Reforming (and Decolonising) Excavation and Survey in Iraq

1. 3. Training and empowering Iraqi archaeologists

Critics may point out that Iraqi authorities have no clear national strategic plan to be followed by international teams, most of which have been working in Iraq for decades and know where and when they can excavate or survey. But it is fair to ask why these decades of international work did not enable Iraqis to gain the necessary skills to generate a proper strategic plan for the excavation and survey of their country. Moreover, as noted, Iraqi academia still lags far behind its counterparts.

We also know that French, American, British, and German archaeologists have long histories of legal (and illegal) excavation in Iraq. Yet they could not contribute seriously to creating a skilled and professional Iraqi archaeology. As a result, many Iraqi archaeologists must still seek specialized training in Europe or the US. There are several ways to empower Iraqi archaeologists, such as offering them postgraduate scholarships and helping them build centres for archaeological training in Baghdad. But part of the challenge is to expand Iraqi awareness and interest in the archaeology of their own country.

1. 4. Opening social media accounts for the projects

To help the local people become more engaged with the projects, each excavation team should be required to open social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, websites etc.) to share news, events, and progress about anything related to the project or the team. At present local communities may know less about projects than people outside of Iraq! At best, this is simple neglect. At worst, this lack of connection may lead communities to imagine nefarious conspiracies and unfounded rumours about the excavations and the team.

Keeping the international team separated from the local community and limiting their engagement with the ordinary people around the site or the village where they reside may bring actual hostility. So many international teams only move between three locations while they are in Iraq, the airport, the dighouse, and the excavation site; police and tanks may even accompany them at all times. However, for ordinary Iraqis, the international team is more likely a security or diplomatic team rather than a group of civilian archaeological specialists. Social media is the easiest and most obvious way of creating long-overdue connections.

1. 5. Conservation after excavations

Another long overdue requirement is that sites should be preserved after each season of excavation, and conservation measures should be applied to structures and other uncovered features, which will otherwise be subjected to weathering and erosion. Currently, excavation teams have no obligations to preserve the sites, and buildings and artefacts are often left exposed to the elements. However, basic standards of archaeological stewardship demand that sites be preserved and that architectural finds be conserved, no less than objects.

One unintended consequence of this neglect is that locals sometimes see excavation teams as looters or vandals. They see mounds being dug, the soil removed, and the foundations of buildings being exposed and then left subjected to the weather to be destroyed within a few months. This casts archaeology in a negative light along with the sites themselves; if archaeologists can dig and then run, why should local communities be concerned with preserving the remains in their midst? Reaching out to communities is vital.

1. 6. Hosting conferences and exhibitions in Iraq

After or during each excavation season, each team should host or attend conferences or workshops for the local community to present preliminary results or information about their excavated site. At present teams keep their results confidential and leave local communities with unanswered questions about new finds and the significance of the sites in their midst. The concern is reaching Iraqis with information about the archaeology of their own country.