As this is being written, New Yorkers and out of town visitors are taking in,Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul, now on display at the Met. As Heritage Keys Helen Atkinson writes,the exhibit isa real treat. But, while youre looking at the artefacts, heres an ancient mystery you may want to consider. The crown on the top is on display at the show. As the caption notes its from Afghanistan and dates from the 1st century AD. Now, take a look at the second photo. This crown dates from between the 3rd and 5th centuries AD but was…
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Today, Zahi Hawass and Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities are celebrating the completion of five major projects in the city of Luxor, which have totalled of 127 million Egyptian Pounds (13.9 million). They include work to restore and develop the famous ancient sites of Luxor Temple and Deir el-BahriTemple of Queen Hatshepsut, as well as the more recent attractions of Abul Hagag El-Loxori Mosque and Howard Carter‘s rest house. The 1286-built Abul Hagag Mosque had been in need of restoration, as its walls and foundations were beginning to crack and take water under the strains of time. Now, after 14…
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To be released in October 2009, the Hollywood-made film Agora – set in Alexandria, Egypt, 391 AD, directed by Alejandro Amenbar and starring Rachel Weisz – about the life and death of the Greek scholar Hypatia of Alexandria should be next in the long line of ‘historically correct’ blockbusters that succeed at capturing the attention of a wide audience. The film contains everything it needs – pretty heroine (including love story with Davus) gets killed over science vs. religion conflict and thus becomes a martyr – to appeal to a large crowd and to generate a huge amount of ticket…
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An ‘amazing’ Neolithic temple has been unearthed on the northern Scottish island of Orkney, which ‘dwarfs’ its more famous prehistoric neighbours. The 7000 – 1700 BC monument was discovered beneath the strip of land dividing Harray Loch and Stenness Loch, and is the latest addition to an area which already boasts an incredible archaeological heritage. The temple may be sandwiched between the Ring of Brodgar and the Standing Stones of Stenness – but at 65ft long and similarly wide, the newly uncovered temple far eclipses its illustrious company for size. Though the building has remained hidden to this day its…
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In an adventurous and decidedly tall tale swarming with giant bats and poison spiders and strewn with places called exotic things like The Well of the Soul and the Hidden Realm of Sokar (the words Jones, Indiana and too much spring to mind), British explorer Andrew Collins will next month tell the full story of what he claims to be his discovery of the long lost subterranean realm of the Egyptian pharaohs. How much hard fact will be contained in his new book Beneath the Pyramids: Egypts Great Secret Uncovered (due for release in September) seems dubious, but it should…
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You know something’s in vogue when it pops up on The Onion, the world’s best-known satirical newspaper. And so it was this week that immortality-seeking First Emperor of China Qin Shi Huang made the grade following the ‘discovery’ beneath Disney World in Orlando of a “legion of terra-cotta Mouseketeers”. According to the spoof article which was kindly sent to us by one of our Heritage Experts, Ethel Davies a Disney World maintenance crew discovered more than 8,000 ‘Mouseketeers’ underneath Cinderella Castle. The statues were thought to date back to 300BC. It was likely constructed during the Pre-Eisnerian period, one of…
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Egyptology researcher Paula Veiga, author of Health and Medicine in Ancient Egypt: Magic and Science is fascinated by the ancient Egyptians’ concepts of health and medical practice. We caught up with her to chat about religion, medicine and magic, and what lessons health professionals can learn from studying the ancient world. HK: Your background is in tourism – how did you go from tourism to religion, infectious diseases, medicine and magic in Egypt? PV: I have been attracted to ancient history since I was a child, and I collected all those National Geographic editions on ancient civilisations – my favourite…
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A video depicting the damage done to the Parthenon over the centuries on display at the new Acropolis Museum was censored following protests by the Greek Orthodox Church. The fragment from a film by Costa-Gravas gives an overview of the ‘vandalism’ to the Parthenon starting at the Germanic warriors in 267 ADto the removal of a large part of the freize by British diplomat Lord Elgin in the 19th century. As such, it also contains a scene from the early Byzantine period showing figures clad in black climbing up ladders and destroying part of the Parthenon frieze. Some damage was…
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Ever wondered how a 7th century temple complex must have looked like?You can now find out, as the USBerkeley’s Architecture Department has launched what they call a ‘Digital Model of Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage’ of one of Cambodia’s earliest Khmer temple complexes. The team used a 3Dgame engine to bring their models of Sambor Prei Kuk alive, allowing you to walk amongst digital reconstructions of ancient ruins – they pre-date Angkor Wat by several centuries – whilst reciting your prayers. Architecture Professor Yehuda Kalay – head of the Virtual Sambor Prei Kuk project – is convinced that this project…
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A blog by Bija Knowles got me thinking about travel to ancient destinations. In particular, Bija talks about Libya and its move towards promoting itself more as a tourist destination. Libya has long been one of the Holy Grails of travel writing because it’s been so difficult to get into (and to get around) it independently until now. This story by Jim Keeble has more on how the country is finally opening up to tourism. It’s the same in countries along the old Silk Road routes, which are more tourist-friendly than ever. This encourages more people to discover the historic…