Ancient Carvings Discovered at Iconic Mosul Monument Bulldozed by ISIS

An Iraqi worker excavates a carving at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. AFP
An Iraqi worker excavates a carving at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. AFP
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Ancient Carvings Discovered at Iconic Mosul Monument Bulldozed by ISIS

An Iraqi worker excavates a carving at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. AFP
An Iraqi worker excavates a carving at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. AFP

When ISIS bulldozed the ancient monumental Mashki gate in the Iraqi city of Mosul in 2016, it was part of the extremists' systematic destruction of cultural heritage.

Now, US and Iraqi archaeologists working to reconstruct the site have unearthed extraordinary 2,700-year-old rock carvings among the ruins, AFP reported.

They include eight finely made marble bas-relief carvings depicting war scenes from the rule of the Assyrian kings in the ancient city of Nineveh, a local Iraqi official said Wednesday.

Discovered last week, the detailed carvings show a soldier drawing back a bow in preparation to fire an arrow, as well as finely chiseled vine leaves and palms.

The grey stone carvings date to the rule of King Sennacherib, in power from 705-681 BC, according to a statement from the Iraqi Council of Antiquities and Heritage.

Sennacherib was responsible for expanding Nineveh as the Assyrians' imperial capital and largest city -- siting on a major crossroads between the Mediterranean and the Iranian plateau -- including constructing a magnificent palace.

Fadel Mohammed Khodr, head of the Iraqi archaeological team working to restore the site, said the carvings were likely taken from Sennacherib's palace and used as construction material for the gate.

"We believe that these carvings were moved from the palace of Sennacherib and reused by the grandson of the king, to renovate the gate of Mashki and to enlarge the guard room", Khodr said.

When they were used in the gate, the area of the carvings poking out above ground was erased.

"Only the part buried underground has retained its carvings," Khodr added.

ALIPH, the Swiss-based International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas, said the Mashki gate had been an "exceptional building".

ISIS targeted the fortified gate, which had been restored in the 1970s, because it was an "iconic part of Mosul's skyline, a symbol of the city's long history", it added.

ALIPH is supporting the reconstruction of the Mashki Gate by a team of archaeologists from Iraq's Mosul University alongside US experts from the University of Pennsylvania.

The restoration project, which is being carried out in collaboration with Iraqi antiquities authorities, aims to turn the damaged monument into an educational center on Nineveh's history.



Japan's Imperial Family to Start YouTube Account

People ride on the boat near the blooming cherry blossoms at Inokashira Park in Tokyo on March 27, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)
People ride on the boat near the blooming cherry blossoms at Inokashira Park in Tokyo on March 27, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)
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Japan's Imperial Family to Start YouTube Account

People ride on the boat near the blooming cherry blossoms at Inokashira Park in Tokyo on March 27, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)
People ride on the boat near the blooming cherry blossoms at Inokashira Park in Tokyo on March 27, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)

Japan's ancient imperial family will launch a YouTube account next week, the government said Friday, in the latest attempt at public outreach by the tradition-bound monarchy.
Last year the royals made their social media debut with an Instagram account which now has nearly two million followers.
Its posts show Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their family meeting foreign dignitaries, visiting victims of natural disasters or checking out prized art exhibits.
From Tuesday the family will also publish videos on YouTube, a spokesman at the Imperial Household Agency told AFP.
Naruhito, 65, ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019 after his father became the first emperor to abdicate in over two centuries.
The monarchy holds no political power under Japan's post-war constitution, instead acting as symbolic figureheads.
Although the family remain deeply adored and respected, especially among older citizens, they also face huge pressure to meet exacting standards of behavior and have sometimes become the target of online vitriol.
The emperor's brother Prince Akishino said last year that his family had been targeted by "bullying-like" messages.
When his daughter Mako married her college sweetheart in 2021, reports appeared in Japanese media about money troubles faced by his mother, a scandal seen as damaging to the royal family.
The couple opted not to have a public wedding ceremony and left Japan to live in the United States.