Countering

Archaeological Site Looting in Syria and Iraq
a niched and buttresses façade of the mud-brick temple. During these excavations, 19
cuneiform tablets were found, providing the only textual material from Umma that also
includes archaeologically associated contextual evidence (Ur 2014). This number stands
in contrast to the approximately 29,000 Umma tablets known from the Cuneiform Digital
Library Initiative (CDLI). CDLI estimates that approximately 25,000 tablets from the
Ur III period have been published, and an additional 4,000 tablets have been recorded
but are not yet published. None of the known tablets were excavated, and CDLI states
that the total number of Umma tablets in museums and private collections is unknown
(CDLI 2015).
Umma is one of the most dramatic and best-known examples of an archaeological
site severely impacted by looting in southern Iraq. Given that looting has been ongoing
at the site since the 19 th century, it is not surprising that it was impacted by the post-1990
wave of looting. It was the astonishing rate of pitting at the site in the lead-up and during
the Second Gulf War that put Umma in the headlines. Pictures taken by Carabinieri,
an Italian military police unit, photographed a moonscape of craters created by looters’
pits and tunnels. Visitors have observed that the top five to ten metres of the site have
been eaten away by looters’ pits. Other accounts at the beginning of the 2003 invasion
reported that more than 200 looters went out to Umma and nearby sites, driving away
the site guards (Gibson 2008; Lawler 2003a; Lawler 2003b).
Several studies have noted damage at Umma. Russell (2008) drew attention to site
looting following his helicopter flyover in August 2003, comparing his observations with
earlier satellite imagery from 2000. Stone (2008 and 2015) included Umma in the sample
of sites covered by her survey. These studies raised questions about the rate and density of
looting at the site, and using satellite images dating to February 2003, June 2005, and July
2008, Hanson (2011) documented the number, rate, and frequency of pits on the site.
In February 2003, there were approximately 2,644 looters’ pits observable on Umma’s
surface. By June 2005, there were 8,318 observable pits, suggesting a rate of approximately
3,564 new looters’ pits per year. Hanson (2011) calculated that approximately 1,517,917
square metres of Umma had been looted; Ur (2014) suggests that the post-1990 looting
encompasses a total area of 45 hectares. Without additional analysis on the ground, these
are only estimates; Umma’s dune action and wind blown sand can quickly fill new pits.
Even after the region surrounding Umma became more secure, the looting did not
stop completely. Although the degree of looting lessened, in July 2008, over 500 new
looters’ pits were visible on the surface of Umma (Hanson 2011). Global Heritage Network
(2011) did a brief visual review of a 2010 satellite image of Umma that showed ongoing
looting and estimated a total of 1.12 square kilometres of damaged site. Moreover, visits
to the site in the summer of 2011 and the winter of 2012 were met with fresh looters’
pits (Stone 2015). One of the most discouraging aspects of this case study is that the
decline in pillage at Umma may not accurately reflect the typical pattern of looting in
Iraq. Umma was one of the lucky sites that received a site guard, as well as some limited
military protection, provided by the Carabinieri (Russell 2008).
Case study: Dura-Europos, Syria
Dura-Europos was first nominated to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Tentative
List in 1999, and was renominated jointly with the ancient site of Mari as part of the
proposed Sites of Euphrates Valley inscription in 2011. As implied by the nomination
title, Dura-Europos is situated along the West bank of the Euphrates River in the Deir
ez-Zor province of Syria. The site was founded by the Seleucids in the 3 rd century BC
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