We list here news items about rebuilding Iraq's cultural heritage after the conflict. Below are governmental and institutional press releases on this topic.
The Art Newspaper has published on its website 300 images from the Iraq Museum's 1975-76 publication Treasures of the Iraq Museum by Faraj Basmachi (17 April 2003). The paper carries many other stories on the unfolding cultural catastrophe in Iraq. There is also a fledgeling database of vulnerable Iraqi antiquities at the University of Chicago's Lost treasures from Iraq web page, run by the Oriental Institute. And ICOM, the International Council of Museums, has a website of Resources on Iraqi Museum Collections -- publications and websites.
The looting of the Iraq Museum (Baghdad) is the most severe single blow to cultural heritage in modern history, comparable to the sack of Constantinople, the burning of the library at Alexandria, the Vandal and Mogul invasions and the ravages of the conquistadors. It took place under the eyes of U.S. military forces in contravention of the Hague Convention on the preservation of cultural property in time of war and the stated policy of the Department of Defense, which had written to the Society for American Archaeology regarding the safeguarding of cultural property in Iraq that "U.S. armed forces... conduct all their operations in accordance with the law of armed conflict, including those provisions of the 1954 Convention and 1999 Protocol that reflect customary international law." We urge that the United States Government recognize its responsibilities by immediately taking three steps to mitigate the situation:
Statement on Iraq, signed in November 2002
The organizations and institutions listed below, mindful of the devastation of Afghanistan's cultural sites and material caused by war and political chaos, are deeply concerned that an outbreak of hostilities with Iraq may have serious and damaging consequences for that country's monuments, museums, archaeological sites and material culture. These have unique value to our own cultural heritage which draws its strength from other cultures, including that of Mesopotamia, a region that has long been known as the cradle of Western civilization.
The undersigned ask countries to take measures to avoid, to the extent possible, damage to Iraq's cultural monuments, museums and archaeological sites and that their military forces respect the integrity of such monuments and sites. We ask also, that concerned countries, encourage and help Iraq to ensure security for its own monuments, museums and sites.
Finally, the undersigned, ask, if a conflict has occurred, that concerned countries encourage both governmental and non-governmental participation in rebuilding Iraq's cultural institutions. We are prepared to help mobilize appropriate technical, material and financial resources to support this end.
Signed
American Council for Cultural Policy
Asia Society
Association of Art Museum Directors
American Schools of Oriental Research (signed November 2002)
The Situation in Iraq: a statement by the Illicit Antiquities Research Centre at the University of Cambridge, 15 April 2003
Statement from the UK government's Department of Culture, Media, and Sport regarding Iraq's Cultural Heritage, 15 April 2003
The Secretary-General deplores the catastrophic losses to Iraq's cultural heritage that have occurred in recent days and weeks. He urges the Iraqi people to do what they can to restore that invaluable heritage by returning any looted items, and calls on the coalition authorities to act immediately to prevent further losses by protecting Iraq's archaeological and religious sites, museums and other cultural institutions. He also joins the Director-General of UNESCO in calling on the authorities of countries bordering Iraq, international police, customs organizations and leading actors in the art market to join forces with UNESCO in the work to prevent trade in stolen Iraqi objects. He notes that Iraq's cultural treasures bear witness to an invaluable legacy for all humanity, and their loss is a wound inflicted on all humankind.
In the wake of the heavy losses to Iraq'ss cultural treasures, notably in Baghdad, Mosul and Tikrit, some 30 leading experts will meet at UNESCO Headquarters on April 17 to attempt a preliminary evaluation of the state of the countryís heritage. The meeting will seek to determine the urgent measures required to safeguard this heritage, which dates back thousands of years.
Following the looting of the National Archaeological Museum of Baghdad, UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura, who on April 11 had exhorted US and British authorities to preserve the country's archaeological treasures, called on them ěto take immediate measures of protection and surveillance of Iraqi archaeological sites and cultural institutions.
The Director-General also called on the authorities of countries bordering Iraq, international police, customs organizations and the principal actors of the art market, to join forces with UNESCO in a 'comprehensive mobilization so that stolen objects should not find their way to acquirers.'
At the April 17 meeting, which, apart from the opening session at 9 a.m., will be held behind closed doors, the group of about 30 Iraqi and international experts* will attempt to draw an inventory of recent cultural destruction. They will also make recommendations on those elements of Iraqís heritage that require priority action and the way this should be coordinated. A press briefing will be held at 2.45 p.m.
Iraq is often described as the "cradle of civilization". From the end of the fifth millennium B.C., Ancient Mesopotamia gave rise to a host of technical and cultural innovations. Thanks to an exceptional combination of geographical and climatic factors, a surplus of agricultural production led to the development of sophisticated societies, the invention of writing and the establishment of the first urban settlements and legal codes. In more recent history, Baghdad was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate and the political and cultural centre of the Muslim world.
