Dozens Of Mummies Arrive At Franklin Institute For Exhibition Opening Soon
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Under tight security, a shipment of 40 mummies was delivered this morning to the Franklin Institute. They are the stars of a new exhibit, "Mummies of the World," that begins June 18th.
As the tractor-trailer backed up to the loading dock of the Franklin Institute, at 20th and Winter Streets, security agents moved in to protect what is the largest exhibit of its kind -- 40 mummies, preserved naturally and intentionally, including a 6,400-year-old child mummy from Peru.
Heather Gill-Frerking, who calls herself a "mummyologist," says visitors to the exhibit should expect the unexpected.
"I guarantee that you will learn one thing that you didn't know before," she says, "and you will find one mummy that's your absolute favorite."
Troy Collins, senior vice president of programming, marketing and business development for the Franklin Institute, says the exhibit opens a window into the lives of ancient peoples.
"That was a real person," Collins says of each of the mummies in the exhibition. "That person had a life and a story behind him or her."
Reported by Karin Phillips, KYW Newsradio 1060
Hear Karin Phillips describe the arrival of the mummies at the Franklin Institute in this CBS Philly podcast...
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