Bik Van Der Pol* – 301
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THE ADDITION BIK VAN DER POL* – 301 REPLACING A MOON ROCK WITH A PIECE OF PETRIFIED WOOD AND HOW THIS CHANGED OUR PERCEPTION OF THE WORLD [excerpts from press release, links are examined from various perspectives. Through September 2006] this object, the artists address issues such as the exploration of the unknown, colonisation, and authenticity, as well as FLY ME TO THE MOON questions concerning the public, public interest and the Moon rock from Rijksmuseum significance of a public collection. collection on display as part Fly Me To The Moon consists of guided tours— of art project following a so-called “dynamic script”—to the exhibition October 6–November 17, 2006 in one of the empty and now fully stripped towers of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The project also manifests In connection with the renovation of the Rijksmuseum itself in the public realm of Amsterdam with posters in Amsterdam, the art project Fly me to the Moon will be 100 public lightboxes. Part of the project is the publication opened on Friday October 6. Artists Bik Van der Pol took Fly Me To The Moon, designed by Ben Laloua/Didier as core item of the project one of the oldest objects in the col- Pascal, published by Sternberg Press, containing texts by lection of the Rijksmuseum: a moon rock. The crew of the Jennifer Allen, Bik Van der Pol, Wouter Davidts, Frans first manned lunar landing mission, Apollo 11, brought von der Dunk and Jane Rendell, reflecting on the presence this rock back to earth in 1969. That same year the three and potential significance of the moon rock in the collec- astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin Aldrin and Michael tion of the Rijksmuseum. Collins visited the Netherlands. Willem Drees, a former [ … ] Dutch prime minister, received the rock on that occasion as a present from the United States ambassador. Later, this piece of stone was donated to the Rijksmuseum. Since the “discovery” of the moon, people have laid claim to it, whether symbolic or genuine. The moon has resourc- es that could potentially be extracted using technologies yet to be developed. Pending future developments, there is a lively Internet trade in deeds to pieces of the moon, avail- able at bargain prices. The moon rock creates links between the site of the mu- seum, the city, the collection and its own origins. These * Please see the bibliography for further information. [excerpts from blogs following Last month, further analysis at the VU University because they got it with a rather ambiguous plaque: Novaderrik, the news that ‘Moon rock’ in Dutch in Amsterdam confirmed what Van Westrenen and a jagged fist-size stone with reddish tints, it was 27 August 2009, 11:14 PM museum is just petrified wood] Wielders already suspected. Van Westrenen got mounted and placed above a plaque that said, “With So how did the petrified wood get to the moon? permission to chisel a small piece from the rock and the compliments of the Ambassador of the United BertL, research it with a microscope and spectroscope, a States of America … to commemorate the visit to Van Rijn, 27 August 2009, 05:52 PM device that recognizes chemical elements. The Netherlands of the Apollo-11 astronauts.” The 27 August 2009, 11:25 PM Heard the news yesterday. I was thinking of how In the sample, wood cells were visible. On top of plaque does not specify that the rock came from the Right, that’s the other suspect side of this story: this would be taken up in the “moon hoax” discus- that, it turned out that the piece was made of a cer- moon’s surface somebody is first claiming that this really was from sion. From the articles I read it seems that this in- tain variety of quartz. Further research will be done the moon, and they’re now denying it. What is formation was known for almost a year. I also found to find out more about the origin of the tree. BertL, the agenda? an article from July saying the same. 27 August 2009, 08:30 PM One thing that makes me pretty sure this is not Slang, So it was Drees (the ex-Prime Minister who origi- Ong, going to give hoax believers a field day, is that it 27 August 2009, 06:46 PM nally got the rock) who assumed it was a moon rock. 29 August 2009, 07:29 PM only took a quick geologist’s look to determine Why did it take so long before someone got the idea When someone from the Rijksmuseum phoned Interesting, though. How many other moon rocks that this was fake. If other moon rocks were fake, to