CULTURAL HERITAGE MONITORING LAB REPORT: CONFLICT-RELATED DAMAGE TO SITES IN SUDAN (11 December 2023)

Following the start of the civil war in Sudan on 15 April 2023, the Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab (CHML) and the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative (SCRI) began monitoring impacts to Sudan’s cultural heritage using commercial satellite imagery. In May 2023, CHML and SCRI published rapid reports on damage to Sudan’s Natural History Museum and National Museum (Bassett et al. 2023; Gunter-Bassett et al. 2023). Following publication of these reports, the Republic of Sudan’s National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums (NCAM) requested assistance from CHML and SCRI in monitoring fourteen cultural sites—eight sites in Khartoum, five sites at Sai Island, and one site at Al-Geneina (see Appendix A). In response, and complimenting monitoring efforts by other institutions (see MAEASaM Project 2023), CHML and SCRI analysts reviewed commercially available high-resolution satellite imagery for the fourteen cultural sites.

Analysis of available imagery suggests conflict-related damage to at least three of the fourteen sites (Table 1). In some cases (e.g., small-footprint structures like the Abdul Qayyum Gate), a definitive determination of damage could not be made, even when imagery was available. For sites with visible damage to the main building and/or surrounding grounds, before and after images are included in this report (Table 2, Figures 1–6).

This report was initially published privately and is now made public with the permission of the Republic of Sudan’s National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums (NCAM).

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CITE THIS REPORT: Gunter-Bassett, M., Bassett, H. F., Welsh, W., Hanson, K., Fitzgerald, K., Maher, A., Aronson, J., Cil, D., Wegener, C., Kane, K. E., and Daniels, B. I. (2023). “Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab Report: Conflict-Related Damage to Sites in Sudan (11 December 2023).” Virginia Museum of Natural History, Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab; Smithsonian Institution, Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative; University of Maryland, Center for International Development and Conflict Management; and Penn Museum, Penn Cultural Heritage Center. DOI: 10.25573/data.24638739