Did you know that Memphis and the Mid-Southern region of the U.S. was once covered by a prehistoric ocean? That’s how the term “Black Belt Prairie” originated. If you are curious to learn more then the “Landshaping: The Origins of Black Belt Prairie” exhibit at the Pink Palace Museum & Mansion will teach you all about the Black Belt Prairie phenomenon and much more.
So, what is the best and easiest way to describe the Black Belt Prairie? “The Black Belt Prairie is a geographic location on the map,” says Raka Nandi, the Pink Palace’s director of exhibits and collections. “And it’s an area of a country where the soil is very, very rich. The soil is rich because of a geologic phenomenon that happened about 75 million years ago [which] is called the Mississippi Embayment. And what happened millions of years ago, there was actually an inland sea.”
“Landshaping” will display fossils from the marine life that existed in these inland waters, plus photographs taken by Memphis photographer Houston Cofield. Cofield has taken images of farms, prairies, and individuals to help audiences visualize the beauty and the impact of the Black Belt Prairie on the South.
“In the exhibition, we juxtaposed these ancient fossils [and] farm tools that were used in the past to till the soil with these beautiful photographs taken by Houston,” says Nandi. “So it’s a real sort of narrowing of art with science if I can put it that way.”
The exhibition is open to the public through October 12th, so you have some time to check it out before it leaves. It’s also worth mentioning that the exhibit is included if you purchase a general admission ticket. For more information about the new exhibition and where to purchase tickets, visit moshmemphis.com/landshaping-the-origins-of-the-black-belt-prairie.
“Landshaping: The Origins of the Black Belt Prairie,” Pink Palace Museum & Mansion, through October 12.
