Nefertiti

Hi guys. I'm going to share some news and this week's airing schedule with you, and then I want to comment on a recent controversy we have all fallen into as fans of Josh Gates and "Expedition Unknown." I am hoping it comes off as informative and not argumentative.

More episodes of "Expedition Unknown" (EXU) have been ordered by Travel Channel! You can read more about it in this article

This week, there is a new episode on Wednesday night, except it's one of the Global Game Show episodes where Josh interviews fellow travelers with history trivia of the location they are visiting and we are usually treated to never before seen footage. You can see when there are reruns at this link

This is not the controversy in question, but just some feedback - there are some fans who moan on social media that these are not "real" episodes. I encourage you to mentally revisit that time period when "Destination Truth" (DT) was on an extended hiatus to the point where we begged for anything, even episodes with unseen footage or outtakes, before it was unceremoniously cancelled. Let's be grateful that Travel Channel loves to keep the EXU content coming!

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Now, we address the Nefertiti controversy. Josh has received some backlash after revealing this bust that he and his team of historians worked so hard on via the Today Show. Accusations of white washing her image and so on. My feedback on this is merely presenting to you quotes from other people involved to hopefully smooth this over. This may be useful if you have friends, family or acquaintances who are also upset by this recent historical reveal.

I think a summation of the bust can be examined in the statement Josh gave at the end of Episode 8 of Season 5, which I transcribed here for you all: "Only one question remains - is this the face of Nefertiti? [...] The reconstruction also bears similarities to the bust in Cairo and depictions in other museums around the world. While the shape and features of Elizabeth's reconstruction are forensically accurate, the skin tone is more hypothetical. Ancient Egypt was ethnically diverse - a melting pot of cultures from within Africa all the way to the near East. Since Nefertiti's parentage is a matter of debate, the skin tone of the famed Berlin bust, which was crafted in Nefertiti's era, was used for reference."

Ramy Romany, someone from Egypt, who was featured on past "Destination Truth" episodes in terms of Egyptian history and a past advocate of preserving Egypt's history right here on this fan site, has taken to helping defend Josh. When someone on Instagram commented that we should stop white washing history, he replied "This reconstruction is definitely brown. Like my skin tone type brown. Quite not the white." Remember, I am just quoting what someone else said here, but even I chuckled at the reply!

For the full story on how this bust came to be, please refer directly to Episodes 7 and 8 from Season 5 of "Expedition Unknown" via iTunes or reruns on Travel Channel. From the 35 minute mark to the end of episode 8, in particular, is especially helpful in this evaluation. I encourage you to send your support to Josh and his team on their various social media handles, as well as to contribute to this fan post. Have a great week, guys!

Ps - please keep any comments left here civil :-)