By John Lee. The Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL) has bulldozed the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud (Kahlka), which lies about 30km (18 miles) south-east of Mosul. The city was founded more than 3,300 years ago and was one of the capitals of the Assyrian empire. Its frescos and works are celebrated around the world […]
Tag Archives | archeology
Iraqi National Museum Heralds Expansion
By John Lee. No doubt in the hope of happier times ahead, Iraq's National Museum has opened two new halls at a recent well attended ceremony. Showcasing objects from a span of 7000 years of Mesopotamian history, a key feature of the new part of the museum was some 500 objects from the Hellenistic period, […]
Huge Find Throws new Light on Ancient Iraq
University of Manchester archaeologists have started the excavation of an enormous building complex in Iraq, thought to be around 4,000 years old. The team, directed by Professor Stuart Campbell and Dr Jane Moon, both from Manchester, and independent archaeologist Robert Killick, first spotted the amazing structure – thought to be an administrative complex serving one […]
Tags: 'Your Country' - United Kingdom, archeology, Manchester, Tell Khaiber, University of Manchester
US "Holds 80,000 Iraqi Antiquities"
By John Lee. Azzaman quotes a senior official at the Ministry of Antiquities and Tourism as saying that the United States still keeps 80,000 ancient Iraqi artifacts and refuses to return them to the Iraq Museum. Hazem al-Shammari said Iraqi authorities were in touch with their American counterparts but the discussion have so far led […]
Tags: archeology
Hoard of Ancient Gold Coins found in Wasit
By John Lee. Iraqi archaeologists have found a hoard of ancient gold coins in the town of Aziziyah, in Wasit [Wassit] province, and hope to put them on display in Baghdad's National Museum. The coins date back to the Sassanid era, a Persian dynasty that ruled Iraq from the third century until the coming of the […]
Tags: archeology, treasure
Kirkuk Citadel to be Renovated
AKnews reports that the Iraqi Ministry for Tourism will begin renovating Kirkuk's historic citadel in early February. Deputy head of Kirkuk's archeology office told AKnews that the ministry has not announced the allocated budget for the project. She added this is the second time the citadel, located in the central Kirkuk, will be renovated. The […]
$3m to Develop Nippur Archaeological Site
An official in Diwaniya said on Friday evening that the Iraqi Ministry of Tourism has allocated 3.5bn Iraqi Dinars (ID) [$3m] to the rehabilitation of the Neipur [Nippur] archaeological city south of Diwaniya, 180 km south of Baghdad. Dakhil al-Kanani, the head of the Supreme Committee of the Niepur cultural festival in Diwaniya province told […]