To Steal Candy from a Nation
(The ethical dilemmas of the Ishtar Gates)
The sun was beaming down on the desert our city lies on. Sweltering in the heat, it was midday. Everyone and their neighbors were thirsty and hungry after the drought. Our living conditions were far from abundant.
A sudden rumble startled the livestock near the city. The noises of the animals continue to rise parallel to the rumble, louder and louder. It was now evident that the king, Nebuchadnezzar the Second, sent his royal guards to play their trumpets of triumph. They shook the ground with every note that played. The people of the town big and small wandered out into the sandy streets, puzzled at the celebration.
“The king’s gate is completed! The king’s gate is finished! Ishtar will bless this city of Babylon we now stand on!” They repeated. The crowd roared in excitement, people were leaping and laughing at the joyous news.
The sun was beaming down my neck near window where I had viewed it. It was a bleak 10 am while I was slumped at my desk in a mundane office job. At the time I did not have much to do, so I was completing a few assignments from school, until I was interrupted by my dear old coworker.
‘Photocopy these 60 pages into a PDF for me doll won’t ya?”
“Of course,” I nodded my head as I chose to oblige. Who could say no to such a sweet lady like that? I begin my monotonous task until I was gloriously offered an opportunity to visit a presentation by my boss. The presentation was on the supposed ‘stolen artifacts’ of the Elgin marbles housed in the British museum created by a professional candidate for the department. Being an art conservation major, this was infinitely more enticing than spending my day chained to the copier.
Elle Chapman presented. Her inflection was poised and precise as she glided through her slides. The people on each side of me were lost in the words that saturated the air. The passion for the return of these marbles by Mrs. Chapman was absurd. It wasn’t even her culture I thought! Then another voice joined the sea of harmony. The low rumble spoke of the Pergamon Museum and their prized loot in disdain, the Ishtar gate. I had never heard of the Ishtar gate, and that immediately sparked my curiosity. I’ve known about the many issues associated with stolen artifacts and the British Museum, I never appreciated them, but the idea that many other museums in Europe are robbing them of other cultures is heartbreaking. I craved for a justification.
Elle Chapman phrased and rephrased the word, Repatriation. She said it’s the rightful return of a nation’s person or artifact. Her choice to use the word rightful struck me. Rightful is more of an opinionated word to include in a definition. A definition is supposed to introduce a neutral stance on a word. It’s informational.
The Webster Dictionary defines repatriation “To restore or return the country of origin, allegiance, or citizenship.” The dictionary broadens the definition given by anthropologists and conservators. It eliminates the idea of an object and its emotions. What is interesting here is the use of the word allegiance. Anyone can claim their allegiance to a country, and any country can claim an object’s allegiance to them. This definition leaves unsewn ends into the rightful return.
Other conservators such as Kathrine Hodge and the Smithsonian Museum redefine the word repatriation to restrict the blurred lines the Webster Dictionary left. The two definitions are written as, “Repatriation means the return of cultural item or individuals that were removed from their homeland” (Kathrine Hodge) and “Repatriation is the process whereby human remains and certain types of cultural items are returned to lineal descendants, Indian tribes, and native Hawaiian organizations (Smithsonian). I agree with how narrow these definitions are, it correctly defines a noun associated with the definition. It also specifically narrows how these objects are returned, rather than the Webster’s choice of allegiance. Collecting these terms allowed me to develop my own definition that defines my argument for the repatriation of the Ishtar Gates. From this point forward, Repatriation is the recovery of a person or property to its origin.
Modern Issues in Archaeology, Repatriation, Katherine Hodge, https://projectarchaeology.org/2021/04/09/modern-issues-in-archaeology-repatriation, Repatriation, National Museum of the American Indian, https://americanindian.si.edu/explore/repatriation, Repatriate, Webster, https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/repatriate#:~:text=transitive%20verb,Sentences%20Learn%20More%20About%20repatriate.
Like many artifacts that have been wrongly stolen or lost to people that are not of their culture, the Ishtar gates fall victim to such a tragic fate. Many of the miniature relics have been destroyed to time by the American culture or stolen by German architects who wrongly assumed ownership due to a previous alliance. The Ishtar gates are considered a wonder of the ancient world, and they deserve to be returned to their home country where they belong to preserve the Iranian culture.
The Ishtar Gates were created by the revered king of Neo-Babylonia, Nebuchadnezzar II in 575 BCE. These ‘gates’ are as old to us as they were to the pyramids of Giza. The Ishtar gates are two massive entrances that tower around 40 feet. They are the grand opening to the dramatic processional way that led to a temple dedicated to the supreme god, Marduk. The shimmering blue enamel tiles that were once speculated to be the lapis, were abundant. Powerful lions and dragons adorned the top to emphasize power and fear to any trespasser. A little plaque was left, written by Nebuchadnezzar of course, stating that this temple and everything that belongs to such is in honor of the god Marduk, God of justice and compassion, the patron god of Babylon. (Ishtar Gate, Brittany Garcia, https://www.worldhistory.org/Ishtar_Gate/,)
This ‘wonder’ of the ancient world was excavated by a man named Robert Koldewey between 1902 to 1914 right before WW1. Unfortunately, the excavation halted because of the war. Since the Ottomans were defeated, they once ruled the land that the gate once lay, their allies, the Germans, assumed rights to the gate. They rekindled the excavation and reconstructed a gate at the Pergamon museum. The remaining objects associated with the gate, remained in Iraq. A group of Italians after the second war decided to excavate the remains, but a huge surge of nationalism from Saddam Hussain prevented such. Saddam Hussain took charge of the excavation because he believed he was not of Muslim descent, but of a genuine descendant from the kings that ruled the Babylonian nation. Funny enough, there were some parallels between Saddam and Nebuchadnezzar II. Both were aggressive leaders that led a somewhat militaristic nation and ordered large projects to be built. Evil or good, both are leaders that will be remembered.
