After months of building expectations, the Minneapolis Institute of Art’s Egypt’s Sunken Cities exhibit has arrived. Our daughter and I went this week and it was fascinating to learn about this civilization that was buried in the Mediterranean Sea more than 1200 years ago. It is mind-boggling to think about underwater archaeologist Franck Goddio and his team discovering these two cities and their treasures only about 20 years ago.
It is even more mind-boggling how well the artifacts were preserved. Some of that must have had to do with lying underwater, undisturbed in a cool, consistent environment for nearly 12 centuries. The exhibit includes objects both colossal and miniscule in scale. You can get a sense of the scale of the huge statues in the top center photo above… hard to imagine how they created them so many centuries ago. The tiny round solid gold objects in the lower left above are coins… they are so small, it wouldn’t take me long to lose or destroy them! A little baby rattle is in the lower right corner, even smaller than you might think. The hieroglyphs in the upper right corner are amazingly well preserved… giving new insights into their culture thanks to those who can actually read the hieroglyphs!
Ancient Egypt even cast a spell on the ancient Greeks and Romans. According to a 2016 New York Times article by Bruce Boucher…
Egypt has exerted a peculiar charm since ancient times. The Greeks and Romans deferred to it as a far older civilization, whose monuments and writing seemed both baffling and magical. Egyptian culture appeared to have emerged fully formed and to have disappeared almost as suddenly, but its 3,000-year history cast a long shadow over later centuries and is felt even today.Â
The discovery of these sunken cities two decades ago revealed monumental statues, religious images carved in stone, exquisite jewelry, and delicate ceramics—and a greater understanding of life during the age of the pharaohs.
Don’t miss this epic story of their discovery, on exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Art in time for the holidays and the winter blahs.
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – shensrud@homesmsp.com – 612-419-0560
