By Richard Fitzwilliams
Tutankhamun: Treasures Of The Golden Pharaoh
At The SAATCHI GALLERY
Richard Fitzwilliams
defend himself during his
journey in the afterlife, where
he was both helped by friendly
deities and threatened by
malign forces.
The first object we view is his
exquisitely decorated fan which
shows him hunting ostriches.
There is also a gilded wooden
statue of him holding a
harpoon indicating his
alertness and the engravings
on his bow case show his
prowess as a warrior. There is a
fascinating model of him riding
a panther, who represents
a goddess who
protects the sun on
its nocturnal
journey. There is
also a huge
mace for use in
combat,
boomerangs
to stun birds
and weapons
of war.
Gold inlaid Canopic Coffinette of Tutankhamun - dedicated to Imseti and
Isis. Credit IMG.
A
t the end of this
exhibition we are
reminded that after his
death Tutankhamun’s
memory was erased and any
mention of him was
destroyed by his successors,
as his father was
Akhenaten, the sun god
worshipper who was
regarded as a heretic. It is
therefore ironic that
because of the fabulous
treasures which were
discovered in his tomb, by
Howard Carter in 1922, he
has become the most
famous pharaoh of them all.
Tutankhamun’s tomb was
prepared so the boy king went
on a journey to immortality but
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it was one beset with dangers.
The Gallery will play host to
thousands of visitors, the
staging here is far better than
in the impersonal setting when
I saw it in Paris, but it is
perilously easy to get lost!
However as we enter the
exhibition the reproductions of
wall murals are extremely
colourful, the use of film is
informative and, most
importantly, the labelling is
legible!
We are reminded that Egypt,
at the time of Tutankhamun’s
decade-long reign which began
in 1336 BC, was the world’s
foremost power. This warlike
theme is stressed as the
pharaoh was well equipped to
new Grand Egyptian Museum
displays them permanently
in Cairo after it opens next
year. It is now believed that
Tutankhamun was not
murdered but died of natural
causes. The predominance
of gold, synonymous with
eternal life, has always been
a striking feature of these
objects and their beauty and
craftmanship have rightly
become “such stuff as
dreams are made on”.
In the
preparations for
a rebirth after
death, the
ceremonial objects in
the tomb are both all-
important and glorious to
behold. These include one of
the two wooden Guardian
statues of the King which
originally flanked the
entrance to his tomb as well
as a series of necessities
which he would need in the
afterlife. There is also the
elaborate gilded wooden
statue shrine featuring him
with his half-sister
Ankhesenamun whom he
married and the gilded,
mesmerizingly gorgeous
Wooden Hawk with Solar Disk.
Climactically the vast statue of
the boy king, later
appropriated by others, is truly
unforgettable.
There are 150 items on
show here including symbols
of kingship to preserve his
status on his travels and these
will be the last exhibits from his
tomb to leave Egypt before a
Gilded wood Hawk with Solar
Disk. Credit Laboratoriorosso,
Viterbo, Italy.