Tag: Preview

Fiery Pool: The Maya, the Mythic Sea and the Turtle

After a successful stay at the Peabody Essex Museum, ‘Fiery Pool: The Maya and the Mythic Sea’ opens this weekend at Forth Worth’s Kimbell Art Museum. The exhibition offers a new interpretation of the ancient culture, beyond the traditional view of the Maya as a land-based civilisation.

Expect supernatural crocodiles breathing forth rain; cosmic battles taking place between mythic beasts and deities; and art works adorned with shark teeth, stingray spines, sea creatures and waterfowl all part of the new and vivid picture the exhibition paints of the Maya world view: the Maya did not just navigate river and streams, they navigated the cosmos.

They had this fundamental notion of the Maya world as a giant turtle, floating on the primordial sea. Not an everyday day turtle, floating in the pond this is the cosmic turtle on which all of us float, explains Stephen Houston, Professor at Brown University, who organized the exhibition together with Daniel Finamore, Curator at the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM).

Also presentaround 3100BC were:

Newgrange & Skara Brae
Otzi the Iceman
The Minoans
Egypt’s first mastabas
Stonehenge earth bank &ditch
Cuneiform

13.0.0.0.0 4 Ahaw 8 Kumk’u (August 11, 3114 BC*), is the mythicaldate is recorded throughout the entire Maya area as the beginning of the current creation, when -as described inthePopol Vuh creation myth- themaker let made the earth appear where there before was only the calm sea and the great expanse of the sky.

However, it must be noted, according to ‘accepted history’ (and wikipedia) the first clear Maya settlements weren’t established until approximately 1800 BC on the Pacific Coast – and the oldest discoveries of Maya occupation discovered so far (at Cuello, Belize) have been carbon dated to around 2600BC.

Fast forward to the Classical period (300-900AD) -whenthe civilization reached its peak – and ‘Maya’ ment hundreds of cities across Mexico and Central America andtheir territoryreached as far as the Gulf of Mexico, the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. The Maya practised a complex religion and used a refined pictorial writing system composed of more than 800 glyphs.

While today 90% of these glyphs are understood (an introduction on ancientscripts.com),it was only in the late eighties that the glyph for ‘sea’ was identified. Until then, the importance of the sea in Maya culture had not been fully understood. The identification of this glyph, translated literally as ‘fiery pool’, brought to attention how important the oceanic, inland and atmospheric waters were for the Maya’s existence resulting in the exhibition ‘Fiery Pool’ and its companion book.

Click the images to see a larger version.

In 1986, the Kimbell Art Museums landmark exhibition The Blood of Kings: Dynasty and Ritual in Maya Art shed new light on the importance of dynastic lineage and blood sacrifice to the Maya, commented Eric Lee, director of the Kimbell Art Museum.

This exhibition is the next important chapter in Maya research, and I am thrilled that the Kimbell Art Museum will showcase it.The museum has dedicated part of its website to the exhibition, find it at kimbellart.org/mayaand try their (addicting) Glyphs game.

Over 90 works, focusing on the sea as a defining feature of the spiritual realm, offer insights into the culture of the ancient Maya. The artefacts, displayed in four sections,reflect the broad range of media used by Maya artists: massive, carved stone monuments and delicate hieroglyphs, painted pottery vessels, sculpted human and animal figurines, and an assortment of precious goods crafted from jade, gold and turquoise.

Water and Cosmos

Surrounded by the sea in all directions, the ancient Maya viewed their world as inextricably tied to water, an idea that is explored in the first section of the exhibition, Water and Cosmos. More than a necessity to sustain life, water was the vital medium from which the world emerged, gods arose and ancestors communicated.

A limestone panel from Cancuen, Guatemala, is an exceptional example of Maya sculpture, depicting a ruler known as Tajchanahk, TorchSkyTurtle, seated on a water-lily throne in the royal court while simultaneously inhabiting the watery realm. For the Maya, the realms of earth, sea, sky and cosmos may have been perceived as flowing into each other rather than as distinct territories of being.

