Temple of Bel, Palmyra, Syria
The destruction of cultural monuments during the Iraq War and its aftermath, beginning with the looting of the National Museum in Baghdad in 2003 and continuing with the destruction of ancient monuments in Palmyra and other sites under ISIL control in Syria and Iraq, has received extensive attention. These attacks are part of a global pattern that includes looting of archeological sites, destruction, smuggling, and the transfer of funds from the illicit antiquities market to international terrorism.
This is not a new pattern: Looting and destruction of cultural artifacts stretches back into history. Ancient Near Eastern monarchs and Egyptian pharaohs defaced the portraits and monuments of their predecessors. In the fifth century BC, Persians sacked and burned the classical Greek temple on the Acropolis—and Alexander the Great, ostensibly in retaliation, burned the Persian royal city of Persepolis in 330 BC. Early Christians routinely appropriated pagan monuments as the new faith spread. Today, around the globe, a wide variety of professionals are working to secure sites from looters, document unique monuments, and protect structures from threats such as earthquakes, rising seas, and mass tourism.
Andrew Cohen, senior cultural property analyst at the Department of State; Corine Wegener, a cultural heritage preservation officer with the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative; and Bonnie Magness-Gardiner, manager of the art theft program at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, discuss the reasons behind the ongoing destruction, the impact it has on cultures, and, most importantly, what is being done to save or restore significant monuments and artifacts at risk. Archeologist Frederick Winter, associate director of George Washington University’s Capitol Archaeological Institute, serves as moderator.
World Art History Certificate elective: Earn 1/2 credit
Smithsonian Connections
Learn more about the mission and global activities of the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative.
Smithsonian.com reports on how historians, archaeologists, and librarians are scrambling to save precious cultural capital before it can be sold or destroyed by militants in the Mideast.
