Ripley exhibition astonishes shoppers

Some items will send a shiver down your spine, while others are captivatingly educational or just oddly fascinating, but the Ripley’s Believe it or Not! exhibition at the Mall of the North will not disappoint.
The display will only be in Polokwane until Sunday and residents are encouraged not to miss out on this spectacular opportunity.
Artist, adventurer and public personality Robert Ripley travelled to more than 200 countries between 1920 and 1950 where he spent his time collecting unusual and odd artefacts. His books and articles became hugely popular all over the world and he laid claim to an audience of more than 80 million regular readers. Because the relics that he collected were so unique, Ripley coined the phrase “Believe it or Not!” which is still the catchphrase of all the museums, exhibitions, television programmes and articles based on his finds.
Some of the displays at Mall of the North include a film booth where visitors can see in detail how cannibals shrunk the heads that they wore as wartime souvenirs. There are also many types of interesting skulls, including an intricately carved cannibal skull and elongated skulls from South America.
Visitors also have the opportunity to have their photographs taken with replicas of astronaut Neil Armstrong, Walter Hudson, who weighed 635 kg, and Robert Wadlow, the tallest man who ever walked the earth.
There is even a microscope through which people can view a microscopic sculpture of Buzz Aldrin on the moon by artist Willard Wigan that is only 0,005 mm tall, not to forget the enormous one tonne sculpture of The Incredible Hulk, made from automotive parts in Thailand.
There are also prehistoric relics, dinosaur displays and many other fascinating items that Polokwane residents will not have the opportunity to see in the city again soon.

MARKI FRANKEN
>>marki.observer@gmail.com