Merry Wanderer of the Night [Search results for cultural] 

Invited guests, Archbishop of Thyateira Gregorios and Great Britain, Baroness Maddock,  Lord Luce,  and Lord Turnberg were among a few of the many guests welcomed by Baroness Berridge.  Before a packed room she opened the presentation speaking about the link between religious freedoms and the destruction of cultural heritage.

Sponsor and co-coordinator Tasoula Hadjitofi presented two 12th century looted frescoes taken from the Monastery of Aspinthiotissa in the occupied area of Cyprus, Kyrenia which she repatriated on behalf of Walk of Truth. She spoke about the loss of freedom, identity and human indignity that occurs with war and destruction of cultural heritage.

Mrs. Hadjitofi stressed the importance of engaging global citizens in lending their support to create a world of Peace. From refugee to protector of cultural heritage she engaged the audience on the importance of unity in combating the mass destruction of cultural heritage taking place in Syria, Iraq and Cyprus.

Prof. Dr. Willy Bruggeman, Chairman of the Belgian Federal Police Council, and former Deputy Director of Europol spoke of the need to make destruction of cultural heritage as a crime against humanity.

Baron Serge Brammertz, Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia said, “It is imperative for international criminal tribunals to include destruction of cultural and religious heritage into their overall investigative strategies.

Professor Norman Palmer, a barrister practicing at 3 Stone Buildings, Lincoln’s Inn, London and a visiting professor of law at King’s College, spoke for the need for a sound legal approach should be complemented with diplomatic and other initiatives that help  us to restitute unlawfully removed cultural treasures.

The MP David Burrows, summarized the key points in a brilliant way and he and the Baroness will bring the findings to the House of Parliament and The House of Lords.

Author: Tasoula Hadjitofi | Source: Walk of Truth [December 17, 2014]

The report analyzes six of the 12 sites that Syria has nominated as World Heritage Sites: Dura Europos, Ebla, Hama's Waterwheels, Mari, Raqqa, and Ugarit. A forthcoming report will analyze the additional six sites.

"As we continue to study the conditions at Syria's important cultural sites, we have observed significant destruction that is largely the result of conflict. However, unlike our previous analysis of Syria's World Heritage Sites, we're seeing a lot of damage that appears to be the result of widespread looting," said Susan Wolfinbarger, director of the AAAS Geospatial Technologies and Human Rights Project, which authored the report. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania Museum's Penn Cultural Heritage Center and the Smithsonian Institution also contributed to the research.

"This report helps us understand how the extensive the actual damage is to Syria's cultural heritage. It will inform future emergency preservation efforts," said Brian Daniels, director of research and programs at the University of Pennsylvania Museum's Penn Cultural Heritage Center.

In the report, images from 2014 show numerous pits throughout three sites where ancient cities once stood. The pits generally do not appear in similar images from 2011, when the conflict in Syria began. "We interpret these pits as evidence of looting due to the distinct craters visible within the satellite images," said Jonathan Drake, a senior program associate at AAAS.

"This type of documentation really allows us to make a firm statement based on scientific observation of things that have happened at a site," said Wolfinbarger.

"Sometimes when things are reported in the news media or social media, details can be obscured or purposefully misconstrued. But this analysis is replicable. We can say definitively, 'we see this.' And when it is tied it in with other types of information, satellite imagery can give us a more complete picture in parts of the world that are difficult to access."

"These images show the destruction of ancient artifacts, architecture, and most importantly, archaeological context that is the record of humanity's past," said Katharyn Hanson, a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Museum's Penn Cultural Heritage Center and a visiting scholar at AAAS. "From the origins of civilization to the first international empires, Syria's cultural heritage and these sites in particular are vitally important to our understanding of history."

The most extensive looting identified in the report was at Dura-Europos, which was founded in the 3rd century B.C. and served as a frontier city as well as the main hub for caravan routes. The site represents a blend of cultural traditions, including Greek, Mesopotamian, Aramaic, Persian, and Roman influences. There have been numerous reports of damage through social media and news reports, and the AAAS report now documents the extent of this activity.

Based on the imagery analysis, 76% of the area within the city wall had been damaged by April 2014, and the looting pits were so close together it was impossible to distinguish individual pits, the researchers report. Looting pits outside the city wall were less dense but still numerous; approximately 3,750 individual pits were observed. Images from 2 April 2014 show four vehicles among the ancient Roman ruins in close proximity to the looting, suggesting that the disturbances at the site may have been ongoing at that time, according to the report.

The second site described in the report is Ebla, the site of an important kingdom in the Early Bronze Age. The site is best known for its archive of several thousand written tablets that "revolutionized knowledge regarding the ancient history and political economy of the region," the report says. Ebla is constructed out of mud brick, so without preservation it is vulnerable to erosion.

The images in the analysis show looting pits, including 45 new holes observed between 18 August 2013 and 4 August 2014, as well as eroded walls, earthen berm fortifications, and heavy vehicle tracks. Military compounds have been constructed on the site, likely due to the fact that the site is elevated over the surrounding plain and provides a good view of the area.

Looting is also widespread at the ancient Mesopotamian city of Mari, which was founded in the early 3rd millennium B.C. and prospered as a node on the trade routes. Like Dura-Europos, Mari is located in the Deir ez-Zor province that has seen violent clashes during the conflict. The Albu Kamal region, where Mari is located, came under the control of ISIS in June 2014.

The looting appears to have ramped up during the last year. The researchers identified 165 visible pits dug between August 2011 and March 2014 (an average of 0.17 pits formed per day). Between 25 March and 11 November 2014, however, they identified 1,286 new pits, an average rate of 5.5 pits dug every day over the seven-month period.

The fourth site is Raqqa, and important city center that exemplifies the transition of a Greek/Byzantine urban center into an Islamic city by 796 A.D. Since 2013 Raqqa has been at the center of the conflict in Syria. After fighting by opposition groups, ISIS took control of the city in October 2013, and in September 2014, the United States and partner nations began an airstrike campaign against ISIS in Raqqa.

The observed damage in vicinity of the Tentative World Heritage site in Raqqa appears to be different from that of the other sites in the analysis, according to the report, with little evidence of direct military conflict. "Rather, when damage is present, it appears to be nearly total and targeted, with specific buildings disappearing while the surrounding buildings remain untouched," the report states.

This phenomenon appears too precise to have been caused by the Syrian Arab Republic Government's military forces, and while it is well known that the United States and other partner air forces have the ability to deliver munitions with high precision, the destroyed sites are all cultural sites located within the UNESCO Tentative World Heritage site boundary, according to the report. "The more plausible explanation is that the demolitions in the vicinity of the Tentative World Heritage site's boundaries are the result of actions by ISIS," the report states.