Numerous sites, and those collections in national museums that were spared from the pillage, bear witness to an invaluable legacy for all humanity. Before it was sacked, The Baghdad Museum, for example, housed around 100,000 artefacts that testified the glory of the civilizations that succeeded each other in the "Land between the two Rivers", from pre-historic to Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Neo-Babylonian, Persian, Parthian, Sassanide, Greek and Islamic.
Outstanding sites include the cities of Ur of the Chaldees, the supposed birthplace of Abraham; Babylon and its legendary Tower of Babel; Nineveh, Ashur, Samarra and Hatra. This great, fortified city, which combines Greek, Roman and Oriental influences, is the only Iraqi site inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List (1985).
Another seven sites feature on a 'tentative list', which was supplied in 2000 by the Iraqi authorities with a view to their inscription on the World Heritage List, including Mosul, Nimrud, Ashur, Samarra, Al-Ukhaidir, Wasit and Ur.
After the meeting on April 17, conditions permitting, UNESCO will send a mission of experts to Iraq. This mission should allow for a preliminary assessment of the state of conservation of the museums, monuments and the main heritage sites, in order to identify most urgent needs; evaluate the capacity of local authorities to rehabilitate cultural heritage; identify Iraqi and international partners and to draw up a plan of action and a strategy to raise the necessary funds. Italy has already announced that it will place an initial sum of 400,000 Euros at UNESC's disposal.
UNESCO began working with the Iraqi authorities in 1976 to safeguard the country's cultural heritage. In the 1980s, the Organization contributed to the restoration of Babylon and Basra. More recently it has worked in three main directions.
UNESCO first engaged in the fight against looting and the illegal trade of cultural artefacts that developed during and after the 1991 conflict. UNESCO forwarded a list of missing items supplied by the Iraqi authorities to many museums and auction houses, to the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and INTERPOL. In 1995, UNESCO alerted the art market and the international community to the theft and looting of artefacts from the site of Hatra.
Beginning in 1998, UNESCO participated in the modernization of the museum in Baghdad, which had suffered from a lack of maintenance. The Organization notably contributed to the installation of a closed-circuit television security system and new air conditioning. UNESCO also supported the rehabilitation work in Baghdad of Qasr Al-Abbasi, which houses the renowned cultural institution Bayt Al Hikma, founded in the 9th century by the Caliph Al-Mamun.
UNESCO sent several missions to Iraq between 2000 and 2002, in particular to find ways to save Ashur, the first capital of the Assyrian kingdom, from a planned dam construction project. The proposal to inscribe this site on the World Heritage List is due to be considered at the next session of the World Heritage Committee in June 2003.
"UNESCO's recent experience in other war-torn and post-conflict situations has shown that culture can play a key role in consolidating the peace process, restoring national unity and building hope for the future," said UNESCO Director-General KoÔchiro Matsuura. In recent years, UNESCO has contributed to rehabilitating heritage and encouraging cultural activities in Cambodia, the States of the former Yugoslavia and in Afghanistan, among others.
The presence of the following experts has been confirmed:
Iraqi experts: Donny George, Director General of Restoration, Museum of Baghdad; Salma El Radi, University of New York; Abdulsattar J. Mousa, Department of Culture and Information, Directorate of Heritage - Sharjia; Walid Yasin Ismail, Archaeological Advisor, Department of Antiquities and Tourism, Al Ain; Lamia Al-Gailani Werr, Seals expert, London; Zainab Bahrani Van De Mieroop, Associate Professor, Dept. of Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University, USA; Ghahim Wahida, Cambridge University, UK.
International experts: Helga Trenkwalder (Austria), Director, Austrian mission to Borsippa; Leon De Meyer (Belgium), Director, Belgian Archaeological expedition to Iraq, Honorary Rector, University of Gent; Ingolf Thuesen (Denmark), Director, Carsten Niebuhr Institute for Near Eastern Studies; Simo Parpola (Finland), Director, State archives of Assyria project, Institute for Asian and African Studies; Annie Caubet (France), Keeper of Ancient Near East Department, Louvre Museum; Beatrice André-Salvini, Head Curator of the Department of Oriental Antiquities, Louvre Museum; Barthel Hrouda (Germany), Director, German missions to Isin and Ashur; Giuseppe Proietti (Italy), Director General for Archaeology, Ministry of Culture; Roberto Parapetti (Italy), Director, Italian-Iraqi Centre for the Restoration of Monuments, Rome; Ken Matsumoto (Japan), Director, Kokushikan Archaeological expedition to Kish; Diederik J. W. Meijer (Netherlands) University of Leiden, Faculty of Archaeology; Piotr Bielinski (Poland), Director, Polish Archaeological missions to Tell Rijm, Eski Mossul dam project; Abdelaziz Daoulatli (Tunisia), Heritage Advisor for ALECSO; Veysel Donbaz (Turkey), Director of the Tablet Archive, Istanbul Archaeological Museum; Joan Oates (UK), British School of Archaeology in Iraq, British missions to Tell al-Rimah and Nimrud; Alastair Northedge (UK) Institute of Art and Archaeology, Paris; Neil MacGregor (UK), Director, British Museum; John Curtis (UK), Keeper of Ancient Near East Department, British Museum; McGuire Gibson (USA), Director, American Archaeological missions to Nippur and Tell Razuk, President, American Association for Research in Baghdad; Abdullah A. Kareem El Reyes, Arab Regional Branch President of the International Council on Archives (ICA); Cristina Menegazzi, International Council of Museums (ICOM); Michael Petzet, President of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS); Ross Shimmon, President of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) and the International Committee of the Blue Shield (ICBS).
