The Museum of Human Evolution (MHE) broadens its cultural and scientific content with the addition of a new exhibition space termed “Pieza única”

The first of the pieces of work that can be found in this space is “The Feathered Neanderthal”, work done by paleoartist Fabio Fogliazza of the Museum of Natural History of Milan, which is accompanied by other small pieces complementary of the MHE.

 The counselor of Culture and Tourism, Alicia Garcia, and the scientific director of the Museum of Human Evolution, Juan Luis Arsuaga, have presented a demonstration that inaugurates a new space for temporary exhibitions in the Museum of Human Evolution that is focused on increasing its cultural content. Alicia Garcia has indicated that this initiative has been implemented in order to enlarge the spaces for temporary exhibits with the objective to increase the cultural content and to help the dynamic of the museum. Today the new exhibition space has been opened to the public, can be found on level1 of the museum, the floor that corresponds to the cultural evolution, and has been termed “Pieza única”. This space will contain singular pieces with the intention to help develop a concept of understanding the characteristics of one singular piece through science. These pieces may have complimentary components or by dissimilar pieces, depending on the theme of an exhibit, that can help explain the contents within. “Pieza única” is a new exhibit for the museum that aids in uniting the newly inaugurated “space of biodiversity” with the exhibit of “Uantoks. The exhibition of Pedro Saura.” The first of the unique pieces that can be seen in this new exhibit space is “The Feathered Neanderthal” and the title of the exhibit: “A New Insight on the Neanderthals”, in which you can see its primary figure, a piece created by paleoartist Fabio Fogliazza of the Museum of Natural History of Milan, in which he was present for its inauguration. In the piece, “The Feathered Neanderthal” is a minuscular reproduction of a Neanderthal and around her there is diverse pieces that illustrate the expository discourse and trying to explain the clues that seem to prove that the conscious, symbolic and able to express through language mind has not been exclusive to Homo sapiens. The showroom contains information over the Italian Fumane along with a selection of birds that were found in the deposits, whose feathers appear on the sculpture “The Feathered Neanderthal”. With this new showroom one can simultaneously see in the museum three temporary exhibits: in the temporary exhibit showroom, which is on level -1, you can find the exhibit, “Wax Bodies”; and on level 2 you can find the exhibit “Uantoks” alongside the newly presented, “A New Insight on the Neanderthals” exhibit. Data over the Museum of Human Evolution and the Sistema Atapuerca  The counselor of Culture and Tourism has referred that the new culture content that is now found in the Museum of Human Evolution, along with the scientific content and a promotion that the “Junta de Castilla y León” has provided, has contributed to the museums dynamic and the Sistema Atapuerca that contribute to the museums internationalism, increased visits and a growing interest for the Sistema Atapuerca. The visits to the Sistema Atapuerca have increased by 34.04% during the first five months in 2014, adding 181,621 visitors to the 135,492 in 2013. Compared to the first five months back in 2011, this increased in museum visitors is considered the highest by surpassing it by 14% back when the museum was inaugurated. The visits for the Sistema Atapauerca have also increased in correlation with the Museum of Human Evolution’s visits in the first five months in 2014 by 35.66%. They received 129,065 visits compared to the 95,137 visits in 2013. As for the permanent exhibits found the museum, there have been 60,366 people who have visited them, which is 15.75% more than there was in 2013. Meanwhile, for the temporary exhibits have reached around 68,699 visitors, which is 60.30% more than in 2013. The visits to the Sistema Atapuerca have increased by 28.67% during these first months by receiving 29,478 visitors compared to the 23,235 from last year. As for the Archeologist Park, there has been around 23,078 visitors compared to the 17,120 visitors in 2013, bring this to an increase of 34.80%. Promoting of the Sistema Atapuerca The “Junta de Castilla y León” has been promoting the Museum of Human Evolution in many key cities within the country. With the “a bridge to cross time”, the counselor of Culture and Tourism has promoted the visits to the museum and the deposits in many metro stations in Madrid, Barcelona and Bilbao. The Museum of Human Evolution has been present in a total of 70 metro stations in these three cities and they campaign has reached around 1,716,000 people. This promotion has been complemented with actions in the mobility aspect in the populations near Madrid like Alcobendas, Getafe, Leganés, Alcorcón, Móstoles, Puzuelo or Las Rozas. These series of promotional actions, like indicated under the motto of “Homo Campeonis” in which the MHE wants to show their support for the selection.