The two other areas that the researchers analyzed -- the historic waterwheels of Hama, which raised water up to aqueducts for drinking and irrigation, and the ancient site of Ugarit, a mostly stone city that connected the ancient empires of Mesopotamia with those of the Mediterranean -- do not appear to have been damaged.

Copies of the report can be downloaded at http://www.aaas.org/geotech/culturalheritage-SyrianTWHS-122014.html.

Source: American Association for the Advancement of Science [December 17, 2014]

The areas are: the Jomon Archaeological Sites in Hokkaido, northern Tohoku, and other regions (Aomori, Akita and Iwate prefectures); the Sado Gold and Silver Mine in Niigata Prefecture; the Mozu-Furuichi Kofungun Ancient Tumulus Clusters in Osaka Prefecture; and Okinoshima island and related sites in the Munakata region of Fukuoka Prefecture.

The submission of the draft recommendations marked the first step toward applying for UNESCO World Cultural Heritage status in 2017, the agency said March 27.

The Council for Cultural Affairs, an advisory body to the agency, will review the suggestions and select one to be submitted to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Source: The Asahi Shimbun [March 28, 2015]

The Parthenon Marbles, a group of sculptures, statues, inscriptions and architectural elements depicting scenes from Greek mythology, were once part of the Parthenon. Built in 5th century BC to honor Athena, the temple has become one of the most recognized symbols of Western Civilization and is regarded as the highest architectural achievement of the Ancient Greeks.

About half of the marbles were torn from the temple between 1801 and 1802 by the Earl of Elgin while Athens was under Ottoman occupation. According to most historians, Elgin received an official decree (firman) to remove sculptures. While the document no longer exists, a translation from an Italian copy suggests that Elgin was permitted to take “some stones”—not half of the carvings on the Parthenon. Some historians argue that Elgin never actually received the requisite permission for removal, as there is no documentary evidence that the firman existed. What is known is that the removal of the objects damaged the Parthenon, even if that was not Elgin’s intention. Then in 1816, the British Parliament purchased the marbles and presented them to the British Museum.

Lord Elgin’s actions have been disputed from the start

From the start, the legality and morality of Elgin’s actions have been disputed. Lord Byron was one of the most vocal critics of Lord Elgin, referring to him as a “plunderer.” Greece gained its independence in 1832, and in 1837, the Greek Archaeology Society was founded. At its first meeting, the president called for the marbles’ return. The Greek people regard the carvings as a symbol of their culture, heritage and past. In the same vein, art historians and archaeologists argue that the sculptures are integral to the ancient temple structures still standing in Athens. There is a call for the marbles to be unified as they were intended to be viewed. On the other hand, the British Museum asserts that the objects should be seen in a larger framework, presenting Greek art in a chronological narrative. The British Museum argues that the Parthenon sculptures are “integral to the Museum’s purpose as a world museum telling the story of human cultural achievement.” And after being housed in the museum for nearly two centuries, the carvings are a significant feature of British cultural identity. But, some view the sculptures’ placement in London as a sad reminder of British imperialism—an attempt to transform London into the “New Athens” in the way that Napoleon tried to convert Paris into the “New Rome.”

The British Museum opened in 1759, a few years before the Hermitage. They are two of the first great museums of the Enlightenment, established for the public benefit, educating and exposing the masses to art. These encyclopedic museums aim to present visitors to a variety of cultures and exhibit art in a broader context, providing a sense of a shared human cultural heritage. However, is this the best context for art? Is it proper to remove a work from its original cultural setting, losing its context? While millions of people visit the British Museum each year, it is still disheartening to view the marbles in London after learning that their removal damaged one of mankind’s crowning achievements.

Moral solution is to return the marbles

The British Museum claims that the removal of the objects saved them from destruction, as they were not being protected at the time. However, times have charged; if the marbles are returned to Greece, they will be in a museum. (Interestingly, the marbles were damaged while under the custodianship of the British Museum where conservators used harsh cleaning agents on them.) Greece has built the New Acropolis Museum featuring state-of-the-art design and technology which ensures protection of its collection. What’s more, the New Acropolis Museum is a mere 300 meters from the Acropolis, allowing the marbles to be seen as intended—basking in the Greek sunlight. To fully appreciate the artistic and historical significance of the friezes, they should be viewed in their context of the Acropolis mount, a hillside covered with art venerating the gods watching over Athens.

As an attorney, my position is troubling: Greece does not have a strong legal argument for restitution. If Lord Elgin did not receive the proper permit for the marbles’ removal, then the British Museum could not have purchased legitimate title. However, there are time limitations for bringing suit. The Greek government has been aware of the removal for nearly two centuries now, and they never filed suit against Elgin or the British Museum. The statute of limitations may stop any lawsuit from moving forward. Still, while the legal answer may not support restitution, the moral solution is to return the marbles. The carvings are a symbol of the Greek people—their violent removal distanced the objects from their legitimate home.

The British Museum has undercut its own argument with its own actions

In 2013, UNESCO requested that the British government enter mediation, and the deadline for a response is in March. In the meantime, the British Museum loaned one of the statues to the Hermitage. For years, the museum argued that it would not move the Parthenon Marbles because of their delicate nature, the risk being too great. The British Museum alleged that the carvings were safest in London. That argument has been undercut by the museum’s own actions. But what is most surprising is the recipient—especially amidst rising tensions between Russia and the U.S. and Europe. Russia has a poor reputation for handling plundered art. Russian officials are uncooperative in returning Nazi-looted art to rightful owners, claiming that objects seized during World War II are reparations for lost lives. It is ironic that the Hermitage should be the first to benefit from a loan involving the most hotly contested cultural heritage objects. The museum long accused of holding on to stolen Greek art is now loaning its inventory to a country that refuses to restitute stolen art. The Greek outrage is understandable.

The British Museum has unequivocally stated that it will not return the marbles to Greece but, maybe the country has some options. Just as Italy leveraged its vast collections and archaeologically-rich resources against American museums, perhaps Greece could do the same. Over the past decade, museums across the U.S. returned looted objects to Italy after Italian officials threatened to withhold all Italian loans. The fear of losing access to Italian objects pressured museums to comply with Italy’s demands. As Greece has a rich archaeological trove, bargaining may be successful. International fervor is rising over the dig at Amapholis, an elaborate burial site in Northern Greece that may contain the remains of a relative of Alexander the Great. Prohibiting British archaeologists to access the site and barring any finds from going to British institutions may be one way to apply pressure for the return of some of the Parthenon Marbles. This type of action is necessary. The Parthenon is not just cultural heritage, but a symbol of Greece and the glory of Athens.

Author: Leila Amineddoleh | Source: Forbes [December 23, 2014]

Most of the archaeological sites and features, which date back to prehistoric, classical, medieval and early modern periods, were discovered as a result of stringent planning permit monitoring procedures and field surveys carried out by MEPA and the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage (SCH).

