A more than 3,500-year-old clay tablet has been presented in Iraq, which was stolen from a museum during the First Gulf War and has now been returned from the US. It is one of more than 17,000 works of art that have disappeared from Iraq over the past three decades and have recently been returned from America. A number of archaeological objects returned from the Netherlands earlier this year.
The showpiece that the Iraqis displayed today is one of the oldest works of literature in the world. The clay tablet is part of the Gilgamesh epic and is worth about 1.7 million dollars. The Iraqi culture and foreign ministers officially received the work.
smuggled
The clay tablet was looted in 1991. According to US authorities, it was illegally smuggled into the United States in 2003, during the invasion of Iraq. It eventually ended up in the Washington DC Bible Museum. Two years ago, it was confiscated and a judge ruled it had to be returned to Iraq.
Much of Iraq’s heritage has been lost or destroyed in looting. Especially after the American invasion earlier this century, many pieces were lost. Under the rule of the Islamic State terrorist group, looted art was widely traded.
Dutch auction site
The lion’s share eventually ended up in the US. But Iraqi looted art has also appeared in the Netherlands. In 2019, seven objects were offered for sale on a Dutch auction site, which turned out to be misappropriated. After an investigation by the Government Information and Heritage Inspectorate, the provider handed them in voluntarily.
This clay tablet, nails and two rare figures were handed over to Iraqi authorities in May.
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