Carnegie Science Center to unwrap 'Mummies of the World' exhibition
They won’t be kept under wraps much longer.
The “Mummies of the World: The Exhibition” opens Saturday at the Carnegie Science Center on Pittsburgh’s North Side.
Advance ticket sales are the highest among the 18 locations that the traveling exhibition has visited so far. Connie George, the science center’s marketing director, said more than 3,000 time-tickets have been sold.
The exhibit, which runs through April 19, 2020, features 40 human and animal mummies and 85 related artifacts from around the world. They come from 13 lenders.
One display includes a number of South American shrunken heads.
“The shrunken heads are beautiful,” said Cassandra L. Kuba, a professor of anthropology at California University of Pennsylvania who teaches a class on death and dying. “It really gets you thinking about these people. There is a taboo about death and talking about death, but it affects us all.”
The study of mummies covers a range of disciplines, she said, from the sciences to the arts. On the exhibition’s opening day, she will bring a group of students — along with some mummified animals that she and her students have found and preserved and studied. The mummified chicken, mouse, toad, possum and vole will be displayed in the lobby of the science center.
“I am so excited about this exhibit,” said Kuba, who grew up in New Kensington and Arnold and is a Valley High School graduate. “It’s incredibly fascinating and it inspires our curiosity. This is a great experience for students. There is so much to this exhibit.”
— Carnegie Science Ctr (@CarnegieSciCtr) October 2, 2019
Visitors can see a mummified family from 18th-century Hungary — Michael Orlovits, his wife Veronica and their 1-year-old boy, Johannes. They are among a group of mummies discovered in the Hungarian town of Vac in 1994. Many had died from tuberculosis, which wiped out entire families. Jason Simmons, operations director for IMG, the producer of the exhibition, said these mummies offer unprecedented insights into their world.
“We found this family in a crypt, and they were unintentionally mummified,” said Simmons. “We have the mother, father and the baby. This is a tough story. They weren’t able to be together in life, but they are together in death.”
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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