These newly unearthed archaeological sites include extensive areas characterised by a high density of prehistoric and classical pottery scatters, classical tombs, rural walls with long stretches of megaliths and ashlar stones, historic paths, ancient enclosures and water systems. Rural structures worthy of preservation such as giren (corbelled huts), apiaries and small vernacular buildings were also identified.

These archaeological sites and features are of local and national importance and contribute towards the understanding of the cultural landscape of the area.

A number of single chamber tombs and small catacombs have been recorded in Mġarr and Żebbiegħ. These tombs indicate a well established human presence in the classical period and could provide data for establishing the location of settlements and ancient roads in this period. The classical period features provide an archaeological landscape which is distinct from the prehistoric one, even if both overlap the same geographical space.

The undeveloped landscape in Mġarr and Żebbiegħ is characterized by the presence of extensive stretches of karstland, interspersed with small pockets of reclaimed agricultural areas. Within the surviving karstland, a large number of cart-rut systems and ancient quarries are recorded. An industrial site containing a kiln complete with water channels and a cistern has also been discovered. Some of these rock-cut archaeological features date as far back as the Bronze Age.

As expected, within such a primarily natural landscape characterized by active agricultural areas, one comes across a number of traditional rural structures in various degrees of conservation. These rural structures include old pathways, apiaries, giren, animal pens (some of which underground), cisterns, silos, post-holes, vine trenches and water channels which have a varying level of cultural or historic importance, but which collectively presents one of the most interesting agricultural and historically rural landscape in Malta.

A WWII shelter at Jubilee Square (Wesgħat il-Ġublew) and Fisher Street have also been scheduled by the Authority.

This area, with its substantial number of archaeological sites as well as rural and military heritage features is one of the most complete and complex rural and cultural landscapes in Malta with a history that spans over 7,000 years.

Source: Malta Today [December 23, 2014]

Nineveh Yakou , Assyrian Archaeologist and Director of Cultural Heritage and Indigenous Affairs at A Demand for Action, exclusively told IBTimes UK that the Mar Gorgis or George (St George or Markourkas) monastery has been "wiped out" by IS militants.

The building, located on the Ba'werah neighbourhood on a hill north of Mosul on the other side of the Tigris river, was founded by the Assyrian Church of the East on the 10th century but rebuilt as a seminary by the Chaldean Catholic Church in 1846.

"The current monastery was built on an archeological site containing ancient Assyrian ruins. It was an important show of continuity from the Assyrian to our culture," Yakou said.

"Isis is wiping out the cultural heritage of Iraq. The monastery was classified as cultural heritage. It's a cultural and ethnic cleansing."

The report was confirmed by Dureid Hikmat Tobia, adviser for minorities of Ninawah province, in a report on Turkish Anadolou news agency.

The attack on the monastery came after IS militants reportedly bulldozed the 2,000-year-old city of Hatra and the Nimrud archaeological site near Mosul.

Two weeks ago, the jihadist group published a video showing militants destroying artefacts in a Mosul museum and at the Nergal Gate to ancient Nineveh, taking a sledgehammer to artefacts.

The attacks on artefacts and antiquities in Iraq and Syria are carried out in the name of an iconoclastic and strict interpretation of Islamic law. IS draws inspiration from early Islamic history, rejects religious shrines and condemns Iraq's majority Shi'ite Muslims as heretics.

Author: Gianluca Mezzofiore | Source: International Business Times [March 10, 2015]

In an interview with The Associated Press, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova described her angry reaction to Thursday's attack that came just a week after video showed Islamic State militants with sledgehammers destroying ancient artifacts at a museum in Mosul.

"We call this cultural cleansing because unfortunately, we see an acceleration of this destruction of heritage as deliberate warfare," Bokova said. She said the attack fit into a larger "appalling vision" of persecution of minorities in the region and declared that attacks on culture are now a security concern.

"It's not a luxury anymore," Bokova said.

Later Friday, the spokesman for the U.N. secretary-general said Ban Ki-moon condemned the attacks and said the deliberate destruction "constitutes a war crime and represents an attack on humanity as a whole."

The Iraqi government says Islamic State militants "bulldozed" the renowned archaeological site of the ancient city in northern Iraq with heavy military vehicles on Thursday.

Bokova said U.N. officials have to rely on satellite images of the destroyed city to assess the level of damage, because the dangerous security situation makes it impossible to get people close to the site.

But she said officials have seen images of some of the large statues from the site "put on big trucks and we don't know where they are, possibly for illicit trafficking."

Officials have seen photos of destroyed symbols of the ancient kingdom of Assyria, with the head of a human man and the body of a lion or eagle. She called them and other items at the site priceless.

"The symbolism of this, they are in some of the sacred texts even, in the Bible they are mentioned," she said. "All of this is an appalling and tragic act of human destruction."

She said that before the attack, UNESCO had been preparing to include Nimrud on its list of World Heritage Sites. The city was the second capital of Assyria, a kingdom that began around 900 B.C. and became a great regional power. The discovery of treasures in the city's royal tombs in the 1980s is considered one of the 20th century's most significant archaeological finds.

The site lies just south of Iraq's second largest city, Mosul, which was captured by the Islamic State group in June.

Bokova denounced the "cultural chaos" and said she had alerted both Ban and the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.

She was meeting with Ban later Friday and said she was sure of his support.

Iraq's U.N. ambassador, Mohamed Alhakim, said Iraq had not yet formally asked for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council. He did not say what exactly Iraq wanted from the council but warned of the looted treasures.

"Somebody is going to buy these," he said.

Bokova said she also plans to meet with Interpol, major museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, major auction houses and Iraq's neighbors in an attempt to stop the illicit trafficking of items from the Nimrud site.

Bokova appealed in a statement Friday to people around the world, especially young people, to protect "the heritage of the whole of humanity."

"I don't see any justification, any religious belief, any other kind of ambition, political or others, that justify this kind of destruction," she said.

Author: Cara Anna | Source: The Associated Press [March 06, 2015]

In a letter dated March 26, 2015, the museum’s trustees claimed they are retaining the friezes — sliced off the Parthenon by the notorious Lord Elgin — for British people … for the benefit of the world’s public, present and future.

The letter also cited trustees’ “honest respect for the organization” but also “the already good relationships with colleagues and institutions of Greece”,

Here’s the British Museum’s very “long-winded” response, signed by the chairman of the British Museum board of trustees, Sir Richard Lambert:

“I write on behalf of the Trustees of the British Museum, who at their meeting of 19th March 2015 considered the request put forward by the Greek Government that they should enter into a process of mediation, facilitated by UNESCO, on the subject of the Parthenon Sculptures in the British Museum. After full and careful consideration, we have decided respectfully to decline this request. We believe that the more constructive way forward, on which we have already embarked, is to collaborate directly with other museums and cultural institutions, not just in Greece but across the world.