Creatures of the Fiery Pool

The world of the Maya brims with animal life animated, realistic and supernatural all at once. The objects in the second section, Creatures of the Fiery Pool, portray a wide array of fish, frogs, birds and mythic beasts inhabiting the sea and conveying spiritual concepts.

An effigy of a Caribbean spiny lobster is the only known Maya representation of the creature, excavated in 2007 from Lamanai, one of the oldest sites in Belize. It dates from the turbulent early colonial period, when traditional Maya life was disturbed by the incursion of Spanish soldiers and missionaries.

Navigating the Cosmos

The section Navigating the Cosmos explores water as a source of material wealth and spiritual power. All bodies of water rivers, cenotes and the sea were united, and connected the land of the living to the underworld.

A magnificent head of a deity with characteristics of the Sun God is one of the most exquisite works discovered in the Maya world. It was found in the tomb of an elderly man, likely cradled in his arm upon burial at the sacred site of Altun Ha. Weighing nearly ten pounds, the sculpture was created from a single piece of jadeite, the colour of which was directly associated with the sea.

Birth to Rebirth

The final section of the exhibition, Birth to Rebirth, addresses the cyclical motion of the cosmos as the Maya pictured it. The sun rose in the morning from the Caribbean in the east, bearing the features of a shark as it began to traverse the sky. Cosmic crocodiles exhaled storms and battled with gods of the underworld.

An elaborate ceramic incense burner from Palenque (where they had an ingenious water system), Mexico, portrays a deity central to a creation myth. Water-curls on his cheeks and ear ornaments, which link him to the rain god (Chahk), speak of his connection to the watery world. A shark serves as his headdress, topped by a toothy crocodile. From this censer, ritual smoke curled through the city of Palenque, suffusing it with scent and mystery.

‘Fiery Pool: The Maya and the Mythic Sea’ at the Kimbell Art Museum runs from Sunday August 29 until the end of the year and is accompanied by an illustrated catalogue, available at the museum.

On October 10th, the museum invites everybody to experience the rich culture of the ancient Maya at ‘10.10.10, Celebracion de los Mayas’, a free family festival with Maya-inspired art activities, film and live music. Admission to the exhibition will be free that day.

Taking your kids to see ‘Fiery Pool’? You want to download (and print) the exhibition discovery kit from the PEM website.

The exhibition ends January 2, 2011. ‘Fiery Pool’ will then travel toSaint Louis, where it opens at the Art Museum February 13th.

‘Digging for Britain’ with Alice Roberts – New Archaeology Series on BBC2

Dr Alice Roberts, presenter of 'Digging for Britain', with a hoard of Roman Coins found in Somerset in 2010 - Image copyright 360 Production Photo by Mike Hogan Britain, man your TVs and iPlayers!Great Britain might be a small island but it has a huge history and, every year, hundreds of excavations bring lost treasures up to the surface. Presented by Dr Alice Roberts, ‘Digging For Britain‘ joins these excavations in a new BBC Twohistory series.

‘Digging for Britain’ is produced by 360 Production (a look behind the scenes) and follows ayear of archaeology around the country, revealing and contextualising some of the newest finds, research and social history.

Its four episodes focus onfocus on the Roman, Prehistoric, Anglo-Saxon and Tudor eras.

Digging the Romans

In the first episode of the series, ‘The Romans’, Dr Alice Roberts follows the story of the Hambleden infanticide and the discovery of 97 murdered babies buried beneath a field in Buckinghamshire. The original excavation made by Alfred Heneage Cocks in 1912 is well documented, but the human remains themselves were believed to have been lost (preview video). Their recent re-discovery has allowed skeletal biologist Dr Simon Mays and Dr Jill Eyers to examine the remains. Was the infanticide at Yweden Villa the result of a Roman brothel?

Dr Roberts is also on the trail of the Frome Hoard, one of the biggest Roman coin hoards ever to be found in Britain. In April 2010, metal detectorist Dave Crisp uncovered more than 52,000 coins dating from the 3rd century AD in a field near Frome, Somerset. Following the three-day excavation,PAS experts Dr Roger Bland and Sam Moorhead spent nine weeks on sorting the hoard, identifying the coins at a rate of 5,500 per week.Dr Robertshears their theories on the treasure trove being a votive offering to the gods and never intended to be recovered from the ground.

