Categories
Uncategorised

Palmyra : “First as A Tragedy than as a farce” (Not My Title)

I am taking this wording directly out of the mouth of Slovenian philosopher Salvoj Zizek, from his book of the same title. I find this phrase particularly fitting to the situation that is currently occurring with regards to Palmyra and the way in which the UK government’s response has been awkward and ridiculous.  I am talking mainly about the ‘reconstruction’ of an archway of Palmyra that was first displayed in the British museum and then at Trafalgar square. The monument’s creation comes after Boris Johnson’s original comments of ‘sending British archaeologists to…rebuild Palmyra’, an unarchaeological endeavour indeed.