The British Museum admires and supports the work of UNESCO, fully acknowledging the importance of its unique ability, as an intergovernmental agency, to address the serious issue of the threats to, and the destruction of, cultural heritage around the world. The Museum has a long history of collaboration with UNESCO, notably in Iraq in 2003-5, and is currently engaged with UNESCO in formulating responses to the crisis in Syria, including the illicit trafficking of antiquities. The Museum would wish always to align itself with UNESCO’s purposes in the preservation and safeguarding of the world’s endangered cultural heritage. However, the surviving Parthenon Sculptures, carefully preserved in a number of European museums, clearly do not fall into this category.

The British Museum, as you know, is not a government body, and the collections do not belong to the British Government. The Trustees of the British Museum hold them not only for the British people, but for the benefit of the world public, present and future. The Trustees have a legal and moral responsibility to preserve and maintain all the collections in their care, to treat them as inalienable and to make them accessible to world audiences.

In pursuit of this aim, the Trustees would want to develop existing good relations with colleagues and institutions in Greece, and to explore collaborative ventures, not on a government-to-government basis but directly between institutions. This is why we believe that UNESCO involvement is not the best way forward. Museums holding Greek works, whether in Greece, the UK or elsewhere in the world, are naturally united in a shared endeavour to show the importance of the legacy of ancient Greece. The British Museum is committed to playing its full part in sharing the value of that legacy for all humanity.

The potential of this approach can be seen in the British Museum’s current special exhibition Defining Beauty, the Body in Ancient Greek Art, which opened to the public today. Here some of the Parthenon Sculptures are displayed with other works that similarly show the intense humanism of ancient Greek civilisation, including masterpieces generously lent by museums around the world. Nowhere else in the world is it now, or has it ever been, possible to see these objects together. The aesthetic impact is considerable, and the intellectual content compelling. This seems to us to point the way forward, as an example of the great public benefit that arises from museums internationally using and sharing their collections in this way."

Meanwhile, the British government also addressed a letter to Alfredo Pérez de Armiñán noting their respect for UNESCO’s work in preserving cultural heritage and “providing a forum for the resolution of international disputes.”

“The issue of the Parthenon sculptures in the British Museum has been the subject of much discussion over the years both within the Committee and elsewhere, and while the UK is not formally a member of the Committee, officials from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the British Museum have regularly attended and sought to assist the Committee in its work,” the letter stated.

However, while the British government wishes to cooperate with UNESCO, they clearly state that they cannot agree to the Greek government’s request for the return of the Parthenon Marbles since they “were legally acquired by Lord Elgin under the laws pertaining at the time and the Trustees of the British Museum have had clear legal title to the sculptures since 1816.”

“We have seen nothing to suggest that Greece’s purpose in seeking mediation on this issue is anything other than to achieve the permanent transfer of the Parthenon sculptures now in the British Museum to Greece and on terms that would deny the British Museum’s right of ownership, either in law or as a practical reality. Given our equally clear position, this leads us to conclude that mediation would not carry this debate substantially forward,” the British government added

The letters sparked a reaction from the Greek government. In a statement, Culture Minister Nikos Xydakis criticized the British officials’ “unwillingness to cooperate.”

“We are surprised at the ongoing effort to downgrade an interstate issue to an issue between museums,” he said, adding that the Greek government would continue its bid to repatriate the sculptures.

Greece has unsuccessfully campaigned for the return of the ancient sculptures that were removed from the citadel by Lord Elgin in the early 1800s. 

Source: Protothema [March 27, 2015]

In the tiny village of Dmanisi, a 1.8 million year-old human skull was recently discovered to the amazement of scientists. Nearby, a team of archaeologists from the National Museum of Georgia and the German Mining Museum (DBM) unearthed Bronze Era caves.

But the area is also rich in minerals. One site, known as Sakdrisi, is even believed to be home to a 5,000-year-old gold mine. The area was part of a concession of land the Georgian government allotted for the exploration of minerals in 1994.

In 2006, Georgia's Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection added the ancient gold mine site to its list of protected cultural monuments. The archaeological significance of the region had been a source of pride to the company that had the initial rights to mine the area. But that's now due to change. The Russian-owned company RMG bought the lease in 2012, and now plans to mine for gold.

The power of gold

RMG believes that rich gold deposits are directly under the ancient gold mine site and petitioned strongly for the government to lift Sakdrisi's protected status.

The Georgian Ministry of Culture formed a commission to study the site's status in May 2013. After one month of investigations, the commission ruled that no grounds exist to justify the protected status. In July 2013, the Ministry of Culture revoked its protected cultural heritage status.

The commission also held that the previous Georgian government had granted the protected status illegally, although they say they cannot find the 2006 documents that granted Sakdrisi permanent protection.

Thomas Stöllner, from DBM, challenged the commission's scientific qualifications though, requesting in an open letter that a new international committee be set up to test the site's archaeological signficance. So far the request has fallen on deaf ears.

Conflicts of interest

Gold exports are big business in Georgia. Sales of the precious metal overseas totalled 25.7 million euros ($35.5 million) in 2013, nearly 3 percent of the country's total export earnings.

RMG Commercial Director Solomon Tsabadze, a former Georgian Environment Ministry official, says the mining company provides 85 percent of the local budget through licensing fees and is the largest single employer in the region.

But civil society groups suspect collusion between the mining company and the government. Back in 1994 a Ministry of Environment official, Zurab Kutelia, issued the original mining permit for Sakdrisi. Today, he is the chairperson RMG's supervisory board and a company shareholder. On the other hand, other former mining company directors have become government officials too.

For Marine Mizandari, Georgia's former Deputy Minister of Culture, the ministry's decision to remove Sakdrisi from its list of protected sites is a serious setback.

"Why are we called the Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection of Georgia, if we don't protect our monuments of culture?" she said to DW, adding that she believes she was dismissed from her post in the culture ministry for reasons related to Sakdrisi.

Citizens stand up

Mizandari is now at the forefront of the Public Committee to Save Sakdrisi, a coalition of civil society groups and students demanding that the Culture Ministry appoint a non-partisan group of international experts to re-evaluate Sakdrisi.

But her protest work is not yet getting results. At a recent meeting with university students on the issue, Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili reiterated the commission's controversial findings, saying there was no proof gold had ever been mined in Sakdrisi. He stressed that RMG has already invested heavily in the Georgian economy and that protecting Sakdrisi would jeopardize the jobs of 3,000 people.

RMG has now been given the green light to begin excavating, and activists and students have organized protests against the Culture Ministry's decision in Tbilisi and near the mine site. One of their chief complaints is their exclusion from the decision-making process.

"You can stop anybody on the street and every Georgian will tell you they are proud of their history and culture," said Avtandil Ioseliani, representing Unanimity, a local NGO coalition. "I don't know what the Culture Ministry is doing, but they are not answering the questions society has."

