Interview with Simon Jacob,

a young archaeologist from Syria. A graduate

from Aleppo university, Simon is now
earning his living far both from his home
and from academic ground in a kebab
restaurant in Czech republic. When asked
about his new life, he never complains.
Luckily we managed to start over, my family and me. The war changed everything.
How did the Syrian war influence your professional career as an archaeologist?
The war changed Syrian way of life and thinking. It has affected everyone, not just me.
People are now focusing solely on survival. The heritage under the ground became
meaningless for the majority of them, because when you are in danger, you will do
anything to save your own life. And I became one of those people. Face to face with the
necessity, I changed my priorities and goals in life. I left Syria, managed to get the rest
of my family out of the battle zones, and now I am trying to start anew in Czech
Republic, if that is even possible. There was nothing to do when the smugglers took
place of the archaeologists in my country.
So your current plans concerning your future are
On hold until peace will find a way to Syria. Archaeology was more a desire to me than
a career, but when the war knocked on the door, I had to leave the path I once
followed.
As a student of archaeology in Syria
you took part in several excavation
projects where did you work?
I worked at many international digs.
The most recent ones being Tell Arbid
Abyad (Neolithic site excavated by
Czech expedition from Masaryk
University), Tell al-Hassake (directed
by Dr. Abdul Massih Baghdo) and Tell
Fekheriyeh, where I worked with
German team led by prof. Dominic
Bonatz.
Did the outbreak of war take you by surprise?

I think the escalation of the conflict was really unexpected. When the revolutions
started in Tunisia, I expected some change in Syria, but it wasnt until they moved to
Egypt that I was sure. However, nobody could suspect such a bloody development of
the events and the international interests in Syria just made it worse.
Do you have any information about the current situation at these sites?
There is a lack of connection with people still staying in Syria and poor available
information about the archaeological sites in general. The world is more attracted to
the red color of blood than to the brown color of the heritage, and the media reflect
this bias. But I know that battles took place in many of the sites, for example in Tell
Fekheriyeh, where I worked with German and Slovak people. The artifacts became
source of income for robbers and fighters.
When the nations heritage is at stake, should the archaeologists look for ways
to become involved in its protection? Is there a way to do so?
I really dont think there is much they can do. The whole world couldnt help to stop
the bloodshed in Syria, I doubt that there can be much done to protect the heritage.
What can you do, once the weapons take over. Syria was a paradise for archaeologists.
There are thousands of archaeological sites that havent even been touched by the
archaeologists yet. It is the land of civilizations. I feel hopeless when I think about
what has happened. How can you save the heritage, if you cant even save your own
soul.
Simon Jacob was questioned by Lenka Tkov, a student of Journalism at Masaryk university.