Pompeii in the Shadow of the Volcano exhibit opens at the ROM on June 13

The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) hosted a media preview of the upcoming exhibit titled Pompeii: In the Shadow of the Volcano, which features over 200 artifacts dating back over 2,000 years when the catastrophic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius which led to destruction on a massive scale and the deaths of over 16,000 people.

The ROM has prepared for the opening of the exhibit by projecting a simulation of the volcano on to the facade of the ROM Crystal. The volcano projection will erupt on Friday evening.

As part of the media preview, Tenor Francesco Pellegrino opened the proceedings with a reading and a song. Tited Fronna, the above song an improvised lament sung a capella, evolved from traditional funeral laments in the countryside.

The exhibit shows various artifacts and even molds of people and animals whose forms were preserved through time as well as examples of art, design and day-to-day Pompeii life. Pompeii will run between June 13 2015, to Jan 16, 2016 before moving to  the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum launches ScopifyROM for iOS, a first-of-its-kind interactive museum app

In an effort to offer its visitors a more interactive experience within the walls of its museum, Toronto's ROM - in conjuction with Kensington Communications - has launched its first app for iOS entitled "Scopify". At first of its kind for any museum, Scopify allows visitors to experience ROM objects in fun and interactive ways, including Animating a dodo, X-raying a mummy, and Skinning a dino. Along with the exclusive range of custom-made ScopifyROM tools, visitors can animate, X-Ray, scan, magnify and otherwise “Select” ROM objects. For instance, users who visit the Schad Gallery of Biodiversity are able to Animate the ROM’s Dodo skeleton with ScopifyROM.  As a famed extinct species, this metre-tall flightless ancestor of the common pigeon and dove comes to life in an instant, moving as it would when Dodos populated the island of Mauritius. Also available is the ability to discover the Galleries of Africa: Egypt; with ScopifyROM, you can CT Scan, and Decode a Mummy. 

Very cool, forward-thinking initiative by the ROM to further engage its cult base of followers. 

Download Scopify for free via the AppStore here, word is the Android version of the app is on its way as well

Learn more about the app via the ROM's website here