Sulaymaniyah Museum, Archaeological museum in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq
Sulaymaniyah Museum is a one-story archaeological museum on Salim Street in central Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, covering 6,000 square metres. Its displays are arranged in one small hall and two long halls linked by a square, open lecture hall. The entrance carries a dark blue signboard with gold lettering in Arabic and the words "EMANI MUSEUM" in Latin capitals above glass doors.
The museum was established in 1961 and has since collected objects from archaeological excavations across Kurdistan, including pieces from Old Babylonian and Neo-Babylonian periods. The collection expanded through decades of systematic research at local sites throughout the region.
The museum's name is displayed in gold Arabic script above the Latin "EMANI MUSEUM" lettering on a dark blue signboard over the glass entrance. Inside, the Paikuli Gallery, opened in 2019 with Sapienza University of Rome, shows inscribed stone blocks from the monument of the Sassanian king Narseh (c. 293 CE). A children's hall, Slemani Museum Kids, opened in 2019 as Iraq's first bespoke museum space for children.
The museum stands on Salim Street in the city centre, in a one-storey building of 6,000 square metres. A small hall and two long halls are joined by a square open lecture hall, so you can pass between them without retracing your steps. The museum closed for refurbishment from 1 October 2018 to October 2019, so check current opening before travelling.
The museum holds Tablet V of the Epic of Gilgamesh, a fragment from the Old Babylonian period (2003–1595 BC). In 2023 the museum produced a new Kurdish translation of the epic for Karzan Kardozi's film "Where is Gilgamesh?".
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