Looted Iraqi artefacts 'found in London'

[emad]

From BBC News:


Artefacts looted from the Baghdad museum following the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime have been recovered in London, police have confirmed for the first time. The discovery of the items follows enduring images from the museum of smashed display cases, empty vaults and crying staff, when reporters gained access for the first time. First estimates of the looting suggesting that more than 150,000 items were missing were wildly inaccurate. The most recent figures indicate all but 10,000 have been recovered.

But investigators believe some objects were stolen to order and smuggled out of the country. Thousands of valuable bead-shaped seals were stolen from locked, concealed store rooms. Other important archaeological sites were also ransacked across Iraq, historically known as Mesopotamia and seen as the birth place of modern civilisation.

The Metropolitan Police's confirmation that some of the artefacts had made their way to Britain follows an operation by the specialist arts and antiques squad. A number of men were arrested, including one at a central London gallery. "The men were arrested in connection with allegations of handling stolen goods - one of them was said to be a 76-year-old man. He is believed to be a British passport holder of Iranian descent", Scotland Yard told the BBC. A stone sculpture found there, but stolen before the war, is thought by detectives to be worth between three and five million pounds. The frieze, showing sacred winged animals was taken from the ruins of a palace in the ancient city of Nimrud. "It is a stone frieze about one metre square. It depicts two winged sacred guardian animals. "They are holding scared fruit from a tree. They are of classic Assyrian design", Scotland Yard said.

Thousands of objects have been looted from museums and archaeological sites in Iraq since 1990 - the process is thought to have accelerated during the most recent fighting. Some objects have turned up for sale on the international arts market. A UN resolution in May called on all countries to crack down on the trade. A new law due to come in to force in the UK by Christmas will for the first time specifically target the trade in antiquities. US investigators have also been helping to recover stolen treasures from Iraq and more than 3,000 artefacts from Iraq's national museum have been returned to date. Among the stolen items were a statue from 2300 BC and Roman heads of Poseidon, Apollo, Nike and Eros. The US team say the thieves had expert knowledge and left copies and less valuable items in place of the valuable antiques.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3249893.stm


For all those involved in lengthy campaigning to re-patriate the Elgin Marbles to Greece and the Rosetta Stone to Egypt, I guess this merely confirms the UK as the archaeological capital of looting and pillaging free for alls.

[Spentastic]

1. Sack the proof reader.

How the hell do you scare a fruit?

"we're gonna juice you good"

[izzie]

2. Elgin Marbles were a little different

These things taken were wanted by the country they were taken from. The Marbles were used as targets and no one was really interested in them so like a lot in that time, the rich people took them home with them and the countries let them.Our own country is filled with stuff that came here the same way. Some of these countries like Germany, England and US led in the study of these things. Anything that can be will be sold for money and that is what is going on in Iraq now. Heck early Am grave stones are or were sold in NYC.I think the Brits should return the Elgins but I also see their point. We most likely would not have them if it was not for the Brits.

[damnraddem]

3. Or it may only indicate that Britain has an effective ...

arts and antiques squad.