Archaeologists unearth Babylonian treasures

4-1-09
http://uk.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUKTRE53061M20090401

Iraqi archaeologists have discovered 4,000 artefacts mostly from ancient Babylonian times, including royal seals, talismans and clay tablets marked in Sumerian cuneiform -- the earliest known form of writing.

The treasures came to light, the Tourism and Antiquities Ministry said on Wednesday, after two years of excavations across 20 different sites in the regions between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the land ancient Greeks referred to as "Mesopotamia."

As well as Babylonian artefacts, there were finds from the ancient Persian empire and more recent medieval Islamic cities.

"The results of this excavation are evidence that Iraq's antiquities aren't going to run out any time soon," Abdul-Zahra al-Telagani, spokesman for the Tourism and Antiquities Ministry, said.

"They also give us the incentive to continue to work to rehabilitate our ancient sites to become tourist attractions."