An ancient stone tablet from the Assyrian empire was unveiled by Iraq, on Sunday (June 18) after being returned by Italy as Baghdad moves to recover antiquities looted from its territory. The recently recovered artefact is said to be a 2,800-year-old stone tablet and would be returned to Iraq’s National Museum in Baghdad.
What we know about the tablet
The stone tablet dates back to the Assyrian empire and is marked with the insignia of Shalmaneser III, the Assyrian king who ruled the region of Nimrod (present-day northern Iraq), from 858 to 823 BC. The text on the tablet is said to be written in cuneiform which is the Babylonian alphabet.
Shalmaneser III is said to be one of the greatest Assyrian Kings in the Assyrian state in the north of Iraq “which is of great importance for several reasons,” said the Iraqi Minister of Culture, Ahmed al-Badrani speaking at the Baghdad presidential palace.
He also went on to explain how during the Sumerian civilisation, clay tablets were used as it was easier to write on them but the Assyrian civilization used to engrave stones which is much more difficult to do.
From Italy to Iraq stone tablet returned
It was not clear how Italian authorities agreed to handover the stone tablet back to Baghdad except it was given to Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid during a visit to Bologna over the past week.
“We have with us this important artefact, that was in Italy for a long time, we brought it back with us and are handing it over to Iraq’s national museum,” said Rashid, on Sunday, during the ceremony.
He added, “I would like to thank the Italian officials for their efforts and cooperation in bringing back this piece.” According to the Director of Baghdad’s council of antiquities and heritage, the tablet had arrived in the 1980s in Italy, where it was seized by police.
However, the circumstances behind its discovery were unclear, said al-Badrani. Speaking at the event, on Sunday, the Iraqi president also said that they would continue to work to recover all the archaeological pieces of Iraqi history from across the world. Notably, the country’s antiquities have reportedly been the target of looting which increased after the chaos following the United States-led invasion two decades ago.
(With inputs from agencies)
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