PHENOM - The Search for the Ark of the Covenant

by Jim Plautz

The five-year completion deadline was fast approaching and the pieces were finally falling into place. Restoration of ‘Old Babylon’ was almost finished thanks in large part to the success Matthew had in convincing the Germans, French and English to return the treasures looted from the city over the last 110 years. The English and surprisingly the French had been cooperative, due in large part to the pressure brought to bear by the US and the United Nations. The treasures that had been in the Louvre and British Museum were returned to Babylon.

  The biggest prize may have been the Code of Hammurabi that was returned by the French. Consisting of a collection of the laws and edicts of the Babylonian King Hammurabi in 2000 BC, the Code is the earliest legal code known in its entirety. The divine origin of the written law is emphasized by a bas-relief in which the king is depicted receiving the code from the sun god, Shamash. The block of black diorite, nearly eight feet high, was unearthed by a team of French archaeologists at Susa, Iraq, formerly ancient Elam, during the winter of 1901. The block, broken in three pieces, has been restored and is now displayed in the Louvre in Paris.

  “What do you know about the Code of Hammurabi?” I asked Ken one evening. “I remember you pointing out to me that code did not support Herodotus’ claim that ancient Babylon was rampant with prostitution. The French made a big deal about giving it up before they acquiesced.”

  “They should, it’s the foundation for many of today’s legal systems. Hammurabi described the code as ‘enabling the land to enjoy stable government and good rule so that the strong may not oppress the weak, that justice may be dealt the orphan and the widow.”

  “Is it not unlike our bill of rights; the right to a trial by jury and that type of thing?”

  “Not really, but it did address property rights and recourse the people had if they were screwed by a judge or a physician caused them injury. The criminal law was based upon the principle of equal retaliation, an eye-for-an-eye system similar to Semitic law.”

  “The sun god must have been an enlightened man,” I joked. “What did he have to say about religion?”

  “Nothing, that’s one thing that makes this code unique. The law offers protection to all classes of Babylonian society including women, children, and slaves, against injustice at the hands of the rich and powerful.”

  “Well, I’m glad to have it back. We’ll let the historians decide where it should be presented.”

  The French and British treasures paled in comparison to the contents of the of Berlin's famous Pergamon Museum. The Germans were initially reluctant to relinquish their treasures because the artifacts were an integral component of the Vorderasiatisches; the Middle East wing of the Pergamon Museum. Founded in 1899, the first floor contains fourteen rooms which give a comprehensive view of 4,000 years of history, art and culture in the Near East. Many of the exhibits were discovered by German archaeologists in the twenty years preceding World War II. These Neo-Babylonian artifacts are a significant part of the total Near East collection containing examples of architecture from the time of Nebuchadnezzar II, including the monumental Ishtar Gate, the Processional Way and part of the facade of the Throne Room from Babylon.

  There were many important items in the museum that were not Babylonian, but contributed to the resistance of the Germans to relinquish any part of their collection. A particular attraction is the Pergamon Altar, one of the wonders of the ancient world. The reconstructed altar, dedicated to Zeus and Athena, dates from about 160BC. The frieze showing the gods fighting against the giants once circled the altar and is one of the finest examples of the exquisite workmanship of that era.

  Pressure on the Germans mounted as the Babylon rebuilding process progressed and the world community began to see results. Sadam Hussein’s imprint on the city had been eliminated. The palace he had constructed on the hill overlooking the city had been completely renovated into a 400 room hotel and conference center. The infrastructure was complete, but there were no streetlights or utility poles marring the landscape. All power was provided through underground cables. The old city would enjoy running water, modern sewage and would be wi-fi friendly, but you couldn’t tell from the outside. However, time was running out when I approached Matthew eighteen months ago.

  “Matthew, the engineers are starting to run into delays. We need the artifacts here soon or start on plan-B.”

  “What’s plan-B?”

  “Plan-B is when we complete the walls and streets without the German artifacts,” I replied impatiently.

  “Jim, the artifacts will be here in June. Can you wait six months?”

  “Okay, but six months is cutting it close. If they’re not here by then we have to go ahead without them. You are aware that we need to have something ready in five years or our funding stops. Getting the artifacts in June means we have only nine months to complete the installation.”

  “They will be here, Jim. Have I ever let you down?”

  Five months later the trucks began to arrive from Germany and the final stages of the restoration process forged ahead. It took us ten months to complete the walled city and put the finishing touches on ‘Procession Street’ which would be the cornerstone of our achievement. Last week we conducted a walk-through for archeologists, museum curators and historians and received rave reviews. The comments of the Pergamon museum director were particularly rewarding.

  “You have captured the splendor and feeling of what the Old Babylon must have been like. I was breathless when I entered the Ishtar Gate and walked down Procession Street. The castle and temple are magnificent. I am so happy that the German government agreed to donate our artifacts.”

  I almost choked at his characterization of these artifacts as ‘German’, but I diplomatically held my tongue. I knew the truth of how Matthew had convinced the Germans to donate the artifacts they had stolen a century earlier. It had started with the exhibition basketball game Matthew’s team had played in Germany and a subsequent one-hour meeting with Chancellor Kohl. I laughed aloud when I heard that Matthew had played the “We Kick Ass” video and a subsequent video showing the popularity and support from kids and adults alike, when the Milwaukee TV station had attempted to chastise Matthew and the kick-ass theme.

  “What a great story,” Chancellor Kohl volunteered after the tape had been completed, “but I’m not sure why you showed it to me?”

  “Chancellor, we need the Babylonian artifacts to make the restoration authentic.”

