Babylonian Initiative

Heritage Development in South Central Iraq

funding provided by
United States Agency for International Development

Alvin Rosenbaum, AICP

Cultural Tourism Specialist
Local Governance Project
RTI/Chemonics
Babylonian Initiative Components Linking…

• temporary jobs creation with sustainable

development;

• protection with presentation strategies;

• capacity building with conservation of cultural

values; and

• international with regional investment.

Donor Assistance for Heritage Preservation
• strong regional or national identity.
• effective state and local capacity.
• prior experience with collaborative preservation planning.
• interests strategically aligned with international charters.
• ability to absorb international assistance.
• a degree of international legitimacy.
—Oriental Institute, University of Chicago
 Babylonian Initiative In Brief

• Democracy and Civil Society

Demonstration of local governance and civil society
objectives through jobs creation, organizational
development and economic development.

• Training
Local capacity-building.

• International Approach
Promotion of multilateral support and investment.

• Best Practices
Protection template and demonstration of Iraq’s
archaeological sites and treasures.
 Babylonian Initiative Components

• Develop a Peace Park and Heritage Center as a community

amenity and as a regional reception center. Create 800
temporary jobs and 25 permanent jobs on site.

• Create a template for international cooperation for protection

and presentation of Iraq’s antiquities.

• Identify the stakeholders, including Iraq’s cultural and

tourism interests, international donor and business investment,
and historic preservation experts.
Najef Map
 Souk of Basra, c. 1920.

Ali Shrine, 2004.

Najef Map
 Iraqi Jewish
family, c. 1920

1980 Ezekiel’s Tomb in Kifl,

near Babylon,
between Najaf and Hillah.
2004 Ezekiel’s Tomb in Kifl,
near Babylon,
between Najaf and Hillah.
The Babylon of our imagination…
UNESCO’s Second Assessment Mission
July 2, 2003 findings:
The Babylon archaeological precinct was
transformed in 1993 by Saddam Hussein
into a massive reconstruction the 7th
century BC Southern Palace of
Nebuchadnezzar II, resulting into a
ineligibility as a World Heritage List.
The site was occupied and is protected by
the Multinational Division Command-
South, although there was some looting
at the museum before it was secured.

Michael Petzet (ICOMOS president) and

McGuire Gibson (Un. of Chicago) were on
the Iraq UNESCO assessment team.
http://www.ifla.org/VI/4/admin/unesco070703.pdf
 MND CS KBR
HQ BN Airpad
HQ Base

Saddam’s Nebuchadnazzer’s Ishtar Roman

palace Palace reconstruction Gate theater

Roads Historic Ruins/Areas Modern Buildings

 Babylonian Initiative Components

Develop a Peace Park and Heritage Center as a

community amenity and as a regional reception
center. Create 800 temporary jobs and 25
permanent jobs on site.
 Peace Park and Heritage Center

• Components include botanical gardens, a monument

commemorating the region’s martyrs, and the
themes depicting the continuity of Judeo-Christian
and Islamic traditions in the region.
There are a number of grand salons, entries,
and hallways on four levels of the palace.
West, from Saddam
Palace hilltop.
Reconstructed areas mix with
archaeological sites.
The site has been administered by the Antiquities
Department of the Culture Ministry in Baghdad.
Babylonian Initiative Components

Create a template for international cooperation for protection and

presentation of Iraq’s antiquities.
The ruins are now mostly protected behind razor wire
and patrolled by military police, although the site has
sustained some damage.
Evidence of field work from the 1980s and ’90s.
Babylonian Initiative Components Linking…

• temporary jobs creation with sustainable

development;

• protection with presentation strategies;

• capacity building with policy development; and

• international with regional investment.

 Photography by

Mr. Paul Black

Media Specialist
Local Governance Program
Research Triangle International
South Central Iraq

Dr. Marek Lemiesz

G9-FS
Chief Archeologist
Multinational Division
South Central Iraq

Lt. Col. Waldemar Porebny

Chief of Infa Branch
Multinational Division
South Central Iraq