From: Michael Everson (everson@evertype.com)
Date: Sat May 10 2003 - 10:49:41 EDT
From the New Scientist:
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Baghdad museum treasures recovered
By Will Knight
Thousands of items looted from the National Museum in Baghdad last
month have been recovered, US officials announced on Wednesday.
But independent archaeological experts say it remains unclear if
these items were actually stolen from the museum, or whether they
were deliberately hidden from looters by museum staff.
On Wednesday officials from the Bureau of Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, part of the US Department of Homeland Security, said
40,000 manuscripts and around 700 artefacts had been recovered. The
recovered items reportedly include clay pottery dating from 5000 BC
and a cornerstone from the Babylon palace of King Nebuchadnezzar,
dating from 7000 BC.
Christopher Walker, deputy keeper of the Department of the Ancient
Near East at the British Museum says it is possible that many of the
recovered items have simply now been returned by museum staff who
moved them before the looting began.
"40,000 manuscripts sounds like an astonishing amount to return and
an astonishing amount to take in the first place," he told New
Scientist .
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More of the story at
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/030509/12/dzm8v.html
-- Michael Everson * * Everson Typography * * http://www.evertype.com
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