Although Sakdrisi has lost its cultural heritage protected status, it is still an archaeological site, which prevents RMG from destroying it completely. The Culture Ministry has announced that it will appoint an independent group of archaeological experts to monitor the mining work done.

But mining opponents fail to see the logic in the policy, since the mining process requires blasting and the destruction of the ancient tunnels, they say.

Nikoloz Antidze, from the National Agency for Cultural Heritage and Preservation of Georgia, recalls how archaeological sites were ruined when BP laid an oil pipeline across the country in last 10 years.

"State interests often override archaeological interests all over the world, not just in Georgia," he told DW.

Source: Deutsche Welle [December 17, 2014]

The move follows investigations led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in New York, Baltimore, Austin, Texas, and New Haven, Connecticut, the department said in a statement.

One of the most significant items that was returned is a limestone statue depicting the head of the Assyrian King Sargon II, an eighth century B.C. ruler.

Immigration and Customs agents seized the looted artifact in August 2008 after an antiquities dealer based in Dubai shipped it to New York. The investigation led to the identification of an international network dealing in illicit cultural artifacts, the statement said.

Other artifacts repatriated to Iraq include gold-plated items, such as a soap dish, looted from the private airport and palace of executed former President Saddam Hussein.

Bronze objects, including a Luristan ax from early Sumeria, and clay reliefs and glass objects were also returned.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement unit has returned more than 1,200 items to Iraq in four repatriations since 2008, the statement said.

Source: Reuters [March 16, 2015]

The sculptures are part of the collection popularly known as the Elgin Marbles which were acquired by Lord Elgin in the early 1800s when he was ambassador to the Ottoman court.

The British parliament purchased the art treasures in 1816 and gave them to the museum.

For the past 30 years, Athens has been demanding the return of the sculptures which had decorated the Parthenon temple on the Acropolis in Athens from ancient times.

"We deplore the categorical refusal by the British of UNESCO's invitation to launch a mediation process over the Parthenon sculptures housed in the British Museum," Greek culture minister Nikos Xydakis said.

"The British negativism is overwhelming, along with its lack of respect for the role of mediators."

The UN cultural agency had offered to mediate between Greece and Britain over the ancient artworks during a meeting in October 2014.

But Sir Richard Lambert, the director of the British Museum, said in a letter to Athens this week that the trustees "decided respectfully to decline this request".

He said UNESCO's role was to pursue and safeguard endangered cultural heritage and that "the surviving Parthenon sculptures, carefully preserved in a number of European museums, clearly do not fall into this category".

"We believe that the more constructive way forward, on which we have already embarked, is to collaborate directly with other museums and cultural institutions, not just in Greece but across the world."

Sir Richard said the British Museum wanted to continue exploring collaborative ventures directly with Greek institutions - "not on a government-to-government basis".

For his part, the Greek minister criticised Britain for viewing the dispute as just an issue between museums and not between states.

"We call on Great Britain to reconsider its position," Mr Xydakis said.

Source: AFP [March 30, 2015]

At the time, he was serving as the British High Commissioner during the Second Opium War when he ordered the advancement of the army. In retaliation for the imprisonment, torture and execution of almost twenty European and Indian prisoners he ordered the destruction of the palace and reduced it to smithereens. Known as China’s Ground zero, every Chinese school child is taught that the site once held the most beautiful collection of architecture and art.

Initially, the army’s intent was to plunder the palace. Fragments of the collection at the exquisite palace were “saved” as they were looted by troops that helped themselves to the porcelain, silks and ancient books. But mostly, they destroyed what they found. One witness wrote: “In body and soul they were absorbed in one pursuit which was blunder, blunder, plunder.”

Even Lord Elgin recorded the very horror he had ordered in his diary, when he wrote: “War is a hateful business. The more one sees of it, the more one detests it.”

That could have been the end of the cultural destruction, but What Lord Elgin hadn’t counted on was retaliation. The 20-membered delegation that had gone to negotiate Chinese surrender were taken prisoners and died an excrutiatingly painful death.

Had this not happened, the palace would still exist in half its glory, much like the Parthenon exists today following the 7th Earl’s passage through Athens. Instead, the 8th Lord Elgin responded to the executions by ordering the absolute cultural destruction of the palace. It took days and days of hard work to destroy the magnificent buildings that were part of the cultural heritage of the Chinese people.

27-year-old captain Charles George Gordon wrote: “We went out, and, after pillaging it, burned the whole place, destroying in a vandal-like manner most valuable property which [could] not be replaced for four millions. We got upward of £48 apiece prize money…I have done well. The [local] people are very civil, but I think the grandees hate us, as they must after what we did the Palace. You can scarcely imagine the beauty and magnificence of the places we burnt. It made one’s heart sore to burn them; in fact, these places were so large, and we were so pressed for time, that we could not plunder them carefully. Quantities of gold ornaments were burnt, considered as brass. It was wretchedly demoralising work for an army.”

Victor Hugo in his “Expedition de Chine” says: “Two robbers breaking into a museum, devastating, looting and burning, leaving laughing hand-in-hand with their bags full of treasures; one of the robbers is called France and the other Britain.”

He helped organize an auction where the spoils were sold to raise money for the families of dead or wounded soldiers. These days, many of these works sit in all kinds of private and public collections. The Chinese feel resentment, much like the Greeks feel when considering the theft of the Parthenon Marbles.

For instance, seven of the zodiac heads that were part of the palace’s collection are in China, whereas the other five are sitting in foreign collections. The National Treasures Fund, affiliated to the Chinese Ministry of Culture, is seeking ways to track down the artworks and take them back to China, however the British museums show the same arrogance that their earls showed when destroying other culture’s heritage.

These days, Lord Elgin tells the BBC that it’s better to look forward than back all the time regarding the events of 1860, and the same could be insinuated for the Parthenon Marbles. It seems that arrogance and disregard for other culture’s can be considered the Elgin legacy.

Watch the dosumentary 'The Destruction of China's Yuanming Yuan (The Old Summer Palace)' on ArchaeoTube.

Source: Protothema [February 03, 2015]

“This is a salvage operation to get as much as we can,” said archaeologist Jera Davis, who is part of the team excavating the site.

The sites along the bank overlooking the river have been endangered by rapid erosion caused by a shift in the river channel. The salvage effort is a stopgap measure until UA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can agree on a plan to stabilize the stretch of riverbank along the wooded northern border of the park, according to Matt Gage, director of the UA Office of Archaeological Research.

“Since 2010, we have really seen a major change in what is happening with the erosion in this area,” Gage said.

The university and the Corps are trying to work on a feasibility study, he said.

The stabilization work would likely be funded by local and federal matching funds, with the Corps responsible for the stabilization and the university assisting with the archaeological work at the site.

