Random, Random 2.0

[Owendonovan]

Birds don't urinate.

[ponchi101]

I have my settings at "15 posts per page".
So, this page, for me, starts with:
Sperm banks...
Birds don't urinate.

And I really wonder why...

[ti-amie]

I have my settings at "15 posts per page".
So, this page, for me, starts with:
Sperm banks...
Birds don't urinate.

And I really wonder why...

[ti-amie]

[ti-amie]

[ponchi101]

When I was working in Syria, I was fortunate enough to be in Palmyra, one truly gorgeous city that held several historical sites. One small jewel of the city was the museum, which held priceless antiquities, some 2500 years old. It was a very well curated museum, sponsored by several international organizations, and one of the finest collections of artifacts in the world.
Until ISIS reached the town, and proceeded to destroy the museum. I saw photographs of Islamic soldiers destroying invaluable pieces with sledgehammers, vanishing history with a single blow.
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When I was in Uzbekistan, I was only 20 kms away from the border with Afghanistan. In turn, just a few more kilometers away (inside Afghanistan) stood two majestic Buddhas, carved on the side of the mountain. I tried to get a permit, both from my company and from the border people, to go visit them, as they were acclaimed worldwide. Eventually I was not able, and that was my loss. A few years later, the Taliban detonated them with explosives, again erasing monuments that are impossible to be replaced. Western nations asked the Taliban to allow the Buddhas to be carved out of the mountain face and be brought somewhere else; they refused as the Buddhas were sacrilegious and had to be destroyed.
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When I was in Egypt I was able to go to the Museum of History in Cairo. I was thoroughly disappointed in the curation: the museum has, literally, thousands of pieces just put onto shelves, with no explanations or details to follow the history of the country. The sole exception was the Tutankhamun Exhibit. A fully air conditioned and climate controlled area, the entire exhibition was curated to the most exquisite detail. The area is in shadows and only when you approach a piece do lights go on (triggered by sensors) so that the piece can be seen and it will not suffer from too much light exposure (it is incredible how delicate these stones are).
The Tutankhamun collection was sponsored and supported by BP (easy to remember as they were my employers).
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Nobody makes any comments about the (Italian) Mona Lisa being in the Louvre; the (Spanish) Greco's at the Art Institue of Chicago; the (Dutch) Van Gogh's at the D'Orsay; the (Dutch) Rembrant's at El Prado.

[ti-amie]

Absolutely valid points Ponchi. Thanks.

[skatingfan]

Nobody makes any comments about the (Italian) Mona Lisa being in the Louvre; the (Spanish) Greco's at the Art Institue of Chicago; the (Dutch) Van Gogh's at the D'Orsay; the (Dutch) Rembrant's at El Prado.

I think consent makes a big a difference, and when countries, and people are asking for their artifacts back, and the British Museum is refusing it leaves itself open to ridicule. Also, the Mona Lisa was brought to Paris by da Vinci himself.

[Suliso]

Da Vinci lived his last years in France. As for museums I've heard that the new grand Egyptian museum in Giza might finally open in late 2023. It's been under construction for decades...

[ashkor87]

I heard the Acropolis museum is planning to build a museum, virtual of course, not of the things that Are in the museum but the ones that ought to be there but are Not...

[Suliso]

Don't play poker with this guy

[ponchi101]

I admire these people.

[ti-amie]

Ironically I was just reading up on this city in Japan. The deer are sacred to one of the Shinto deities.

[ti-amie]

[ti-amie]

Michael Martinez :verified:
@michael_martinez@c.im
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