Art and Science Exhibition on Evolution of the Horse

 

New York City - The American Museum of Natural History today announced a major new exhibition, The Horse, opening May 17, 2008 and remaining on view through January 4, 2009. The Horse will examine the powerful and continuing relationship between horses and humans and explore the origins of the horse family, extending back more than 50 million years.

The exhibition will also examine early interactions between horses and humans that eventually led to horse domestication, and show how horses have, over time, changed warfare, trade, transportation, agriculture, sports, and many other facets of human life.

The Horse will celebrate this magnificent animal while presenting one of the most fascinating stories in the history of life on Earth—the close and complex relationship between horses and humans. The exhibition will show how the two species have influenced each other through the ages and explore the integral role the horse has played in the history of humanity and civilization.

The Horse will showcase spectacular fossils and cultural objects from around the world—including many from the Museum’s extraordinary collections. Highlights include a diorama of horse evolution, the horse in art from the Paleolithic to the present, horse gear and armor from 16^th century Germany, and a horse-drawn fire engine from the 19^th century. The exhibition also examines exciting new archeological discoveries concerning the domestication of the horse and the role of horses in sport from early forms of polo to the Triple Crown and the Olympics.

Numerous interactive stations throughout the exhibition—including videos, computer interactives, hands-on activities, and touchable casts—will invite visitors to measure their strength in horsepower; examine different gaits of a horse by looking through a zoetrope—a device that turns still images into moving ones—based on photos by famous 19th century photographer Eadweard [sic] Muybridge; and to learn about the latest developments in the study of horse biology and the role of the horse in modern society. Throughout the exhibition, visitors are introduced to unusual objects and asked to identify them, including such items as a Roman horse shoe, a stirrup, a bit ornament, and a whip used in bukashi—a sport on horseback played in Central Asia.

The Horse is organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (www.amnh.org ) in collaboration with The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH); the Canadian Museum of Civilization, Gatineau-Ottawa; The Field Museum, Chicago; Instituto Sangari, São Paulo, Brazil; and the San Diego Natural History Museum. The exhibition is curated by Ross MacPhee, Curator, Mammalogy, Division of Vertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History; and guest co-curated by Sandra Olsen, Curator of Anthropology, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History is one of the world’s preeminent scientific, educational, and cultural institutions. Since its founding in 1869, the Museum has advanced its global mission to explore and interpret human cultures and the natural world through a wide-reaching program of scientific research, education, and exhibitions. The Museum accomplishes this ambitious goal through its extensive facilities and resources. The institution houses 46 permanent exhibition halls, state-of-the-art research laboratories, one of the largest natural history libraries in the Western Hemisphere, and a permanent collection of more than 30 million specimens and cultural artifacts. With a scientific staff of more than 200, the Museum supports research divisions in Anthropology, Paleontology, Invertebrate and Vertebrate Zoology, and the Physical Sciences. The Museum shares its treasures and discoveries with approximately four million on-site visitors from around the world each year. AMNH-produced exhibitions and Space Shows can currently be seen on five continents in engagements that reach audiences of millions. In addition, the Museum’s Web site, www.amnh.org , extends its collections, exhibitions, and educational programs to millions more beyond the Museum’s walls.

Source: Art Knowledge News