Illicit excavations ruin Kuwait’s archaeological sites: Professor

Illicit excavations ruin Kuwait’s archaeological sites: Professor

By Zainab Behbehani

KUWAIT: Photos on social media showed several archaeological sites were subject to tampering and sabotage due to illicit excavations by unlicensed individuals. Amid a lack of laws related to protecting antiquities and over-excavation in the country, Kuwait has lost several archaeological sites, some of which go back thousands of years. Kuwait Times met archaeology and anthropology professor at Kuwait University Hassan Ashkanani to talk about the effect of over-excavation of archaeological sites and their protection.

KT: When can we consider a structure an antiquity?

Ashkanani: There is no school that agrees on certain standards on the importance of a building. We find there are various standards over the time period, which starts with 40 years and older. For example: The Palace of Justice (an urban civic heritage building 50 to 60 years old), Ice Skating Rink, Kuwait Towers, Sawaber Complex (built at the start of the eighties), and areas such as Dasma, Khaitan and Mansouriya (of engineering value). We find buildings that were designed by top architects, so we must keep them (for social value), like a small family house that represents old Kuwaiti diwaniyas from before 200 years.

It is possible for a structure to have personal value that is