Countering

Brian I. Daniels and Katharyn Hanson
Analysis of satellite imagery by the AAAS (2014b) showed that the site of Mari had
been extensively looted. Between August 2011 and March 2014, 165 looters’ pits could be
identified. The spatial distribution of these pits was inconsistent, although the majority
of the pits were dug on the north slope of the tell, especially to the east of the Palace of
Zimri-Lim. Less concentrated clandestine excavations could be identified at the extreme
northwestern and southern boundaries of the site. Imagery in March 2014 identified a
vehicle at the site – possibly a medium-duty truck – and suggesting that looting might
be ongoing at that time. With 165 pits formed over a period of 965 days, an average of
0.17 pits were formed per day. The overall distribution and frequency of looters’ pits
suggests that illicit activity was an ad hoc or irregular for this period. By November 2014,
however, the number of looters’ and in the rate of excavation had increased dramatically,
indicating a shift in the process and frequency of extraction. For the period between 25
March 2014 and 11 November 2014, approximately 1,286 pits were excavated over 232
days, an average rate of 5.5 pits per day over the seven months. This pillage occurred
during the same period that ISIS consolidated its control over the surrounding area,
although we do not know whether ISIS sanctioned these excavations, conducted them as
part of its operations, or whether conditions allowed illicit excavations to occur.
Case Study: Umma, Iraq
As with most archaeological sites in southern Iraq, Umma (also known as Tall Guha,
Tall Jukha, Tall Jukhah, Tell Jukha, Tell Jukhah, Tell Jokha, Chokha, Djokha or Djoha)
rises up from the flat landscape as a tell composed of collapsed ancient adobe structures
and the remains of millennia of human habitation. Archaeologists have long noted
Umma’s large size (Adams and Nissen, 1972; Andrae, 1903; Ur, 2014); it has been
generally assumed to cover about 2000 square kilometres (Adams, 2008). Umma has
suffered from looting since the site was first recognized as a source for clay cuneiform
tablets, a popular and collectable type of ancient Mesopotamian artifact. The history
of the ancient city of Umma and its surrounding landscape is known primarily from
this corpus of looted tablets. Umma began as a smaller prehistoric city that rose to
prominence during the Early Dynastic Period (approximately 2950-2350 BC) and
excavations and texts suggest that though it declined during the Akkadian through Ur
III periods (approximately 2335-2000 BC), Umma regained its size again during the
Old Babylonian period (2000-1600 BC) (Adams 2008; Ur 2014). The archives from the
competing neighboring city of Girsu detail a long standing border dispute between the
two powers, although recent excavations suggest that textual evidence from the looted
tablet corpus may be misleading (Oraibi Almamori 2015). One of the great tragedies
of the continuous looting at Umma is that without contextual evidence for the Umma
tablets and other artifacts the role of this city in regional politics of the Early Dynastic
period will be difficult to fully understand.
Despite its importance, Umma was not archaeologically excavated until the 1990s,
although looting at the site dates back to the 19 th century, if not earlier. It was clear
that Umma was being looted precisely because significant numbers of unknown tablets
from Umma were appearing for sale in Europe. Based on this information and following
a visit by a journalist and SBAH officials, the Iraqi government funded an emergency
salvage project at the site of Umma, and nearby Umm al-Aqarib between 1998 until
2003. SBAH deterred looters by hiring locals, stationing over 18 guards, and working
continuously (Gibson 2008). The SBAH excavations discovered an Early Dynastic
Temple of Shara and remarkable architecture with well-preserved elements, including
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