In Iraq‘s national museum, home to some of the world’s most precious artifacts of ancient Mesopotamia, a caption beside a skeleton simply reads in English: “dated to very old time.”

And some of the museum’s most impressive pieces carry no labels at all — like a giant stone head lying on the ground that may or may not belong on a nearby empty pedestal labeled “Assyrian King Nimrod,” the Biblical tormentor of the patriarch Abraham.

Ten years after Iraq‘s national museum was looted and smashed by frenzied thieves during the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 to topple Saddam Hussein, it’s still far from ready for a public re-opening. Work to overcome decades of neglect and the destruction of war has been hindered by power struggles, poorly-skilled staff and the persistent violence plaguing the country, said Bahaa Mayah, Iraq‘s most senior antiquities official.

“I wish that the great historical Baghdad would appear in her finest face and that the Iraq museum opens,” said Mayah, the head of antiquities in the Tourism and Antiquities Ministry.

“But our wishes crash against the unfortunate reality we live in.”

The museum was once the showcase for 7,000 years of history in Mesopotamia, birthplace of some of the first cities and one of the first writing systems — cuneiform — and home to a succession of major civilizations, including the Sumerian, Babylonian and Assyrian, through to a flourishing Islamic empire.

The museum was left a wreck the day after Baghdad fell to U.S. troops on April 10, 2003. Ancient clay scrolls and pottery littered the floor. Looters made off with everything from gold bowls and ritual funeral masks to elaborate headdresses. The U.S. was sharply criticized for not protecting the museum.

Because the museum’s inventory was never completed, it’s uncertain how many pieces were stolen, but the number is estimated at 15,000 pieces. More than a quarter have been retrieved, said Mayah, who has overseen the museum formally since 2012 but has been involved in its renovations for the past five years.

Renovations began soon after the museum was smashed up in 2003, starting with the basics, like computers, office furniture, air conditioning. By mid-2004, the museum was rewired for electricity and most basic repairs to its structure completed. Since then, the U.S. and Italian governments have helped renovate the halls.

From: http://feeds.foxnews.com/~r/foxnews/world/~3/LOJEdzAU3Eg/