Latest news with #culturalHeritage
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Moment tourist damages 2,000-year-old terracotta warrior statues at Chinese museum
Two Chinese terracotta warrior statues, thought to be around 2,000 years old, were damaged after a tourist climbed over a museum fence. Public security officials say the 30-year-old was visiting the museum housing the terracotta army in the city of Xi'an on Friday when he 'climbed over the guardrail and the protective net and jumped'. The man 'pushed and pulled' the clay warriors and two were 'damaged to varying degrees', the statement said. The man, who was said to 'suffer from mental illness', was detained by security and removed from the museum. The 8,000-strong terracotta army once guarded the tomb of the first emperor and is considered a symbol of ancient Chinese artistic and military sophistication.
The Independent
a day ago
- General
- The Independent
Moment tourist damages 2,000-year-old terracotta warrior statues at Chinese museum
Two Chinese terracotta warrior statues, thought to be around 2,000 years old, were damaged after a tourist climbed over a museum fence. Public security officials say the 30-year-old was visiting the museum housing the terracotta army in the city of Xi'an on Friday when he 'climbed over the guardrail and the protective net and jumped'. The man 'pushed and pulled' the clay warriors and two were 'damaged to varying degrees', the statement said. The man, who was said to 'suffer from mental illness', was detained by security and removed from the museum. The 8,000-strong terracotta army once guarded the tomb of the first emperor and is considered a symbol of ancient Chinese artistic and military sophistication.
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Five women in hot water after pole dancing stunt at Greek palace goes viral
Five women who staged a semi-nude photo shoot on a pole outside a 'cultural landscape' at 1.30am while on holiday in Greece have faced court. British dancers Imogen Gunter-Zak, 30, Sharon Randell, 57, Alisha Haddrell, 32, Katie Clark, 40, and a German woman were allegedly filmed swinging around the white post at Corfu's Old Palace, a 200-year-old former royal residence and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Footage of the troupe, who were reportedly visiting the Greek Island for a two-week study abroad program with their pole dancing school, showed two members of the group in sexy red lingerie posing for photos as the others cheered them on, The Sun reports. However, the pole dancers were later arrested after the video of the photo shoot went viral, with the women accused of violating archaeological law and degrading the surrounding area, with Corfu's Ministry of Culture referring to it as an 'illegal act'. Two of the five dancers were handed six-month suspended sentences and ordered to pay €200 in court fees, according to local outlet The remaining three dancers were acquitted. Outside court, the acquitted dancers apologised, insisting they 'meant no disrespect to the monument' and 'never intended to cause offence'. But the ordeal has been slammed by Steve Gunter-Zak, the father of the youngest woman involved, who claimed the women were treated like 'scrubbers' and locked away with hardened criminals 'They had no idea it was wrong to be performing where they were,' he told The Sun. 'I believe this has been driven by politics. Someone in authority has got it in for them. 'But these women are not scrubbers. They're not tarts and their dancing is not sexual. It's performance art.' His daughter Imogen and Sharon were named by the publication as the two that have been hit with the six-month suspended jail terms. They were convicted of 'degrading the cultural landscape' at the Old Palace of St Michael and St George. Both have appealed with their lawyer Makis Grammenos confident of success. 'They didn't need to spend three nights in cells. They were anxious, sleep-deprived and had no food,' he said. Retired lecturer Steve said Imogen and Alisha – her pal and business partner – hired a local photographer to shoot video and stills of their trip. 'He chose where they would perform. He assured them this site was okay and they trusted him,' the dad claimed. 'They did it late at night to cause as little disturbance and nuisance to locals. 'But it attracted quite a few people and some were videoing on phones. One put it online and it went viral. 'A few days later it became clear the girls were in trouble so they went to a police station to tell them what they'd been doing. 'But as soon as they got there they were charged.' Steve also claimed that despite Imogen being convicted she was never even dancing. Thanos Giannakouris said: 'They didn't leave a scratch on the monument. 'It's totally overblown. These were young girls having a bit of fun.' The three women who were acquitted have since apologised on camera. The footage, which was reportedly filmed during the early hours of May 23, 2025, shows a photo shoot taking place after a pole was erected beneath the grand arch of the historic structure. The UNESCO World Heritage Site seen in the footage first opened in 1824 and is a renowned example of Regency architecture. Despite suffering damage during the war, it has since been restored and adapted to house the Museum of Asian Art of Corfu — a unique institution in Greece, featuring rare and extensive collections from China, Japan, India, and other parts of Asia.
