Technology
Rebuilding History One Megabyte at a Time
A
multinational team of conservation experts have created a
system for documenting endangered sites in war-torn Iraq.
They've got their work cut out for them.
(archrecord.construction.com - 03/2005 issue)
By Deborah
Snoonian, P.E.
Countries embroiled in war constantly
face the odious task of assessing loss. Those killed during
conflict are obviously the most hideous and incalculable costs
of war, but damaged infrastructure, buildings, and monuments
also take a significant toll on a nation’s resources
and sense of identity. Images of destruction persist long
in memory—who can forget the crumbling stone shell of
Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin, bombed by Allied
forces during World War II? Or the twisted skeletal remains
of the World Trade Center towers in Lower Manhattan in 2001?
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| Nineveh, 6000 b.c.:
An American-sponsored excavation took place in this imperial
capital until the Gulf War broke out in 1991. The palace
of biblical king Sennacherib was looted after the war.
Photography: Courtesy The World Monuments Fund/John Russell
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After Baghdad fell to American-led forces
in spring 2003, newspapers were filled with photos of bombed-out
civic buildings and the looted interiors of Saddam Hussein’s
palaces—symbols of an old regime dying on the vine. But
the challenge of protecting Iraq’s buildings and infrastructure
is far greater than any of these photos suggest. The country’s
168,750 square miles (about the size of California) are peppered
with ancient religious buildings as well as the remains of
some of the oldest cities and societies in the world. Its
museums hold priceless artifacts from these areas. But ever
since the Gulf War of 1991, and more significantly the diplomatic
sanctions against Iraq that began a year earlier, the country
has lacked the personnel, funding, and international assistance
needed to protect and maintain these sites adequately. The
World Monuments Fund (WMF) estimates there are some 10,000
culturally significant sites and monuments in Iraq; several
have appeared on WMF’s annual 100 Most Endangered list
in the past few years.
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WMF took action to reverse the course
of events last year. In collaboration with the Getty Conservation
Institute (GCI) of Los Angeles and the Iraqi State Board of
Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH), WMF has created a system
for documenting and assessing culturally significant sites
in Iraq—one that relies on geographic information systems
(GIS) technology and a powerful database. In time, SBAH will
use the system to manage preservation and conservation projects
throughout the country.
Losses mount and looters rule during
years of isolation
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| Nimrud (Calah),
5,500 b.c.: In 1989, archaeologists discovered gold-filled
tombs of Assyrian queens in this ancient city. Photography:
Courtesy The World Monuments Fund/John Russel |
Structures damaged by bombs and gunfire
during the Gulf and Iraq wars are only part of the problem.
During 13 years of Western sanctions, which ended in 2003,
bands of looters armed with automatic rifles and appetites
for trafficking in the black market plundered buildings, archaeological
sites, and museums for their wares. The stolen treasures were
smuggled across Iraq’s borders and sold for cash or weapons,
officials say.
The Iraq National Museum in Baghdad
was particularly hard-hit in April 2003, after the city was
taken over by allied forces. Fires at national libraries in
Baghdad and Mosul also damaged their holdings and made them
more vulnerable to looters. Western museum officials estimate
that 10,000 to 15,000 artifacts are missing from these institutions.
Much less is known about what’s been taken from archaeological
sites, but satellite photographs taken during 2003 and 2004,
as well as initial inspections by scholars, showed excavations
and damage that hadn’t existed previously. John Malcom
Russell, who teaches art history at the Massachusetts College
of Art and served as an adviser to the Coalition Provisional
Authority in Iraq, estimates that 400,000 to 600,000 cultural
artifacts have been removed from their sites. “In terms
of their contribution to the cultural history of civilization,
the value of preserving these sites and recovering artifacts
from them is almost incalculable,” says Tim Whalen, director
of GCI.
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| Hatra, 150 B.C.:
Many sculptures in this city’s well-preserved temple
were damaged or looted during the Gulf War. Photography:
Courtesy The World Monuments Fund/John Russel |
Assessing site conditions in the
cradle of civilization
The WMF/GCI project consists of three
main activities. First, a system was conceived to collect
and record each site’s key parameters (e.g., location,
age, dimensions, condition). At the same time, they developed
a database for entering and managing site information electronically.
Underpinning these efforts is a comprehensive training program
for SBAH, during which staff will learn to use the tools for
collecting and managing the site data, as well as how to assess
site conditions. Equipment for the training sessions and documentation
was paid for by grants to WMF and GCI from various organizations,
and the courses were...
(Continued...)
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