In response to the catastrophic looting of the Iraq
Museum, the Mosul Museum, and of other institutions
and sites in Iraq, both the British Museum and the
Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago are
undertaking projects to scan and post photographs of
objects from Iraqi museums on the Web. At this point,
both projects are still in their early stages.
Time is precious, as news reports indicate that the
looted material is already turning up on the art
market.
In response, the London-based ART NEWSPAPER has acted
swiftly and responsibly, by immediately scanning ca.
300 illustations of objects in the Iraq Museum's
principal published catalogue and putting the scanned
images on the Web, in the form of a simple database.
Below is the URL for the Art Newspaper's Iraq Museum
database and a brief description.
List members who may have access to other images of
objects from Iraqi Museums (i.e. other than those that
are illustrated in the 1975/76 catalogue, or other
views of the objects) are urged to contact the British
Museum (see below for info) and the University of
Chicago's Oriental Institute (write to:
Clemens Reichel <[log in to unmask]> /or/
Charles E. Jones <[log in to unmask]> ).
Thank you.
András Riedlmayer
Harvard University
======================================================
http://www.theartnewspaper.com/iraqmus/index.html
The looting of the Iraq Museum
-- What objects are on this database?
The illustrations here are from the only detailed
catalogue of the museum, _Treasures of the Iraq
Museum_ by Dr Faraj Basmachi, published in Baghdad in
1975/6.
We should stress that at this stage there is no
detailed information on what objects have been looted,
what have been damaged and what are safe.
Nevertheless, the images in the Treasures of the Iraq
Museum represent many of the most important objects
from the collection, which numbers some 170,000
pieces.
The images are presented in the order in which they
appear in the book, which is chronological:
* Pre-history (sixth-fourth millennium BC), cat. nos
1-20
* Sumerian (fourth-third millennium BC), cat. nos
21-132
* Assyrian (second millennium-seventh century BC, cat.
nos. 133-195
* Hatrene, Parthian and Sassanid (third century
BC-third century AD), cat. nos. 196-257
* Islamic (eighth-16th century) cat. nos. 258-296
[click on thumbnails photos to see larger images]
-- Inventory numbers
Each object from the National Museum has a seven- or
eight-digit accession number, normally written in
black ink. There is often another number connected
with the archaeological dig. Obviously these numbers
may now be cleaned off or obscured.
-- What to do if you spot one of these objects
If any items are spotted on art market (they may have
been damaged during the looting or deliberately
altered in an attempt to disguise their origin), then
it is vital that this be reported. The British Museum
has agreed to act as a conduit of information, in the
absence of telecommunications links with Baghdad and
until UNESCO has decided on more formal channels.
Information should be sent urgently to the
British Museum's Department for the Ancient Near East.
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Telephone: + 44 (0)20 7323 8313
Fax: 44(0)20 7323 8489
You could in addition, contact
Anna Somers Cocks, Editor, The Art Newspaper.
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7735 3331
Fax: +44 (0)20 7735 3332
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