Ancient bow, Roman statuette and climbing helmet exhibited at Glacier Garden in Lucerne
The Glacier Garden exhibition assembles an ancient bow, a Roman figurine and climbing gear pulled from ice as Swiss glaciers shrink.
An exhibition in Lucerne displays objects freed from ice by melting glaciers, from an ancient bow to a Roman statuette and a mountaineering helmet. The show, titled "Wealth from Ice," is hosted at the Glacier Garden museum and presents finds that lay trapped in ice for decades or centuries.
The collection brings together everyday and unusual items recovered from high Alpine terrain, highlighting how retreating glaciers are revealing traces of human movement across the mountains.
Exhibition as warning
Curators say the exhibition is both a journey through time and a stark reminder of climate change: as ice recedes, artifacts once preserved for generations are exposed to the elements and to discovery. The objects on display document the lives of people who crossed the Alps long before modern records.
Swiss scientists report that glaciers in the country lost 5.5% of their volume this year, the second-largest annual drop since measurements began. That decline has accelerated the pace at which buried items are surfacing.
Organizers emphasize the dual value of the finds: they are important for archaeology and local history, but their emergence also signals environmental loss. The exhibition mixes scientific explanation with the recovered objects to underscore that message.
Visitors can see the juxtaposition of fragile historical artefacts and modern mountaineering equipment, a visual narrative of human presence in the high mountains and the consequences of a warming climate.
Photo: AP)
