Machu Picchu is said to be second highest bucket list destination, following Egypt. So it is not surprising, after the success of the Australian Museum’s (AM) last blockbuster exhibition, Ramses & the Gold of the Pharaohs – which drew 508,000 visitors earlier this year, that it has followed with Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru, an exhibition of Peruvian treasures.
The exhibition opened recently at the Museum and has been developed in partnership with Neon Global, Museo Larco and the Ministry of Culture of Peru.
NEON creates experiential entertainment, and enjoys partnerships with The Walt Disney Company and Marvel Entertainment. Among over 80 exhibitions it has produced, it was also behind Ramses the Great & the Gold of the Pharaohs and Pompeii: The Exhibition (opening in Canberra this week).
Understandably, these exhibitions take on a formulaic quality, but that doesn’t diminish their capacity to draw crowds and entertain.
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While Machu Picchu is the superstar of this ancient history, the exhibition steps visitors through six cultural periods covering over 3000 years of civilisation (ChavÃn, Moche, Chimú, Nazca, Lambayeque, and Inca). It is a tale of human ingenuity, of ancient Andean history, cosmology, rituals, power structures and agriculture.
Across the 134 objects that make up this exhibition, the visitor is witness to the supernatural, animal world and human world converging. A great example is a ceramic bottle that illustrates the Shamanic Transformation (Cupisnique culture 1250 BC) as the shaman passes between worlds by taking on animal superpowers, morphing in the vessel.
There is another gallery that presents the most opulent collection of Andean gold and body ornaments to ever travel outside of Peru, and there are lots of depictions of animals and ‘superhero’ characters across the exhibition, making it great for kids.
Colour is used to signal the different periods and themes across the exhibition space, which is easy to navigate.
That sense of storytelling is strong in this exhibition, and the wall didactics take on a picture-book feel. The exhibition spaces are also heavily narrated. This amps up the ‘experential’ aspect of the exhibition, offering that kind of walk-through entertainment that is so popular today. And yet, the exhibition is peppered with traditional museological displays, with the pieces of ancient pottery and priceless gold in cases.
This offers a good balance and allows those interested to dive deeper. And a VR (virtual reality) experience is a great add-on for those wanting to be transported further. It was filmed during the COVID pandemic, enabling a rare look at the vacant UNESCO heritage site.
With this technology you fly over Machu Picchu and virtually climb Huayna Picchu – it is both exhilarating and frightening as you are given the powers of flight and escorted by a god of the ancient world.
It is not one for those scared of heights, but the VR experience recently won ‘Best Use of VR’ at the Lumiere Awards, and it is definitely worth experiencing.
Sydney is the fourth city in the world to host this blockbuster, following Boca Raton in Florida (US), Paris (France) and Milan (Italy). While I have reservations about our appetite for fly-in blockbusters (at great expense and government support over local programming), I am sure this exhibition will again draw huge visitation over the summer.
Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru
23 November 2024 – 23 February 2025
Australian Museum
1 William Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney
Ticketed
