Ain al-Tal Aramaic statue is brought back to the National Museum of Aleppo
The Aramaic statue of Ain al-Tal, which dates back to the end of the ninth century BC, was unveiled in the National Museum of Aleppo on Saturday, after completing its restoration work due to the damage caused to it by terrorism.
The statue was restored in cooperation between the General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums and the archaeological mission from the Italian University of Florence with the best international standards and used materials.
Nazir Awad, Director General of Antiquities and Museums, highlighted the efforts made and the continuous technical support from the Italian side. He noted that the basalt stone-made statue is one of the most important archaeological discoveries that was found in Ain al-Tal area, north of Aleppo in 1955. It is believed that it depicts one of the rulers of Aleppo in the Aramaic period. It was damaged by the terrorist shells that fell in 2015 in the museum’s lobby, which broke it and split it into three pieces.
Ahmed Othman, curator of Aleppo National Museum, said that the statue was displayed with other pieces in the museum’s inner garden. But when the building was targeted with terrorist missiles, measures were taken to protect the art pieces there and preserve them in warehouses. Then the statue was restored in cooperation with the Italian archaeological specialized team and was re-put in the museum’s entrance, noting that the statue is about two meters high and 50 centimeters wide.
Marina Pucci, head of the Italian mission, expressed her feeling of pride and joy because she was able to return and work in Syria, noting the efforts and cooperation with the concerned authorities at the Ministry of Culture and the General Directorate of Antiquities to restore the statue, which is a great symbol of the city of Aleppo.
Bucci noted that the restoration work included reassembling the three parts of the statue, the head, the middle, and the lower part, after the process of documenting it, to choose the best method of restoration, in cooperation with stone specialists.
Inas Abdulkareem