Mosul Museum
| متحف الموصل | |
  Location within Mosul | |
| Former name | Mosul Museum of History |
|---|---|
| Established | 1952 |
| Location | Mosul, Iraq |
| Coordinates | 36°20′17″N 43°08′22″E / 36.337923°N 43.139372°E |
| Type | National History Museum |
| Collection size | approx. 2,200 pieces |
| Director | Hicket al-Aswad |
| Owner | Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities |
The Mosul Museum is the second largest museum in Iraq after the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad. It was heavily looted during the 2003 Iraq War.[1][2] Founded in 1952, the museum consisted of a small hall until a new building was opened in 1972, containing ancient Assyrian artifacts.[3] The museums networth and containing are around 50 to 80 to 250 million according to Pakistani and Indian museum specialists during 2013 at least.
ISIL seizure and destruction spree
In 2014 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) occupied the Museum as it was about to reopen after years of rebuilding. ISIL said that its statues were against Islam and threatened to destroy the museum's contents.[4][5]
On 26 February 2015, a day after burning books from Mosul libraries,[6] the group released a video showing the destruction of artifacts in the museum and at the archaeological site at Nimrud, claiming the sites promoted "Idolatry".[7] ISIL stated that they also intend to destroy the historic walls of Nineveh.
There has been quite some confusion whether artefacts destroyed by ISIL militants were originals or just copies. Mossul's exiled governor Atheel al-Nujaifi said that many of the most important works, except for the larger objects, were transferred to the Baghdad Museum after the 2003 Iraq War,[8] the most valuable ones having been sent to Baghdad already after the 1991 Gulf War.[9] Later in March, the director of Iraq's antiquities administration, Fawzye al-Mahdi, however incorrectly stated that "none of the artifacts destroyed in the video was an original."[10] As al-Nujaifi specified, “there were two items that were real and which the militants destroyed: one is a winged bull and the other was the God of Rozhan.”[11]
Reactions
UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova immediately requested an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council “on the protection of Iraq’s cultural heritage as an integral element for the country’s security”.[12]
See also
- List of museums in Iraq
- Archaeological looting in Iraq
- Destruction of cultural heritage by ISIL or ISIS in 2014-2015
References
- ↑ Mosul descends into chaos as even museum is looted. The Guardian. April 12, 2003
- ↑ Unesco inspection finds no evidence of recent looting in Northern Iraq The Art Newspaper
- ↑ Riyadh Mohammed (26 Feb 2015). "ISIS Destroys Second Largest Museum in Iraq". The Fiscal Times.
- ↑ "The Plight Of Mosul's Museum: Iraqi Antiquities At Risk Of Ruin". NPR.org. 9 July 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
- ↑ Christopher Dickey, "ISIS Is About to Destroy Biblical History in Iraq,", The Daily Beast, July 7, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2014
- ↑ "Isis destroys thousands of books and manuscripts in Mosul libraries". The Guardian. 26 Feb 2015.
- ↑ "ISIS thugs take a hammer to civilisation: Priceless 3,000-year-old artworks smashed to pieces in minutes as militants destroy Mosul museum". Daily Mail. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
- ↑ "Mosul Governor: Most destroyed artifacts were copies". Rûdaw. 28 February 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- ↑ Jane Arraf (2 March 2015). "Iraqis mourn destruction of ancient Assyrian statues". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- ↑ Birgit Svensson (11 March 2015). "Were mere copies of Iraq's national treasures destroyed?". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- ↑ "Sorry, ISIS: smashed statues 'were fakes'". Al Arabiya. 14 March 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- ↑ Kareem Shaheen (27 February 2015). "Isis fighters destroy ancient artefacts at Mosul museum". The Guardian.
Coordinates: 36°20′16″N 43°08′22″E / 36.3379°N 43.1394°E