For Immediate Release
Press Release
On June 9, 2024, the U.S. Consul General in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, Mr. Mark Stroh, opened a first-of-its-kind hybrid exhibition called “Women in Modern History” at the Syriac Heritage Museum in Erbil, Iraq. The combination online and physical exhibition is the first virtual historical presentation about women in the modern era ever mounted in Iraq and includes a gallery exhibit of objects from the museum collection.
“This is an exhibition of firsts,” said the Director General of Syriac Culture and Arts in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, Mr. Kaldo Ramzi. “It is the first exhibit focused on women in history and their contribution to Syriac culture and society. Additionally, it is the first combination online and in-person exhibition for the museum, with the online component allowing us to reach a worldwide audience.”
In his remarks, U.S. Consul General Mark Stroh said: “Every visit we make to the Syriac Heritage Museum, we see a new achievement added. We deeply value our partnership with the museum, and it is a source of pleasure for all. Preserving the invaluable heritage and traditions of Iraq’s ethnic and religious minorities is a priority for the U.S. Government.”
The exhibition is part of an on-going project to preserve and protect the culture of minority religious communities in northern Iraq, led by the Antiquities Coalition and funded by the United States Agency for International Development. Project partners include the Syriac Heritage Museum, the University of Dayton, the Assyrian Aid Society, the Centre Numérique des Manuscrits Orientaux, and the Sinjar Academy. Project Director and Antiquities Coalition Co-founder, Peter Herdrich said: “By creating an online exhibition, the history of women in Iraq is now available via the museum website to the local community, to the diaspora from the region, and to whoever is interested to learn more around the world.”
The co-curators of the online exhibition are University of Dayton students Charlotte Capuano and Erin Pinto, who created the online presentation under the direction of History Professor Alda Benjamen, the Research Director of the Antiquities Coalition project. It tells the stories of four leading women from the community. “Maria Theresa Asmar, Surma Khanum, Maryam Nerma, and Lillie Taimoorazy are important figures in the cultural, religious, and political currents that conditioned the formation of Iraq and the Middle East, whose impact on the indigenous and marginalized communities from which they emerged should not be underestimated.,” Dr. Benjamin explained. “Their fascinating lives and accomplishments underline the crucial role played by so many women, both within their own communities and beyond, and thus the importance of preserving their memory.”
The President of the Supreme Council for Women and Development in the IKR, Dr. Khanzad Ahmed, joined the presentation alongside cultural and religious figures. It concluded with a call to action from Kaldo Ramzi, who urged “the preservation and digitization of all documents related to indigenous and marginalized communities as well as women in Iraq and the Middle East is everyone’s duty.”
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Antiquities Coalition