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Day 4 Monday Nov 27 Egyptian museum, Museum of Islamic arts
EGYPTIAN MUSEUM
We walked from our apartment to the Egyptian museum.
This is the colossal group of Amenhotep III,[ also known as Amenhotep the Great and Hellenized as Amenophis III, the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty], his Queen Tyi and 3 of their daughters. [the heretic king Akhenaten was his son and the famous boy kingTutankhamun, his grandson]. This statuary group (dyad) found in pieces in 1839 dominates the Central Hall and is the largest artifact in the entire museum; Height: 700 cm, Width: 440 cm
Tut's middle coffin is here:https://www.youtube.com/shorts/hPCV27S8Qh8
All items related to Tutankhamun are in the above video
Canopic Shrine of Tutankhamun
This shrine made of wood lined with stucco and gilded, glass paste was found in the so-called Treasure Room of tomb Tutankhamun (1327-1318 BC) , with an alabaster container inside within which there were four canopic vases with four miniature sarcophagi for the internal organs of the king.
The shrine, placed on a sled, is surrounded by two friezes of cobras with the solar disk. On every side of the shrine, there is a goddess with open arms to protect the canonic vases: Isis, Nephthys, Neith and Selket
Anubis Shrine of Tutankhamun
This statue of Anubis was fixed on the sliding cover of a casket in the form of a shrine. The shrine rested on a litter which was used to carry the image of the god in processions. The statue was found at the entrance to the Treasure Room with its nose turned towards the funerary chamber. Probably so that its threatening appearance would frighten any intruders.
When it was found, it was wrapped in a linen cloth dated to the seventh year of the reign of Akhenaten with only the head left uncovered. A finer piece of cloth, a scarf and a garland of lotus and lily flowers encircled the statue’s neck. Between the front paws there was a scribe’s ivory tablet that had belonged to Meritaten. She was one of the six daughters of Akhenaten and Nefertiti.
The statue is made from wood lined with stucco and tar. The inside of the ears, the bands around the neck, the edging of the eyes and the eyebrows are all rendered in gold; the eyes are made from calcite and obsidian and the fingernails from silver.
The shrine casket is decorated with two rows of alternating pairs of djed and tit signs, the symbols associated with Osiris and Isis. Inside there were amulets made from faience, two alabaster vases, and eight breast plates.
we went inside the room displaying the treasures of the tomb of Psusennes I.
His pectorals here...
Pectoral of Psusennes I
The pectoral of Psusennes I is framed by alternating precious stones, topped by a cavetto cornice, and with a row of alternating djed pillar and tit (Isis knot) symbols at the bottom, below a row of sun-discs.
A winged scarab can be seen in the middle, and a cartouche of the king above and below, with the uppermost cartouche surmounted by a winged sun-disc. A uraei or rearing cobras also emerge from the sun. On either side of the scarab’s wings can be seen crouching goddesses Isis and Nephthys
Miniature Coffin
Outermost Coffin of Tutankhamun
The outermost coffin of Tutankhamun is significant artifact from ancient Egypt. It was found inside the outer gilded coffin. It was designed to encase the innermost coffin and provide additional protection for the mummified body of Tutankhamun.
The outermost coffin, second coffin of Tutankhamun, also known as the middle coffin, depicts the mummified figure of Osiris, lord of eternity, with his arms crossed upon his chest and holding his divine insignia, the crook and the flail. It features various symbols and hieroglyphs that hold religious and symbolic meanings.
The coffin is made of compact wood and covered in gold leaf, with intricate carvings and detailed decorations. The lid of the coffin was fixed in place by little gold-headed nails of electrum, an alloy of silver and gold.
Innermost Gold Coffin of Tutankhamun
The innermost coffin of Tutankhamun is is a highly significant artifact from ancient Egypt. It is made of solid gold and weighs approximately 110.4 kilograms (243 pounds).
Inside it lay the king’s mummy whose head was covered with the iconic gold mask of the boy king. This is the third and innermost of three mummiform coffins of Tutankhamun. and covered with incised decorations and inscriptions inside and outside, with the names and epitaph of the deceased king and protective texts. It is inlaid with semiprecious stones and coloured glass.
The coffin’s shape is that of Osiris holding the sacred insignia, the heka scepter and the flail. The vulture and the uraeus, or rearing cobra, protect his forehead. The divine beard is made of gold inlaid with blue glass.
[The mummy itself now rests in the outermost mummiform coffin in the tomb at Thebes.
Gold Dagger and Sheath of Tutankhamun.
Tutankhamun’s mummy was provided with two daggers encased in gold sheaths, one with an iron blade and the other with a blade of hardened gold. It is the latter specimen ceremonial Egyptian dagger which is shown here.
The handle is exquisitely decorated with gold granulation and glass inlays and is fitted with a knob of rock crystal. The gold dagger length 31.8 cm; blade 20.4 cm, width 3.4 cm; sheath length 20.6 cm, width 4.3 cm.
Miniature Coffin of Tutankhamun
canopic jars with lids representing the four sons of Horus, one for each organ
REPRESENTATION OF WHAT A TOMB LOOKS LIKE:
With coffins, canopic jars with the mummified organs, votive offerings to Gods, ushabtis [to do chores in the afterlife].
These are Cachettes: Hidden treasures from 21st dynasty
Greco-Roman busts
A cachette is a group of objects that are hidden for safekeeping. The 21st Dynasty (1077 BC-943 BC) was a time of political instability, so the royal burials of the New Kingdom (c. 1550 BC–c. 1069 BC) in the Valley of the Kings on the west bank of the Nile opposite Luxor were robbed.
In order to protect the royal remains, the priests of the god Amun of Thebes systematically entered each royal tomb to collect the bodies and any remaining artefacts. They unwrapped the mummies, removed jewellery and amulets, then carefully rewrapped and labelled the deceased before concealing them in a tomb cut in the cliffs of Deir el Bahari (tomb DB320) on the West Bank of Luxor.
The family of someone called Abdel el-Rassul first discovered this cache in the 19th century, kept it secret, and removed artefacts to sell on the antiquities market.
As several of these objects were inscribed with royal names, they came to the attention of the antiquities authorities at that time. An investigation was launched. In July 1881, the authorities cleared the tomb and loaded the 40 royal and non-royal mummies, along with artefacts belonging to 54 different individuals, onto a steamer bound for Cairo for display at the Egyptian Museum
mummy shaped sarcophagus with funeray goods
MUSEUM OF ISLAMIC ARTS
we walked back to the apartment , had our lunch and then ubered to the Islamic arts museum
Day 5 report continues:
