Demolition of temples in Syria by Isis is the latest act in a catalogue of purposeful vandalism in the name of religion or ideologyWar has always taken a toll on heritage as well as human lives,from the sacking of Constantinople by crusaders and the destruction of Baghdad by Mongol armies, to the second world war firebombing of Coventry that claimed its Gothic cathedral. But the demolition of the temples at Palmyra in Syria by Isis is the latest act in an even darker history of purposeful vandalism in the name of religion or ideology. It stretches back to the earliest days of recorded human history, and with the Bible noting the destruction of devout statues in the Syrian region centuries before the Christian era. Here are details of a few of the lost treasures,and the groups that destroyed them.
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Source: theguardian.com