- As war rages around them, a small group of archaeologists, museum curators and attendants struggle to save the monumental collections of the Museum of Aleppo during the Syrian conflict.
- As the war rages around them, a small group of archaeologists, museum curators and attendants struggle to preserve the monumental collections of antiquities at the Aleppo National Museum during the Syrian conflict. For years, these women and men will bid farewell to their families every morning before heading the museum under a hail of shells, facing sniper fire, often sleeping on the ground of the museum for several days in an attempt to accomplish their mission. Without electricity, without water, without means, they empty the showcases, pack antiques with pieces of clothing, dismantle false ceilings to protect them in makeshift boxes, build concrete walls to hide ancient statues from looters - But in 2015, the Museum has become a front line and the risk of seeing these treasures disappearing is every day greater: how to evacuate 50,000 artifacts in a besieged city? In this race against time, nothing is guaranteed, nothing is certain, the only certainty lies in one fact: if the museum's collections are lost, a whole part of human history will disappear with them. "THE OATH OF CYRIAC" is a feature docudrama based on the breathtaking true story that will challenge your vision of archaeologists.—Olivier Bourgeois
- Despina Baslan is a young archaeologist, going on her 23 years, living in the City of Aleppo, which is gradually being affected by the conflict. Her parents have just left the city to take shelter in Damascus. She refuses to leave, refused to leave this museum where she has been a volunteer since the age of 17. But, soon the conflict intensifies and the city of Aleppo turns into a battlefield. Like many Aleppo residents, most museum officials have fled the ferocity of the fighting, returned to their villages or sometimes fled the country to protect their families. While the conflict rages around them, Despina and 11 others decide to remain in Aleppo in order to preserve the monumental collections of antiquities of the National Museum of Aleppo. Some of them are still students in archaeology or architecture. But this museum is theirs, that of their city. Others like the Museum Director, Mohamad Bashir-Shabani, have dedicated their lives to this museum. They refuse to abandon it. For months, these 12 women and men bid farewell to their families each morning before going to the museum in a shower of shells, facing the fire of snipers, sometimes sleeping for several days on the floor of the museum to accomplish their mission. Without electricity, without water, without means, they empty showcases, pack objects with pieces of clothing, dismantle false ceilings to protect them in makeshift boxes, build concrete walls to conceal wooden crates, then organize the protection of the statues remained in the garden of the museum with sandbags and wooden form work. The museum which lies between the modern part and the old city of Aleppo is now on the front line. Only a single street separates it from the fighting. Every day, mortar fire falls on the museum. The evacuation of museum objects has become an emergency. A first temporary transfer is organized from the museum to a new storage facility at the University of Aleppo. To avoid being intercepted or killed, they perform the transfer over several days, at night, with small cars, lights off so as not to attract the attention of the snipers. This first mission went successfully. However, the storage space at the university is only temporary. The city of Aleppo is besieged, the airport is closed, the roads to Damascus are cut. The decision was made. A new transfer operation is organized in the greatest secrecy. Despina volunteers for the mission. Mohamad Bashir-Shabani expresses his concern. Despina tells him, "what will happen to you, will happen to me". This time, they have to transfer the items to safe places in Damascus. Only three of them are involved in the operation and spend the night loading the 300 crates, containing 24,000 items, in trucks of the Ministry of Electricity. At dawn, Despina Baslan, Mohamad Bashir-Shabani and Nawras Kawozn leave Aleppo to Damascus on one of the most dangerous roads in Syria. how to evacuate 50,000 artifacts in a besieged city? In this race against time, nothing is guaranteed, nothing is certain, the only certainty lies in one fact: if the museum's collections are lost, a whole part of human history will disappear with them.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content