Travelog post for: Nami Geneveva

Today we went to the British Museum!

First we travelled by train...



...and then we went on the Tube



At long last we arrived.  We began our visit in the Great Court, looking at the spectacular architecture and marvelling at all the people!

The Great Court, reopened after extensive refurbishment by Queen Elizabeth II in 2000, stands at the heart of the British Museum.  It was once an open courtyard, but at 2 acres is now the largest covered public square in Europe, enclosed under a glass and steel roof. Surrounding the well known Reading Room, the court contains several sculptures from different countries and eras.





I spotted two very tall totem poles.  Below it you can see lots of people eating their lunch.  But there was no time for us to eat - we had too much to see!



I could just see an interesting looking lion in the distance, and we decided to go and have a closer look.



This fearsome creature is the Lion of Knidos.  The inscription said: 'Weighing more than 7 tons, this colossal lion comes from a tomb in the ancient cemetary of Knidos, a coastal city in South West Turkey.  The tomb stood on the edge of a cliff overlooking the approach to Knidos harbour. The building itself rose some 18 metres, and its pyramid roof was topped by the lion.  It is carved of marble brought across the Aegean sea from Mount Pentelikon near the city of Athens.  The lower jaw and front paws are missing, and the eye sockets are now empty.  These were once filled, probably with metal or glass, to catch the light. The reflection of light may have been an aid to sailors navigating the notoriously difficult coast.'



Next we had a look at some Egyptian sculptures.  These four granite figures are of the goddess Sakhmet, from about 1360 BC, from Thebes, Temple of Mut.  Her name means 'She who is powerful'.  Many similar figures remain in the temple today.  The sign told us 'Sakhmet was a leonine (lion-like) goddess who was regarded by the Egyptians as a bringer of destruction to the enemies of the sun-god Re.  She appears to have been an object of special veneration to King Amenophis III, who caused an enormous number of statues of her to be erected in his mortuary temple in Western Thebes and in the Temple of Mut at Kamak."





Then I said hello to this lovely lady...



but I was a little afraid to go too close to these imposing figures!







Before we left, I tried to read hieroglyphics!



The sign said 'Limestone stela of Sobkhopte, about 1400 BC.  The scribe of the wine-seller Sobkhopte and his wife worship Osiris and Anubis in the upper register.  They receive offerings from their children in the lower registers.'