Ali Hasan Khuhdair

Biography

Ali Hasan Khudhair is the Head of the Department of Ancient Writing at the Iraq Museum, where he supervises the documentation, storage and archival management of cuneiform tablets from multiple archaeological sites across Iraq. On a day-to-day basis, Ali supervises a team that handles the physical care and documentation of the collections.

Additionally, Ali coordinates the presentation of inscribed artefacts in the museum’s galleries – preparing labels, verifying documentation, and working with curators to design displays that help visitors and scholars understand the objects. Ali’s work combines administration, conservation, and scholarly support, contributing to the preservation of Iraq’s cultural heritage and ensuring that their ancient texts remain accessible for education and research.

Ali’s professional interests within the museum field focus on collections management, large-scale cataloguing systems, preventive conservation strategies, and improving storage conditions for clay tablets and fragile archaeological materials.

Ali is particularly interested in digitisation projects, database development, and enhancing accessibility for collections for researchers while ensuring long-term preservation. Ali values the role of museums in research integration, knowledge dissemination, and strengthening collaboration between curators, conservators, and academic institutions.

On a personal level, Ali is committed to cultural heritage protection and capacity building within Iraqi museum institutions.

Academically, Ali holds an PhD in Ancient Archaeology (Cuneiform Studies) from the University of Baghdad, College of Arts, Department of Archaeology (2024).

At the British Museum

During his time on the International Training Programme, Ali was based in the Middle East Department. His UK Partner Placement was spent at North East Museums.