REMEMBER the Iraqi National Museum tragedy? In April it was reported that 170,000 priceless pieces had gone missing in the aftermath of the U.S. victory in Iraq. It turns out now that only 33 exhibition quality pieces are missing, along with 3,000 to 5,000 other items that were in storage. Nonetheless, two members of the administration who resigned in protest now say they would do so again if they had the chance. Five days after the story initially broke, the Washington Post ran a piece headlined: “Bush Panel Members Quit Over Looting: Cultural Advisors Say U.S. Military Could Have Prevented Museum Losses.” Martin E. Sullivan and Gary Vikan resigned from the President’s Advisory Committee on Cultural Property in an act they admitted was “simply symbolic.” Both were Clinton appointees due to be replaced shortly. But their resignations were taken as a repudiation of the Bush administration from within, and the obscure committee was suddenly in headlines around the world.
(Less media attention was given to revelations that before and during the looting, the museum was being used as a defensive position by Baathist forces, in violation of the Hague Convention of 1954. A well-written and thorough account of the armed resistance from inside the museum complex and the collection’s current condition can be found here. The 5,000 year old Warka Vase described as missing in the opening paragraph has since been located and was on display last Thursday when the museum opened its doors for a few hours.)
