Lucy’s Legacy: The Hidden Treasures of Ethiopia

by Sean McLachlan on

The news wires have been aflame for the past couple of months with reports of the amazing new fossil called Ida, which has been hailed as the fabled “missing link” just as Lucy was when it was excavated in Ethiopia in 1974. Journalistic hyperbole aside, they’re remarkable finds, and now you can see both of them in Times Square, New York.

A traveling exhibition called Lucy’s Legacy: The Hidden Treasures of Ethiopia highlights these two relatives of ours (Creationists please do some research before commenting) and carries on to cover Ethiopia’s rich cultural and historical heritage.

While this exhibition has been on for a month, seeing the Ida fossil for yourself is even more interesting now because of an important article in the latest issue of Scientific American casting doubt on Ida’s close links to humanity. The poor little critter may be a country cousin at best.

While the main draw is these two paleontological superstars, the rest of the exhibition is equally important in that it covers the deep culture of one of the world’s oldest nations. Ethiopia is the second oldest Christian nation in the world (after Armenia) and the only African nation to successfully resist colonization. Only for a few years was Fascist Italy able to occupy the country, but they faced constant resistance and never really controlled the country.

Over the centuries Ethiopia has produced a vast corpus of literature, ornate painting and metalwork, and architectural wonders such as the sunken churches of Lalibela pictured here, hewn out of solid bedrock 800 years ago.

Oh, and it was the Ethiopians who discovered coffee. We must all give thanks.

Major archaeological discovery in Egypt. . .in museum basement

by Sean McLachlan on

Egyptian archaeologists have been taking a break from the sun lately to excavate the hidden depths of the national museum in Cairo, reports Archaeology News. They’re refurbishing The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities before opening a bigger museum near the pyramids at Giza. Part of the project is to go through all the poorly recorded artifacts that have been languishing in the basement since they were excavated decades ago.

They’ve recently found nine artifacts that don’t appear in museum records, including stones with hieroglyphs and a sacred table to make offerings to the gods.

This isn’t the first time new old stuff has turned up in the museum. Random bits that have come the museum’s way over the years that archaeologists have considered possible fakes have traditionally been buried in the museum’s garden. These are now being dug up again and examined.

While the whole thing sounds ridiculous (and is) this former archaeologist is cautiously optimistic that a new day is dawning for the Egyptian Museum. When I was there in 1991, a little baksheesh (tip/bribe) to a guard got me a tour of the back rooms. Rows of dusty wooden crates stuffed with artifacts stood unstudied on shelves. Their labels were yellowed and faded, and many had drifted to the floor to crunch like autumn leaves underfoot, leaving the crates and the artifacts they contain cut off from any record of where they had been found.

Archaeology in Egypt is getting more serious than it was in those dark days. Dedicated professionals like Dr. Zahi Hawass are fighting bureaucracy, corruption, and poor funding to give Egypt’s past the respect it deserves. Here’s hoping they succeed.

Cap off your summer in style at the Kimberly Hotel in Manhattan

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Manhattan‘s rarely cheap. So, even if you can get a kickass flight, you’re still stuck lamenting the hotel rates and dinner prices – not to mention spending a fortune on cabs. The Kimberly Hotel is about to make this easier. If you’re looking to get your kids to the top of the Empire State Building before school starts, you still have time to squeeze in a trip this summer with a nice discount to make it a bit easier for you.

Until August 31, 2009, the Kimberly Hotel is cutting its rates by up to 40 percent on one- and two-bedroom luxury suites (might as well give the kids a taste of the good life before returning to the daily grind of the school year, right?). One-bedroom suites normally go for $299 a night, but you can book one for $100 less this summer. If you value elbow room, shell out $299 for a two-bedroom suite: they usually cost $449 a night.

Or, you can pick up a package built around the Intrepid Museum (that’s on the aircraft carrier parked in the Hudson River). For $459 a night ($829 for two), the “Welcome Aboard” package includes discount admission coupons for four to the museum, daily breakfast in the hotel and a free in-room movie with your choice of popcorn.

If you want your summer to end with a cymbal crash, this is the way to do it. Fight the oppressive New York heat (it’s part of the experience), and make sure your kids have some great stories to tell on the first day of school.

Museum Junkie: Museum of the Good Samaritan opens in Israel

by Sean McLachlan on

One of the world’s largest mosaic museums recently opened in Israel.

The Museum of the Good Samaritan displays artifacts from the many cultures that lived in the region. The main attractions are the intricate mosaics found in synagogues in the West Bank and Gaza.

The museum is located on the highway between Jerusalem and Jericho near the ancient town of Ma’ale Adumim in the West Bank, believed to be the site of the inn where the parable of the Good Samaritan took place. According to the story, told by Jesus in the Gospel of Luke (10:25-37) a man is beaten up by robbers and left for dead on the side of the road. Nobody will help him but a Samaritan, a member of a rival Jewish sect that was persecuted in ancient times. His act of mercy has become synonymous with the kindness of strangers and the ability of goodness to reach across social boundaries.

This being Israel, history is politics, and officials were quick to put a spin on the museum’s opening. In an article in the Jerusalem Post, Knesset Speaker Reuvlen Rivlin said the museum underscores Israel’s historic ties to the West Bank and Gaza and its devotion to keeping a presence in them. The Knesset is the Israeli parliament, and Rivlin is one of the most powerful members of the ruling Likud party, so his words carry significant political weight.

Some of the mosaics come from Samaritan synagogues, offering a rare look at a faith that few people know still exists.

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Stay at Hotel Jules in Paris, grab free museum access

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Even with cheap flights and hotel rates, Paris can be an expensive place. But, you have to go at least once … preferably as often as possible. So, I was pretty psyched to see the new deal from the Hotel Jules, a pretty stylish place in the 9th Arrondissement. Through the end of the year, the hotel is offering two nights, daily breakfast (continental or in-room) and a two-day pass for two people that gets you access to the city’s major museums.

At only €152 ($212) a night, this is an absolute bargain. For anything less in Paris, you run the risk of staying in a real dive (please learn from my painful experience, not to mention that to which I subjected my wife on our last trip to this city).