Hundreds of looted artifacts returned to Iraq

[Turborama]

Source: AP via The Jakarta Post

Hundreds of Iraqi artifacts looted from museums and archaeological sites across the country - including a 4,400-year-old statue of an ancient king stolen during the US-led invasion - have been returned to Iraq and were displayed Tuesday.

Iraq is home to relics of the world's most ancient urban civilizations. But its priceless heritage has been plundered during the country's wars and upheavals, and its precious antiquities sold to collectors abroad.

The US military was heavily criticized for not protecting the Iraqi National Museum's trove of relics and art following Baghdad's fall in 2003. Thieves ransacked the collection, stealing or destroying priceless artifacts that chronicled some 7,000 years of civilization in Mesopotamia, including the ancient Babylonians, Sumerians and Assyrians.

Iraqi and world culture officials have for years struggled to retrieve the treasures but met little success. About 15,000 pieces are still missing from the museum that reopened last year, according to the Deputy Director of the museum, Mohammed Muhsen Ali.

More than 5,000 pieces have been returned since 2003, he said.

"Today is a celebration in Iraq. This is bringing back the civilization and the cultural heritage of Iraq," he said.

Read more: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/09/07/hundreds-looted-artifacts-returned-iraq.html

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It's really nice to be able to share some good news, for a change.

[NuttyFluffers]

1. good. i hope more is returned. K&R

beautiful pieces of human history should be shared with humanity.

[napi21]

2. Who was keeping them safe? I'm glad to see them bak, and I wish

they would ALL be returned.

[Art_from_Ark]

3. The cynic in me says that

the artifacts that couldn't be sold discreetly are the ones that are being returned.

[Nihil]

4. Not quite deja vu but ...

> the artifacts that couldn't be sold discreetly are the ones that
> are being returned

... reading my own thoughts in your post made me go "Huh?"!

:hi:

[madrchsod]

5. before the war a group of antiquity dealers meant with little Georgie.

it seemed they were volunteering to watch over the artifacts when the troops arrived in baghdad and other sites. of course the archaeologists had a heart attack over the idea. it`s never been reported that if the thieves,i mean antiquity dealers,got their wish.

[lunatica]

6. According to Rumsfeld it was only one vase that was stolen over and over again

He's such a fucking ass hole. I mean, really a fucking ass hole.

[UpInArms]

10. +1

[tanyev]

7. It's our cultural heritage, too.

I never understood why literalist Bible-thumpers weren't more upset about the looting of the museums. Artifacts from times described in the Old Testament were disappearing and they were cheering it on? :shrug:

[Tansy_Gold]

13. +1 I guess it's 'cause they don't care about the stuff that's gonna

be left behind at The Rupture/sic/ anyway???


TG, NTY

[Nihil]

18. Too much of that stuff proved the lie of their version.

> I never understood why literalist Bible-thumpers weren't more upset about
> the looting of the museums. Artifacts from times described in the Old Testament
> were disappearing and they were cheering it on?

Artefacts from those times generally don't agree with the versions in their
Bibles so the evangelists were only too happy to see such evidence destroyed.

(Cf. Destruction of historical records during the invasions of South America,
burning of "proscribed" translations in the Middle Ages, etc.).

:mad:

[struggle4progress]

8. Here's a history page on the looting and aftermath

Iraq under US Occupation
Post-Invasion Looting
April 11, 2003 ... Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld dismisses ... looting and vandalism ... "My goodness, were there that many vases? Is it possible that there were that many vases in the whole country?" ...
June 13, 2003 ... Neoconservative columnist Charles Krauthammer ... confidently declares that only 33 artifacts were looted from Baghdad’s National Museum ... Krauthammer never explains how he arrives at the conclusion ...
http://www.historycommons.org/timeline.jsp?timeline=us_occupation_of_iraq_tmln&us_occupation_of_iraq_tmln_general_topics=us_occupation_of_iraq_tmln_post_invasion_looting

[sinkingfeeling]

9. +1

[Turborama]

16. Thanks a lot for that link, History Commons is an excellent resource.

:hi:

[2Design]

11. did bush return the gun he took for the head of saddaam n/t

[Javaman]

12. 15,000 pieces still missing...

"Iraqi and world culture officials have for years struggled to retrieve the treasures but met little success. About 15,000 pieces are still missing from the museum that reopened last year, according to the Deputy Director of the museum, Mohammed Muhsen Ali.

More than 5,000 pieces have been returned since 2003, he said."

So 3 quarters of their original colletion is still missing.

No doubt on the black market or were destroyed during the invasion/occupation.

[Tansy_Gold]

14. No, not accurate

Many pieces were NOT taken/missing to begin with. Of the approx. 20,000 that were missing, 1/4 have been returned. So it's not that 75% of the entire collection is gone, just 75% of what was missing.

Many items are beyond retrieval. I remember reading one account of the American invasion in which the report wrote of picking up one of many hundreds or thousands pieces of burning paper in the street and recognizing a page hand-written by T.E. Lawrence. Now lost, forever.


TG, NTY

[Javaman]

15. Ahhh, thanks for the clarification. :) nt

[Ghost Dog]

17. How many of the recent thieves have been prosecuted? Silence?

No genuine rule of law in the USA.

[Nihil]

19. "Looking forward" don't ya know? (n/t)

:puke: