National Museum of Iraq reopened

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The Baghdad-based Iraqi National Museum reopened on Monday, nearly six years after it was closed down in the aftermath of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Established in 1923, the museum was first located in al-Qashla building. In 1963, a Lebanese company finished construction works on the new location of the museum in Baghdad’s al-Karkh side. The museum was officially inaugurated on November 19, 1966. Because of the archaeological riches of Mesopotamia, the museum’s collections are amongst the most important in the world; and it has a fine record of scholarship and display. It contains important artifacts from the over 5,000-year-old history of Mesopotamia. SS (P) 1