Art & Culture

“Terrified mother and child’s final moments preserved in ash after Pompeii volcano blast 1,900 years ago”

by Kirstie McCrum via “The Mirror“

A terrified mother and child’s final moments after the devastating Pompeii volcano have been unearthed for the first time in 1,900 years.

Restoration work on the bodies of those who died when the eruption of Mount Vesuvius engulfed Pompeii in Italy in AD79 have brought out some shocking finds like this scene.

One of the most catastrophic and damaging volcanic eruptions the world has ever seen, it claimed the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum and killed unknown thousands of Romans.

Excavations of Pompeii — History at work: A restorer works on petrified victim with arms reaching out in the laboratory of the Pompeii excavation site

The pieces are soon to be shown at a Pompeii and Europe Exhibition at the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, Italy.

Molten rock rained down on the surrounding landscape at a rate of 1.5 million tons per second in an eruption thought to have released 100,000 times the thermal energy of the Hiroshima bombing.

In recent years, archaeologists used hollows in the volcanic ash where victims’ bodies fell and decayed. They have filled these cavities with plaster to see the outline of their final resting places.

There has been much excavation work of the area, with more than 1,000 casts of bodies being made in Pompeii alone.

In 2010, studies showed that a surge reached temperatures of 300°C in Pompeii.

Volcanologist Giuseppe Mastrolorenzo, who led the study said: “(It was) enough to kill hundreds of people in a fraction of a second”.

In reference as to why the bodies were frozen in suspended action, Giuseppe explained: “The contorted postures are not the effects of a long agony, but of the cadaveric spasm, a consequence of heat shock on corpses.”

The eruption was foreshadowed at the time by smaller earthquakes in the preceding days, but nothing was done by authorities.

A Roman poet Pliny the Younger, who was 17 at the time, recorded much of what happened during the eruption, but it is thought that a horrific cloud of ash, volcanic gas and stones spewed from the volcano to a height of around 21 miles. . . . .

Highest stone circle in southern England found on Dartmoor

“Highest stone circle in southern England found on Dartmoor”

Via “The Guardian“

The highest stone circle in southern England has been found on a weather-battered slice of moorland in Devon.

Situated 525 metres (1,722ft) above sea level, the ancient site is the first stone circle to be found on Dartmoor for more than a century.

The circle is the second largest on the moor and archaeologists believe it was probably part of a “sacred arc” of circles around the north-eastern edge.

Its discovery adds weight to the theory that there was some kind of planning and liaison between the communities living on Dartmoor in the late Neolithic/early Bronze Age 4,000 to 5,000 years ago.

Many stone circles were prodded and probed in Victorian times and before, so the opportunity to apply modern scientific methods to a previously unexamined one is particularly exciting.

Archaelogists say the stone circle provides an exciting opportunity to apply modern scientific methods to a previously unexamined circle. Photograph: Dartmoor National Park

Jane Marchand, senior archaeologist at Dartmoor national park, said: “The discovery is providing an opportunity for investigation using the very latest archaeological scientific methods to provide long-awaited insights into the chronology, construction and the purpose of these most elusive and iconic of Dartmoor’s prehistoric monuments.”

With a diameter of 34 metres (112ft), the circle consists of 30 recumbent stones, plus one more lying in a gap just outside the circle and now incorporated into an unfinished enclosure wall.

The stones probably came from the nearby Sittaford Tor itself and are of a fairly uniform size, suggesting they were carefully chosen. Packing stones visible around the bases of some of these indicate that they were originally upright. . . . .

Greeks retreat on Elgin Marbles: Country backs down on challenge to regain sculptures after rejecting advice of Amal Clooney

“Greeks retreat on Elgin Marbles: Country backs down on challenge to regain sculptures after rejecting advice of Amal Clooney”

via “Daily Mail“

Greece has backed down from a legal challenge to regain the Elgin Marbles after rejecting the advice of actor George Clooney’s barrister wife Amal.