Many years later in 2003, because of Saddam, American and Polish troops took over the excavation site and turned it into a military base. Blocked off sites were used as trenches, precious artifacts were stomped and shattered on, and 4,000 acres of the site was covered in gravel for years to come. The remains of this site are primarily kept in Berlin, but some are scattered all over the earth. Iraq constructed a smaller version of the gate where it should have been but still wants its original gates and its precious artifacts. Unfortunately, the 1954 Hauge Convention aimed to protect cultural property, has many loopholes that gave the German Museum the legal rights to the Ishtar gate. Morally, I believe that they do not have rights to the gate itself. (The Great Gate of Ishtar: A door to wonder, Amanda Ruggeri, https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20150302-ancient-babylons-greatest-wonder,) (Is Iraq right to reclaim the Ishtar Gate from Germany?, Zainab Mohammed, https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/119520)
This lies the final question in the search for the true owners of the Ishtar gate. Is the gate better where it’s at in Berlin? Or should It move back to where Nebuchadnezzar originally wanted it to be. The Pergamon Museum of Berlin is argued to have better conservation practices because it has more trained conservators, therefore the gate will be safely kept for many more years to come. In Iraq the IICAH is in partner with the University of Delaware. The program is determined to help rebuild Iraq’s cultural heritage sector by providing in country training in the preservation and conservation of cultural heritage. It came about after the Gulf wars decimated the renowned cultural heritage sector in Iran-Iraq. So possibly in the future this gate could be in a safer environment in their home with this program, but Iraq’s heritage can be seen by more of the world if it is kept in a politically safer environment, (Such as Berlin). The gate would also be safe from the scorching sun and unprecedented weather. (The Iraqi Institute For the Conservation of Antiquities and Heritage, University of Delaware, https://www.artcons.udel.edu/outreach/global-engagement/iraqi-institute )
The gate is kept in the German Pergamon Museum. In 2019 it was recorded that the museum was home to more than four million visitors. With each gallery increasing in its visitors. It is more than fantastic that millions of people are interested in other cultures and their artifacts. Because, the Ishtar gate is placed in a politically safer environment, many more people get to learn about the Iranian culture. Unfortunately, Iran is not getting the funding from this museum, Germany decides to keep the profits. The Ishtar gate belongs to Iran, if they don’t get the artifact then why don’t they get funding either? Even if the gate is kept in a location where more people can view a wonderful culture, that is not the purpose of conservation. Conservation is the idea of collective memory keeping. It is not Germany’s story to tell it is the Iraqi’s stories. (The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin Welcome More than 4 Million Visitors in 2019, Staatlich museen zu Berlin, https://www.smb.museum/en/whats-new/detail/the-staatliche-museen-zu-berlin-welcome-more-than-4-million-visitors-in-2019/#:~:text=Aside%20from%20338%2C000%20visitors%20to,%2C%20annual%20total%3A%20828%2C000 )
The culture of the Ishtar gate demonstrates hardships and victories succeeding the empire. In the eyes of the Israelites, Nebuchadnezzar II was not a fantastic hero. In the story of Daniel in the Bible he offended Judaism, besieged Jerusalem, and disregarded all their religion
“ And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiah’s eleventh year, the city wall was broken through… When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled; they left the city at night by way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls, and headed toward the Arabah. But the Babylonian army pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They captured him and took him to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced sentence on him. 6 There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and also killed all the nobles of Judah. 7 Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon.” (Jeremiah 39:2–7)
The inflicted pain on Zedekiah the Jerusalem king were unimaginable horrors by Nebuchadnezzar, killing the sons, friends, and followers in front of his eyes to then capture him and the city. Nebuchadnezzar then asked a Jewish prophet to interpret his dreams of his kingdom fall. Daniel, the Prophet, told him God was to destroy his kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar said this was foolish and denied the existence of their god and sent him to die. As a result of this narrative and many more involving the evildoings of Nebuchadnezzar, The Israelites see him as an undesirable dictator.
To most of the world, he was powerful. During his reign, Nebuchadnezzar was known as the “Warrior king to restore all ancient Babylon.” He created the hanging garden of Babylon as a gift to his wife, and a whole temple for a God that his whole city worshipped. Nebuchadnezzar was a strong king, he gathered his forces and overtook many lands in the middle east, (along with Jerusalem explained prior). He was revered for his abilities and work, even today his legacies are preserved in the artifacts he built. (Nebuchadnezzar II, Joshua J. Mark, https://www.worldhistory.org/Nebuchadnezzar_II/)
But his legacies are not preserved in the place he ruled. Germany stole Iraq’s culture to profit. But maybe it is okay for Germany to retain it. To summarize, the Ishtar gates are seen by four million people each year. Millions of people are provided the opportunity to learn about an important culture. The gates are also housed in a safe environment away from political strife and harsh weather conditions, so they can last for many lifetimes to come. Yes, profiting from another person’s culture for your own benefit is morally incorrect, but in the end, this benefits the world and preserves Iraqi culture for longer. Well in that case, why should the gates be the only thing argued for, why not other artifacts? Who decides what is important to be preserved and what is not? Aren’t all objects important to an individual or a group of individuals? Art conservation is a massive whirlpool of ethical dilemmas that bounce off each nation. As important as it is to return these gates to their rightful owners, it very well may not be done for a long time, nor will it ever be done.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my Job in the Art Conservation Department for helping me develop this idea, I would also like to thank for lack of a specific name, “Elle Chapman” for her wonderful presentation when I needed it most. Finally I would like to thank Joe Harris, for being one of the kindest and encouraging English teachers I’ve had. Thanks for making this a fun semester!
