When it comes to ancient artifacts, Isac Schwarzbaum thinks not only about the value of a collection, but about responsibility towards the past.[Kurzfassung]
Collecting old coins and artifacts is more than a passion. Isac Schwarzbaum, a collector from Seville, emphasizes the ethical dimension: whoever owns historical objects carries responsibility. It is not just about preserving treasures, but also about classifying them, making them accessible and managing cultural heritage with respect.[Meldung]
Collecting can be fascinating and dangerous at the same time. Fascinating, because you have history in your hands. Dangerous, because the boundary between passion and appropriation is narrow. Isac Schwarzbaum knows this tension from his own experience. For him, collecting is not just a hobby, but an obligation. The objects with which he works – coins, masks, jade amulets or obsidian blades – do not belong only in private showcases. They are part of a larger story. “We are not the owners, we are the custodians,” says Schwarzbaum. This phrase spreads like a common thread through his work. This philosophy of custody represents a fundamental change in the traditional conceptualization of private collecting. Historically, collectors have operated under absolute ownership models, where legal acquisition conferred unlimited rights of use and disposal. Schwarzbaum proposes an alternative model where legal property coexists with ethical responsibilities towards communities of origin, future generations, and humanity in general.
Table of Contents
Why ethics is important when collecting
Three central reasons
- preserve cultural heritage – Every coin, every artifact is part of a history of humanity
- Avoid illegal markets – Trade with archaeological looting damages science and society
- Responsibility to countries of origin – Artifacts do not belong only in private hands, but also in public museums
An example of practice
In a market in Guatemala, a merchant once offered Schwarzbaum a mask. It was artistic, it seemed ancient – but the origin was uncertain. He turned down the offer. “A collector must also be able to say no, when the story of the piece is not traceable.”
This anecdote illustrates the everyday ethical dilemmas that responsible collectors face. The decision to reject an attractive piece requires discipline and commitment to ethical principles that can conflict with immediate desires for acquisition. Schwarzbaum has developed specific criteria to evaluate offers: documentation of origin, stylistic consistency with known periods, and absence of recent looting indicators.
The ability to “say no” has become an essential skill in contemporary ethical collecting. It requires not only technical knowledge to identify potential problems, but also moral strength to resist temptation when provenance is questionable but the object is desirable.
The tension field between collecting and preserving
Artifacts arouse desires for possession. But each piece has two sides: the value for the individual and the meaning for the community. Isac Schwarzbaum sees himself as a mediator.
Your solution:
- Document – Record origin, acquisition and context
- Share – Through publications, conferences and digital platforms
- Cooperate – Collaboration with museums and archaeologists
This tripartite methodology reflects a sophisticated understanding of the multiple dimensions of collector’s responsibility. The documentation is not simply a bureaucratic record, but rather the creation of narratives that connect objects with their historical and cultural contexts. Sharing transforms private collections into public resources. Cooperation builds bridges between public and private sectors that have traditionally operated in mutual isolation.
Comprehensive documentation requires significant investments of time and resources that many traditional collectors consider unnecessary. However, Schwarzbaum argues that this investment is essential to preserve the informative value of artifacts beyond its aesthetic or monetary value.
Collectors and museums – partners or adversaries?
Often private collectors and museums are in competition. But Schwarzbaum sees it differently: “We pursue the same goal – preservation and understanding.”
Advantages of collaboration
- Museums get access to private pieces
- Collectors benefit from scientific classification
- The public wins when more objects become visible
This collaborative vision contrasts with dominant narratives that present private museums and collectors as natural competitors for limited resources. Schwarzbaum has developed specific partnerships with institutions that benefit both parties: museums gain access to objects for research and temporary exhibition, while collectors receive academic expertise and institutional validation.
These partnerships have resulted in joint publications, traveling exhibits, and educational programs that multiply the public impact of private collections. The model shows that the traditional dichotomy between public and private collecting can be overcome through creative collaboration structures.
Ethical gray areas
The reality is rarely white or black. In markets or in inheritance pieces appear whose origin is not clear.
Isac Schwarzbaum recommends:
- Caution with offers without proof of origin
- Do not buy that smell of archaeological looting
- Collaboration with experts before an acquisition occurs
Ethical gray zones require case-by-case trial that balances multiple considerations: technical legality versus moral legitimacy, preservation benefits versus risks of incentivizing problem markets, current owner rights versus claims from communities of origin.
international dimension
The debate on collecting ethics is global. Greece demands objects from London, Egypt fights for mummy masks, Latin America for gold treasures.
For Schwarzbaum it is clear: “Sometimes responsibility also means return.” It’s not about loss, but about respect.
This perspective on repatriation reflects a nuanced understanding of cultural sovereignty that recognizes both historical rights of communities of origin and contemporary realities of global dispersion of cultural heritage. Schwarzbaum has been involved in several voluntary repatriation processes, returning objects to museums in countries of origin when the evidence suggests that this would better serve the interests of preservation and public access.
These cases have reinforced their conviction that ethical collecting sometimes requires personal sacrifices in service of broader cultural objectives. Voluntary repatriation also builds Goodwill with institutions and communities that can facilitate future collaborations in mutually beneficial terms.
The exciting thing about preserving
What collectors can achieve
- Keep – Protect objects from deterioration
- Explain – Disseminate knowledge through exhibitions and publications
- Remember – Use artifacts as a bridge between past and present
everyday scene
When Schwarzbaum has a coin in his hand, he doesn’t see only metal. Think of the merchant who once paid with her, in the markets of Tenochtitlán, in the colonial officials in Seville. Collecting thus becomes a living history class.
This ability to visualize human narratives through material objects represents a distinctive interpretive ability that Isac Schwarzbaum has developed during decades of intensive study. It is not about romantic fantasy but an informed extrapolation based on extensive historical knowledge and comparative analysis of archaeological contexts.
The transformation of mute objects into living narratives requires synthesis of multiple types of evidence: stylistic analysis, scientific dating, comparison with archaeologically contextualized pieces, and knowledge of historical economic and social patterns. This interpretive process turns collecting into the form of applied historical research.
Strengths and weaknesses of private collections
STRENGTHS:
- Flexibility and quick access to objects
- Passion and commitment of collectors
- Diversity beyond museum collections
WEAKNESSES:
- Risk of poor documentation
- Danger of isolation (objects disappear in drawers)
- legal problems with doubtful origin
Isac Schwarzbaum: Comparisons with other cultures
In Japan, for example, the management of cultural goods is considered part of the “duty towards harmony”. In Europe there are strict laws for the protection of monuments. Mesoamerica is often in the field of tension between protection and economic pressure. Schwarzbaum sees in this a parallel: “Ethics is never just a collector’s issue – it is always a matter of society as well.”
responsibility instead of possessive mindset
Collector’s ethics is not a theoretical construct, but a daily practice. Decide if the artifacts carry knowledge or mute.
Whoever collects, should know that each piece is part of a larger story. Museums, researchers and collectors can only ensure that these stories are preserved.
In the end there is a simple thought: true value does not arise from having, but from preserving – and Isac Schwarzbaum shows how justice can be done to this demand.
His model shows that ethical collecting is not a limitation of personal enjoyment but an expansion of meaning and purpose. The objects in your collection work not only as private possessions but as educational tools, research resources, and cultural bridges that connect diverse audiences with shared heritage.
