Three walls: Spatial narratives of Old Mosul

“Three Walls. Spatial Narratives of Old Mosul”   reconstructs the original architectural environment of Old Mosul and demonstrates how ISIS transformed the area and a great many buildings into prisons. Visitors were guided through an immersive experience with interactive displays and VR glasses, taking them to three key locations: the Syriac Church, the Great al-Nouri Mosque, and a traditional residential house, the Meydan House. Through 3D virtual tours, visitors could explore these three buildings, experiencing both their pre-ISIS splendor and their later repurposing under ISIS occupation. Ample contextual information enriched the experience, providing deeper insight into the transformation they underwent under ISIS rule. Additionally, the virtual tours offered 3D reconstructions of crime scenes and legal evidence, allowing users to delve into the details of the events that unfolded. Visitors could listen to witness testimonies, interact with these narratives, and thus also catch glimpse of the legal effort to bring justice to the victims.

A walk through the Paris exhibition can be explored via a 3D virtual tour provided at the very bottom of this page. The tour connects the viewer to all of the exhibition’s content and design. It also includes video interviews with members of the exhibition team, who provide detailed explanations and helpful insights into the exhibition’s concept, design process, and key highlights. Additionally, the 3D tour integrates a guided walkthrough of the entire exhibition with a student group, offering a unique perspective on the showcased work.

Historical timeline

The exhibition began with a focused overview of Old Mosul’s rich cultural heritage and its diverse, multi-ethnic population. It visually emphasized that the history of the city spans far beyond the horrific four years of ISIS occupation. The timeline highlighted key cultural achievements from Mosul’s long history, as well as important cultural figures from various periods who shaped the city’s identity. By placing the brutal period of ISIS rule within this broader historical context, the exhibition underscored that Mosul’s significance is not defined by the years of destruction and oppression under ISIS, but by its centuries-old legacy. The timeline traced ISIS’s entry into Mosul in 2014 and its expulsion in 2017, illustrating the city’s resilience and cultural depth before and after the occupation, reinforcing the idea that the city’s cultural memory, its people, and their history are far more enduring than the transient rule of the extremist group.

3D Virtual tours

The exhibition offered an engaging and immersive experience through 3D virtual tours, allowing visitors to virtually visit nine different locations within Old Mosul using advanced immersive headsets. These locations were meticulously documented and reconstructed to reflect their state during and after ISIS occupation.

Beyond the headsets, visitors could also explore the Syriac Church and the Meydan House in two dedicated sections, for a more detailed and interactive experience. Using digital screens, visitors could navigate through each building, moving from room to room and from floor to floor, allowing them to explore the spaces in depth. As they toured these locations, voiceovers explained the significance of what they were seeing, while reconstructions of crime scenes demonstrated how ISIS repurposed each space for detention, interrogation and torture.

In support of the immersive experience, detailed 3D models and floor plans were incorporated, revealing the architectural layout of the buildings to clarify key features and changes made during ISIS occupation. In confluence, these digital tools gave the visitors a richer, more nuanced understanding of the three locations, highlighting both their historical importance and the devastating impact of the occupation. 

Witness Testimonies

The areas dedicated to the Meydan House and the Syriac Church each contained three screens showing witness testimonies by former prisoners standing in the ruins describing the abuses they endured. Both sites were converted into Hisba Diwan (or ‘morality police’) prisons. Local people were detained, interrogated and tortured in these prisons for infringements of ISIS behavioral regulations.

The survivor testimonies provided authentic perspectives on the transformation of these buildings, relating a human experience to the historical context and an emotional testimony of the horrors suffered by ordinary citizens of Mosul. Their testimony is also an important source for cross-reference in the IPM investigations in which crime scenes are recreated in 3D tours.

The event

For its one week run, from November 7 to November 14, 2024, the exhibition attracted around 1,000 guests from a diverse range of backgrounds, reflecting its broad appeal and the interest it generates. Among the visitors were students and academics, partly invited by the team, eager to explore the forensic evidence presented through the exhibition’s immersive displays. Journalists covered the exhibition and share its powerful message with global audiences, including interviews with the makers and the museum director, who stayed for the entire run of the exhibition. The general public also played a significant role in the exhibition’s success, with many individuals from various walks of life coming to experience and engage with the content. This mix of visitors not only deepened the exhibition’s impact but also sparked important discussions on the role of forensic evidence in investigating ISIS crimes and the legal efforts to hold perpetrators accountable. These conversations provided valuable insights for the team, and will shaps future exhibitions focused on justice and the pursuit of truth.

Guests engaged deeply with the material exhibited, often taking a long time to explore every detail. Sometimes guests noted parallels. A Libyan visitor was reminded of ISIS control of the city of Derna, for instance, and French school students were interested to see connections between ISIS attacks in Paris and ISIS violence in Mosul. As a first effort of the IPM to present its work not just in the virtual museum but also in physical exhibitions, “Three Walls” delivered a valuable proof of concept and much audience support for many exhibitions to come.