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Greek, Roman art comes out of storage

NEW YORK, April 20 (UPI) -- The much-anticipated Greek and Roman Galleries, core of a 15-year, $220 million overhaul of New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, opened Friday.

Touted as a museum-in-a-museum, the 11 new galleries display 5,300 objects, many of which haven't been seen in decades, USA Today said.

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"A lot of this material hasn't been seen, really, since the 1930s," associate curator Chris Lightfoot said. He added that much of of the collection also was packed away during World War II and never re-exhibited until now.

The new galleries track Hellenistic and Roman art from the reign of Alexander the Great (336-323 B.C.) to Constantine the Great (A.D. 306-337).

The centerpiece is a rebuilt atrium housing significant Roman sculptures including a heroic statue of Hercules to the famed Badminton Sarcophagus carved in a single block of marble.

Other galleries feature frescoes, including two from villas buried when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D.; a display of precious metal, gemstone and glass jewels; Greek and Roman coins and, a bronze and ivory-inlaid chariot.

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