There is NO Trade in Major Syrian Antiquities

Wayne Sayles of all people should know what is happening on the global antiquities market. This is what he has to say about claims that US collectors are financing ISIS:

The U.S. market has certainly not seen any measurable rise in artifacts from Syria. If anything, the opposite is true. Because of international sensitivity, the traditional market for objects from this region is shrinking and many dealers shy away from it. Typically, those things seen on the market today are items from old and well known collections. In the rare instances where looted material has been interdicted, it has been really minor material. Except for a few exponents of the prevailing archaeogical view, Customs and federal law enforcement agencies have generally acted reasonably and appropriately in their investigations, seizures and criminal prosecutions. I really don't see how the U.S. Collector can be villainized with any justification. That trend seems to me more of an ideological crusade than legitimate news.

These aggressive attacks on collectors and the legal trade fail to address the question of who "owns" our cultural heritage.