Since the capture of Saddam Hussein and the fall of the dictator's regime, Iraqi scholars have been tapping into their newfound freedom by traveling across the globe to pursue their studies.
A group of 23 museum specialists from various parts of Iraq came to the Penn's Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology last Monday to observe the exhibition, which features artifacts from Mesopotamia, or modern-day Iraq.
The group -- comprised of 15 women and eight men between the ages of 25 and 35 -- will be studying for five weeks at museums in the United States. Specifically, they will visit Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia; Santa Fe, N.M.; and New York.
Their program includes lectures, discussions and practical training with U.S. experts in cultural and historical preservation and archaeology.
The group spent two days of their visit at the University of Pennsylvania Museum to see the exhibit "Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur," which opened to the public on Saturday.
Monday's program -- headed by the Cultural Heritage Institute for Iraq -- was part of a series of collaborations with Iraqi professionals and students.
"The Cultural Heritage Institute gives us the opportunity to promote respect and understanding between Americans and Iraqis," said Penn Museum Deputy Director Gerald Margolis. The institute was created by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and was sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History.
After the introduction, the Iraqis took pictures of each other standing beside the encased artifacts, their pride on display.
The program is "definitely an effort by the Americans to show that they are serious about reconstructing Iraq, culturally and politically," said Aminah Mohammad, a friend of one of the group's translators and a junior at Bryn Mawr College, who is half Iraqi herself.
The Iraqis themselves communicated through translators, as the entire program was relayed in Arabic.
"We are very impressed with the warm welcome we received from the Americans," said Mohammad Abdul Rezaq, one of the older Iraqi participants. "Of course, Americans are very curious about Iraqis because they are rare to see" in the United States.
Since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, these Iraqi specialists have had the opportunity to leave Iraq to see and work with other museums.
"Iraq has been isolated from the world due to the embargo and state-controlled TV," Rezaq said. "But we have gotten exposure of America since ... the 'liberation of Iraq.'"
Aside from the economic and political rebuilding, the United States has also focused on developing the Iraqi society -- from forming an Olympic team to developing their National Symphony Orchestra.
"We need people to get a better idea of what America is and what we stand for," said Adam Meier, a public affairs officer for the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. "To increase the mutual understanding, that's our goal."
