Letters From Baghdad tells the extraordinary and thought-provoking story of British-born Gertrude Bell. A pioneering adventurer, diplomat, archaeologist and spy, Bell traveled widely in the Middle East at the dawn of the 20th century. More influential in her day than colleague Lawrence of Arabia, Bell (1868-1926) helped create the nation of Iraq, install its first king and established the Iraq Museum, which was infamously ransacked during the American invasion in 2003. Revealing an unexpected look at the Middle East from 100 years ago, through stunning archival footage, the film follows Bell’s unprecedented rise within the all-male ranks of Military Intelligence to the inner sanctum of power. Using primary source material from public and private archives all over the world, the film offers a behind-the-scenes view into British colonial policies and Iraqi state formation. Letters From Baghdad explores the ideas of borders and boundaries, of cultural and political identities, and how the past and present overlap.Bell died at age 58 from an overdose of sleeping pills and is buried in Baghdad.
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