The family of a four-year-old boy who smashed a 3,500-year-old jar have been invited back by the museum where it happened.
The boy’s horrified father, named Alex, told how his son accidentally broke the Bronze Age vase at the Hecht Museum in Israel, as he tried to peer inside it to see if it contained anything.
The museum places special emphasis on making archaeological items accessible to the general public, presenting items without divisions and glass walls where possible.
The boy “pulled the jar slightly” and “the jar tipped over and fell”, Alex told the Guardian.
“My initial reaction was denial,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it was my son who did it.”
But instead of scalding the boy or his family, the museum has reportedly invited them back to the museum, this time for a special guided tour.
The ancient pitcher dates back to the Middle Bronze Age, to between the years 1500 and 2200BC, according to a post on the museum’s Facebook page.
In a statement on Facebook, the museum’s director, Inbal Rivlin, said: “There are cases in which display items are intentionally damaged, and such cases are treated very seriously, including police involvement - in the current case it was not the case.
“The pitcher was hit by a young boy who visited the museum and the treatment will be accordingly.”
She added that “despite the rare case”, the museum “will continue [its] tradition” of displaying artefacts without physical barriers where possible.
A specialist has already been called in to help restore the piece, the museum said.
“Because there is photographic documentation of the pitcher and in light of the introduction to the shape of the pitcher, in a short time the pitcher will return to its place,” the post continued.
“The Hecht F Museum will take the opportunity to document the healing work, so that it can also be presented to the public - so that soon you can see the pitcher again, and also the work that made it possible to ‘rescue’.”
The vase is said to be typical of the Canaan region, and is believed to predate the days of King David and Solomon, where it was used for storing and transporting goods such as wine and olive oil.
“Similar jugs have been found in archaeological excavations, but most of them have been found broken or incomplete,” said the museum, which is based in Haifa, Israel.
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