October 2004
STUDENT PROGRAMS AT CALVIN COLLEGE’S PRINCE CONFERENCE
CENTER EXPLORE THE ANCIENT CULTURES HIGHLIGHTED IN PETRA:
LOST CITY OF STONE EXHIBIT
Calvin College, host of the internationally acclaimed Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibit, has developed
a wide array of public programs about this ancient metropolis located in southern Jordan and its
creators, the Nabataeans. Youth educational opportunities will explore fascinating subjects that allow
attendees to “Experience Petra.”
Educational opportunities for students are being developed under the direction of Neal Bierling,
Chair of Student Educational Programming for the Petra Exhibit. Bierling, a Calvin College
graduate, is an archaeologist, educator and photographer. He has devoted much of his career to
endeavors related to children’s education, including the development of a Bible curriculum, a video
and CD series on archaeology and the Bible, and a CD about Middle Eastern archaeology.
“Our plans for Petra include the creation of a high-quality youth education program. First, we are
reaching out to teachers in the greater Grand Rapids area to offer them an opportunity to learn about
Petra. They will, in turn, teach their students about Petra’s history and peoples before students tour
the exhibit,” Bierling says.
Bierling is designing an Educator’s Guide, available by December 1 in both print and electronic
format on the Petra website, in conjunction with the Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibit. Teacher
training will kick off in January 2005 and will be available to public, private, charter and parochial
schools at every grade level. The training includes the use of a video giving an overview of the
exhibit (produced by Calvin College’s Communication, Arts & Sciences Department); a virtual
reality DVD of the Petra site to enhance the exhibition for students; and a calendar of youth
activities. “The guide, which features a scavenger hunt for younger students, makes the Petra
experience both educational and entertaining,” Bierling says.
Planning is underway for numerous special features for youth and their families, to be offered
throughout the exhibit’s four-month run. These include Family Field Trip Digs, where children can
participate in the excitement and adventure of a real archaeologist’s dig, located behind the Prince
Conference Center at the Al Beidha* excavation site. Bierling, a Calvin graduate, who holds a
Master’s Degree in Near Eastern Studies (Archaeology) from the University of Michigan, has
spearheaded digs for more than 30 years in Israel, Petra, and other locations. He has traveled to
Petra more than three dozen times, participating in excavations or leading tour groups.
The Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibit will open April 4, 2005, which coincides with the week of
Spring Break for area K-12 schools and is being labeled “Family Week”. The Family Week
extravaganza will feature entertainment, crafts, music and more, where families can learn about, and
experience the wonders of Petra. The week will culminate with a very special “Taste of the
Mediterranean” evening event on Friday, April 8.
“Our hope is that students of all ages can uncover some of Petra’s ancient mysteries, gain a better
understanding of the Nabataeans’ simple but amazing 2,000-year-old technology skills, and, perhaps,
become interested in a career in archaeology,” Bierling says.
2
The Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibit was organized by Cincinnati Art Museum and American Museum of
Natural History, New York under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Air transportation generously provided by Royal Jordanian.
For more information about the Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibit, running April 4 – August 15, 2005, at
the Prince Conference Center, contact Calvin College at 3201 Burton S.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49546;
616.526.7800; 800.PETRA05; or log on to www.calvin.edu/petra. Exhibit hours: M/W/F/Sat., Memorial
Day and Fourth of July, 9:30am-6pm; T/TH, 9:30am – 9pm; Closed Sunday.
-end-
______________________________________________________
For Release:
October 2004
Calvin College
Phil deHaan
Director of Media Relations
616.526.6475
dehp@calvin.edu
Professional Marketing
Diane M. Jones
President
616.949.9104
pmconsulting@aol.com
______________________________________________________
[*Al Beidha = “The White One”]
About Petra and Petra: Lost City of Stone:
Petra: Lost City of Stone is the first major cultural collaboration between Jordan and the United States. This groundbreaking
exhibition offers North American audiences the opportunity to learn about the ancient metropolis of Petra, which was literally
carved from the red sandstone in the desert cliffs of southern Jordan. Located in the Jordan Rift Valley at the crossroads of
international trade routes, Petra was one of the most influential and prosperous commercial centers in antiquity. The rich cultural
life of the city reflected a confluence of Eastern and Western styles and traditions.
The forbidding desert was transformed by the Nabataeans into a bustling metropolis with monumental tombs carved directly into
the red sandstone hills, and hundreds of other structures including burial chambers, funerary banquet halls, residences, theaters,
bath complexes, arched gates and a complex system of water channels and reservoirs. The Nabataeans were skilled engineers and
developed and maintained an elaborate system of damming, terracing and irrigation that allowed them to maximize the
agricultural potential of the surrounding Petra plateau.
From the second century B.C. through the third century A.D., Petra prospered. A massive earthquake in A.D. 363 destroyed much
of the city, and, although partially revived after that, Petra was no longer the economic powerhouse it had been. Much of the
technological infrastructure that had made life in Petra possible fell into disuse, and political and religious changes in the ancient
world led to the eventual abandonment of the city in the seventh century A.D.
From its rediscovery by Swiss explorer Johann Burckhardt in 1812, Petra, with its savage beauty, desolate setting, the mystery
and splendor of its rock-carved architectural ruins and the variegated color of its cliff faces, has been a source of deep fascination
for Westerners. It became a major pilgrimage site for 19th century European and American artists and other travelers, and it
continues to enthrall. It was even used as a location for the popular 1989 feature film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
About Calvin College
Founded in 1876, Calvin College has become one of the largest Christian colleges in North America with over 4,000 students
from the U.S., Canada and another 50 countries around the globe. Calvin College offers nearly 100 majors and areas of study
and has 10 off-campus program options for students, including such places as China, Ghana, and Honduras. Calvin is widely
recognized for its outreach by means of scholarly study and works of art by its faculty and by student and alumni service in their
various communities. Special events also broaden Calvin’s outreach. Among them is the biennial Conference on Faith and
Writing, which brings noted writers to campus, and the annual widely-recognized January Series, a 15-day educational and
cultural series, which brings to campus internationally recognized musicians and scholars on timely topics. The archaeological
exhibit Petra: Lost City of Stone is brought to Calvin College as part of its dedication to community education and outreach.