Museums are great places to take children, even small children, to help spark a love of all art, culture, and history. These storehouses of world heritage are invaluable public resources, and seeing centuries of human creativity up close and personal is something we should all experience, early and often. Of course, as a parent, there’s always that fear, bobbing just below the surface of any fun you might be having: what if my kid f*cks something up? Well, that was the reality for the parents of a 4-year-old boy, who shattered an ancient jar on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa, Israel.
The jar, which was probably used to contain wine or olive oil, dates back to the Bronze Age (3700 to 1200 BCE). According to reporting from CNN, experts agree it is (was) at least 3,500 years old. While pottery sherds are extremely common in Israel and Palestine, finding a jar intact is quite a find. According to the boy’s father, whom The Guardian identifies simply as “Alex,” the curious preschooler wanted to see if there was anything inside the jar and, since it was not behind glass or otherwise secured, tipped it to try to peek.
Needless to say, it didn’t go well.
“My initial reaction was denial. I couldn’t believe it was my son who did it,” Alex told the Guardian, continuing. “At first, I was in shock. Then I felt a bit angry with him.”
And yet, in an interview with Ynet, museum director Inbal Rivlin reassured the boy and his parents.
“We have no claim against you,” she said. “Such events are rare, but they do happen. We will repair the jar and return it to its place in a process called healing.”
And indeed, Alex told The Guardian that the Hecht’s response was tremendous. After his wife de-escalated the situation, she went to a security guard to let them know what happened. The family was braced for the worst. But not only were they not fined or otherwise punished, they were invited to come back for a private guided tour over the weekend. Added bonus? The jar should already be fixed and back on display by then.
The Hecht says the fact that the jar was accessible enough to be damaged in the first place was very intentional, telling CNN that founder Reuben Hecht was emphatic about making artifacts as up-close as possible, noting there’s a “special charm in experiencing an archaeological find without any obstructions.” They went on to say there are no plans to change that.
“The museum is not a mausoleum but a living place, open to families and accessible,” she told Ynet. “We are appealing to parents: Don’t be afraid. Things like this happen.”
So if you’ve been avoiding museums because you know (know) deep in your heart that your little chaos goblin is One Of Those Kids likely to destroy an ancient artifact, take this as your sign that museum professionals didn’t get into this field to yell and get angry: they want people to access art and culture, even if that puts items at (low) risk.