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Wilson, but the answer is no. Our museum curators assure me that the artifacts are legally ours and that losing them would result in irreparable damage to our Middle East exhibit.”

  “Chancellor, you were at the game last night. Did you stay for the speeches?”

  “I did. Your challenge to the German people to accept the facts of what happened in World War II was particularly courageous; although my political advisors are surprised the crowd didn’t turn on you. No German politician could have made that speech.”

  “You just saw the tape from my high school. With all due respect, I ask you Chancellor, do you believe your political career could survive a world-wide, grass roots boycott of German exports?”

  “Embargos never work,” Kohl replied confidently. “There are always nations that will do business with you.”

  “I’m not talking about government embargos; I’m talking about basketball fans and kids world-wide, boycotting German products. Let me show you a 30-second commercial we developed that is scheduled to be shown Monday in Europe, America, Africa and the Middle East.”

  Minutes later Kohl offered Matthew his full support and three weeks later the German parliament had enacted a declaration to return the artifacts to Iraq.

  Basketball wasn’t the only game Matthew could play – he could also play political hardball when required.

  Construction of new Babylon presented an entirely different set of problems. Rather than fighting with archeologists and museum curators, we were fighting time and the elements. It was a massive
undertaking involving twelve construction companies from seven countries. I brought Marco in the first month to lead the effort and he had returned home to the United States only six times in four years. He had a staff of 22 assistants to control the various projects, but this was not enough to free him from the ‘big decisions’ that required his attention. Ken was overseeing the fifty-five accountants and clerical support staff responsible for reviewing, approving and paying vendor invoices, but it was difficult to separate the two groups. Vendors and construction companies were always screaming for payment, but Ken’s group demanded proof that the work had been completed or the goods were delivered. I refused to allow this project to acquire a reputation of paying $75.00 for a screwdriver or for paying bogus employees. We established a quality control group to help ensure we got what we paid for, but this did not stop construction companies from running to Marco demanding payment and threatening to pull their crews off the job if they weren’t paid.

  “Jim, the French company has stopped working on the sewage system until we bring their account up to date,” Marco reported at our weekly staff meeting.

  “What’s the hold up?”

  “The holdup is that they have invoiced us for twenty miles of work that they haven’t started.”

  “Why?” I asked, knowing it probably wasn’t as simple as it appeared.

  “They claim they have been held up because of delays in ‘river dredging’, but that’s a bunch of bullshit. All they had to do is move their crews to another sector.”

  “Can we compromise?”

  “I tried offering them a 25% stoppage fee, but they want it all. They won’t compromise.”

  “What’s the damage if they walked off the job?” I asked the project manager responsible for the sewage.

  “It would take a few weeks for another crew to come up to speed, but in the long run this isn’t a critical path item.”

  “Is the Korean company still available, Marco?”

  “I talked to them this morning. They can be here next week.”

  “Let’s take a five minute break;” Marco and I need to have a little heart-to-heart talk with the French.”

  Ten minutes later we reconvened. “Gentlemen, the Korean company starts Monday. What’s next?”

  The engineers had not exaggerated the importance of the high water table underneath the city and the difficulty this presented not only to archeologists, but also to laying the infrastructure to the new city. To complicate matters, this area of the world was a vast reservoir of underground oil deposits making it difficult to finalize a transportation grid until geologists had completed their studies. It took almost two years, but the new river bed was finally completed and water began seeping into the river bed helped out by a pumping system developed by the Germans that captured ground water from the surrounding region. The initial concern that there would not be enough water to feed the canal system had been satisfactorily addressed and the resultant drop in the water table facilitated a rapid completion of the infrastructure and highway system.

  Now, with only two months before the grand opening, the new city was rounding into shape. Nine hundred thousand square feet of office would be ready by April 1st, all of it pre-leased. Another two million would be ready in six months, half of it in a high-tech office park four miles west of downtown Babylon. Two banks, and a community hospital had opened a year ago and the large, 400 bed, downtown hospital and surgical center opened last month. Condominiums and apartment complexes were popping up all over and demand was outpacing supply. The ‘Marriott Sadam Hotel and Resort’ as the former palace was nicknamed, enjoyed a 95% year-to-date occupancy rate. Three gated bedroom communities had sprung up featuring fifteen hundred 2,500 square foot homes and a private security force. Large housing projects were in varying stages of completion featuring more affordable 800 sq. ft. condos and 1,300 square foot homes.

  Downtown was for the international bankers and businessmen - the Iraqi section of the new city was for the shopkeepers and the traders. It was traditional Iraq and already sported an active farmers market and numerous souvenir shops. Iraqis hoped that when tourists tired of visiting Old Babylon, they would come here to spend their money. It was working, as this was the fasted growing area in the new city, second only to the black market shops that were cropping up all over. It was an Iraqi way of life and you couldn’t stop it.

  “As long as there are shortages and demand,” an Iraqi government official told me, “there will be underground trading.”

  “Can we at least control the drugs?” I asked.

  “We can try, but it’s part of the culture.”

  “Well, let’s see what we can do. Nobody wants Babylon to become a sin city again.”

  Mosques, adorned with beautiful minuets rising to over 100 feet, were everywhere as Iraq was 97% Muslim, but there was also a small a Hindu Temple, Roman Catholic Church and a synagogue. So far there had been no problems. I kept my fingers crossed.

  The grand opening was set for March 20th, the time of the vernal equinox, the date of the traditional New Year’s celebration in the Assyrian empire. We had a lot of clean-up work to do to prepare.

  Chapter 15 - Africa