Thousands flock to U. Museum for one-of-a-kind classical world exhibit

Since its opening on Sunday, over 4,000 visitors have already perused the University Museum's newest exhibition of its collection of artifacts from the classical world.

And many have lauded its unique thematic presentation.

The gallery, entitled "Worlds Intertwined: Etruscans, Greeks and Romans," is the only comprehensive exhibit of objects in the United States from the Etruscan civilization -- a Mediterranean culture from 800-100 B.C.

One of the gallery's goals is to present the artifacts thematically, underscoring the chronological overlap of the three worlds.

"I don't know of any other museum that presents the information in this way," co-curator and coordinator Irene Romano said.

Students have found the presentation novel and hope to see it transfer to class syllabi.

"It's very nice to get a sense of the Mediterranean culture and mercantile exchange, often overlooked by Classical Studies classes," Classics graduate student Anna Silverstein said. "You get a sense that these cultures that are studied from distinct and disparate viewpoints have interaction."

Gallery co-curator Ann Brownlee said that while walking through the gallery, visitors should be able to see similarities and differences among the cultures.

The gallery "explores a lot of the same themes in [the Etruscan, Roman and Greek] worlds, such as daily life," Brownlee said. "You can go from area to area and see how [daily life] was different and the same in Greece, Rome and Tuscia."

Both Romano and Brownlee echoed Silverstein, hoping that professors will use the galleries to enhance their classes.

To complete the multimillion-dollar project, organizers worked for almost 10 years on the architectural, curatorial and historical aspects of presenting the artifacts.

"The 10-year time span refers to the date when we began the Greek gallery, which was completed in 1994," said Romano, who holds a Ph.D. from Penn in classical architecture. "There was a gap, then we began work on the other galleries."

More than 1,400 artifacts from the museum's Mediterranean collection are displayed, including marble and bronze sculptures, jewelry, pottery and coins.

"Only 4 percent of the entire Classics collection is on display," Brownlee said.

The four-room exhibit has been well-received by visitors.

"They did a really great job," visitor Lucy Prynn said. "It ties all the cultures together pretty well.

"It is a lot of information, definitely a two-day thing," Prynn added. "I came especially for the Roman exhibit, but I got caught up viewing the Etruscan and Greek" exhibits.

"I think it's really awesome. There are so many things I learned," Temple freshman Sofia Varghese said. "I like the Roman exhibit the best."

Jennifer Gilles, a visitor from Wisconsin, said, "It is a great exhibit, probably one of the best exhibits that I have seen in the United States."

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