Forbidden History Exhibit extended through Aug. 1

COURTESY PHOTO One of the Crystal Skulls of South and Central America on display at the Southwest Florida Museum of History. Due to popular demand, visitors to the Southwest Florida Museum of History will have most of the summer to explore three of the Travel Channel's top 10 places of mystery. The museum is extending the Forbidden History Exhibit through Aug. 1. This exhibit features 35 replicas of historical anomalies, mysteries and their stories.

Among them, the Crystal Skulls of South and Central America that served as the backdrop for the popular 2008 movie "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." Also on the list are crop circles and the exhibit's showpiece, the Ark of the Covenant.

This alternative history exhibit asks the question: What if? What if there's a story behind the story?

Visitors to the museum will have the opportunity to discover for themselves the mysteries behind the stories that have been the stuff of legends, myths, conspiracy theories and movies. Thirtyfive exact replica artifacts and their stories, including the crop circle at Stonehenge, Dead Sea scroll, Aztec Calendar and the Ark of the Covenant converge, in this never-before-seen exhibit.

Why this type of exhibit? "The museum has dealt with pre-history and history and was equally interested in alternative interpretations of history because of the historical anomalies," said Marty Martin, curator of Origins Museum the International Institute, based in El Paso, Texas.

Highlights of the exhibit include a replica of the Ark of the Covenant built to proportions described in the Bible, and two Cuneiform tablets, the oldest written documents that tell the stories of the Bible. The two tablets presented in the exhibit are direct imprints from the originals at the British Museum and show the story of Noah's Ark and Creation.

"Our goal is to present the exhibit to the public and allow them to consider the possibilities — it is all part of history and that is what we are presenting," said Matt Johnson, general manager of the Southwest Florida Museum of History.

Visit www.swflmuseumofhistory.com or call 321-7430 for more information.