Gladiators will battle it out in Penn Museum‘s Warden Garden on Saturday as part of “Gladiator Day,” which will also include a talk by Harvard Latin professor Dr. Kathleen Coleman (and consultant on the Russell Crowe film “Gladiator”) on “The Virtues of Violence: Gladiators, Beasts, and Public Executions in Ancient Rome.”

The event will run from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Gladiators from the Ludus Magnus Gladiatores (The Great School of the Gladiator) will fight every hour beginning at 1 p.m. In between bouts they will give workshops on weapons used back in the day. Wannabe gladiators can make their own helmets at the family craft table.

Dr. Coleman’s talk begins at 2:30 p.m.

The gladiator extravaganza is in conjunction with the museum exhibition Worlds Intertwined: Etruscans, Greeks and Roman. Admission to the museum is $10 for adults, $7 for seniors, $6 for students and children and free for children under 6 and PennCard holders.

Milton Street announces his candidacy for mayor under the El at 52nd and Market Streets. (Photo by Lindsay Lazarski for NewsWorks).

Two stories caught our eye this morning.

• One was Milton Street’s announcement for mayor from aboard a rented pick-up truck at the El station at 52nd and Market. WHYY‘s Dave Davies went to the announcement and noted that Street’s announcement in the heart of West Philadelphia drew little attention from passersby. One woman, upon hearing that Street was announcing his candidacy, told Davies: “Milton Street? He is? Oh my god,” said one woman. “Oh my god — that’s my opinion.” Street, the brother of former Mayor John Street, has an interesting history in Philadelphia politics and business. A 2006 Philadephia Magazine article helps fill in some background.

• A second story from the Philadelphia Inquirer‘s Tirdad Derakhshani tells the story of Benjamin Neiditz, who came to the rescue of the Penn Museum earlier this month to create two mummies who stood in for the mummies that were supposed to be part of the museum much celebrated exhibit “Secrets of the Silk Road.” The real mummies had been ordered to remain in their crates by the Chinese government, sending museum curators scrambling to find replacements. Neiditz, the exhibit carpenter, has experience making mummies. “I had a blast making these mummies,” he says of the two papier-mâché dummies he created using photos of the originals.

One of the mummies that will be on display at the Penn Museum beginning Friday.

As you might have heard, the mummies have made it. The Penn Museum’s “Secrets of the Silk Road” exhibit will be closed today through Friday, February 18 so that the museum can prepare artifacts and mummies from China that the Chinese government forbade it from displaying.

The exhibit opened to much fanfare last week, but about 100 pieces, including two mummies, were missing, prompting the museum to waive the $22.50 admission price when the exhibit opened on Feb. 5. The fragile artifacts are up to 3,800 years old.

The exhibit reopens on Friday at 1 p.m. mummies and all. The full exhibit runs through March 15. But then the mummies are back on the road and will not be part of the exhibit from March 17 to its close on March 28.

For the full background on the mummies controversy see this story from the Inquirer.

Here are some things going on this weekend. For more, check the Happenings page:

• Fun-A-Day Art Show • Friday 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Saturday 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. & 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. • Studio 34 (4522 Baltimore Ave.) • Free admission

The Seventh Annual Fun-A-Day Art Show presents an eclectic array of art your friends and neighbors made every day for the month of January. Also featuring performances, food and refreshments. Don’t forget to bring your kids. On Saturday don’t miss an open mic reading event (5 p.m. to 7 p.m.) and the main show (7 p.m. to 11 p.m.).

• Mariposa Food Co-op Flea Market • Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. • New Mariposa building (4824 Baltimore Ave.) • Free admission

Vendors will be showing off their: hand-made jewelry, baked goods, new-to-you clothes, books, records, services, pottery, pet treats, and artworks. You can also meet some local body workers and get a sample of their skills at the market. And while you are at the market, check out the Mariposa tables. You can talk to a representative about the expansion, see the plans and learn how you can make a financial contribution to the expansion.

• 30th Annual Chinese New Year Celebration • Penn Museum (3260 South St.)

The celebration features music and dance performances, healing and martial arts demonstrations, games, workshops, children’s activities, and grand opening as well as grand finale lion dance performances. The celebration is free with Museum admission donation ($10 general admission; $7 senior citizens [65+]; $6 students [with ID] and children [6 to 17]; free for children under 6, members, and PennCard holders). See the complete schedule of events here.

• Great Expectations • 8 p.m. • Curio Theatre • 815 S. 48th St. • Tickets $10 to $15

The Dickens classic opens tonight at the Curio. There is also a Saturday performance at 8 p.m.

Camels paraded outside the Penn Museum (3260 South St.)  yesterday as part of the “Secrets of the Silk Road” exhibit, which opens this weekend. The camels will be back today and we suspect they may enjoy the weather a little more. (Photo by Julija Kulneva)

Sheesh. We forgot to include Secrets of the Silk Road in the weekend preview. This looks like it will be a really fabulous exhibit. It opens today and runs through June. But this weekend looks especially fabulous. This is from the museum:

A host of special sights, sounds, and activities are in store for visitors at the grand opening weekend of Secrets of the Silk Road. Camels will be circling the Museum, stopping for guest encounters and hourly presentations about life along the ancient routes. Central Asian silks, textiles, furniture, and other trading route goods will be for sale in the Museum Shop. Enjoy performances, craft demonstrations, and a café with tea and Chinese pastries inspired by ancient foods in the exhibition.

And here’s a video of curator Victor Mair:

The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Sunday. Museum admission is $10 for adults and $6 for kids and youth.

Here’s a schedule. (Oh, did we mention that there would be real camels?)

Camels

11:00 am – 3:00 pm

Two Bactrian camels (at ease in blistering heat-or freezing cold!) circle the Penn Museum, stopping for guest encounters and hourly presentations about life along the ancient routes, from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm.

Storytelling

Saturday Only at 11:00 am and 2:00 pm

Michele Belluomini of Blue Deer Storytelling tells traditional tales from Silk Road lands.

Dance Performance

1:00 pm

Young dancers from Chinese For Families present a short program of Central Asian dance.

Drum Performance

10:30am, 12:30 pm, and 3:30 pm

Silk Road hand drumming demonstration with Joseph Tayoun.

Music Performance

11:30 am and again at 1:30 pm

Classical Asian musician Kurt Jung performs on the traditional Chinese zither.

Get a Henna Tattoo

Saturday and Sunday, 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Henna is a popular plant dye used to create body tattoos throughout India and other regions of the Silk Road. First come first served.