The high-profile human rights lawyer gave the Greek government a 150-page report urging them to take Britain to the International Criminal Court for the return of the 5th century BC sculptures just two days ago.

However, Nikos Xydakis, the culture minister, said yesterday: ‘One cannot go to court over whichever issue and besides, in international courts the outcome is uncertain.’

George Clooney's barrister wife Amal (pictured) gave the Greek government a 150-page report urging them to take Britain to the International Criminal Court for the return of the 5th century BC sculptures two days ago

The Greek government has now backed down on the Elgin Marbles legal challenge and said it would follow a 'diplomatic and political' approach instead, arguing that the climate was slowly changing in Greece's favour

Instead, Athens would follow a ‘diplomatic and political’ approach, he said, arguing that the climate was slowly changing in Greece’s favour.

He added: ‘The road to reclaiming the return of the sculptures is diplomatic and political.’

There had been disquiet at the Greek government paying legal fees over the marbles at a time of austerity, though one shipping magnate had reportedly offered to pay the barristers’ fees.

The Parthenon sculptures are part of the collection popularly known as the ‘Elgin Marbles’, which were acquired by Lord Elgin in the early 1800s when he was ambassador to the Ottoman court.

The British parliament purchased the art treasures in 1816 and gave them to the British Museum.

For the past 30 years Athens has been demanding the return of the sculptures, which had decorated the Parthenon temple on the Acropolis in Athens from ancient times.

The British Museum recently turned down a proposal by UNESCO, the UN cultural agency, to mediate in the dispute.

A legal recourse had been suggested by lawyer Mrs Clooney, who is part of a team advising the Greek campaign.

Earlier this week, she said it was ‘now or never’ to win back the Elgin Marbles.. . . .

Smuggled artefacts to return to Egypt from Switzerland

“Smuggled artefacts to return to Egypt from Switzerland”

by Nevine El-Aref via “Ahram Online“

“A collection of 32 ancient Egyptian artefacts is to return back to Egypt in June after Egypt successfully asserted ownership of the objects.

Ali Ahmed, director of antiquities repatriation, told Ahram Online that the objects included limestone and wooden statues as well as a collection of limestone blocks from chapels across dfferent pharaonic periods.

The objects were seized by the Swiss police within the framework of a bilateral agreement between Egypt and Switzerland that prohibits the illegal import and export of cultural properties.

Minister of Antiquities Mamdouh Eldamaty said the objects are to be handed over to Egypt’s ambassador to Switzerland at the Federal Office for Culture in Bern during an event to mark tenth anniversary of the passage into Swiss law of a prohibition on illegal trade in cultural property.”

Coming Exhibition: Thirty years of acquisitions in the Nord-Pas de Calais Carte blanche given to the region’s museums

“Thirty years of acquisitions in the Nord-Pas de Calais
Carte blanche given to the region’s museums”

Who:

Musée du Louvre-Lens

When: May 28, 2014 – June 1, 2015 (Hours Vary)

Where:

Musée du Louvre-Lens Temporary Gallery
99 Rue Paul Bert
62300 Lens, France

More Information: Here.

This exhibition presents an overview of acquisitions by museums in the Nord-Pas de Calais region over the last thirty years.

It is an excellent opportunity to explain to visitors the meaning and logic behind a purchase. The event is therefore part of the Louvre-Lens’ mission to go behind the scenes and reveal the inner workings of museums. Featuring works acquired thanks to the involvement of the FRAM regional acquisition fund for museums, endowed in equal part by the State and Region, the exhibition showcases the efforts of various players in enriching museums: the local authorities answerable for the collections, the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs, and the Nord-Pas de Calais Regional Council.

Organized by:

Luc Piralla, Musée du Louvre-Lens;
Philippe Gayot, Musées de la Porte du Hainaut, association of museum curators for the Nord-Pas de Calais.