Wednesday, March 09, 2011

Lucy’s Display in America Changes West’s Distorted Image about Ethiopia

Addis Ababa, March 7, 2011 (Addis Ababa) The display of Lucy, world’s oldest human fossil, for show in American cities has played an indispensable role in letting the rest of the world know the monumental but the well unrecognized feature of Ethiopia, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism said. It also said more than 333,000 people have so far visited Lucy.

In an exclusive interview with ENA on Monday, Mamitu Yilma, Heritage Development Director with the Ministry, said the exhibition titled “Lucy’s Legacy: Ethiopian Hidden Treasures” has helped change the distorted image about Ethiopia in the western world.

Lucy along with 100 artifacts accompanying her in its show in three American big cities has served as an eye opener for over 333,000 visitors, who knew more about the tarnished than incredible image, to explore and recognize that Ethiopia has indeed a wealth of amusing history and unsurpassed cultural landscape.

According to the Director, taken by what they saw at the exhibition, people would come out and say that “we never new that Ethiopia is such an incredible country where we (humans) come from and will like to see it.”

Unlike the concern of some quarters who claim that the exhibit of Lucy in America will chase away tourists from coming to Ethiopia, the exhibition has inspired so many more people to visit Ethiopia, the Director said.

According to Mamitu, a substantial number of American tourists who visited Ethiopia in the last three years were happened to be those who seen Lucy in flesh in America.

More than 100 artifacts consisting of parchments, manuscripts, fossils, Christian and Muslim heritages were displayed in the “Lucy’ Legacy” exhibition held in Houston, Seattle and New York, according to Mamitu.

The well written and descriptive captions attached to Lucy and the artifacts have enabled visitors to come out with full information about Ethiopia.

First, “Lucy’s legacy” was mounted at the Houston Museum of Natural History from August 31, 2007 to September 1, 2008. According to the Houston Museum, the exhibition has attracted 210,000 visitors.

It was also displayed for show at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle from October 4, 2009 to March 9, 2009 luring more than 60,000 visitors, according to Mamitu.

It was also staged at the Time Square Exhibition Center the former printing presses building of New York from June 24, 2009 to October 24, 2009 and was visited by 23,800 people.

Lucy was taken to America in Augst 2007 as an “Ambassador of Good Will” with the prime objective of promoting the image of Ethiopia to the outside world following an agreement signed between Ethiopia and America.

The Director said there is a plan to display the” Lucy’s Legacy” in other big cities of America.

According to Mamitu, Lucy and the 100 artifacts will be back home after two years following their exhibit in the major cities of the US.

Lucy was discovered in 1972 in Afari State, north eastern Ethiopia.

The exhibition was organized by the Houston Museum of National Science in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Ethiopia.

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