Secretary Colin L. Powell
Washington, DC
April 14, 2003
The people of the United States value the archeological and cultural heritage of Iraq that documents over 10,000 years of the development of civilization. In recent days, the National Museums in Baghdad and Mosul have been looted, as well as other cultural institutions and archeological sites. Such looting causes irretrievable loss to the understanding of history and the efforts of Iraqi and international scholars to study and gain new insight into our past.
Objects and documents taken from museums and sites are the property of the Iraqi nation under Iraqi and international law. They are therefore stolen property, whether found in Iraq or other nations. Anyone knowingly possessing or dealing in such objects is committing a crime. Such individuals may be prosecuted under Iraqi law and under the United States National Stolen Property Act. The Iraqi people, as well as members of the Coalition forces and others, are warned not to handle these artifacts. In particular, Americans are asked not to purchase or otherwise trade in such objects as they belong to the nation of Iraq and are stolen property.
In addition to the well-reported efforts made to protect cultural, religious and historic sites in Iraq, CENTCOM has issued instructions to all troops inside Iraq to protect museums and antiquities throughout Iraq. U.S. radio broadcasts throughout Iraq are encouraging Iraqis to return any items taken and are providing instructions on how to do so. The Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Affairs will help Iraqis and international experts in their efforts to restore artifacts and the catalogs of antiquities that were damaged by looters. A senior advisor in the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Affairs, Ambassador John Limbert, will take the lead in this effort. We are working through INTERPOL to pursue broader international law enforcement efforts to help locate these items and return them to Iraq before they make it into international crime channels. We have also been in touch with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) regarding a constructive role they can play in safeguarding Iraqi antiquities.
The International Council of Museums (ICOM) expresses grave concern over the destruction of the Iraqi heritage and the looting of the museums in Iraq.
It urgently implores the countries involved in this conflict to assume their responsibilities by ensuring the protection of all the monuments, archaeological sites, museums and other heritage institutions in Iraq, in the spirit and the respect of The Hague Convention (1954) for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
ICOM warns art dealers, auction houses, collectors and museums against the acquisition of objects that might belong to the Iraqi heritage, and recommends not to purchase items coming from this region.
The greatest vigilance must be observed so as not to be participate in the illicit traffic of Iraqi cultural property. Theft and looting of the Iraqi cultural heritage are irreparable attacks on the heritage of humanity.
ICOM
Maison de l'UNESCO- 1, rue Miollis
75732 Paris cedex 15 - France
Tel. : +33 (0) 1.47.34.05.00 - Fax : +33 (0) 1.43.06.78.62
Email : secretariat@icom.org
The World Archaeological Congress (WAC) notes with alarm and extreme concern the unfolding situation in Iraq where, alongside the increasingly distressing humanitarian situation, there appears to be a significant increase in damage to and looting of archaeological museums including, apparently, those of Basra, Baghdad, and Mosul. Damage and loss of material in the museum in Baghdad would be of particular concern given the huge importance of the collections held there for all humanity. WAC urges all in Iraq to use every means possible to protect the irreplaceable cultural heritage of the country held in museums and archaeological sites.
WAC's Statutes acknowledge and endorse the pivotal roles of the UN and UNESCO and emphasis the primacy role of local communities in the control of their cultural heritage. WAC particularly reiterates this latter principle in emphasising the key role that Iraqi archaeologists must play in the protection of the cultural heritage of Iraq. However it is clear that Iraqi professionals cannot at present alone solve all of the problems facing the Iraqi cultural heritage. WAC therefore
Professor Martin Hall
President
World Archaeological Congress
Friday 11 April 2003
Sent to the Foreign Secretary on 27 December 2002, the Prime Minister on 11 February 2003, and the Defence Secretary on 20 March 2003
The reconstruction of Iraq
For all these reasons it is extremely desirable that any reconstruction plans include some provision for safeguarding the archaeological sites, the standing monuments and the artefacts in museums and private collections.
The immediate need
The medium term needs.
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Created on 16 April 2003 by ER, with research by Alexa Bartelmus. Updated on 24 April. © JNP and ER . For further information please contact Professor Nicholas Postgate jnp10@cam.ac.uk or Dr Eleanor Robson eleanor.robson@all-souls.ox.ac.uk.