Don't Miss 'Sunken Cities': SLAM's Extended Labor Day Hours

ST. LOUIS, MO — The Saint Louis Art Museum is extending its Labor Day hours as the end of its "Sunken Cities: Egypt's Lost Worlds" exhibit draws near. While the museum is typically closed on Mondays, it will open on Labor Day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and "Sunken Cities" will remain open until 8 p.m. after the museum's permanent collections closes on Wednesday, September 5 and Saturday, September 8.

The exhibit has been attracting sold-out crowds, officials said, so if you plan on taking advantage of the extended hours, buying tickets in advance is recommended.

Officials said the museum blew past its initial goal of 100,000 visitors for the North American premiere of "Sunken Cities" on July 6. The exhibit has been one of the most popular in the museum's history.

"'Sunken Cities' focuses on discoveries made during the last seven years of underwater excavation lead by Franck Goddio, president of the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology," the museum said in a statement. "In 2000, Goddio discovered the lost city of Thonis-Heracleion under 30 feet of water more than four miles off the Egyptian coast. The French archeologist’s research has revealed that this area was important both as a center of trade and as a site of religious pilgrimage.

"In addition to works of art discovered by Goddio’s team, 'Sunken Cities' also includes complementary artifacts from museums in Cairo and Alexandria, some of which never have been shown outside of Egypt."

The exhibition has previously opened in Zurich, London and Paris. After St. Louis, it will move to the Institute of Art in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Get tickets here.

Lede Photo: The Saint Louis Art Museum from across the Grand Basin in Forest Park. (J. Ryne Danielson/Patch) Video: courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum