MoAW presents
Spotlight:
PALEO: The Story of Life
4.6 Billion Years of Fossil History
A FOCUS ON THE HISTORY
OF MANKIND
Tools, Fire, Ritual, Art, and High Technology
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THE CENOZOIC ERA
from 65 million years ago to the present
A series of glaciations distinguishes the era that includes the present. By the time the dust settled on top of the last Cretaceous sediment, another era had dawned, the Cenozoic ("Recent Life"), giving rise to rapidly diversifying groups of mammals. No longer relying on their diminutive size for survival in a world dominated by giants, the mammals immediately assumed the roles of chief competitors for supremacy over the newly abundant territory left by the passing of the dinosaurs, producing such giants of their own as the great wooly mammoths of the Ice Age.
As the early mammals diversified throughout the Paleocene ("Ancient Recent") and the subsequent Eocene ("Recent Dawn") epochs, from 64 to 36 million years ago, many of the modern mammal groups began to appear in the fossil record. Of these early mammals, several became extinct as rainforests retreated from the frost during the Oligocene ("Few Recent"), which ended 26 million years ago. The Miocene ("Less Recent"), which followed, lasted until 6 million years ago. Along with the appearance of large, new mountain ranges, the spreading of grasslands during this period gave rise to a vast radiation of grazing animals.
As the climate became colder throughout the Pliocene ("More Recent"), from 6 to 1.6 million years ago, numerous mammals became extinct while modern plants and animals appeared, including early humankind. During the Pleistocene ("Most Recent") epoch, from 1.6 million to 10,000 years ago, vast continental glaciers spread and receded as over half of the giant mammals became extinct following the appearance of modern humans.
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Order Primates,
Family Hominidae
Homo habilis
Late Pliocene, Kenya
Contemporary with “Zinj” and descended from a common ancestral australopith, these ancient, more advanced hunter-scavengers are the earliest to be classed in our genus, Homo (Man), due to the abundant evidence of their tools found in the Olduvai Gorge. It is from these primitive tools that Homo habilis (“Handy Man”) derives his name. An early form of habilis, this 2-million-year-old individual is separately classified by some as Homo rudolfensis.
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Ranging from 4 to 5 feet in height and living perhaps 30 years, they were sexually mature and reproducing by their early teens, with all of their adult molars by age 3. Their elongated, apelike arms were extremely adapted for climbing, but with their facile hands, long freed by walking upright, they were prolific makers of stone tools for breaking open bones and scraping meat, as well as the first known to favor one hand over the other. The long-held belief that Homo habilis was the first hominid to make stone tools may have been dispelled by the discovery of the Ethiopian Australopithecus garhi (“Surprise Southern Ape”) fossils, found in the vicinity of fossil animal bones that had been scraped with stone implements 2.6 million years ago. The famous 1470 skull was collected at Koobi Fora by Bernard Ngeneo and Richard Leakey. Kenya National Museum. |
Order Primates,
Family Hominidae
Homo erectus
Late Pliocene, Kenya
Although possessing the thickest skull of any hominid, the superior intelligence of Homo erectus (“Upright Man”) enabled this Early Stone Age hunter to venture from the ancient habitats of its African ancestors to thinly populate such diverse regions as Europe and Southern Asia, perhaps following the migrating herds of large mammals as they hunted.
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Descended from Homo habilis 1.7 million years ago and credited with the discovery of fire, their improved hunting methods appear to have included the use of brush fires to drive herds of big game into ravines. Homo erectus sites yield abundant evidence of tent dwellings, hearths, and sophisticated stone tools. Possibly growing to heights of 6 feet, their brains were substantially larger than those of their more primitive predecessors. One of the earliest known erectus skulls, separately identified by some as Homo ergaster, dated 1.7 million years. No. KNM-ER 3733, collected at Koobi Fora by Bernard Ngeneo and Richard Leakey. Kenya National Museum |
Order Primates,
Family Homindae
Homo sapiens neanderthalensis Middle Pleistocene, Israel
First discovered in the Neander Valley, West Germany, this short rugged subspecies, with its thick skull and heavy brow ridges, had a larger brain than modern humans and probably spoke a primitive language. Despite their big bones and heavy build, Neanderthals grew to a height of 5 feet, 7 inches.
