During the war, and in March and April in particular, many Iraqi institutions and archaeological sites were looted. Above is a picture of the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad back in 2008. After thousands of artifacts were looted, the FBI was brought in to investigate and recover the priceless artifacts.
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The Iraqi museum houses the heritage of the Babylonian, Mesopotamian, and Persian civilizations. The museum was closed for several years while the collection was being recovered. It officially reopened in February, 2015. Although many pieces have been recovered, it is estimated that nearly 10,000 relics are still missing. One item recovered by the FBI was the Statue of Entemena.
If you have any information about these stolen relics please call the FBI tip line.
1-800-CALLFBI
For more information on the FBI’s Top Ten Art Crimes:
https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/violent-crime/art-theft#FBI-Top
Photo credits:
Federal Bureau of Investigation Art Crime Team, Public Domain, via Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) @ https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/violent-crime/art-theft/fbi-top-ten-art-crimes/iraqi-looted-and-stolen-artifacts
Photo of National Museum of Iraq: By Zzztriple2000 at English Wikipedia – Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons by Alexknight12 using CommonsHelper., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6793185
