The Syrian regime has taken complete control of the ancient city of Palmyra, which had been occupied by ISIS since last May.
ISIS
Posted inIn Brief
Italy and UNESCO Establish Task Force to Protect Cultural Heritage in Conflict Zones
Italy has teamed up with the United Nations to create a task force whose goal is to protect ancient artworks, artifacts, and archaeological sites in conflict zones from extremists.
Posted inArt
In Acts of Resistance, Artists and Scholars Digitally Reconstruct the Past
In the past year alone, members of ISIS have marred cultural treasures in Iraq and Syria, taking sledgehammers and drills to statues at the Mosul Museum and delivering numerous blows to the ancient site of Palmyra, including its 1,800-year-old Arch of Triumph.
Posted inIn Brief
Satellite Images Confirm the Destruction of Iraq’s Oldest Christian Monastery by ISIS
Conflict in Iraq has reduced yet another historic site to nothing more than piles of stone, with the blow delivered once more by ISIS.
Posted inNews
Crimes of the Art
On this week’s art crime blotter: a photographer sued Jeff Koons over a painting from 1986, an art thief tagged the artist in an Instagram post of his loot, and Nicolas Cage agreed to return a stolen dinosaur skull.
Posted inNews
Photographer Discovers ISIS Has Stolen His Artwork
Many artists have suffered the indignity of having their work ripped off by one big company or other. But few have experienced the particular pain, as Brian McCarty has, of having their art illegally appropriated by ISIS.
Posted inNews
In Wake of Terrorist Attacks, France Looks to Fight ISIS with Cultural Preservation
This week, France announced two plans to fight back against ISIS’s cultural destruction. French culture minister Fleur Pellerin unveiled a $6 million fund that will help France’s cultural institutions recover from the recent attack.
Posted inNews
British Museum Will Train Iraqis in Rescue Archaeology
There’s nothing like watching ISIS blow up the ancient city of Nineveh to make archaeologists, conservationists, and historians feel helpless.
Posted inNews
Study Finds ISIS Militants Aren’t the Only Ones Looting Syrian Archaeological Sites
ISIS’s systematic looting in Syria has captured the world’s attention, but a new study shows they’re not the only ones selling off the country’s cultural heritage.
Posted inNews
New Guidelines Help Museums Safeguard Works Threatened by War and Disaster
The Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) released a list of protocols for museums to help protect artworks or archaeological objects that are currently at risk of destruction.
Posted inIn Brief
ISIS Destroys Palmyra’s 1,800-Year-Old Arch of Triumph
ISIS has destroyed the towering Arch of Triumph that stood for 1,800 years in the ancient city of Palmyra, the latest in the militant group’s series of attacks that threatens to completely obliterate the World Heritage Site.
Posted inIn Brief
New Digital Archaeology Effort Attempts to Capture Cultural Heritage Before It’s Gone
As ISIS continues to destroy the world’s cultural heritage, archaeologists and other onlookers continue to scramble to find ways to counter the destruction.
