"Real Pirates" exhibition
Jim and I went to the science center yesterday to see the Pirates exhibition. I hadn't been to the science center since I was maybe six, and it was interesting just to look at everything that I'd forgotten. We walked over to the planetarium half and looked at the space capsules too.
The "Real Pirates" exhibition was pretty interesting. They did a good job of putting the pirates in historical context, and there was plenty of information about the ship itself (which started out as a slave ship) and the social environment which led people to sign up as pirates. I would have liked more of the political scene of the 1710's Caribbean, and less about slavery, but that's probably just me. There were a number of artifacts: cannons, pistols, plates and spoons, tools, and (of course) a big pile of pieces-of-eight. At the end of the exhibit there were displays describing how the archaeologists located the ship and how they recover and conserve the artifacts.
Much of it was displayed like a traditional museum exhibit, with items in display cases and plaques telling about the items, but there were also dioramas of pirates and a walk-through replica of a portion of the ship, without rigging, unfortunately. I had wondered about the format, since the science center is mainly a kid-friendly interactive kind of place, but this was an exhibit more for adults or older kids. It was a fun time, and I'm glad we went.
The "Real Pirates" exhibition was pretty interesting. They did a good job of putting the pirates in historical context, and there was plenty of information about the ship itself (which started out as a slave ship) and the social environment which led people to sign up as pirates. I would have liked more of the political scene of the 1710's Caribbean, and less about slavery, but that's probably just me. There were a number of artifacts: cannons, pistols, plates and spoons, tools, and (of course) a big pile of pieces-of-eight. At the end of the exhibit there were displays describing how the archaeologists located the ship and how they recover and conserve the artifacts.
Much of it was displayed like a traditional museum exhibit, with items in display cases and plaques telling about the items, but there were also dioramas of pirates and a walk-through replica of a portion of the ship, without rigging, unfortunately. I had wondered about the format, since the science center is mainly a kid-friendly interactive kind of place, but this was an exhibit more for adults or older kids. It was a fun time, and I'm glad we went.