New Noah's Ark Ready To Sail !!!

[WillyT]

<snip>

SCHAGEN, Netherlands (AP) -- The massive central door in the side of Noah's Ark was thrown open Saturday -- you could say it was the first time in 4,000 years -- drawing a crowd of curious pilgrims and townsfolk to behold the wonder. Of course, it's only a replica of the biblical Ark, built by Dutch creationist Johan Huibers as a testament to his faith in the literal truth of the Bible.

Reckoning by the old biblical measurements, Johan's fully functional ark is 150 cubits long, 30 cubits high and 20 cubits wide. That's two-thirds the length of a football field and as high as a three-story house. Life-size models of giraffes, elephants, lions, crocodiles, zebras, bison and other animals greet visitors as they arrive in the main hold.

"The design is by my wife, Bianca," Huibers said. "She didn't really want me to do this at all, but she said if you're going to anyway, it should look like this."

A contractor by trade, Huibers built the ark of cedar and pine -- biblical scholars debate exactly what the wood used by Noah would have been. Huibers did the work mostly with his own hands, using modern tools and occasional help from his son Roy. Construction began in May 2005.

On the uncovered top deck -- not quite ready in time for the opening -- will come a petting zoo, with baby lambs and chickens, and goats. And one camel. Visitors on the first day were stunned.

"It's past comprehension," said Mary Louise Starosciak, who happened to be bicycling by with her husband while on vacation when they saw the ark looming over the local landscape. "I knew the story of Noah, but I had no idea the boat would have been so big."

In fact, Noah's Ark as described in the Bible was five times larger than Johan's Ark. But that still leaves enough space near the keel for a 50-seat film theater, where kids can watch the segment of the Disney film "Fantasia" that tells the story of Noah.

<snip>

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/04/28/dutch.ark.ap/index.html

Now... if we can just gather all the creationists, Armageddonsists, and neocons...

:evilgrin:

[IDemo]

1. getting that brontosaurus on board is going to be a bitch

[WillyT]

2. Don't Talk About David Broder Like That...

:evilgrin:

[tabasco]

10. Never was such a thing as dinosaurs.

Those fossils were carefully placed by God to fool those of us who trust science instead of insane preacher-men.

[givemebackmycountry]

3. I wonder where they will store all of the coconuts...

You know, for the T-Rex's?
After all, that's what they ate remember?
Sharp teeth, coconuts?

[originalpckelly]

4. I think it would be interesting. Just a like a trip to Disneyland or Universal Studios Hollywood...

to see other things out of fiction.

[KittyWampus]

5. at first I thought this was a new Reality or Historical Recreation tv show.

Can you imagine?

Picking a family and then putting them out to sea for 6 months with 2 of hundreds of animals?

Who's job would it be to clean the bottom of the boat? :)

[mainer]

6. ooh, I like that idea!

Someone should film it!

[-..__...]

11. Coming to a movie theater near you...

When I first read the OPs subject line and saw the picture, I thought the ark was a prop for this movie...

"Plot summary for Evan Almighty (2007)

The last time we saw Evan Baxter (Steve Carell), he was being tormented by rival Bruce Nolan onscreen, live from their Buffalo TV station. But as time passed and Evan has made up with Bruce, he's gone onto bigger and better things. Newly elected to Washington D.C. as a congressman, Evan has left Buffalo, New York in pursuit of a greater calling. But that calling isn't serving in the illustrious ranks of America's politics, but being summoned by the Almighty himself (Morgan Freeman), who has handed Evan the task of building a new ark, much as Noah did before. With time passing by and his family belittled by Evan's newfound realization, Evan will have to do the work that God has given him in what promises to be an unusual adventure for a man who just wanted to serve his country, might actually be serving humanity".


http://www.imdb.com/find?s=all&q=noah

[badgerpup]

7. Umm...

...did anyone tell them that 'life-size models' just don't cut it if you're going to re-establish populations? What you've got here is a cargo cult.
All I'm sayin' is, if you want to REALLY get the feeling of Noah's Ark, you need REAL critters and not just a petting zoo...with one camel.

And don't even get me started on inbreeding, genetic bottleneck, lack of diversity in the gene pool...:eyes::banghead:

The original Ark was actually five times BIGGER? Is this stated in the literature or tour, I wonder...

[dysfunctional press]

12. another thing that they might neglect to mention...

is that a wooden boat the size of the "real" noah's ark would not be seaworthy, and would tear itself apart under it's own weight and dimensions.

[badgerpup]

15. Oooh, now there's an interesting opening for LOTS of questions!.

I wonder what would happen if some harmless, innocent, information-seeking nerdling :evilgrin: asked about that little fact...


Would it tear itself apart if it was afloat, or just aground?
I'm thinking about the larger whales and the problems they have...they get beached and their weight crushes their lungs, but when in the water there's no problem.
The boat would be subject to that sort of pressure...am I making any sense here? :freak:

[HCE SuiGeneris]

8. Now... if we can just gather all the creationists, Armageddonsists, and neocons...

and put them on the Titanic? :evilgrin:

[Poiuyt]

9. Can we leave off mosquitoes this time?

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

13. It looks like it's going to be a tad crowded with 1.5 - 2 million species.

Even if about 1/2 are insects. And, who's gonna clean up the..uh..waste matter?

[RC]

14. Don't forget the food for all them critters.

[Warren DeMontague]

16. "biblical scholars debate exactly what the wood used by Noah would have been."

Yes. And Unicorn scholars debate the precise length of the average male's horn.