Bye Bye BabylonTo the victors go the spoils, and to the cameramen, and the anchor...
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As the United States winds down its most blatantly imperialistic military campaign in recent history, international art experts are mourning the loss of ancient history: between 50,000 to 170,000 artifacts stolen from the National Museum of Iraq in the two days following the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime. Among the items missing from one of the world's most extensive collections of Mesopotamian antiquities are hundreds of ivory sculptures, including the Mona Lisa of Nimrud; clay tablets with the oldest known theoretical mathematical texts; and, perhaps most valuable, the Sacred Vase of Warka. The Warka Vase dates from the Sumerian period, around 3200 B.C. It was discovered by German archaeologists in the 1940s near Samawa, and is the earliest known depiction of religious worship. It also portrays how the fertility of Mesopotamia gave rise to the first sophisticated cultures. Says Harvard art historian Irene J. Winter, "The vase shows almost a hierarchy from water to plants to animals to people to the goddess." While there was plenty of general looting and vandalism in the chaotic days following this latest "victory for democracy," an issue that becomes further complicated as many Iraqis have come forward to return objects they claimed to have been protecting, there are plenty of signs that the removal of the museum's most valuable objects was the work of well-informed individuals who went into vaults themselves. Journalists admitted into the museum last week were shown evidence of glass-cutters and the professional removal of a 7,000 year old bronze bust weighing hundreds of kilograms. Since 1991, financiers from Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Jordan have paid people to remove priceless objects from archaeological digs throughout the country in order to resell them to wealthy collectors. It is feared that many of the looted goods will wind up for sale on the black market in the United States and Europe once the media hype dies down. It is suspected that many of the looted treasures will end up in London, one of the world's largest centers of the Islamic art trade. The question that everyone's asking is whether the United States is at least partly responsible for the lootings. Baghdad residents and other witnesses are enraged by the US military's inaction in the days following Hussein's fall, asserting that US soldiers stood by and did nothing to stop the thieves. "Why do the American troops allow the looting?" implored one Iraqi doctor. "All the soldiers have to do is fire one shot, and the looters will go away. They are cowards. And the Americans do not do this. Why?" Iraq National Museum director Donny George claims that US soldiers initially stopped looters when they first entered the museum, but the looters returned once the troops left. George lamented not only the loss of precious artifacts, but also the destruction of the museum's interior. There was structural damage to the museum during the fighting, but the looting took place "after the guns had fallen more or less silent." "The administrative area is completely destroyed," George said, and with it all the records of the museum's history and its collection. As well as the national museum in Baghdad, a museum in Mosul was looted and the capital's Islamic Library, which housed ancient manuscripts including one of the oldest surviving copies of the Koran, was ravaged by fire. The fact that art pillaging has occurred in every major war of the last century raises the question as to why the United States was unprepared-or unwilling-to protect the National Museum after repeated warnings that the thefts might occur. US archaeological organizations and the UN's cultural agency UNESCO said they had provided US officials with information about Iraq's cultural heritage and archaeological sites months before the war began. In response, antiquities experts said they had been given assurances that Iraq's historic artifacts and sites would be protected by occupying forces. The loss is a devastating one not only for the Iraqi people, but for all of civilization. In a gesture of protest, three members of the President's Advisory Committee on Cultural Property submitted their resignations to President Bush, including Martin Sullivan, who chaired the committee for eight years. In a letter sent to Bush Jr., Sullivan stated that the tragedy was foreseeable and preventable. "While our military forces have displayed extraordinary precision and restraint in deploying arms -- and apparently in securing the Oil Ministry and oil fields," said Sullivan, "they have been nothing short of impotent in failing to attend to the protection of cultural heritage." The US government's reactions to criticism have been schizophrenic, to put it mildly. Bush was unavailable for comment after Sullivan's resignation hit the press (he was vacationing on his ranch in Crawford, Texas). Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld vehemently denied all allegations that the US was responsible for the blunder, deferring to the fact that the country has offered rewards for the return of artifacts and information on their whereabouts. In a typically vague statement, Rumsfeld said earlier this month, "Looting is an unfortunate thing. Human beings are not perfect. To the extent it happens in a war zone, it's difficult to stop." Despite Rumsfeld's deflated rhetoric, which fails to respond to any of the allegations, senior military officials have finally admitted that Iraqi museums were plundered in a "void of security" and that they failed to anticipate that Iraq's artifacts would be looted "by its own people." While some of the looters were certainly Iraqis, there is no feasible way of determining how many. While none of the items from the National Museum have yet been recovered, several soldiers and journalists returning to the United States have been apprehended at airports with valuable war trophies stuffed in their luggage. Benjamin J. Johnson, a technician for Fox News, was apprehended with 12 paintings, some now-worthless Iraqi bonds, and a badge from the US Embassy in Kuwait. Initially claiming the booty as "gifts from people in the streets" of Iraq, he later admitted to having taken them from palaces, including the home of Uday Hussein. Johnson was promptly fired from Fox and faces up to five years in prison. A journalist from the Boston Herald, however, got lucky. When Jules Crittenden, the Herald's war correspondent assigned to the Army's Third Infantry Division, turned up at Logan International Airport with an Iraqi painting and wall ornament, among other items, the "gifts" were seized and no charges were filed. The Herald has said it has no plans on disciplining Crittenden. Amazingly, the presentation of recovered objects revealed at a US press conference last week drew scepticism from reporters, who questioned their value. It is unknown how many of these reporters are actually qualified to assess the value of an artwork. Thankfully, officials are determined to prosecute traffickers in stolen objects "whether we agree if they have aesthetic value or not," said Michael T. Dougherty of the US Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Some governments have pledged contributions toward rescuing Iraq's heritage and recovering stolen objects. Italy said it would contribute $1 million. There have also been offers of financial aid from Qatar, France, Britain and Egypt. As of press time, there have been no official offers of financial assistance from the United States. It is unlikely that we will ever know the extent of the damage caused by the looting. To date, there has been no independent assessment of damage to Iraq's cultural and archaeological treasures following the Persian Gulf War in 1991. Experts agree some of the greatest damage to Iraq's antiquities came from post-Gulf War looting. In the absence of strong central rule, some of Iraq's museums and archaeological sites were cleaned out. Many of the looted items later appeared in international art sales. In New York, Dr. Philippe de Montebello, director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, said he was gaining wide support for proposals that the museum looters be offered immunity from prosecution and some compensation if they return their loot. He said he had spoken with Karl Rove, President Bush's chief political adviser, about efforts to recover the artifacts. “He agreed that immunity and compensation was the way to go,” Dr. de Montebello said of Mr. Rove, who did not indicate what, if anything, the White House was prepared to do. Meanwhile, international experts and interested parties, including representatives from the United Nations, the International Council of Museums, and the World Customs Organization, are slated to meet in Lyon May 5-6 to figure out a strategy for dealing with the lootings. This latest rape of Babylon and the United States' inaction is undeniably symptomatic of the current administration's isolationist policies, revealing America's increasing disconnection to history and civilization. In a recent survey, 54% of Americans polled feel that it is not the duty of soldiers to protect cultural treasures in a time of war. The general consensus can be summed up as: Why harp on the past when the future's in oil? Despite the US military's total negligence in protecting the ancient artifacts documenting the beginnings of world civilization, the American public can rest assured that the former Iraq Oil Ministry has been closely monitored since the fall of Hussein. Travis Jeppesen is at travis@pill.cz |
Article added on Fri 9th May, 2003 [last updated Thu 6th Oct, 2005]Share this page 
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