From ashes and debris, iconic Beirut museum reopens 3 years after massive damage from port blast

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s Sursock Museum has reopened to the public, three years after a deadly explosion in the nearby Beirut port reduced many of its treasured paintings and collections to ashes. Friday’s reopening offered Beirut residents a bright spot in a country reeling from a crippling economic crisis that has left around three-quarters of its population of 6 million in poverty. The villa was left in 1952 by its owner, famed collector Nicolas Ibrahim Sursock, to be turned into a contemporary art museum. But the August 2020 blast in Beirut’s port nearby caused unprecedented damage to the collections and the museum building. Restored to its past splendor, many hope it will be a place for finding hope.