Preview: Habledon Villa Human Remains (360 Production)

‘The Romans’ episode also investigates the mystery of a man buried face down on a bed of meat in rural Dorset and the extensive excavation project at the Fort of Vindolanda.

Digging up Prehistory

The further back in time we go, the more rare those glimpses into our ancestors become and, with no written records, the pieces of evidence pulled from the ground are the only clues about the mysterious world of pre-historic Britain.

At Happisburgh in Norfolk, Dr Roberts follows the discovery of seventy flint flakes showing clear evidence of having been worked by humans a find that pushes back the earliest known human occupation of Britain by at least 200,000 years. The discovery of these tools challenge the conventional belief that the earliest human species would not have been able to survive in northern Europe.

Dr Robertsjoins the excavation team at Bronze Age siteForteviot in Scotland, who have discovered that Bronze Age people placed flowers meadowsweet in the graves of their dead.

Digging for Britain’sPrehistory episode also uncovers a 3,000-year-old tragedy at sea, the earliest rock art ever uncovered in Britain and what is potentially the earliest metal working site discovered in Britain.

Digging for the Anglo-Saxons

At Bamburgh, on the North East coast, skeletons excavated by the Bamburgh Research Project (blog) offer insight into the illnesses and conditions the aristocratic Anglo-Saxons suffered, and hold clues about the societies in which they lived clues that are somewhat at odds with the stereotypical, warlord Anglo Saxon people have come to know.

There are thousands of grave goods to clean and conserve at the Anglo-Saxon cemetery discovered in Sittingbourne in 2008.Dr Robertslearns about a unique way of dealing with the sheer volume of material a pioneering project in the heart of Sittingbourne that’s engaging the whole community.

The programme would not be complete without a glimpse at the richest ever Anglo Saxon find in Britain: the Staffordshire Hoard, discovered by a metal detector last year and a visit to Sutton-Hoo which is still revealing new insights more than 70 years after it was first discovered.

‘Digging for Britain’ (video preview) is a four-part series. ‘The Romans’ airs this Thursday August 19, 9pm on BBC Two. (Prehistory August 26, Anglo-Saxons September 2, Tudors September 9)

King Arthur’s Real Round Table Revealed

King Arthurs Round Table wasnt just the romantic meeting place of Arthurs warriors but a massive building on the edge of a huge Roman city. What’s more, it was a powerful symbol of Roman authority that survived for some 600 years after the Romans left Britain. (Skip to the Video)

Thats the bold conclusion made by archaeologists in a new documentary that shows how the monumental Roman structure was transformed from an amphitheatre into a fortified stronghold.

King Arthurs Round Table Revealed explores this and other mysteries surrounding by the iconic British hero King Arthur.

The documentary is an exploration of what archaeology today is revealing about King Arthurs world. It follows life in Dark Age Britain after the fall of Rome resulted in chaos, anarchy and inter-ethnic strife. It all led to the rise or warlords including King Arthur, who led the resistance against the Saxon insurgency.

The refortification of Roman sites, the vital strategic importance of the road system and the use of Christianity as a rallying point against the pagan Saxons are all studied. There are some excellent reconstructions of Arthurian warfare by Comitatus and Regia Anglorum; scientific analysis of one of the skeletons from a Dark Age mass grave outside Chester; and high quality replicas showing the distinctive military fittings which characterised the armies of the British warlords.

Chester King Arthur’s Stronghold

The programme uses Dark Age texts to track down traces of Arthur on the ground, while at the same time taking in archaeological evidence relating to key sites such as Hadrians Wall, Silchester and, crucially, Chester. Here, finds in the huge amphitheatre confirm the identity of Chester with the City of the Legion, site of two of the first Christian martyrdoms in Britain and one of King Arthurs famous 12 battles.

Christopher Gidlow, author ofRevealing King Arthur, is one of the programme’s consultants. He describes the documentary as convincing and powerfully told.