The Sun
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Brit women arrested for pole-dancing in Corfu are ‘performance artists' & were treated like ‘scrubbers' in jail
FIVE Brits held over a pole-dancing stunt in Corfu were treated like 'scrubbers' and locked away with hardened criminals, one of their dads has claimed. The group sparked outrage after two of the women were recorded swinging around a flagpole in lingerie and posing for pictures at a protected world heritage site. 5 5 5 Steve Gunter-Zak's daughter Imogen, 30, is said to have organised the stunt as she was arrested and forced to endure three days in jail. Sharon Randell, 57, Alisha Haddrell, 32, Katie Clark, 40, and a German woman all joined her locked away in hellish Greek prison cells. Devastated dad Steve has now said the women had no idea what they were doing was wrong and believed it was just "performance art". He said: 'They had no idea it was wrong to be performing where they were. 'I believe this has been driven by politics. Someone in authority has got it in for them. "But these women are not scrubbers. They're not tarts and their dancing is not sexual. It's performance art.' Two of the women, said to be Imogen, of Worcester, and Sharon, of Faringdon, Oxon, were hit with six-month suspended jail terms. They were convicted of 'degrading the cultural landscape' at the Old Palace of St Michael and St George, as previously reported by The Sun. Both have appealed with their lawyer Makis Grammenos confident of success. He said: 'They didn't need to spend three nights in cells. They were anxious, sleep deprived and had no food.' Moment Brit pole dancers issue grovelling apology after avoiding jail over scantily-clad display at hallowed Greek site All five are believed to have met online or at a yoga retreat in Corfu. Two are thought to still be on the island while three flew home on Monday. Retired lecturer Steve said Imogen and Alisha - her pal and business partner - hired a local photographer to shoot video and stills of their trip. He said: 'He chose where they would perform. He assured them this site was okay and they trusted him. "They did it late at night to cause as little disturbance and nuisance to locals. 'But it attracted quite a few people and some were videoing on phones. One put it online and it went viral. "A few days later it became clear the girls were in trouble so they went to a police station to tell them what they'd been doing. "But as soon as they got there they were charged." Steve also said that despite Imogen being convicted she was never even dancing. They were only there to train the women, he added. Three women have since apologised on camera. The UNESCO World Heritage Site seen in the footage first opened in 1824 and is a renowned example of Regency architecture. And despite being accused of violating archaeological law and degrading the surrounding area, a lawyer believes the charges won't stick. Thanos Giannakouris said: 'They didn't leave a scratch on the monument. "It's totally overblown. These were young girls having a bit of fun.' 5 5
CBC
3 days ago
- General
- CBC
Indigenous community on Manitoulin Island gets a data centre to help preserve its cultural heritage
An Indigenous community on Manitoulin Island in northeastern Ontario says its new data centre will help it secure its data sovereignty. The Ogimaa (or chief) of Wiikwemkoong, Tim Ominika, said the community will be using the data centre to store information about programs and services, including the community's education department, health centre and services offered through the band office. It will also allow the First Nation to preserve its cultural heritage locally. "It empowers us to digitally preserve and share our Anishinaabe language because that is another thing we are looking at our knowledge, our traditions," Ominika said. The facility arrived by truck on Friday, May 23. "It looks like a large storage container," Ominika said. "But inside… with the data storage system in there, it looks like you're in a movie when you see all of the data storage and all the compartments. That's what it looks like inside, inside the unit." Ominika said the community previously used third-party vendors to host its information online. "Not saying we don't trust any other IT [information technology] businesses out there, but you know, we are just trying to look at paving the way for Anishinabek communities such as our community here," he said. Although he did not provide the exact cost for the data centre, Ominika said "it wasn't cheap." He added that it was a worthwhile investment for the community to preserve important cultural data, and information about services, locally. Ominika said Wiikwemkoong could make arrangements with other Indigenous communities to store their data. The data centre is also expected to create some local jobs to keep it running, and Ominika said he hopes it sparks more interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields among young people in the community.
