SYRIA: Museum showcases Syrian hunter's exploits

Record ID: 279968

  • Title: SYRIA: Museum showcases Syrian hunter's exploits
  • Date: 16th March 2011
  • Summary: A PHOTOGRAPH OF IBECH
  • Embargoed: 31st March 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Syrian Arab Republic
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz,Environment / Natural World
  • Reuters ID: LVA6I1O2HTNLTPYPN07JR01Y3KLB
  • Story Text: The School Museum of Science in Damascus is hosting an exhibition to introduce the works of a Syrian hunter who collected a range of animals during his journeys in African countries and India.
    Hussein al-Ibech -- who lived from 1884 to 1967 -- travelled in Africa and India to collect animals for scientific research and to introduce Syrians to those parts of the world.
    Ibech travelled, hunted and stuffed the animals at his own expense. He later offered them to the Syrian government.
    Mwaffaq Makhoul, director of the museum, brought together more than 400 items from Ibech's collection to make them available for visitors for free.
    The items included mounted animals hunted by al-Ibech, as well as photographs al-Ibech took of aspects of daily life in the countries he visited.
    Makhoul said his aim was to introduce new generations of Syrians to al-Ibech and his work.
    "If an artist dies there should be a museum for them. If a poet dies there should be a museum for them. The museums are available in all the world and they are the base of the human culture. If you do not present culture that starts from the museums, you do not respect life and you do not respect humans," he said.
    Al-Ibech was interested in science, poetry and sports. He is said to have introduced football to Syria in 1910; his family still have the first football that came to Syria.
    Ibech wanted to set up a museum for scientific research in Syria and Egypt for future generations.
    Lina Msokar, a curator at the museum, said Ibech had wanted Syrians to get a taste of life outside their country.
    "His idea was not to hunt or collect animals only but also to introduce a different environment to our country here at a time when there was no photography. It was not possible to move the whole animals," she said.
    Ibech tried to document life in Africa through photographs of people. The photographs form part of the exhibition.
    The hunting trophies have been restored to repair the damage caused during transportation from England where the animals were stuffed.
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