Digital archive on show in Berlin hopes to help rebuild Syria

After eight years of brutal war in Syria, the UNESCO World Heritage-listed city of Aleppo lies in ruins — but a vast digital archive in Germany aims to keep its memory alive and help rebuild it one day. The Syrian Heritage Archive Project documents what it can of the millennia-old history of a part of the world that saw some humanity’s earliest urban centres and writing systems, but which has become a symbol of the barbarity of war. The special exhibition that opened in Berlin on Thursday features a digital treasure trove of photographs, maps and films as well as artefacts to take visitors on a virtual journey through Aleppo and other cultural marvels of Syria. “This project aims to preserve the past and also has a vision for the future: to gather archives so that reconstruction can happen quickly,” said Stefan Weber, director of Berlin’s Museum of Islamic Art, which is hosting the exhibition until May 26. “For over 100 years, our museum has had a special connection with Syria,” said