Imagine intruders storming Iola and raiding the Allen County Historical Society. Gen. Funston’s home is set ablaze. His statue, tumbled. Across the square the old jail museum is bombed. Down Madison Avenue, the Iola Public Library is burned.
In a matter of minutes, much of the county’s history is lost.
That’s pretty much what has happened in Mali from an invasion of Islamic extremists. Several thousands of years of relics have been destroyed under the pretense their preservation is idolatry of some sort. Anything but Islam is viewed as heretical.
In 2001, the famous Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan were dynamited by the Taliban under similar pretenses. Buddhist monks from the 6th Century carved the statues into the side of cliffs. The carvings had elaborate, brightly colored frescoes and were a massive 175 feet tall, the largest in the world.
Throughout the world, the carvings were viewed as treasures of a time gone by.
Mali is a small, poor country where terrorists, criminals and religious extremists have tried to take power. The west African country is home to Timbuktu, an ancient city that’s a virtual treasure trove of historical relics. In anticipation of upheaval, historians hid cultural artifacts and ancient manuscripts. Good thing. Despite previous promises to the contrary, its new library was ransacked where the remaining manuscripts were burned. Earlier this year tombs of saints were unearthed and their holdings looted.
To the credit of the majority of Muslims, they view the acts as grossly misleading and damaging to the image of Islam.
Time naturally takes a toll on the world’s wonders. Acid rain is yellowing the luscious white marble of India’s Taj Majal. The sandstone of Cambodia’s Angkor Wat, built in the 12th century, is losing out to erosion mostly from tourists’ hands and feet climbing among the expansive structure. Same with Egypt’s pyramids, which are just a stone’s throw from massive hotels and other commercial enterprises. Even England’s stoic Stonehenge shows significant wear and tear from the elements.
All of these are understandable — if not exactly forgivable.
Archeological terrorism, however, is an intentional crime against history.
If only the treasures could be seen in a broader view, rather than through the narrow limitations of an ideology.
— Susan Lynn
