Some 24 centuries ago, Greek craftsmen made a gold pectoral, or chest
ornament, from which this pastoral scene comes, for a Scythian king in the
Ukraine. It is one of more than 50 Ukrainian treasures on show in Light
Fingered Gold*, an exhibition with a difference. There are no objects on
display, but instead holograms of them – the originals, some of the most
important historical objects from the Ukraine, are too valuable or fragile
to transport. The oldest object, a mammoth’s tusk, was engraved by Stone
Age artists from 20 000 years ago. The holograms, lent by the Ukranian Academy
of Science, do not represent the objects perfectly – they have a brown tinge
and look slightly speckled. This, however, seems to have the effect of encouraging
people to take a closer look.
*Light Fingered Gold is open Mondays to Saturdays 10 am to 5 pm (8 pm
on Thursdays) until 30 September at The Nave at St Margaret’s Chruch, Windsor
St, Uxbridge, Middlesex (Tel: 0895 812193). Admission is free.
