The National Museum of Iraq

After reading the article emailed to us by Dr. Li, I decided to take a better look at this museum, its history, and the looting's that occurred. Also known as The Baghdad Archaeological Museum, the National Museum of Iraq was established with the help of Gertrude Bell in 1926. From this time until the 1930's the museum was under the Ministry of Public Works until being taken under the Ministry of Education thereafter. The museum has had help from German and Italian governments in the construction of more buildings surrounding the museum.

During the Gulf War in 1991 the Museum was closed and did not re-open until April 28th, 2000 for former president Suddam Hussein's birthday. On April 7th, 2003, theft and looting began continuing until April 12th. The museum staff was asked to leave on April 8th though they attempted to hold back looters until U.S. Forces arrived on April 16th. Most Storage rooms were looted though none of the steel doors showed signs of forced entry. Museum staff believe about 15,000 items were stolen of which over 3,000 have been recovered.

http://www.gadling.com/photos/the-national-museum-of-iraq/

The museum has since been protected, however Iraqi archaeological sites have not causing large-scale looting. This looting has been causing a lot of work for museum staff who have been receiving large loads of undocumented artifacts that have been confiscated from the borders.

The museum has been opened since February 23, 2009 for VIP Tours and school groups and is suspected to re-open to the public in 2013. As of late, the museum workers, with the help of many other organizations have been working hard to get the museum back up and running. There are prospected to be twenty-seven galleries total by the opening of the museum.

As we've been talking about the question of the ethics of looting this research has brought a couple of questions to mind. It seems a little fishy that the whole place was looted including storage rooms with out a single sign of forced entries. It makes it almost seem as though the looting was some sort of inside job. The looting of the museum was devastating, however, the looting of the sites seems to only benefit them. While yes, they have no idea as to where the artifacts came from and have to do a little extra work to figure out their origins, the museum is receiving free artifacts all the time to add to their new exhibits but now they are lost to their archaeologists.

So for my  fellow classmates, what is your personal position on looting and how did this article affect it?

Museums that will Scare you Silly

Why do we want to be scared? Frank Farley, PhD psychologist at Temple University says that "People are intensely curious about the 'dark side,' and trying to make sense of it. They're interested in the unusual and the bizarre because they don't understand it and it's so different from our everyday lives." The reasons we want to feel fear are similar to the reasons we want to visit museums. We are intensely curious about their contents, causing us to question and try to make sense of their origins. So why not fuse our desire to be scared and learn about the past together? Here are a couple of the scariest museums across the world:

1. The Mutter Museum: the most local on the list is the Mutter Museum, located in South Philadelphia. It's famous for it's collection of skulls and dead, preserved specimens, including the tallest skeleton on display in North America and a 5 foot-long human colon. The museum also holds entrails of some famous names, including President Grover Cleveland's malignant tumor and a 10 pound growth removed from John Wilkes Booth, Abraham Lincoln's assassin.

2. Seodaemun Prison History Museum: located in Seoul, Korea, this prison-turned-museum is a must-see for thrill seekers visiting Korea. Built in 1910, it was used to house Korean prisoners that the Japanese would torture and experiment on. Visitors can see rooms such as the “corpse removal exit” where the bodies of prisoners were smuggled out, and the execution building. The most bone chilling aspect of the museum, called the “Place of Experience”, gives museum visitors the chance to watch animatronic mannequins perform the same torture rituals that were performed on the prisoners decades ago-in the same room that they were performed.

3. Catacombs of Palermo: not originally intended to become a museum, the catacombs have done just that, and have been nicknamed the "museum of death". In the basement of the Capuchin Monastery in Palermo, Italy, visitors can view the actual corpses of monks and local members of the community... in the same clothing and state that they were buried in. The most recent bodies are from the 1920s, and are so well preserved that they look like they are sleeping. Maybe they are!

These are just a few of the frightening museums you can visit around the world. For more information on these museums and others, visit http://listverse.com/2010/06/21/top-10-museums-that-will-scare-you-silly/ .

A Different Phase: Dark Tourism

Most tourism spots around the world involve some since of tragedy. It is hard to imagine wanting to surround a vacation with thoughts of the violence and death on a vacation but sites such like Auschwitz receive soaring numbers of visitors on an annual basis. Why are we, as a society, attached to these dark reminders of our past? Is it a pilgrimage to bury condolences to the deceased or a new form of tourism that is grabbing hold of the western worlds attentions?

Auschwitz is known to Adolf Hitler’s ultimate victory during his reign. Now, what remains attracts thousands of visitors. Survivors come to pay respects to loved ones lost and younger generations come to remember what had happened within its gates. Without being able to visit the site, part of history will slowly start to fade away. Auschwitz is not likely to lose any popularity anytime soon, but it still leaves me to wonder why such a dark memorial is a must see destination for tourists visiting Poland.

Like Auschwitz, the 9/11 Memorial in New York City is a constant reminder of the pain that a society has overcome. Also like Auschwitz, the 9/11 Memorial gains outstanding numbers of visitors who are willing to be reminded of the overwhelming loss the country faced in order to forget what happened. These tourist, I being one of them, are captivating by the visual representation of all who lost their lives. In an opposite way, the memorial is breathtaking and when you are physically standing even near it, there is a sense of hope, that society is and will keep moving forward. 

With dark tourism comes a new form of etiquette for viewing locations. Instead of an enthusiastic air, dark tourism has created pleasant, yet somber atmosphere. Tourist are more than eager to gain an understanding of tragic events that occur at these depressing locations to get a tighter hold on history. Seeing places such as Auschwitz and the 9/11 Memorial create an impression on generations that suffered through the national crisises and serves to inform those who do not know that pain. Dark Tourism is on the rise as tourism becomes more and more intellectual rather than just for amusement. 

The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs take America

Currently in Seattle, the King Tut exhibition is currently the most popular one in the country. It has been traveling across the US in the past few years and is scheduled to head back to Egypt in early 2013. 
King Tut is often the first thing people connect when thinking of ancient Egypt. His tomb was accidentally discovered in 1922, and has been teaching people vital information of ancient Egypt since then. 

Some of the artifacts at the exhibit

The exhibition itself is currently the most popular in the world. It has had over 9 million viewers since it's opening. In this extraordinary exhibition, you’ll find artifacts that came directly from King Tut's tomb, including the golden sandals found on his mummy and a 10 foot tall statue of the young king that was found at his tomb. Other artifacts include ones from his family and Egypt at the time that he ruled. 
The exhibition has even drawn attention from some celebrities such as Kanye West and George Bush Sr. 
It heads back to Egypt in January of 2013, so you must act fast if you wish to see the young prince's artifacts before it is too late! Currently at the Pacific Science center in Seattle, tickets start around $40, and include access to the exhibition, an audio guide, and a I-max movie experience about Tut's life. 

George Bush Sr. and Wife at Exhibit

Kanye West at Exhibit

Promotion poster by National Geographic