Arts & Culture Rescuing the Memory: Gaza's Archaeological Treasures Between Exile and Resilience... The exhibit “Treasures Saved from Gaza – 5,000 Years of History,” organized by the Institut de Monde Arab (IMA) in Paris, constitutes a major cultural event in many respects. It not only highlights an exceptional archaeological heritage but also speaks to the necessity to protect cultural heritage in conflict zones through the example of Gaza, an emblematic region both by its history and the trials it is going through today.

 

Arts & Culture

Rescuing the Memory: Gaza's Archaeological Treasures Between Exile and Resilience

Date: 

May 02 2025

Author: 

Sélim Abi Kheir

The exhibit “Treasures Saved from Gaza – 5,000 Years of History,” organized by the Institut de Monde Arab (IMA) in Paris, constitutes a major cultural event in many respects. It not only highlights an exceptional archaeological heritage but also speaks to the necessity to protect cultural heritage in conflict zones through the example of Gaza, an emblematic region both by its history and the trials it is going through today. 

A Dive Into 5,000 Years of History 

Since antiquity, Gaza has been an intersection of civilizations. Situated on a strategic commercial route between Asia, Africa, and Europe, it was influenced by a number of cultures – Egyptian, Philistine, Persian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Islamic, and Ottoman. This rich history is reflected in the objects presented by the IMA, which for the most part come from excavations performed in 1990 and 2000 in the Gaza Strip. 

The exhibit includes around 130 objects selected from a larger collection of 529 pieces belonging to the Palestinian National Authority, which have been kept at the Museum of Art History of Geneva (MAH) since 2007. The objects, ranging from the Bronze Age to the Ottoman Empire, include amphorae, oil lamps, funerary steles, votive figurines, jewels, and an exceptional mosaic from the Byzantine Empire found in Abu Baraqeh. Their diversity testifies to the cultural and religious importance of Gaza through the ages. 

The Treasures “Saved” and Sheltered  

What makes this exhibit particularly poignant is its context. The objects presented have never been able to return to Gaza because of the blockade and successive conflicts. They are kept in Switzerland, at the MAH, which has allowed them to avoid destruction. A large number of archaeological sites in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed in recent years. UNESCO has reported that since 2023, there have been attacks on over 69 cultural sites in Gaza, including a museum, religious sites, and historical buildings. 

 

Marble Statue of Aphrodite on display at the IMA

In this sense, the exhibit does more than simply display ancient artifacts: it is an act of cultural resistance, a reminder of the value of heritage in times of war. The exhibition also features a dedicated space for this issue, with a map of the bombings that have affected heritage sites, as well as rare historical photographs of Gaza in the early 20th century from the collection of the French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem. 

 

 Hellenistic and Roman artifacts from Gaza on display at the IMA

A Tribute to Memory and Resilience 

For Jack Lang, president of IMA, this exhibit is a tribute not only to the memory and the resilience of the people of Gaza. It serves as a reminder that Gaza, long before becoming a symbol of conflict, was a place of life, exchange, art, and spirituality. By restoring visibility to this glorious past, the exhibit also seeks to revive a collective awareness of the importance of safeguarding world heritage, wherever it may be found. 

A Cultural and Educational Experience... READ MORE https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/1657291

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"The chaplets of coins are thought by some to have inspired the halo in sacred art."... Color photos of Palestine from the December 1926 issue of National Geographic magazine (Vol L, VI), "In the Birthplace of Christianity,"

The Institute for Palestine Studies Color photos of Palestine from the December 1926 issue of National Geographic magazine (Vol L, VI), "In the Birthplace of Christianity," recently donated to IPS's private library. Original captions included in the photo descriptions. 

 

"Palestine is a land of comely young women and handsome old men. The years which affect the fleeting beauty of the former bring dignity and character to the faces of the latter, who are at their best when in repose, gossiping among themselves, soaking up the sun, or lazily spinning a handful of snowy yarn."

"Moslem and Christian Neighbors of El-Bireh and Ramallah. Among the peasants and small-town dwellers of Palestine, the veil is seldom used for concealment. But convention makes it difficult to obtain photographs of women. This convention, which has a religious significance for the Moslems, is often equally strong among Christians. The woman here is a Moslem matron of El-Bireh. The chaplets of coins are thought by some to have inspired the halo in sacred art."

"A Turbaned Patriarch. Palestine is a land of comely young women and handsome old men. The years which affect the fleeting beauty of the former bring dignity and character to the faces of the latter, who are at their best when in repose, gossiping among themselves, soaking up the sun, or lazily spinning a handful of snowy yarn."

"Moslem and Christian Neighbors of El-Bireh and Ramallah. A schoolgirl of the Christian town of Ramallah."

"Palestine's Tourist Port As Seen from Mount Carmel. The curving bay between Haifa and Acre, historic harbor for a vast hinterland, is poorly protected and often rough. But the former has displaced Jaffa as a passenger port to the Holy Land. Haifa is rapidly growing up the side of Carmel and contains most of the few factories that Palestine possesses. The automobile highway connecting the seaport with Tyre and the Phoenician coast runs on the white sands that cut like a shining sickle blade around the blue bay. In the background are the hills of Galilee, beyond which, on clear days, Mount Hermon lifts its snowy head."

“An Arab Shepherd of Palestine. His headgear consists of a square of white cotton secured by a thick, double black cord of goat’s hair. His aba, or cloak, is folded up, so as to leave his legs free for climbing.”

“A Christian schoolgirl of Ramallah. A scarf such as that worn by this young woman may have served Ruth when she gleaned an ephah of barley in the fields of Boaz. It is heavy with silk embroidery and fringe. The dark gown is that worn on workdays or by those in mourning. Among the four main types of costumes seen in Palestine, those of Ramallah are the most attractive. “

“A Mohammedan Sheik of El-Bireh. Intent on his string of beads, the adult Moslem’s chief toy, this patriarch rests amid the wild flowers which intrude into his vineyard. Behind the field where he sits in silent meditation, two football teams are being coached by an American athletic instructor.”

“Moslem women weeding a grain field of Samaria. Dominating the south end of the plain of El Makhna is Huwara, whose women are remarked for their fanaticism and their beauty. The most beautiful women arouse the greatest jealousy and hence are kept in the closest seclusion. These agriculturists are pulling the tares from the young wheat, for it is not until the grain is high that wheat and tares are allowed to grow together until the harvest. “

“The Softly Rolling Slopes of Galilee. It was in such flower-carpeted fields, gently dropping away to curving valleys and commanding distant views of the Sea of Galilee, that Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount and attracted his Disciples. The Galilee landscape, setting for so many homely but deathless parables, makes a poetic appeal to the knowing eye and the understanding heart.”

The Institute for Palestine Studies

"Olives" photograph from 1918-1935

"Before Their Diaspora" A photographic history of the Palestinians, 1876-1948, by Walid Khalidi

See more photographs: http://ow.ly/e10oA http://ow.ly/i/Y92H

Now Online: Before Their Diaspora is a visual journey into Palestine before 1948. Every important aspect of Palestinian society comes to life in the nearly 500 photographs, carefully selected from thousands available in private and public collections throughout the world.

Before Their Diaspora btd.palestine-studies.org A photographic history of the Palestinians, 1876-1948, by Walid Khalidi

Before Their Diaspora is a visual journey into Palestine before 1948. Every important aspect of Palestinian society comes to life in the nearly 500 photographs, carefully selected from thousands available in private and public collections throughout the world...

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