At a site below the raised walkway that runs along the edge of the bank, the team has been excavating a midden heap — or trash pit — for about a week.

The bank below the excavation is a steep slope of exposed sandy soil where the trunks of toppled cypress and gum trees protrude from the silt at the water’s edge.

Gage estimated the staff has about six to eight months of salvage work along the riverbank on the edge of the park. The salvage by the archaeologists needs to be done before the stabilization work begins and before the valuable archaeological deposits slide down the slope into the river.

Only about 15 percent of the massive Moundville complex has been excavated. The section threatened by the river is among the least explored, according to Davis.

The site overlooking the river was likely one of the first and last places to be occupied at the complex, which was inhabited from roughly the 11th to 16th centuries by Native Americans of the Mississippian culture. The site was a religious and commercial center, home to both elite and commoners of the culture.

Based on materials found in the trash pit, experts say the sites near the river were likely the residential areas for the elite members of the society. The items include such things as shards of elaborate ceramics and mineral pigments from the Midwest, Davis said.

The trash pits offer glimpses of daily life at the sprawling complex, once the second largest of its kind in what is now the United States.

Moundville is eligible as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage site, Gage said.

Erosion along the bank is speeding up, he warned.

“Every day, we are losing a little bit of Moundville,” he said.

In the past, a natural jetty formed by silt deposits at the mouth of Carthage Branch to the east of the park helped protect the stretch of riverbank by redirecting the current. The recent changes to the river channel eroded the natural barrier and began to cut away at the bank along the Moundville site, Gage said. He estimated that approximately 30 meters of riverbank has been lost since 1969. The Corps of Engineers stabilized a stretch of riverbank northwest of the park roughly 25 years ago with riprap and other stone to prevent erosion.

While the Corps was previously able to stabilize the riverbank on the northwest corner of the park with aggregate, the erosion occurring now is a more challenging engineering problem because of the steep slope of the bank, which drops almost immediately into the river channel, Gage said.

Gage anticipates the project could cost anywhere from $7 million to $11 million.

“It all depends on what the Army Corps of Engineers decides is a possibility,” he said.

Author: Ed Enoch | Source: The Tuscaloosa News [January 26, 2015]

At first, di Lernia and many of his colleagues were optimistic about the future of archaeology in Libya after years of neglect under dictator Moammar Gadhafi. But today, di Lernia has trouble imagining what fieldwork will look like in the war-torn country.

Years after the conflict began, Libya is still unstable. The United Nations was holding talks in Geneva this week to attempt to unify the two rival governments in control of Libya since Gadhafi's dramatic downfall. Meanwhile, ISIS extremists have taken power in parts of the country, such as Derna, a city in the east, where the group Human Rights Watch has documented violent forms of abuse, including executions and floggings.

Alongside reports of human atrocities, there has been a steady stream of reports detailing the threats to Libya's cultural resources, from ideological destruction to unchecked development. In 2013, for example, there was construction equipment sitting at the Hellenic city of Cyrene, one of five UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Libya, ready to clear the way for houses. Another World Heritage Site, Ghadamès — a city sometimes called "the pearl of the desert" that was once home to the Romans and the Berbers — suffered rocket attacks in 2012. The same year, ultraconservative Islamists reportedly destroyed Sufi shrines and graves in Tripoli that don't conform to their beliefs. In 2011, robbers pulled off one of the biggest archaeological heists, stealing a hoard of nearly 8,000 ancient coins from a bank vault in Benghazi.

"I'm afraid if nothing happens, this will be a disaster for generations of Libyan archaeologists — and for universal heritage," di Lernia told Live Science. Today (Jan. 28), he published a commentary in the journal Nature to try to raise awareness about the situation within the scientific community. "It's very difficult to keep the light on Libya in this moment," di Lernia said.

Over the last four years, di Lernia, who is a professor at the Sapienza University of Rome, and his colleagues have been able to publish new research based on the wealth of material they collected in past field seasons. They've shown that dairy farms existed in a once-green Sahara. They have also analyzed Stone Age burials in the desert region.

Though access to the southeastern part of Libya has been restricted since 2011, di Lernia used to be able to travel to Tripoli. But as the fighting between Libya's two governments worsened over the past year, di Lernia wasn't able to get to Libya at all. From afar, it's difficult for international observers to assess the damages in the country.

"From time to time, I succeed in talking to my friends there, and they say that all sites are in danger, all sites are at risk," di Lernia said. "We don't know what's going on in many places. We don't know what's going on in the museums."

In other conflict zones, such as Syria, archaeologists have turned to satellite imagery to assess damage to cultural heritage sites. Those images show that places like Apamea, a Roman city and once-thriving tourist attraction for Syria, has been turned into a moonscape because of the holes gouged out by looters. But the same approach might not work in Libya, di Lernia said, as satellites can't detect more subtle damages, such as graffiti that's been reportedly painted over rock art in the Tadrart Acacus mountains, near the Messak plateau.

Di Lernia used to spend months at a time at the Messak plateau, but he can’t imagine long archaeological field seasons resuming in Libya anytime soon. In Nature, he put forth a host of recommendations to rekindle research, calling for more support for museum, university and lab-based research. Di Lernia said he'd like to see more museum collections go online, and a Web-based library for rock art sites. He also wants to see international universities provide support and funding for Libyan students and scientists to train and work overseas.

"The only way to keep Libyan archaeology alive is to do lab research, desk research, working on the Internet and working on the digitization of cultural heritage in Libya," di Lernia said. "The situation in Libya is a part of a wider picture, I'm afraid. Probably we have to rethink our capacity to do research within this political framework."

Author: Megan Gannon | Source: LiveScience ]January 28, 2015]

An estimated 5.5 million tons of copper, one of the biggest deposits in the world, could provide a major export for a war-ravaged country desperately in need of jobs and cash. But the hoped-for bonanza also could endanger rare artifacts that survived the rule of the Taliban and offer a window into Afghanistan's rich pre-Islamic history.

"The copper mine and its extraction are very important. But more important is our national culture," said Abdul Qadir Timor, director of archaeology at Afghanistan's Culture Ministry. "Copper is a temporary source of income. Afghanistan might benefit for five or six years after mining begins, and then the resource comes to an end."

The government is determined to develop Afghanistan's estimated $3 trillion worth of minerals and petroleum, an untapped source of revenue that could transform the country. The withdrawal of U.S.-led combat forces at the end of 2014 and a parallel drop in foreign aid have left the government strapped for cash. It hopes to attract global firms to exploit oil, natural gas and minerals, ranging from gold and silver to the blue lapis lazuli for which the country has been known since ancient times.

