Duhok showcases its cultural wealth on World Museum Day

Duhok Cultural Museum highlighted the richness of the Kurdistan Region’s culture for International Museum Day on Wednesday.

Located inside the city of Duhok, the museum was founded in 1998. On May 18, the museum showcased more cultural and historical items than usual to mark International Museum Day and commemorate its founder.

The museum is located inside the Duhok directorate of culture and arts building. A tour inside will take you back centuries into the lives of the various peoples that have lived in Duhok.

The museum features various historical artifacts and collections representing the culture of coexistence that has long existed in the region. Kurds, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Christians, Yezidis, and Muslims all have a unique cultural history represented by these preserved artifacts and collections.

“Kurdish writer and intellectual Rafaat Rajab founded this museum. He was behind its success from 1998 until he passed away in 2019,” said museum supervisor Ramadan Saeed.

Saeed noted that the museum exhibits feature remnants from the old, mainly agricultural, way of life that was once predominant in the region.

“There are herbs used for medicine and for food, traditional clothes, carpentry, potteries, and household items and tools that were in use for a long time,” he said. “All of them can be seen in the museum here and now.”

Visitors can see the museum and its collections for free. Many collectors of old cultural artifacts helped make it richer by donating their well-preserved items.

According to Saeed, there are around 1,000 cultural pieces and artifacts in the museum. Some of them are over 500 years old.

Azad Salih, a man in his 40s who visited the museum, said that its collections are beloved by all generations.

“But it’s especially important for it to be seen by the new generation because they need to know how their ancestors lived and see their inventions and craftsmanship that led their descendants to this day,” he said.

Ameer Ali, the general director of Duhok’s culture and arts, views International Museum Day as a great opportunity for the cultural museum to promote the Kurdish culture.

“Throughout history, the enemies of Kurds have tried to eliminate whatever is distinct to the Kurdish people’s identity, mainly the culture, but it has survived regardless,” he told Kurdistan 24.

“So, now it’s crucial for us to continue protecting it.”

“A museum with limited space cannot do justice to the abundance of cultural wealth from Duhok, especially Amedi,” he said. “We keep on searching and collecting whatever we can for whatever we have space for.”