investigate it? By the way, I also heard that the with NASA to check whether it really was, NASA are mislabeled fakes, or meteorites? geologists would have known after only some museum did not want to give the moon rock to have said it was possible. But still, the museum curators quick inspection. it examined by specialists if it was real. Makes one were still pretty careless with the whole deal. Pzkpfw, On top of that we have to remember that this wonder what they were so afraid of. 29 August 2009, 10:46 PM fake moon rock was given to a Dutch ex-Premier as Pzkpfw, I’m compelled to note: a gift 40 years ago, and has never been in scientific BertL, 27 August 2009, 08:43 PM 1. It is misleading to say “fakes” as that implies “de- circles before. Only three years ago it went to the 27 August 2009, 07:33 PM I can’t imagine the U.S. Ambassador played a trick; ception on purpose.” The event in question is sim- Rijksmuseum for an exposition named Fly Me to the Err, but it only took a quick examination of I would assume (if the plaque is real) that the “rock” ply a silly mistake. Moon. Here’s a piece of text from the article I linked Eoanthropus dawsoni (“Piltdown man,” a famous had some scientific or other merit and was per- 2. It is incorrect to imply that the people who study to, translated into English: paleontological hoax) by properly suspicious inves- ceived to have some kind of relevant value. Then these things can’t tell the difference between rocks As early as October last year physicist and space tigators to ferret that fake out. And it still occupies something got lost in translation. gathered from the Moon and meteorites (some of flight entrepreneur Arno Wielders found out the a post of honor in the Creationist’s examples of how which we know do come from the Moon). rock wasn’t real. Wielders saw the stone at the Fly science fails. I’m sure this rock, eh, tree, will have Slang, 3. As noted in the story, this rock wasn’t studied. Me to the Moon exhibition. “I thought: this can’t be legs among the Apollo Hoaxers. That doesn’t seem 27 August 2009, 08:59 PM When it was, the error was picked up. No big deal; real. The size was a big surprise to me, and the col- comparable though, as this particular rock had nev- Maybe there’s a display in a museum somewhere, and again, no reason to cry “fake.” our wasn’t right as well.” er been examined for 40 years until a physicist got labelled “Petrified Wood.” A phone call to the American organisation that to take a glance at it in a museum. Since no actual “proof” or “theories” arose from Zvezdichko, administers the Moon material was confirmed Though, I recently read that the original record- this particular sample, I’m inclined to characterize 30 August 2009, 10:49 AM Wielders’ suspicions. “The conservator there was im- ings of the first humans landing on the moon 40 it as about as important as a 5th-grade reader hav- It’s the next idiotic journolammz sensation. mediately convinced that this couldn’t be Moon rock. years ago were erased and re-used. NASA now says, ing a picture of an Atlas rocket with the title “Sat- 1. A moon rock in a Dutch museum turns out to On top of that, a quick inspection of the rock the newly restored copies of the original broadcast urn V.” Someone put the wrong label on something. be burnt wood. by petrologist Wim van Westrenen of the VU Uni- look even better. This will also fuel the conspiracy This doesn’t mean the better-documented objects Let’s paraphrase it: versity Amsterdam confirmed the deceit. “After two theories, no doubt. in the museum’s collection, aren’t what they appear 2. NASA faked the Moon landings and the moon minutes it was pretty clear,” says Van Westrenen. to be. rocks brought to Earth are actually burnt wood. “The texture, the colour, nothing was right. This is Gwiz, The underlying truth though is—science can do It’s plainly silly. not a stone you’d find on the Moon’s surface.” 27 August 2009, 07:45 PM a pretty good job of finding errors like this, once [ ... ] So the Dutch just assumed it was a moon rock given a chance to work. Neil examines a rock sample during the Sierra Blanca trip. He is holding a geology hammer in his left hand and is wearing an Omega Speedmaster watch. Journal contributor Dan Buchan notes “his watch shows 1:12:33.” February 24, 1969, Scan courtesy NASA Johnson. JonClarke, any archival photos or detailed documentation of have any recollection of the size of the rock he pre- Starfury, 30 August 2009, 12:16 PM ambassador Middendorf’s “Moon rock” been found? sented to Drees.