Excavations: British Museum, More Art, Fish & Chips

June 11, 2013 Tuesday

Another museum! Pete and I have looked forward to reviewing the antiquities at the British Museum. Lisa went to work and Rick stayed behind to work on a translation project. We spent the whole day at this museum and really took our time looking at the various exhibits. We've been here before, so we were able to focus on things that especially interest us. Once again, I rode around in a wheel chair while Pete patiently pushed me and read me the captions I couldn't quite see. He claims that this actually helped his back feel better -- kind of like pushing a big heavy walker!

One of our favorite exhibits at the British Museum is The Siege of Lachish. The siege and capture of Lachish (a Judean city) in 701 BC are mentioned several times in the Old Testament. The museum has the stone relief panels from the palace of Sennacherib that depict the battle in considerable detail. We've read many articles about this and studied the Old Testament accounts, but there's nothing like seeing them in person.

We also stopped by Lisa's workplace at The Prince's School of Traditional Arts. Because the school focuses on preserving traditional arts, the students come from a wide variety of backgrounds. Dr. Lisa is an artist, teacher, project manager, and advisor to master's and PhD students. One of her areas of expertise is Islamic art. Her "office area" is unique.

Cube farm for artists:

Lisa's cube:

More about cubes ... Platonic Solids:

Fabulous inlaid wood table with traditional Islamic design, made by one of Lisa's PhD students:

We can't remember the story behind this small obelisk. It's some sort of celebration of mathematics, made for a special event. No one noticed the missing "i" in the Greek word "arithmetic" until a Greek Orthodox priest saw it. Nonetheless, it's a beautifully crafted piece.

We really liked this small mosaic of the Creation. A student happened to walk past as we took our shot.

This structure will become part of a Mihrab, or prayer niche. Hope we get to see a photo of the finished project. This and the above images are all student projects.

Other students are working on ceramic projects, including pottery, tiles, and mosaics. This is the kiln room. There are kilns for both glass and pottery.

We had tube/bus passes, so we were able to get around the city quite easily.

Double-decker bus ride:

Ad for crazy British production:

Another ad:

James Clerk Maxwell building at King's College -- great attitude!

Lisa, Pete, and I met Rick at an exhibition being given by Keith Critchlow, the founder of The Prince's School of Traditional Arts. The exhibition included work by Keith and his own family. The name of the venue appealed to Pete. We didn't see any cellos ...