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Appearing about 200,000 years ago, their advanced intelligence and adaptability enabled them to survive in the harsh arctic climate of the last Ice Age. Clothed in animal skins cut with stone tools, they hunted in groups, apparently sharing the kill. Remains of crippled individuals hint at the compassionate nature of their society. Showing remarkable self-awareness, their ritual burials with floral offerings are the oldest known. Bear skulls found enshrined in their caves suggest the emergence of primitive mystical expression. |
MoAW's mission is to educate a diverse audience about the history of ancient civilizations and prehistoric life using fossils and artifacts from a variety of cultures and time periods; to enhance universal curriculum development for local and surrounding school districts, colleges, and universities, establishing museum diversity for the Coachella Valley.
Hours of Operation:
Monday - Saturday
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Sunday 12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m.
The last admission is taken one hour before closing.
Admission:
$15.00 Adults
$12.00 Students, Seniors, & Military
$ 3.00 Discount available for Coachella Valley Residents
$10.00 Group Rate for 10 or more individuals.
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, MoAW is a member of the North American Reciprocal Museum (NARM) Association, the American Alliance of Museums, and the California Association of Museums.
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Members Perks
The newest perk of membership: Free admission to over 1,200 museums nationwide through the North American Reciprocal Museum Program (NARM) Plus, discounts at their museum shops and restaurants (if given to their members). Local museums include the Palm Springs Art Museum and Cabot's Pueblo Museum, several museums in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, throughout California, all 50 states, and the District of Columbia, plus Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda. This is available to all members at the Donor Level ($125.00) or higher. Current members who qualify will be receiving new membership cards with the NARM logo to be used at participating museums.
Current members who would like to upgrade their membership to take advantage of this new benefit please give us a call, (442) 268-5004.
Click below for more information and to join.
THANK YOU
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On Display In Association With PALEO: The Story of Life
STARSCAPE:
A Journey To The
Beginning of Time
This spectacular collection of 33 space photographs combines breathtaking digitalized images from the historic Mariner, Viking, Hubble, and Voyager probes with stunning photographs from the Apollo lunar missions, and ground-based observatories. Gathered from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the California Institute of Technology, the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, the Hansen Planetarium, and Hubble Telescope, this awesome display of cosmic spectacles is a journey to the early days of the cosmos.
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Cathedral City
Historical Society
presents
Then and Now
A 40th-year anniversary exhibition of the history of Cathedral City
A comprehensive photographic and artifact-rich timeline of the history of Cathedral City will greet you upon entering the lobby of the Museum of Ancient Wonders. This is an exhibition of recollections of the people and places that created Cathedral City's early history and to celebrate the 40th anniversary of its burgeoning progress, from the past to the present, THEN AND NOW is a loving tribute to the City of Cathedral City.
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PALEO: The Story of Life
4.6 billion years of fossil history
Drawn from the world’s foremost fossil collections, the unprecedented treasury of fossil casts known as PALEO: The Story of Life brings together into one exhibition some of the most exciting finds in the history of paleontology from over a century of worldwide excavations, exhibited in geological, chronological order.
From 2.5 billion-year-old single cellular cyanobacteria responsible for the oxygenation of the atmosphere to the first multicellular life of 700 million years ago, PALEO spans 4.6 billion years in scope. From the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous dinosaurs to mammals and prehistoric humans, this internationally acclaimed, comprehensive collection dramatically illustrates the awesome story of prehistoric life on Earth.
Displaying casts of rare fossils from the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, this prestigious collection includes skeletons, skulls, claws, and eggs gathered from such revered museums as the Smithsonian Institution, the American Museum of Natural History, The Royal Ontario Museum, the Carnegie Museum, and the National Museums of Kenya, Ethiopia, and Tanzania, as well as many others.
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ALL UNDER HEAVEN
Treasures of the East
Earth, Temple,
and the Afterlife
A Very Special Gift From
Marlene and Bruce Kanter,
Heather James Fine Art
Michael H. Healy
50 original antiquities spanning millennia of ancient Asian Cultures from mysterious funerary objects and life-size protective temple guardians to decorative terracotta sculptures of beasts of burden created for the tombs of the deceased, a tapestry of silk and gold thread, a rare lacquered cosmetic box and vessel, bronze statues from China, Japan, and Indonesia reflects a celebration of everlasting happiness, enduring remembrance, and eternal life.
MoAW premieres these dazzling artifacts of antiquity displayed for the first time together in one exhibition All Under Heaven: Earth, Temple, and the Afterlife.
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LUCY:
The Story of Human Origins
(Courtesy of the Institute of Human Origins and the National Museum of Ethiopia,
Addis Ababa)
On view exclusively at the
Museum of Ancient Wonders
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