British Museum to restore objects damaged in Beirut blast Completing "puzzle-work" of a smashed glass beaker at the Archaeological Museum, AUB. Courtesy of the AUB Office of Communications and Archaeological Museum. LONDON (AFP) .- The British Museum will restore eight ancient glass artefacts damaged in last year's Beirut port explosion, the London cultural institution announced on Tuesday. The glass vessels were shattered after 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored in Beirut's port caused a blast that devastated the city on August 4, 2020. Workers will piece together hundreds of glass fragments at the British Museum's conservation laboratories in London with funding from The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF).