Wednesday, 28th November 2007 (1020 views)

The gradual retrieval of gold and other artefacts in Iraq is a sign of the country's recovery - and its cultural heritage, a new report claims.

According to AFP, the Mesopotamian treasures looted from the country after the fall of Saddam Hussein are being slowly recovered by the authorities as Iraqis hand in coins, cups and statuettes.

Ministry of culture media director Abdul Zahra al-Talaqani told the news agency that as many as 594 artefacts were recovered by the ministry in one week.

And a number of weeks ago, five million dinars was awarded to a citizen who handed in one of the first Islamic coins ever minted, a gold piece from the Ommayad era.

"There are two seas in Iraq - a sea of oil and a sea of antiquities," said the ministry of culture media director.

He added that the Iraq National Museum has recovered 3,938 of its 15,000 stolen items.

Often cited as a "cradle" of human civilisation, Mesopotamia encompassed what became modern-day Iraq, which was founded in 1920.

 

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