An ancient vase is back on display at an Israeli museum, nearly two weeks after a four-year-old visitor accidentally broke it late last month.
The vase dates to the Bronze Age, around 2200-1500 BC, before the time of King David and King Solomon, and is completely intact, making it a rare find and a priceless artifact.
The artifact, which was on display at Haifa's Hecht Museum, fell over and shattered when a small visitor tried to pull it to get a better look.
The boy's father, Alex Geller, said his son, the youngest of three, was extraordinarily curious, The Associated Press reported, adding that the first thought that came to his mind when he heard the crash was, “Please, that's not my kid.”
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A young preschooler accidentally broke a 3,500-year-old vase that was not covered in glass at the Hecht Museum in Haifa. (Hecht Museum)
The museum quickly hired experts to restore the vase and return it to its original location near the museum's main entrance.
On Wednesday, the vase was reassembled, restored and put back on display.
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A rare Bronze Age jar that was accidentally broken in August by a four-year-old visiting the Hecht Museum at the University of Haifa in Israel has been reassembled and put on public display on Wednesday, September 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Irian)
When archaeologists put together artifacts, they are often faced with the difficult task of sifting through piles of fragments from multiple objects.
But in this case, because the fragments were cut from a single, complete vase, restoration was expected to be fairly straightforward, said Loe Shire, a restoration expert at the museum.
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A rare Bronze Age jar that was accidentally broken in August by a four-year-old visiting the Hecht Museum at the University of Haifa in Israel has been reassembled and put on public display on Wednesday, September 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Irian)
Using 3D technology, high-definition video and special adhesives, experts were able to recreate the large vase.
A few pieces were missing and the gluing process left some hairline cracks, but the impressive size of the bottle remains intact.
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Bronze Age vase. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Irian)
The only big difference is that there are new signs near the jars that say “Do not touch.”
Now that it is back on display, museum director Inbal Rivlin and the museum have decided to use the incident as a learning experience, offering a special tour to the Geller family to explain the restoration process.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
