My name is Donna Yates. I am a 23-year old graduate student in the Department of Archaeology at Cambridge University, studying the illicit trafficking of South American antiquities. Although I am currently studying in England, I am an American. I was lucky enough to attend Boston University as an undergraduate, where I focused on the archaeology of the Americas. I have excavated in Belize, Guatemala, and most recently Bolivia, where I have been working with University of Pennsylvania's Tiwanaku project for the past two years.

I have been passionate about archaeology for nearly as long as I can remember. When I finally excavated for the first time in Mesoamerica, I was struck by the widespread destruction of monuments and sites from large scale looting. Though I continued to participate in normal archaeological field projects, my growing concern for the stability and sustainability of archaeological sites eventually lead me across the ocean to Cambridge's heritage management program and to the Illicit Antiquities Research Centre of the McDonald Institute of Archaeology. I was drawn to this contest because I am passionate about this issue. I want to make people feel the loss that I feel and hopefully inspire them to act.

Though I liked the posters that won last year, I decided on a different approach. The looting situation is dire. It can't be made light of. A poster needs to make a statement and then invite the viewer to dig deeper. I have found that the public only responds when they are made to feel like they, personally, are being cheated out of something and that it is up to them to take the next step.

This poster endeavors to make the viewer think, “Someone out there has taken away my opportunity to learn something amazing.” The viewer is meant to feel a sense of loss. The image of the Rio Azul tomb is a colorful landscape full of potential but lacking what the viewer really desires. The viewer is shown an enclosed space that is the epitome of Indiana Jonesesque archaeological ideal. Based on the paintings and empty niches, the viewer imagines this tomb was filled with the great mysteries of humanity and the incredible secrets of the past. Yet they are told that not only will archaeologists and scholars never know what was originally in the tomb, they personally will never know what the Maya left for them.

I showed this poster to friends without the SAFE website address to see what message people came away with. All of those with whom I shared the poster instantly said, “This is great, but now I want to know how I can help.” Just the response I was looking for.

Donna Yates