You wont have seen a programme like this, he says. The scholarship is cutting edge and the list of contributors is a whos who of the most respected archaeologists working in the field. The part which sees the forensic scientist Malin Holst examine the body of a slain Saxon warrior is incredible. Tony Wilmott of English Heritage conveys a real sense of the awe he and his team felt confronted with the evidence of the Christian martyr from the Chester Amphitheatre. There is also some great CGI and the reconstructions of the Romanised British army fighting the invaders are the best Ive seen. King Arthurs Round Table Revealed will have you thinking this has got to be right.

One of the programme’s other contributors, Stuart Laycock himself an expert on post-Roman rule in Britain has described Gidlow as the most credible proponent of a historical Arthur.

I take this as meaning that I keep up to date with modern scholarship and that I dont have a blinkered attachment to proving that King Arthur shared my postcode or that some other shadowy Dark Age character is hiding behind the Arthur mask, says Gidlow.

HD Video: Legend of King Arthur’s Round Table based on Roman Amphitheatre

You can read an extract from Gidlow’s Revealing King Arthur on the Tintagel Stone in Cornwall here on HK.And also trace his Top 10 Archaeological Clues to the Real King Arthur.

(Click here for a transcription)

King Arthurs Round Table Revealed (video trailer) will air in the UK on the HISTORY channel (Sky Channel 529 and Sky Channel 545) from Monday, July 19 to Sunday, July 25, 8pm-11pm.

Better Way to Experience Virtual Online with Our Browser Viewer

We are testing out a new way to let visitors see and explore great discoveries and artefacts online virtually. The new viewer runs right inside your browser, so there is no need for downloading a new application. You will need to add the Unity3D plug-in (sort of like Flash) to your browser unless you already have it.

We are releasing this first areas “the Gallery Preview” as Alpha now and appreciate . You will need to Register/Login now to have a look, but once we get some feedback we will make the public. There is only one type of avatar, so it might be a little confusing when you run into other visitors. Have fun, click and try to break it! More technical information about this prototype can be found on our company blog http://rezzable.net .

You need to be a registereduser to use the demo.
So, please,REGISTER(don’t worry, it’s free) or LOGIN

Preview: Terra Cotta Warriors at the National Geographic Museum in Washington, DC

Last night, I had the amazing opportunity to join other fellow bloggers and photographers at the sneak-preview of the Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor exhibit. It is an amazing and awe-inspiring collection of detailed weaponry, life-size figures, limestone armor, and intricate details I’ve never had the priviledge to see first-hand before.

I was immediately taken by the sheer size of the figures. On first entering the exhibit, you’re immediately met by a massive horse and calvary man that looms large in the entry room.

The entire exhibit is bursting with the essence of ancient China from the paintings and artifacts adorning the walls, to the low ambience of oriental music, to the lush reds, oranges and browns used in the colour scheme.

What follows from the entryway is at least an hour’s walking-tour (or audio, if you prefer!) of weaponry, armor, currency, bronze figures, incredible clay sculptures and architecture of ancient Chinese culture.

Photography unfortunately is not allowed inside the exhibit once it has opened to the public, however, I fully encourage you to check out the Heritage Key Flickr pool for photographs of this exhibit!

Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor, opened to the public on 19th November, 2009, at the National Geographic Museum in Washington, DC. The museum is the final venue of the exhibition’s four-city U.S. tour. Tickets are sold for $12 USD per adult, $10 USD per senior citizen, and $6 per child between the ages of 2-12. A group discount rate of $8 USD per person applies to groups of 10 or more.

This really is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the Terracotta Warriors in the U.S. With 55,000 advance tickets sold before opening day, I can only imagine the excitement among those ready to see the figures live and in colour and hope to encourage you to join the crowd!

More photos from the Terracotta Warriors Exhibition by Graecyn:

Are you planning to visit this amazing exhibition? One of those 55.000 people who already bought their ticket? Or already been there? What’s your opinion on these travelling warriors? Is the exhibition doing them justice? Would you advise going?