Though the project is slated to begin in earnest this month, by mid-September preparatory work had already begun. Dozens of casts (above) lay spread out on the large open floor of the High Energy Physics Laboratory’s high bay. All of them will be cleaned. Staff photo Rose Lincoln/Harvard News Office |
Maya, Aztec monument casts get the shake-out, dust-offRenovation sparks assessment, reorganization of collectionOctober 4, 2007By Alvin Powell
Plaster reproductions of Maya and Aztec carvings, which preserve precious details now lost on the originals, are leaving dusty, haphazard storage for cleaning, cataloging, and crating that will prepare them for a new era of usefulness and relevance.
Made more than a century ago, the plaster casts, housed at the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, re-create the elaborate stone carvings that adorned Maya and Aztec cities that once buzzed with life across Central America. The original carvings held images of rulers and rituals as well as examples of script that have proven key to deciphering the Maya’s written language, a process ongoing today. Over the years, some museum staff considered the casts a poor second to the original monuments, and they were nearly forgotten. Their odd sizes made them difficult to store, and the casts lay stacked along walls and corridors in the Peabody Museum’s annex. But time has taken its toll on the originals left in the field. Driving rain and searing tropical heat have eroded the monuments, vandals have broken pieces off, and thieves have carted some away entirely. |
