Where History Began

In the 1920s, archaeologists from the British Museum and the University of Pennsylvania uncovered royal tombs, temples, palaces, and even an entire neighborhood at Ur. A century later, the ancient brick walls still rise from the desert, yet they are steadily crumbling under the weight of time. Today, the Ur Project unites archaeologists, conservators, and students from the University of Pennsylvania, Iraq, and Italy to conserve and safeguard this extraordinary World Heritage Site..

Who We Are

Launched in 2024 by the Penn Museum, the Ur Project is dedicated to protecting the ancient city of Ur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We are working with Archi Media Trust, an award-winning conservation non-profit to document and develop a long-term plan for the site. Alongside our partners at Iraq’s State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, our team is restoring this remarkable site and preparing it to welcome visitors from Iraq and around the world.

  • Co-Director

    Lauren Ristvet is an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania and the Robert H. Dyson Curator of Near Eastern archaeology at the Penn Museum. She has extensive curatorial experience and has worked on cultural heritage projects in Syria, Iraq, and Azerbaijan.

  • Co-Director

    Salam al Kuntar is an assistant professor at Rutgers University and a Research Associate at the Penn Museum. She is an internationally recognized expert on cultural heritage in the Middle East and is a co-founder of SIMAT (Syrians for Heritage).

  • World Heritage Specialist and Leader of the Conservation Team

    Giovanni Fontana Antonelli is the CEO of Archi.Media Trust, a conservation non-profit that works in the Middle East, Africa, and Eastern Europe. He specializes in conservation of historic cities and cultural landscapes.

  • Project Manager

    Zaid Alrawi is an anthropological archaeologist from Iraq. His work has concentrated on the applications of GIS and Remote Sensing in Mesopotamian archaeology. He conducted many regional surveys throughout Iraq, resulting in documenting thousands of archaeological and heritage sites. Currently, he is the manager of Penn Museum archaeological projects in southern Mesopotamia.

Contact Us

Interested in learning more? We would love to hear from you.