Texas museum to show Lucy fossil amid criticism

By Anna Driver

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Lucy, the world's most famous human ancestor, will go on public display for the first time in the United States this week amid criticism that her 3.2 million year old bones are too fragile to withstand an 11-city tour.

Lucy's remains were unveiled to reporters during a news conference on Tuesday at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Under an undisclosed financial deal with Ethiopia, Houston is the first stop on what is expected to be a six-year tour.

The public will be able to view Lucy beginning on Friday.

The exhibition, aimed at drumming up tourism in Ethiopia, has drawn criticism from scientists who say Lucy's bones may suffer damage.

"I definitely think that Lucy should not have been sent to America. ... Unique biological specimens and fossils such as Lucy are for science and should be retained in their country of origin," renowned paleontologist Richard Leakey told Reuters by telephone.

"Nobody will benefit from Lucy's tour apart from American museums, which are exploiting Africa's resources," he said.

Some of the country's most prestigious museums, including the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. and the American Museum of Natural History in New York have refused to host the fossilized remains.

"We share our colleagues' concerns for the safety and security of the fossil," said Joel Bartsch, president of the Houston museum. "Museums are in the business, quite frankly, of lending irreplaceable objects to each other all the time."