The door to the "center of the world" in the California desert: an impressive museum on the verge of reality

The Sonora Desert in California is home to an extraordinary project - a museum of human history by the French-American Jacques-André Istel, who is now 94 years old. The artist has been working on the realization of his idea for almost 40 years.

The museum's expositions on the border with Mexico are impressive, as they depict the main vicissitudes of humanity carved on 700 panels. The pyramid-shaped building of the complex stands out against a network of granite lines and curves that look like a runway from above, according to the Repubblica article.

What is special about the museum of a 94-year-old weirdo

The author says that the main difference between his project is the creation of a museum that contains no less than the entire history of mankind.

"There is nothing like this in the world, "Eastel explains to the France Presse news agency. "Two small original houses around which the amphitheater of dreams of the creator of the whole grows: 1052 hectares, where the passage of time is interrupted by a sundial, using the hand of God, as painted by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel, to cast his shadow. Nearby there is a piece of old staircase that was part of the Eiffel Tower and whose steps lead to nothing."

The restless dreamer claims that his pyramid is located exactly in the center of the planet. The man was elected mayor shortly after Felicity was founded in a poll involving three voters, Istel himself, his wife Felicia, who owns the city, and the invisible dragon, the protagonist of a story that the almost century-old resident wrote about the place and its location in the world.

Visitors to the museum are invited to follow the path that runs between the symmetrically built houses to the pyramids. Outside the pyramid, there are 723 red granite panels divided into thematic branches that explore history, geography, politics, science, fashion, and culture.

History really reaches the depths of humanity, as the events of the time of Alexander the Great are reflected. And next to it, there are expositions on Viking sacrificial rites and the eating habits of modern Americans. Eastel assures us that his museum is not a self-celebration, but a gift for all of humanity.

What a restless eccentric dreams about

The author of the unusual museum does not exclude that perhaps this place will become a place of pilgrimage for future generations, or perhaps it will be destroyed by a catastrophic earthquake, one of those that are not in short supply in California.

So far, more than 700 panels have been engraved, with at least 200 more planned. But we can go further. Despite its advanced age, Istel doesn't seem to want to stop. The scale and complexity of the undertaking to be accomplished might not keep many people awake at night. But not Istel. "I sleep well, even if I keep thinking about new panels," he concludes, "We don't do things by halves. We do it our way or leave it alone."