Robbing the Cradle of Civilization : the looting of Iraq's ancient treasures / directed by Robin Benger ; produced by Olenka Demianchuk, Robin Benger, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
- Additional Titles:
- Looting of Iraq's ancient treasures
- Published:
- New York, NY : Filmakers Library, 2003.
- Physical Description:
- 1 online resource (46 minutes)
- Additional Creators:
- Benger, Robin, Demianchuk, Olenka, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and Filmakers Library, inc
Access Online
- Language Note:
- In English.
- Summary:
- It has been said that the first casualty of war is truth; the second casualty of war is history. Since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein by coalition forces the violence in that country has obscured its place in history as the seat of Western civilization. This documentary reminds us of the 7000 year old history of the land that was called Mesopotamia with its rich culture that lay buried, to be retrieved by archaeologists during the past two hundred years. The infamous looting of the Baghdad Museum after the fall of Baghdad is chronicled in this documentary. McGuire Gibson, archaeologist at the University of Chicago, had warned the Pentagon to protect the Museum. His was only one voice from the international scholarly community. Yet we see that there were four days of random looting, unprotected by allied forces. The Chairman of the Museum begged for intervention, but it took several more days for help to come. In addition to the Museum, sites all over the country Nippur (the seat of Sumerian civilization,) Ur and Samara appetite for antiquities. This took place despite the 1936 law in Iraq that all artifacts must remain in the country, and the 1976 UN convention banning purchase of looted antiquities. Nothing can stop the smuggling, often through Jordan, of objects eagerly sought by wealthy collectors all over the world. The national heritage has been pillaged.
- Subject(s):
- Genre(s):
- Duration:
- ["00:45:47"]
- Digital File Characteristics:
- video file
- Note:
- Title from resource description page (viewed May 29, 2019).
View MARC record | catkey: 29618553