Those who have been accusing the Iraq Museum staff, and particularly Donny George, of hyping up the damage and losses have clearly forgotten what was ACTUALLY said by the museum staff at the time - see below. However, the losses elsewhere have been much greater: in an official report the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) describes the remains of the National Library as a three storey heap of ash and the national natural history museum - one of the most important in the Middle East - is also beleived to have beeb a total loss. Patrick Boylan ==================================== Quoting the Wall Street Journal, April 17, 2003 "Iraqis Say Museum Looting Wasn't As Bad As Feared" "By Yaroslav Trofimov, Staff Reporter Of The Wall Street Journal "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Last week's looting of the Iraq National Museum, which saw numerous items disappear from a vast collection spanning eight millennia of Mesopotamian history, has provoked world-wide outcry - and criticism of the U.S. military for its failure to protect Iraq's priceless cultural heritage. But, thanks to Iraqi preparations before the war, it seems the worst has been avoided. "Donny George, the director-general of restoration at the Iraqi Antiquities Department, Wednesday said his staff had preserved the museum's most important treasures, including the kings' graves of Ur and the Assyrian bulls. These objects were hidden in vaults that haven't been violated by looters. "Most of the things were removed. We knew a war was coming, so it was our duty to protect everything," Mr. George said. "We thought there would be some sort of bombing at the museum. We never thought it could be looted." ..... "A belief often voiced in the streets of Baghdad holds that U.S. soldiers themselves stole the most-precious objects in the collection and used the looters to cover up the crime. Mr. George, standing side by side with the American commander in the area, Lt. Col. Eric Schwartz of the U.S. Army Third Infantry Division's Task Force 1-64, dispelled this view. But he said many valuable items are still missing. Among the antiquities unaccounted for so far, Mr. George said, are the sacral vase of Warqa, from Sumerian times, and the bronze statue of Basitqi, from the Accadian civilization." ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).