Damascus Museum Restores Ancient Palmyra Artifacts Damaged by ISIS
Centuries-old statues and sculptures were wrecked by the jihadists when they twice seized control of the old city in central Syria during the country's war, which will enter its ninth year in March

In the National Museum of Damascus, archaeologist Muntajab Youssef works on an ancient stone bust from Palmyra, one of hundreds of artefacts his team is painstakingly restoring after they were damaged by Islamic State.
Centuries-old statues and sculptures were wrecked by the jihadists when they twice seized control of the old city in central Syria during the country's war, which will go into its ninth year in March.
The 1,800-year-old bust of a bejewelled and richly clothed woman, The Beauty of Palmyra, was damaged during the first offensive on the city by Islamic State fighters in 2015.
After Syrian government forces took back the city with Russian military support in March 2016, the bust, alongside other damaged ancient monuments, was taken to Damascus and archived in boxes. When restoration work on it began last year, Youssef said it was in pieces.
>> Erdogan rejoiced at Trump's Syria pullout. Then he realized it was Trump | Analysis
- Erdogan Calls Kurdish Fight Against ISIS 'Huge Lie' - Hours After ISIS Attack on YPG
- Trump Made a Fatal Error. Turkey Is Incapable of Taking on ISIS
- Assad Authorizes Iraq to Attack ISIS in Syria
"The hands and face were lost completely, also parts of the dress and there are areas that are weaker," Youssef, who has been working on the bust for two months, said.
Youssef is one of 12 archaeologists working on the arduous restoration job, which first began with the moving of the damaged pieces to Damascus.
Mamoun Abdulkarim, the former Head of Syrian Antiquities, said that in some cases broken artefacts were transported in empty ammunition boxes provided by the Syrian army in Palmyra.
How many artefacts there are in total is difficult to say, given the state they were found in. The lack of documentation for the artefacts also adds to the restoration challenge.
"A big part of the documentation in the Palmyra museum, was damaged with the antiquities and computers," archaeologist Raed Abbas said. "A statue needs pictures ... in order to be rebuilt."
Comments

AIPAC-backed Dem Declares Victory Against Progressive Challenger in Texas Runoff

Prospects for Reviving Iran Nuclear Deal 'Tenuous' at Best, U.S. Envoy Says

Israeli PM Offers Condolences After Texas Gunman Kills 21 at Elementary School

Biden Decides to Keep Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Terror List, Says Report

Progressive Jews Urge ADL Chief to Apologize for Calling Out Democratic Activist
