The opening of the Lynn H. Wood Archaeological Museum on the campus of Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tennessee, establishes a major state-of-the-art museum of biblical antiquities from the Middle East. On dis play are over two hundred pieces of art and objects from the William G. Dever Near Eastern Collection, one of the largest technical collections of Near Eastern artifacts in North America today. Dr. Joel Sarli, a contributing editor of Ministry, had the opportunity to visit the museum and interview its curator, Dr. Michael G. Hasel, director of the Institute of Archaeology and professor of Near Eastern studies and archaeology, and Giselle S. Hasel, who served as the designer and art director for the museum.
Joel Sarli: Dr. Hasel, a natural question that comes to mind is why there is a need for a new exhibit on the archaeology of the Middle East?
Michael G. Hasel: Americans today are visiting museums more than ever before. Some statistics show that 3 out of 5 Americans visit at least one museum every year. Yet despite this increased interest in museums, there has been no state-of-the-art museum exhibit on the ancient Near East from a biblical perspective. The Lynn H. Wood Archaeological Museum is unique in the southeastern United States because it provides, for the first time, a cutting edge exhibit that aims at bringing the biblical world to life. It has been designed to have a broad appeal to our Western culture which finds its roots in the ancient Near East. The essential aim of the exhibit is to authenticate the Bible and bring its world to life in a three-dimensional way. That makes this muse um unique in its mission.
JS: What kind of objects and artifacts are on exhibit?
MGH: We are exhibiting for the first time to the public one of the largest teaching collections of ancient Near Eastern artifacts in North America. The strength of the collection is that we have complete sequences of pottery forms from the Early Bronze Age, the time of the patriarchs, all the way through the Byzantine period. That means that for 3,500 years of history we are able to trace the development and changes in lamps, dippers, juglets, bowls, and other forms. There are also unique artifacts, such as letters written in cuneiform from Ur in Mesopotamia, a clay brick from Babylon inscribed with Nebuchadnezzar's name, weapons of copper and iron, and even a clay chariot that is over 4,200 years old. Together they connect us tangibly to a world that many of us have only read about in the Bible.
JS: Where do the objects come from?
MGH: The collection was legally exported from Israel in the early 1970s. There are also imported artifacts from Egypt, Babylonia, Persia, Syria, Greece, Cyprus, and Anatolia.
JS: How are the artifacts displayed?
Giselle S, Hasel: Over the last five years of planning and design, we visited dozens of museums around the world and studied the latest in museum design theory. The result is that while artifact assemblages are grouped in chronological order, we chose to focus on only one aspect of ancient life for each period. The theme for each case was chosen based on a major characteristic of that time such as urbanism, ruralism, domestic life in the highlands, and fortification. Together the exhibit forms a tapestry of how ancient life was experienced.
JS: I noticed as I went through the exhibit that there was a great deal of artwork and photography to illustrate each period in history. Why is that necessary?
GSH: Museums today are designed to be experiential. We want visitors to see groupings of artifacts in their context. So the exhibit contains a stunning display of over 200 photo graphs, illustrations, maps, and original artwork that set the objects in the original context and show how they were used.Museums today are highly interactive, and we wanted people of all ages to have a captivating and educational visual experience.
JS: What are some of the interactive elements?
GSH: The introductory map is a highly technical audiovisual tool with over 400 fiberoptic lights and a synchronized audio introduction to the exhibit. There are five videos that focus on the ancient world and explain with graphics what archaeology is and why it is important. They enlarge on how pottery was made in different periods and how these techniques are connected to biblical imagery found in the Bible. The exhibit also includes a life-size room typical of an early Israelite house with a working loom for creating cloth and other objects that allow visitors to visualize how people actually lived and what their daily routines were like.
JS: That sounds like quite an endeavor.
GSH: It certainly was. We are very thankful for outstanding consultation and help from other museums and experts in the field. This was an effort that included contacting many other museums and people in the museum community who were very generous in their help and willingness to con-tribute advice and insight. In the final phase we also hired one of the top three museum design companies in the country, Design Craftsmen, to step in for case manufacturing and specific design questions. Their expertise was invaluable.
JS: How do you hope this exhibit will impact students and the community?
MGH: The museum provides an invaluable resource for students at Southern Adventist University and other surrounding colleges and universities. Southern currently offers the only B.A. degree in archaeology in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and it is one of only two such degrees in North America that is offered from a Christian, biblical perspective. So it specifically serves this program. It also serves the wider community as an educational tool for church groups, elementary and secondary schools, and tourists that visit Chattanooga, which is at the heart of the Bible belt and has increasingly become a major tourist destination.
JS: Have you received many visitors?
MGH: In just two days over our opening weekend, November 12-13, we had over 1,000 people come through the exhibit. We certainly hope that this trend continues.
JS: How can people obtain information on the exhibit?
MGH: The Lynn H. Wood Archaeological Museum can be reached at 423-236-2030. Our Web site address is: <archaeology.southern.edu>
