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Google to immortalize Iraqi museum
Google is taking Iraq's national museum global. Company CEO, Eric Schmidt, said Tuesday that Google is going to document what's in the museum and will share photographs of the war-torn countries museum holdings with the world. The museum, which reopened this year, was torn apart after Saddam Hussein's regime was toppled in April 2003.
At a ceremony with Iraqi officials, Schmidt said, "The history of the beginning of - literally - civilization is made right here and is preserved here in this museum." He continued, "I can think of no better use of our time and our resources than to make the images and ideas from your civilization, from the very beginnings of time, available to billions of people worldwide."
Already, Google has shot around 14,000 photos of the museum and its contents. They'll be up on the web for all to see early next year. As artifacts from the museum's vaults and from others across Iraq become available, they will be brought into the program. Some of these items date back to the Stone Age, as well as the Babylonian, Assyrian and Islamic periods.
[Photo thanks to Brian Sayler]
Filed under: Iraq, Middle East
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Book Plus Nov 27th 2009 3:17AM
Good Work
Sean McLachlan Nov 27th 2009 4:38AM
Very cool. When I was still an archaeologist back in the 1990s I really wanted to go to Iraq. Still do. Of course the war changed all that. At least I can visit it virtually.