Involvement of local people to combat looting

Looted Iraqi Cultural Heritage

photo courtesy of ABC News

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/13/opinion/13atwood.html

This New York Times article by Roger Atwood, author of the excellent book Stealing History: Tomb Raiders, Smugglers and the Looting of the Ancient World, explains the importance of involving local people to combat looting. Archaeologically rich areas, such as Peru and Iraq, are commonly impoverished. Unfortunately, poverty can lead to the exploitation of an area's cultural heritage for financial gain of residents. Education of local people and the development of responsible archaeological tourism are both excellent ways to combat looting. In Iraq, tourism cannot be developed like it has been in Peru. However, education and involvement of local people can instill pride in Iraq's heritage. Those who have pride in their cultural heritage are much less likely to loot archaeological sites.

The Virtual Museum of Iraq

http://www.virtualmuseumiraq.cnr.it/



The Virtual Museum of Iraq just debuted and its fascinating. What a great way to feature museum collections. It mirrors the experience of being a casual visitor in the galleries. Unlike many online museum collections where visitors need to know what they are looking for to access the collections in a meaningful way. The zooming effect towards the objects makes me dizzy, but its worth it for all the fascinating information you get when you click on an object.



The museum has not been open regularly since 2003, when the museum was seriously looted in the midst of the Iraq war. The virtual museum gives international visitors a chance to see these amazing treasures from the cradle of civilization.