Najaf’s wax statues kindle meltdown for conservative Iraqi clerics
The exhibition of wax sculptures in a museum in Najaf, a conservative Shiite city, marks a major reformist development and a cultural breakthrough.
NAJAF, Iraq — An exhibit of wax statues depicting some 68 Shiite clerics and political figures opened at a museum in Najaf last month. It is the first semipermanent installation of its kind in Iraq.
Assil al-Talqani, the chairwoman of the Tourism and Antiquities Committee in the Najaf Governorate Council, told Al-Monitor at the Jan. 21 opening that the wax sculptures depict religious, political and cultural figures from Iraq and abroad who are connected to the predominately Shiite city of Najaf.
