Cleopatra: The Queen of the Nile in the Queen City (pt. 1)

Feb 17, 2011 by Loki

#CleoCincy The Queen of the Nile has come to the Queen City!

Two thousand years after her death Cleopatra is the subject of an amazing exhibit at the Cincinnati Museum Center. Recent finds, mostly underwater excavations, are finally yeilding tangible evidence of Egypt’s most famous queen. (The Romans tried to obliterate all mention and images of her.)

I had the pleasure of attending the media preview of the exhibit and I must say it is impressive. Let’s set the tone with a slide show of some of whats in store when you go. (More after the slide show)

The presentation of this show is simply stunning. The designer went all out in exploiting the underwater archaeology motif to great effect. Rippling blue lights gave the interior the feel of being beneath the waves while artifacts unseen for thousands of years loom above and around you. It’s guaranteed to have appeal to both the Tomb Raider generation and their seniors.

As to the contents of the exhibit itself I’ll allow those more deeply steeped in the project to explain in their own words. Let’s start with John Norman (a Cleveland native) the president of Arts and Exhibits International.

Next let’s hear from Kathryn Keane, director of traveling exhibitions development for The National Geographic Society as she tells us more about this titanic effort:

And to round out the video offerings here is the one I shot of Franck Goddio’s opening remarks. I must admit he is the one I was excited about seeing. Goddio is the director of the European Institute of Underwater Archaeology, he is the man who discovered the submerged Royal Quarters of Alexandria, the lost city of Heracleion, and the suburb of Canopus.

So thats round one. I’ll be returning soon with part two which will include more pics from Mickey DeSilva and audio interviews that I did with both Goddio himself and Mark Lach, creative director and senior VP of Arts and Exhibitions International.

Cleopatra opens Friday and will consist of a wide variety of lectures, a book club, and many more ways in which to immerse yourself in the land of the pharaohs beyond the exhibition itself. Details on the Cincinnati Museum Center’s page for the show- Cleopatra: The Search for The Last Queen of Egypt.

See you soon with part two!

-Loki, Founder and Curator
Media access provided by the Cincinnati Museum Center, or as I like to call it- The Hall of Justice!
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