REBUILDING MOSUL

Spring 2024, Mosul is a hive of activity. Although the city and its inhabitants are still suffering from the after-effects of war, titanic work is underway to rebuild what was destroyed. Among the ruins, certain monuments are the focus of the attention and efforts of scientific teams. Starting with the famous Al-Hadba leaning minaret, a national landmark that punctuated the life of the city since the 12th century, until Daesh partially demolished it. But also, the Great Mosque of Al-Nuri, the Al-Tahera Church, the Mosul Cultural Museum and the Al-Saa'a Convent.

But after the destruction, how can the spirit of Mosul be revived? Can we rebuild the city, rewrite its past history and reinvent it at the same time? While the war has ravaged the city, it has also rekindled a common feeling: awareness of the extraordinary wealth of Mosul's heritage. And the need for the city to rise from its ashes.

Through the reconstruction of the main monuments - notably supported by UNESCO, the Louvre Museum, the Swiss ALIPH Foundation, the British Museum and the American Smithsonian Institute - and old dwellings, archaeologists are shedding new light on the city's multi-millennial history, from the golden age of Assyria, through Arab reconquest to Ottoman domination.