Beijing's state-run China Metallurgical Group struck a $3 billion deal in 2008 to develop a mining town at Mes Aynak with power generators, road and rail links, and smelting facilities. Workers built a residential compound, but were pulled out two years ago because of security concerns. Nazifullah Salarzai, a spokesman for President Ashraf Ghani, said the government is determined to finish that project.

Archaeologists are scrambling to uncover a trove of artifacts at the site dating back nearly 2,000 years which shed light on a Buddhist civilization that stretched across India and China, reaching all the way to Japan.

"The more we look, the more we find," archaeologist Aziz Wafa said as he scanned hilltops pock-marked with bowl-shaped hollows where copper powder once was melted down and painted onto ceramics. Excavators have found silver platters, gold jewelry and a human skeleton as they have uncovered the contours of a long-lost town that once hosted elaborate homes, monasteries, workshops and smelters.

Behind Wafa is a cave in which three Buddhas are seated around a dome-shaped shrine known as a stupa. Two are headless; one was decapitated by looters who entered through a tunnel. The other head was removed by archaeologists and placed in storage along with thousands of other items.

Movable objects, including sculptures, coins and ceramics, are stored at the National Museum in Kabul. Larger objects, including stupas measuring eight meters (26 feet) across and statues of robed monks 7 meters (23 feet) tall remain at the sprawling site, which is closed off and protected by a special security force. The roads are lined with armed guards and the archaeologists have no telephone or Internet access.

Experts believe that proselytizing Buddhist monks from India settled here in the 2nd Century A.D. Like today's miners, they were enticed by the copper, which they fashioned into jewelry and other products to trade on the Silk Road linking China to Europe.

The site was discovered in 1942 and first explored in 1963, but the excavations ground to a halt for two decades during the Soviet invasion, the civil war and the brutal rule of the Taliban in the late 1990s. Osama bin Laden ran a training camp at Mes Aynak in the years leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and the subsequent U.S.-led invasion.

Until the giant Buddhas of Bamiyan were dynamited by the Taliban in 2001, few knew that Afghanistan was once a wealthy, powerful Buddhist empire. It still does not feature on the local education curriculum, which ignores the country's pre-Islamic past. But at Mes Aynak the eroded remains of enormous feet testify to the colossal Buddhas that once towered over the valley.

Low world copper prices and a slowing Chinese economy have bought time for the archaeologists to uncover more artifacts, while the government seeks to find a way to unearth the copper without ruining relics.

The government has asked the U.N. cultural agency to survey mining sites and draw up plans to protect and preserve cultural heritage, said Masanori Nagaoka, UNESCO's head of cultural affairs in Afghanistan.

The request is rooted in hope for better days, when tourists might replace the tense guards scanning the valley.

The archaeological value of the site "will outlast the life cycle of the Aynak mine," an anti-corruption group called Integrity Watch Afghanistan said in a report. "The relics found could be a perpetual tourist attraction and would provide a new symbol of the historical foundation of the region and people."

Author: Lynne O'Donnell | Source: Associated Press [February 06, 2015]

British campaigners likened the UK’s stance to “clinging on to stolen booty for dear life” and contrasted it with the “generous act” of returning the sculptures to help a friendly country on the brink of economic collapse. Youth unemployment has hit 50 per cent and suicide rates have soared amid a crisis so severe the Financial Times has warned Greece could turn into a “quasi slave economy”.

In 2013, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) invited the UK to take part in mediation about the marbles, created 2,500 years ago to decorate the Parthenon temple in Athens. Then last year it asked for a response by 31 March.

However a Government source said the UK “won’t be able to make any significant announcement this side of the [May] election”.

A motion calling for the UK to reply to Unesco and move to return the marbles is to be filed in the House of Commons on Monday.

The failure to respond in time could prompt Greece to abandon decades of diplomacy and take legal action, possibly in the European Court of Human Rights. A team of lawyers in London, including leading QC Geoffrey Robertson and Amal Clooney, wife of actor George, is preparing a “book-length” document setting out the options.

A source who has advised successive Greek governments said the main problem was finding a court to take jurisdiction in the case, but once that hurdle was overcome “then the lawyers are saying there is about a 75 to 80 per cent chance of success”.

The marbles are regarded as some of the finest works of art in history and a symbol of the birth of Western civilisation. Some sculptures were taken to Britain by Lord Elgin in controversial circumstances just over 200 years ago when Greece was ruled by the Ottoman Empire.

Dr Elena Korka, director of antiquities at the Greek Culture Ministry, said the central issue was “reunifying these exceptional, outstanding and most important sculptures, which belong as an integral part of a unique symbolic monument for the whole world”.

“This is the essence of it, making something which exists today as whole as it can be… this is what the public wants, every poll shows it. It’s such an important issue. Even if Greece didn’t ask for it, the whole world would,” she said.

She said if the British authorities relented it would be “a day of true joy, not only for the monument itself but I think for the value of the gesture for the sake of co-operation”. “It would definitely help the [public] morale. It would be a huge boost,” she said.

Asked about the prospect of legal action, Dr Korka said Greece was “still so much into the process of mediation that we’re not thinking of the next step”. “We haven’t exhausted the possibilities so let’s not go so fast,” she said.

She added that the UK’s silence since 2013 was “not so polite really”.

David Hill, chairman of the International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures in Australia, said there was a “growing appreciation even among people who are timid about the prospect of litigation that we have reached the point of last resort if this UNESCO gambit fails. The diplomatic and political strategies of the last 30 years have not produced any progress at all.”

Polls have consistently showed strong support in Britain for returning the marbles. In November, a survey for The Times found there was a two-to-one majority in favour.

Andrew George, chairman of Marbles Reunited and Liberal Democrat MP for St Ives, said: “One of our friends is down on their uppers and we can offer something to them that might make their lives easier and give them a lift, which can only be good for their economy.

“It would be a generous act which would improve Britain’s standing in the world. At the moment we look rather grubby… like we are clinging on to stolen booty for dear life.”

He said he planned to lodge an early day motion in the Commons tomorrow calling for  the Government to “demonstrate that Britain is prepared to... reunite these British-held Parthenon sculptures with those now displayed in the purpose-built Acropolis Museum in the shadow of the monument to which they belong, the Parthenon in Athens”.

The British Museum, which denies Elgin stole the marbles, argues that it “tells the story of cultural achievement throughout the world” and the Parthenon sculptures are “a significant part of that story”. It regards itself as “a unique resource for the world” with visitors able to “re-examine cultural identities and explore the complex network of interconnected human cultures” within its walls.

“The Parthenon Sculptures are a vital element in this interconnected world collection. They are a part of the world’s shared heritage and transcend political boundaries,” it says.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said it would “respond in due course” to UNESCO.

Author: Ian Johnston | Source: Indpendent [March 07, 2015]

In the biggest shake-up of arts and culture of modern times, Matteo Renzi, the Prime Minister, has announced that the Government is to run advertisements in the Economist on January 9 to recruit new administrators "because we want to have the best directors in the world".

