This project shall examine the inseparability of archaeology and imperialism in Iraq c.1870-1940. Britain had political and scholarly interest in the region, culminating in a focus on excavating the Mesopotamian sites around Iraq. The published works of George Smith, Hormuzd Rassam, and Leonard Woolley, consistently portray an unspoken belief in the superiority of Britain above all other peoples and nations. I shall argue that, despite Iraq not being part of the British empire, archaeology in Iraq was fundamentally shaped by imperialist attitudes. This was implicit in a diverse range of texts, even those written by Iraqi people. This project reveals wider trends in the high-imperial period affecting the discussions and practices of archaeology in Iraq: religious fervour and scientific fascination connected Britain to the Mesopotamian past, and justified collection of its objects. This project also reveals that racist ideology is present in many of these archaeologists’ works, as well as capitalist influences affecting the collection of objects and workers’ conditions. I shall examine how archaeologists’ works discuss local workers, the practicalities of archaeology, and objects. British desires for control, both intellectual and political, alienated local peoples from their country’s past, hindered the processes of excavation and, ultimately, transformed Iraq.
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