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Saviour of Iraq's antiquities flees to Syria
Violence and Sadrists drive away archaeologist
Looting fear as funds run out to pay protection force

Michael Howard in Irbil
Saturday August 26 2006
The Guardian


Iraq's most prominent archaeologist has resigned and fled the country, 
saying the dire security situation, an acute shortage of funds, and the 
interference of supporters of the radical Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr 
had made his position intolerable.

Donny George, who was president of the State Board of Antiquities and 
Heritage, achieved international recognition for his efforts to track 
down and recover the priceless antiquities looted from Iraq's National 
Museum in the mayhem that followed the fall of Baghdad in 2003.

But this week he revealed that he had resigned and was in hiding with 
his family in the Syrian capital Damascus. In an interview with the Art 
Newspaper, Dr George said Baghdad was now so dangerous that the 
National Museum, which houses a trove of Sumerian and Babylonian 
artefacts, had been sealed off by concrete walls to protect it from 
insurgent attacks and further looting.

The museum, established by the British in the 1920s, is situated near 
to Baghdad's notorious Haifa Street, an area that sees regular 
outbreaks of violence. It lost some 15,000 pieces during the looting in 
2003, but about half of them have been recovered. Museum officials say 
the collections have been walled off four times since the invasion, 
most recently after a mass kidnapping near the museum building.

"It was the only way to guarantee the museum's safety," said Dr George, 
who said he had taken the decision despite opposition from the culture 
ministry. An indefinite delay in the reopening of the museum had been 
ordered by the ministry.

Dr George painted a bleak picture for the future of Iraq's ancient 
treasures. He said that excavation and conservation projects in Iraq 
had stalled and that all the foreign archaeologists had left the 
country.

He said the 1,400 members of the special antiquities protection force 
would be going without pay, meaning there would be little to stop 
further looting at the country's 11,000 archaeological sites. "From 
September there is no more money for their salaries," said Dr George. 
"The coalition has to do something about this."

After the looting in 2003 US officials were criticised by 
archaeologists for not securing the museum. The US military has since 
been accused of damaging a number of ancient sites. Dr George said the 
work of the antiquities department had also been affected by the 
sectarian divide in Iraq, with key posts in the culture ministry being 
filled with loyalists of the militant Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, 
including Liwa Sumaysim, the minister of state for antiquities.

"The board has come under the increasing influence of al-Sadr," claimed 
Dr George. "I can no longer work with these people who have come in 
with the new ministry. They have no knowledge of archaeology, no 
knowledge of antiquities."

Dr George, a Christian, said he had battled to prevent an Islamist and 
anti-western agenda from taking over at the antiquities department. "A 
lot of people have been sent to our institutions. They are only 
interested in Islamic sites and not Iraq's earlier heritage. The 
Sadrists did not like me having any contact with anyone from outside," 
he said.

Since the war Dr George has travelled the world, highlighting the 
plight of his country's ancient heritage. He had forged close ties with 
foreign institutions, including the British Museum. Hannah Bolton, a 
spokeswoman for the museum, said the museum promised to continue 
cooperating with the Iraqi authorities, and also hoped to continue its 
close relationship with Dr George.

The culture ministry could not be reached for comment yesterday but a 
senior Sadrist, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Dr George had 
served throughout the former regime and "had done nothing to stop 
Saddam carving his name into the walls of every brick" during the 
reconstruction of the ancient palace at Babylon.

Lost and found

Warka vase

The 5,000-year-old limestone vase from the Sumerian city of Uruk is 
carved with scenes of priests and animals. It is the oldest known 
carved ritual vase. It was returned, in pieces, in June 2003.

Statue of Entemena

The headless statue of the Mesopotamian king is made of black diorite 
and dates from 2430 BC. It was smuggled out to Syria and recovered in 
May, when Hicham Aboutaam, a Lebanese antiquities dealer, was offered 
it for sale in New York.

Sumerian free-standing

The stone statue of a male Sumerian priest bears an inscription about 
the goddess Nin-shu-pur and dates from 2500 BC, one of the earliest 
known examples.

Mask of Warka

Dating from 3100 BC, it is the oldest known sculpture of a natural 
human face and is nicknamed the Sumerian Mona Lisa. It was found buried 
at a farmhouse in al-Rabbia in 2003.

Bassetki statue

The copper sculpture, depicting the legs and lower torso of a seated 
male figure, bears an Akkadian inscription and is 4,300 years old. It 
was found in a cesspool in 2003.

Katy Heslop

Copyright Guardian Newspapers Limited

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