Archaeological Sites Neglected - Academic

Archaeological sites in Syria are suffering from the neglect of government officials, said Anas al-Meqdad, head of the Archaeology and Museums department at Aleppo University, in an October 10 article in the pro-government website Champress.



Syrian officials at the ministry of culture manage archaeological sites and deal with national and international archaeologists in ways that serve their own personal interests, Meqdad said.



He added that there was a need to recruit qualified and experienced professionals to develop projects around Syria’s archaeological sites.



As an example of the government’s mismanagement of ancient sites, the expert mentioned the southern city of Bosra, which boasts some of the country’s most important ruins.



He said that there have not been any serious excavations or discoveries in the city for years. He added that officials paved the old streets of the city with modern bricks instead of using the ancient tiles buried only one metre below the ground.



He said that many sites of historical importance in Syria were neglected because the authorities lack the interest or expertise to preserve them. Valuable ancient objects have been stolen recently or are not properly displayed to the public, he said.



He added that some archaeological sites had been declassified by the ministry of culture recently without giving a reason. Many critics say that the reason was to pave the way for the creation of projects on these sites.