The Archaeological Institute of America — Worcester
Society’s popular Travels In Archaeology Series ventures further afield this
year with a virtual trip to Mongolia.
“Mongolia: Cultural Heritage
at Risk” will be presented at 7 p.m. today at Worcester Art Museum.

With its blend of Shamanist and Tibetan Buddhist art and culture against a
breathtaking backdrop of golden steppes, Mongolia has become an exciting
travel destination. Four sites will be examined as well as the threats to Mongolia’s
archaeological and cultural heritage: unmanaged tourism, looting, the illicit
trade in antiquities and rapid development. Encountering painted rock carvings,
the legacy of Genghis Khan, buried Tibetan manuscripts and the ruins of a once
flourishing intellectual center of learning, this lecture looks at the
devastating consequences of an authoritarian regime’s policy of cultural
heritage decimation in the 1930s and the determination of 21st-century Mongolia to
protect its past. Travel advice includes getting around, living in a ger and
how to drink airag , as well as tips for travel photography.