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The Ark Encounter, a prominent evangelical attraction near Williamstown, Kentucky, has drawn between 4 million and 5 million visitors since its inauguration in July 2016. The visitor count is expected to rise significantly this summer.
The theme park features a re-creation of the biblical story of Noah’s Ark, as detailed in Genesis 6:14-16. According to the story, God instructed Noah to construct the ark to save eight humans and a pair of each creature from a massive flood meant to punish the world for its sins.
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With dimensions of 510 feet (155 meters) in length, 85 feet (25 meters) in width, and 51 feet (15 meters) in height, the Ark Encounter leaves many visitors in awe of its size. Inside, guests explore three large decks filled with clay food storage containers, burlap sacks, and animal cages. Over 100 bays offer placards and digital animations that expand on the biblical narrative, describing Noah’s expertise in shipbuilding, carpentry, and blacksmithing. The displays also explain how the eight humans managed the needs of approximately 7,000 creatures on board.
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The attraction also includes a life-size diorama of Noah’s family’s living quarters, where visitors learn about the abilities and interests of Noah’s sons – details absent from Genesis. They also discover information about Noah’s wife and his sons’ wives, who remain unnamed and undescribed in the Bible. However, the Ark Encounter assigns them names, ethnic backgrounds, biographies, and hobbies.
Despite some placards admitting to the use of “artistic license” in these displays, it is evident that much of the content goes beyond what is written in the Bible. Still, visitors seem to appreciate these creative enhancements to the biblical story. Religion scholar Paul Thomas, in his book “Storytelling the Bible at the Creation Museum, Ark Encounter, and the Museum of the Bible,” notes that the worlds created by the designers of the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter fulfill the evangelical desire for an environment rooted in biblical principles, even if such a place never truly existed.
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Visitors flock to the Ark Encounter for various reasons, one of which may be its sheer size. The attraction’s purpose, as stated by Ken Ham, is to strengthen the faith of Bible literalists and attract those who might otherwise…
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