The leadership changes are part of a dramatic shake-up of the arts spearheaded by Dario Franceschini, the Culture Minister, in an attempt to make the country's galleries, museums and historic sites more profit-driven. Italy boasts nearly 3000 cultural sites that attract 77 million visitors a year.

The Colosseum alone draws 5.5 million of those.

Among the other "super museums" Franceschini wants to develop are the Borghese Gallery and National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome and the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.

Under a government decree, Franceschini hopes to generate earnings of more than 2 billion ($3.16 billion) in 2017, with further growth in the years to come. Italy's museums, galleries and archeological sites generated only 380 million in revenue in 2013, according to La Repubblica newspaper, and cost 350 million to operate.

The minister's office declined to comment on the new plans. But, according to La Repubblica, Franceschini wants to model Italian museums on the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and add more restaurants, gift shops, guides and accessories that will attract more visitors and ultimately more profits.

He also wants to create 18 new regional offices with responsibility for the country's biggest artistic sites and grant more power to individual directors who run them. Italian media also said he was expected to appoint 12 new directors-general within his ministry who would manage specific sectors such as tourism, cinema and live theatre.

Franceschini has openly favoured other measures to increase tourism by "adding value" to the country's heritage and strongly supports corporate sponsorship.

He recently backed a move to bring live cultural events and concerts to ancient monuments such as the Colosseum because he said they needed to be "brought alive" for visitors from around the world.

In June, he launched a $50 million appeal to preserve the vast Domus Aurea palace built by Emperor Nero beside the Colosseum.

The Domus Aurea, loosely translated as the Golden House, is a sprawling complex of interconnecting dining halls, frescoed reception rooms and vaulted hallways on the hill opposite the ancient amphitheatre.

"The state has very limited resources unfortunately," said Franceschini at the time.

"This is an opportunity for a big company to sponsor an extraordinary project, which will capture the world's attention. It would be scandalous if no one comes forward."

Source: The New Zealand Herald [December 26, 2014]

The items were seized by Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers and Federal Arts Department representatives from an auction house and private home in Sydney under laws designed to protect cultural objects.

Local authorities were tipped off by Interpol about the historic items including a Coptic textile fragment and large saucer lamp.

Macquarie University's Ancient Cultures Research Centre director Naguib Kanawati was one of several examiners who was asked to assess the cultural significance of the artefacts.

"While the provenance is unknown, the objects are all funerary in nature and would have been found in a cemetery or multiple cemeteries," he said.

They include a wooden hand belonging to an anthropoid coffin, small statuettes of a man and woman to serve the deceased in the afterlife, as well as a number of amulets.

A preliminary examination by Australian Egyptologists suggested the items date from the New Kingdom to Coptic periods and that some pieces may be over 3,000-years-old.

"As sites were used for burials by successive generations at different stratigraphic levels it is not unusual to find objects belonging to different periods at the same site," Professor Kanawati said.

Federal Arts Minister George Brandis handed the artefacts back at a formal ceremony at the Egyptian Embassy in Yarralumla.

"This is a splendid and significant occasion because it is not often that one government has the opportunity to return to another government, artefacts that are precious not only to Egypt but significant to the history of civilisation itself," he said.

Egypt's ambassador Dr Hassan El-Laithy welcomed the return of the significant items.

"One of the pieces that the Honourable Minister handed back over was a piece that witnessed the Coptic history and Christianity in Egypt... something we are very proud of," he said.

"Egypt was not only privileged by having its old civilisation of the Pharaohs, but also having prophets Moses and Jesus living in Egypt."

Last year Prime Minister Tony Abbott returned a 900-year-old bronze statue of the god Shiva to India that was found to have been looted from a temple in Tamil Nadu.

The statue had been purchased by the National Gallery of Australia in 2008 from a New York art dealer who became embroiled in a stolen art trafficking scandal.

Author: Liz Foschia | Source: ABC News Website [April 08, 2015]

According to China's State Administration of Cultural Heritage, UNESCO has already made a preliminary review of the application. A series of official documents to protect the ancient site of rock paintings in Huashan Mountain were issued. So far, around 150 million yuan has been invested on the relevant work to preserve the site. Better management and enhanced conservation efforts have been launched.

The rock paintings of Huashan Mountain are located on the west bank of the Mingjiang River in the Yaoda town, Ningming county, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. It is the biggest, most content-rich and best-preserved ancient rock carvings in China among all the discovered cultural relics to date. With a history of around 1800-2500 years, the sites were left from sacred activities of the ancient Luoyue people of the Zhuang ethnic groups in the drainage area of the Zuojiang River during the Warring States period (475-221BC) and Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220AD).

The whole painting stretches more than 200 meters in length and around 40 meters in height, with more than 1800 images in it, including people, horses, dogs, knives, swords and drums. Though a variety of archaeological theories have been made to explain the origin of the ancient artistic work, the exact reason for its creation still remains a mystery.

Source: China Daily [February 04, 2015]

An official said the ministry had received reports from its employees in the northern city of Mosul, which is under the control of the radical Islamist group, that the site at Hatra had been demolished on Saturday.

It was difficult to confirm the reports and the ministry had not received any pictures showing the extent of the damage, the official said.

But a resident in the area said he heard a powerful explosion early on Saturday and said other people nearby had reported that IS militants had destroyed some of the larger buildings in Hatra and were bulldozing other parts.

Hatra lies about 110 kilometres south of Mosul, the largest city under the IS group's control.

Director general of the United Nations cultural body UNESCO, Irina Bokova, condemned the reported wanton destruction of the ancient city.

"The destruction of Hatra marks a turning point in the appalling strategy of cultural cleansing underway in Iraq," UNESCO said.

"Official sources today reported the destruction of the World Heritage property of Hatra."

"This is a direct attack against the history of Islamic Arab cities, and it confirms the role of destruction of heritage in the propaganda of extremists groups."

However Mohammed Nuri, an MP from southern Nineveh province, where Hatra is located, cast doubt on whether the reports were accurate, saying "until this moment, there are no confirmed reports that Hatra has been destroyed".

"Hatra is somewhat isolated, and residents are not nearby," he said.

"I have not heard of someone who physically saw the destruction taking place."

A week ago the militants released a video showing them smashing statues and carvings in Mosul's museum, home to priceless Assyrian and Hellenistic artefacts dating back 3,000 years.

On Thursday they attacked the remains of the Assyrian city of Nimrud, south of Mosul, with bulldozers.

UNESCO said the destruction amounted to war crimes.

Hatra dates back 2,000 years to the Seleucid empire which controlled a large part of the ancient world conquered by Alexander the Great.

It is famous for its striking pillared temple at the centre of a sprawling archaeological site.

Source: Reuters [March 07, 2015]