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J. PAUL GETTY MUSEUM EXTENDS DATES FOR POPULAR EXHIBITION

THE CYRUS CYLINDER AND ANCIENT PERSIA: A NEW BEGINNING  

Talk with Neil MacGregor, Director of the British

Added to Slate of Educational Programming

LOS ANGELES, CA, November 12, 2013 - Due to its popularity, the Getty Villa exhibition The Cyrus Cylinder and Ancient Persia: A New Beginning, featuring one of the most celebrated discoveries from the ancient world, has been extended through Sunday, December 8 The Getty Villa will also continue its special Saturday evening hours until 9:00 p.m. through the extended run of the exhibition.

To date, the exhibition's weekly average attendance places it among the top exhibitions ever shown at the Getty Villa. Extending the run of the exhibition provides an additional week for visitors to see this iconic document on loan from the British Museum, which concludes its highly successful United States tour in Los Angeles. Previous venues have included the Smithsonian's Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco.

On November 23 at 6:00 p.m., Timothy Potts, director of the J. Paul Getty Museum, and Neil McGregor, director of the British Museum, will discuss the Cyrus Cylinder and cultural diplomacy. The conversation will take place in the Auditorium at the Getty Villa and is supported by U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management. Tickets are free, but a reservation is required and available by calling 310-440-7300 or at www.getty.edu.

The Cyrus Cylinder

Inscribed on the orders of the Persian king Cyrus II (ruled 559-530 B.C.), the Cyrus Cylinder recounts how he conquered the city of Babylon in 539 B.C. and instituted reforms throughout the region, restoring sanctuaries that had become dilapidated and permitting exiled peoples to return home. Often seen as a historic declaration of religious and political tolerance, the inscription in Babylonian cuneiform writing on a clay cylinder provides critical contemporary confirmation of Cyrus's reputation as a benevolent ruler in ancient Greek and biblical texts, and bears witness to the multi-ethnic nature of the expanding Achaemenid Empire, which introduced innovative forms of writing, religion, and luxury goods to the Near East. 

In addition to the Cyrus Cylinder, the exhibition includes a number of related objects that highlight the artistic, cultural, and historical achievements of the Achaemenid Empire of Iran, including spectacular jewelry, vessels, and other gold objects from the Oxus Treasure, as well as architectural fragments and finely carved cylinder seals used to 'sign' clay documents.

The Cyrus Cylinder and Ancient Persia: A New Beginning

The exhibition at the Getty Villa is curated by Timothy Potts, director of the J. Paul Getty Museum, and David Saunders, assistant curator of Antiquities at the J. Paul Getty Museum.

The Getty Villa is open Wednesday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is closed Tuesday and major holidays. Admission to the Getty Villa is always free. A ticket is required for admission. Tickets can be ordered in advance, or on the day of your visit, at www.getty.edu/visit or at (310) 440-7300. Parking is $15 per car. Groups of 15 or more must make reservations by phone. For more information, call (310) 440-7300 (English or Spanish); (310) 440-7305 (TTY line for the deaf or hearing impaired). The Getty Villa is at 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, California.  

Additional information is available at www.getty.edu.