Blockbuster-style entertainment and ancient history collide for the latest collection of King Tut’s treasures.
For the first time in 26 years, pieces from King Tut’s tomb and other ancient Egyptian excavation sites will be on display at host galleries throughout the United States.
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art—the first location for “Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs”—recently hosted an elaborate grand opening with a golden carpet, flashing camera bulbs and media fanfare. And when the collection reaches Fort Lauderdale this fall, ships adorned in gold will be floating in the nearby water. In the next two years, the tour will also visit Chicago and Philadelphia.
Tut’s last exhibit in the 1970s also brought a Hollywood flair to the ancient treasures, but the new version—with corporate sponsors Northern Trust Corporation and National Geographic—is perhaps the ultimate example of the fusion of the entertainment and art worlds.
“The previous King Tut tour in the 1970s was a major cultural phenomenon and to some extent coined the term ‘blockbuster,’” said John Norman, president of Arts and Exhibitions International, in a statement to the press. “This amazing exhibition promises to exceed everyone’s expectations, and we are confident we can set the ‘blockbuster’ standard for the next 25 years.”
Many art elitists, however, have accused the exhibit of being too commercialized and too Hollywood. Tickets can cost as much as thirty dollars, prompting The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to turn down the opportunity to host the treasures, citing a museum policy against charging the public for special exhibits.
Missing from the traveling collection this time around is Tut’s famed golden mask, one of the features of the original 1970s tour. Event organizers cited a desire to display new pieces instead of rehashing the previous exhibit as reasons for the mask’s absence.
Teams from Egypt, France and the United States just completed three-dimensional models of the young pharaoh’s face. The models are based on state-of-the-art imaging techniques that allowed researchers to digitally peel off the mummy’s wraps.
Missing mask notwithstanding, there are several spectacular artifacts among the 130 pieces in the new Tut collection. A silver trumpet, a gilded shrine to Tut and his wife found near their remains and the royal diadem—the gold crown on the mummified king’s head—are just a few of the highlights.
The public will also be able to view more than 70 objects from other royal graves of the 18th Dynasty, all more than 3,000 years old. Unless you’re planning a trip to Cairo, the exhibit might be worth your time.
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