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U.S. embassy hands 5,000 artifacts to Iraq Museum

The U.S. embassy in Baghdad has given 515 archaeological items to the Iraq Museum, Antiquities Department chief said.

Qais Rasheed said the treasures date to “various ancient periods” of Iraq’s history.

“The FBI and the American embassy in Baghdad passed the treasures to the Iraq Museum,” he said.

“The collection includes pottery pieces, cuneiform tablets, cylinder seals, precious stones and statues from different Mesopotamian epochs,” he added.

Thousands of artifacts are still missing from the museum whose exhibits were looted shortly after the 2003-U.S. invasion.

Read entire article at Azzaman