Beth-Horon”: 3,000 shekels
- 9 The building beyond the border: the PAM, 1948–67
- 10 A building of dreams: a home for the IDAM and the origins of the Israel Museum, Jerusalem
- 11 A dead man on the council: the story of the supreme archaeological body in Israel
- 12 “But trust comes from the heart”: travels with the Government Tourist Corporation
- 13 “Whether in a courtyard of a synagogue, in a courtyard adjacent to a synagogue, or under a synagogue”: the Safad affair
- 14 The policy of salvage and early Israeli excavations
- 15 Myths and conclusions
- Appendix: other documents from the IDAM files
- Bibliography
- Author index
- Index
12 - “But trust comes from the heart”: travels with the Government Tourist Corporation
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- List of illustrations
- Introduction
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 Archaeology and the 1948 War
- 2 Abandoned places, new places
- 3 Foreign aid
- 4 Frozen funds
- 5 A battalion of guards
- 6 Relief work
- 7 Man robs his land: “agreement” with General Dayan
- 8 “Gold of Ophir for Beth-Horon”: 3,000 shekels
- 9 The building beyond the border: the PAM, 1948–67
- 10 A building of dreams: a home for the IDAM and the origins of the Israel Museum, Jerusalem
- 11 A dead man on the council: the story of the supreme archaeological body in Israel
- 12 “But trust comes from the heart”: travels with the Government Tourist Corporation
- 13 “Whether in a courtyard of a synagogue, in a courtyard adjacent to a synagogue, or under a synagogue”: the Safad affair
- 14 The policy of salvage and early Israeli excavations
- 15 Myths and conclusions
- Appendix: other documents from the IDAM files
- Bibliography
- Author index
- Index
Summary
There is nothing so contaminated with fiction as the history of the Company.
Borges (1970: 60)Two short letters summarize relations between the GTC and the IDAM. Dothan wrote the first letter on 27 October 1955:
Mr D. Levinson and his entourage from the GTC, as well as his car, are permitted to enter any area of antiquities found under the protection of the IDAM. We ask all antiquities guards and employees of the IDAM to help him and to guide him if so required.
(GL44882/9 no. 9981)Biran, Director of the IDAM, wrote the second letter on 21 December 1961:
[To] Mr D. Levinson, the GTC
In the current situation, it seems desirable to us for the employees of the IDAM to have a certificate from you, allowing [them] access at any time – without payment – to ancient sites held in your hands, such as Avdat and Beth-Alpha. Our workers who ought to be given such certificates are [list of 23 employees] … In fact, problems have arisen lately in two cases: A. When an employee of yours at Caesarea did not let Dr Biran and his entourage see the statue of the “City Goddess”. B. When someone guarding Beth-Alpha demanded entrance fees from Mr Zori [inspector of the IDAM]. …
(GL44882/9 no. 160)- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Just Past?The Making of Israeli Archaeology, pp. 250 - 283Publisher: Acumen PublishingPrint publication year: 2006