Virtual Exhibition of Ancient Treasures and the Dead Sea Scrolls Now Available Online at
www.civilization.ca/civil/israel/isrele.html
Gatineau, Quebec, February 15, 2005 — The Canadian Museum of Civilization, in collaboration with the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, is pleased to launch an online virtual exhibition of the immensely popular Ancient Treasures and the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibition. This virtual exhibition goes online this week and is based on the same descriptions, texts and artifacts as the exhibition that attracted record-breaking numbers of visitors at Canada’s largest and most popular museum when it was presented from December 5, 2003 until April 12, 2004.
Web site visitors will be able to view images of more than 100 priceless artifacts and discover their significance to biblical history http://www.civilization.ca/civil/israel/isrele.html
"Partnering with other world institutions such as the Israel Museum, Jerusalem enables us to share research and artifacts with the Canadian public," said Dr. Victor Rabinovitch, President and CEO of the Canadian Museum of Civilization. "The launch of the virtual exhibition Ancient Treasures and the Dead Sea Scrolls extends the reach of this extraordinary exhibition and lecture series to a wider Canadian and international audience."
This bilingual virtual exhibition will also offer, in the near future, and opportunity to hear the presentations given by guest scholars during the highly successful lecture series held in conjunction with the exhibition. These specialists highlighted the role that Canada has played in the study of the Dead Sea Scrolls, while providing rich insights into their meaning and significance.
Ancient Treasures and the Dead Sea Scrolls attracted an unprecedented number of winter-season visitors to the Museum. Those unable to visit the exhibition, or those who wish to relive this unique experience, will now have the opportunity to do so via the Web.
Ancient Treasures and the Dead Sea Scrolls, an exhibition of priceless archaeological finds, chronicled more than 1,000 years in the evolution of Judaism and early Christianity and examined historical events, religious ritual and daily life in biblical times. It featured more than 100 objects from the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, including portions of three of the Dead Sea Scrolls, one of which is among the oldest biblical manuscripts ever found.
"The Israel Museum is privileged to house many of the most important archaeological discoveries of the land of the Bible," states Israel Museum Director James Snyder. "We are proud to preserve, study, and display these objects, and we are delighted to share some of them with a distant public which might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience first-hand treasures that bear witness to the shared ancient history of the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traditions."
The exhibition was organized by the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, in collaboration with the Montréal Museum of Archaeology and History at Pointe-à-Callière and in partnership with the Canadian Museum of Civilization. Artifacts on loan from the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, the Israel Antiquities Authority, and the Library and Archives of Canada. Exhibition produced in Canada by Pointe-à-Callière in partnership with the Canadian Museum of Civilization
Media Information:
Chief, Media Relations
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Tel.: (819) 776-7167
Media Relations Officer
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Tel.: (819) 776-7169
Fax: (819) 776-7187
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