An Expedition to the Syracuse Archaeological Museum

The Archaeological Museum of Siracusa is just down the street from the park.

And it starts with prehistory. First, the geology of the island (A lot of volcanics, think Mount Aetna. But then also sedimentary. They discovered oil here in the 1950s. There is even a refinery on the island). Then, the fossils. It is sort of hard to see, but here is Doreen standing in front of two FULLY GROWN ELEPHANT FOSSILS! They were about the size of St Bernard dogs.

Then the bronze age. Lots and lots and lots of pots.

Almost all the pots were marked like this:

by the guy who discovered them. Shameful. But of course, Queen Victoria had her seal put on all the Leonardo books that the Crown "acquiered"  (I had better be careful. You never know when Her Majesty's Apologists will jump into the fray!)

Most of the pots here seem to have come from burial sites.

The big pots below were filled with human remains:

They have so much stuff, that they have some Greek slabs lying around, encouraging you to touch them:

This is a frieze from something or other. Uncurated, just lying around

And more statues. Sometimes with people walking by:

Sometimes without:

We came across these small sphere of all descriptions, and were very curious as to their use:

and it turns out they came from the tomb of a man known as "The Spherist".

So I guess that explains that.

It is somewhat disconcerting to see bones in a museum. I always think about the individual, and his relatives.

But I took this photo anyway. I tried to get Doreen to lie in there with the bones, but around that time a guard came by and fussed at me. She did laugh when I said I wanted Doreen to get in the crypt, though.

It's not a diorama, but it will have to do. This is the original temple to Minerva, which is now the Duomo (which see) and the temple of Artimis, the Artimision that I will write more about by and by. (That temple has some chairs for sacrification. Just wait)

This museum is big on crypts. Here is a fantastic crypt from the early Christian catacombs.

She must have been very rich. We want our friend Randy to make something like this for our gravestone.

A head on view:

OF course, is that is too complicated, we can do this:

Sort of like a big bathtub.

Here is Dan with a big head that is the Greek God of Medicine Aesculapius.

Here is a statue of Priapus, staring at his missing attribute:

Those niches I mentioned earlier would have been filled with these:

Very nice

They had lots of funerary pots:

And little crypts

Here is the church of the Weeping Madonna in Syracuse. They have a statue of Mary that cries real tears. That has been scientifically proven.