The Hecht Museum in Haifa, Israel, has given us a striking reminder that 3,500 years of history can be shattered in an instant and with a simple touch. Indeed. That is what happened to one of the Bronze Age vessels recently displayed in its rooms, a valuable piece of ceramic that has become a puzzle to archaeologists because of its age and extraordinary state of preservation.

Person in charge: A child who the museum encourages to return.

“He was not my son”That’s exactly what Alex thought when he saw his four-year-old son next to an old, broken pot during a recent visit to the Hecht Museum in Haifa, northern Israel. “That wasn’t my son.” The problem was, he was wrong.

His son had just knocked over nothing but a Bronze Age vase. And he was so unlucky that the piece had broken away from its metal support and remained shattered on the ground. It was no longer a ship. It was a 3,500-year-old puzzle.

Was it that serious? Based on the piece, yes. Quite a bit. Archaeologists estimate that the unopened vessel is at least 3,500 years old, dating back to between 2200 and 1500 BCE. It was once used to store and transport precious liquids like wine or olive oil.

Old and well preservedThe vase stood out for another reason besides its age: how well-preserved it was. Unlike other ceramic pieces that archaeologists had already found to be deteriorating, the Haifa vessel has withstood the passage of thousands of years surprisingly well. And that’s not small.

“Similar vessels have been found in archaeological excavations, but most were broken or incomplete,” explains Inbal Rivlin, director of the Israel Museum, according to the newspaper. New York Times“However, the vase on display at the Hecht Museum was intact, and its size at the entrance to the museum made it an impressive find.”

A number of factors. That the piece now lies in pieces in a restorer’s workshop is explained by a number of factors. One is the boy’s curiosity, as his father explained, “gently pulling” on the vessel to see what was inside. The other is the museum’s philosophy and how it presents its exhibits.

As the center’s administrators recently emphasized to the BBC, CNN and the Israeli website Ynet, the institution believes that artefacts should be as accessible to visitors as possible. This was the case, he thought, in the case of a Bronze Age ceramic jar. It was displayed without a display case, near the entrance to the building and within reach of Alex’s son.

Feel the archaeologyThe museum argues that there is a “particular appeal” in the fact that visitors can “experience archaeological finds without any barriers.” The institution, which was founded in 1984 by Reuben Hecht and houses Bronze Age antiquities in rooms at the University of Haifa, told the BBC: “Whenever possible, the objects are displayed without barriers or glass.”

He describes the incident as a “strange incident”, as the ill-fated ship has remained in the museum for 35 years. Therefore, he does not seem to be willing to change his approach by taking inspiration from the founder. Speaking to Ynet, the director emphasized that “the museum is not a mausoleum, but a living space open and accessible to families.” “We are calling out to parents. Don’t be afraid. These things happen. We will fix it.”

Solution: restorers and posters. The father of the little boy admitted to the BBC that he was “shocked” when he saw what happened, but everything indicates that the incident will not have major consequences for him and his son. “There are cases where exhibits are deliberately damaged and these cases are dealt with seriously, including by the police,” the museum explained in a statement. “In this case, that was not the case. The ship was accidentally damaged by a child and will be dealt with accordingly.”

The institution has already selected an expert to be responsible for restoring the vase so it can return to the museum “soon,” in the hope that the boy’s parents will be “relieved.” What Rivlin suggests is that the incident be used to educate the public: new signs will be installed to tell visitors which objects can and cannot be touched, and the center insisted that families should “prepare their children for this.” before visiting a museum.

Those responsible for the facility also encouraged the boy and his family to return to the center to view the ship as soon as it was repaired.

Not a very rare situation. It’s not the first time a misstep has frightened a visitor and damaged a piece of art or an antique on display in a museum. In 2016, two children also damaged a sculpture at the Virio Museum in Shanghai and the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington; in 2017, a visitor accidentally knocked over part of a display; and in 2010, a woman lost her balance and fell over Picasso’s “The Actor.”

Images | Wikimedia and Krakenimages (Unsplash)

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