Ethiopia to Exhibit 'Lucy' Fossil in United States

Science - Reuters ^ | 2004-04-12 | Tsegaye Tadesse

[Junior]

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Ethiopia is to allow "Lucy" its world-famous, 3.2-million-year-old skeleton to travel abroad for the first time for an exhibition in the United States that it hopes will encourage more visits by American tourists.

The fossil's discovery in 1974 was a landmark in the history of uncovering the origins of humanity, representing the most complete human-like fossil to have been found until that time.

Lucy, stored in a vault in an Ethiopian museum, and other Ethiopian artifacts including crowns and scepters of ancient monarchs are due to be put on display at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Texas in 2006.

"The objective of the exhibition is to promote Ethiopia's tourism potential by revealing to American viewers the country's unmatched historical importance as the cradle of mankind and land of significant archaeological discovery," Ethiopian Commissioner for Tourism Abdullahi Suker told a news conference in Addis Ababa.

Ethiopia, one of the world's poorest countries, is keen to lure more visitors to attractions including archaeological sites, centuries-old churches carved into solid rock and ancient cities like Axum to earn more foreign currency.

Ethiopia's 1998-2000 border war with Eritrea hit tourist earnings, and the country that bills itself as having "13 months of sunshine" due to its unique calendar is hoping more foreign visitors will help fuel a revival.

Ethiopia's national museum in Addis Ababa displays only a replica of Lucy -- named after the Beatles song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" by its discoverers -- but the original will be put on display in Texas.

A visiting U.S. delegation led by Texas Secretary of State Geoffrey Connor said the display would help improve tourist flows to Ethiopia, as well as earn up to $7 million in tourist revenue for Houston.

"While the cultural importance of the exhibit cannot be overestimated, there is real economic benefit in bringing Lucy to Texas," he said.

But a leading Ethiopian opposition member of parliament, Beyene Petros, said the government should have launched a promotional campaign to attract more visitors to Ethiopia, rather than allow Lucy to leave the country.

"By sending the country's tourist attraction to a foreign country, our tourism officials are discouraging those who would have wanted to travel here to see Lucy's remains," he said.

[Junior]

Ping.

[VadeRetro]

Ethiopia, one of the world's poorest countries, is keen to lure more visitors to attractions including archaeological sites, centuries-old churches carved into solid rock and ancient cities like Axum to earn more foreign currency.

A Marxist coup... Wars ... Famine ... The whole Horn of Africa has had a bum rap in the travel biz!

[LiteKeeper]

INTREP - FRAUD ALERT! Lucy is NOT an hominid!

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

Please ping the locals.

[LiteKeeper]

New Evidence: Lucy Was A Knuckle-Walker

Lucy is not the missing link

[Flyer]

Working towards my final *PING!*

As always, a FReep mail will get you on or off this Houston and Texas topics ping list.

p.s. - I am getting out of the ping list business. This list is available to anyone on this list that wishes to take it over. I will still ping for activities of the HAT Chapter.

[GreenHornet]

Ancient writings found at the site, and stored in a vault in Addis Ababa, have recently been deciphered to reveal the following message:

You can't be in the show, Lucy.

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

I am getting out of the ping list business.

Mini shirts and Hot Pants disappear.
Elvis dies
Republicans take over the Texas State House
We take the Texas House
Coke produces New Coke
We take the Texas Senate

Flyer quits the ping business!

Another era draws to a close ............ ;-(

[Physicist]

Interesting that DonJo doesn't even rate a mention.

[Dog Gone]

Why are you getting out of the ping business? I like being pinged to threads like this. I'm looking forward to seeing this exhibition.

I think it's great that Lucy is coming to Houston. I rarely go to the musuem, but I'll check it out in 2006, for certain!

[Doctor Stochastic]

Things gone downhill since Lucy died?

[Physicist]

If Lucy was a knuckle-walker, she's an even better missing link than she would be otherwise. But alas, her legs are too long for her to walk on all fours and not look ridiculous.

[MediaMole]

Ancient writings found at the site, and stored in a vault in Addis Ababa, have recently been deciphered to reveal the following message:

Psychiatric help 5 cents. The doctor is in.

[PatrickHenry]

PING. [This list is for the evolution side of evolution threads, and some other science topics like cosmology. Long-time list members get all pings, but can request evo-only status. New additions will be evo-only, but can request all pings. FReepmail me to be added or dropped. Specify all pings or you'll get evo-pings only.]

[Flyer]

Weegee has a copy of my list, but I'm not sure if he wants to be known as the official pinger. Other responsible folks are welcome to it, too.

I just had to make room on my plate for other things. Maintaining and judiciously using a ping list can take more time than one might imagine. (I actually read the article before I use my list to make sure it is appropriate)

[wysiwyg]

Ancient writings found at the site, and stored in a vault in Addis Ababa, have recently been deciphered to reveal the following message:

Lucy! You got some splainin' to do!

[stanz]

That's right. No mention of him in a long time. Why is this going to Houston?

[Junior]

Lucy is NOT an hominid!

And people who actually know what they are talking about say she is. Now, who am I going to believe..?

[beavus]

Lucy is NOT an hominid!

If biologists want to place Lucy in the family Hominidae, they are free to do so. It is not a matter of right or wrong, only convention. If it were a matter of right or wrong, then you are wrong, because the current concensus does put her there.