Eternal Egypt exhibit opens at the
Royal BC Museum
Eternal Egypt exhibit opens at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria Victoria, BC - The door to the tomb of ancient Egypt was pushed wide open today to reveal the much-anticipated Eternal Egypt exhibition on now at the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria.
Lieutenant Governor Iona Campagnolo joined Royal BC Museum CEO Pauline Rafferty, and officials from the British Museum and the American Federation of the Arts to officially open Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from The British Museum at the Royal BC Museum.
The Eternal Egypt exhibit is the most prestigious and valuable exhibition ever presented by the Royal BC Museum. The museum is the only venue in Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest to present Eternal Egypt, which features 144 masterworks from the tombs and temples of ancient Egypt's greatest pharaohs.
The exhibit represents the very best of The British Museum's Egyptian collection, the finest outside of Cairo. It features original artifacts carefully selected for rarity and beauty. The tour marks the first, and likely only, time that these objects will be on view in North America. "To be chosen as one of just 11 North American cities to showcase this legendary collection is a major achievement for our provincial museum," said The Honourable Iona Campagnolo at today's opening celebrations. "The international stature and appeal of this exhibit firmly places the Royal BC Museum at the top of the list of must-see cultural tourism destinations this summer." Advance ticket sales have been strong and the museum expects the exhibit to have high appeal with B.C. residents and families, as well as drawing visitors to the city specifically to see the exhibit.
"This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience the history and culture of Ancient Egypt without needing to travel to London or Cairo," said Pauline Rafferty, CEO of the Royal BC Museum. "This major international exhibit will deliver millions of dollars in economic spin-off benefits and help fuel the continuing recovery in B.C.'s tourism sector."
Rafferty added that being selected to present Eternal Egypt is a testament to the Royal BC Museum's high standards and ability to curate priceless collections. "Our talented exhibit design, conservation and public programming staff have created a complete environment that immerses the visitor in the sights, sounds and feel of ancient Egypt," she said. "Visitors will walk among the monumental original stone statues, admire the skills of ancient artists, and discover why ancient Egypt continues to fascinate and inspire."
Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from The British Museum spans more than 3,000 years, from the time of the great pyramids to the fall of Cleopatra. Highlights include a 2,500 kilogram (5000 pound) red granite lion that once guarded the temple of Soleb, original scrolls from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, a splendid gold mummy mask, and exquisite gold jewellery. The artifacts are insured by the Canadian government for $600 million. A specially constructed Mummy's Chamber is devoted to ancient Egypt's fascination with the afterlife.
The display will house several authentic human and animal mummies, as well as a diverse collection of tools such as brain hooks, canopic jars, and other artifacts that explain the ritual and science of mummification and the importance the afterlife played in shaping Egyptian culture. Visitors can experience everyday life in ancient Egypt at the public marketplace, where they can learn to cook a meal fit for a pharaoh, how to make perfume, and explore fashion and personal adornment. Summer camps for children, public talks, and films will also run in conjunction with the exhibit.
During the exhibit's six-month run, the Royal BC Museum will present special weekend events to bring the past to life for the entire family. At Pyramid Power Weekend, June 24-25, visitors can learn how ancient Egyptians were able to build such enormous stone structures and why they chose to align them with circumpolar stars. Through hands-on activities, they will be unearthing many of the mysteries surrounding these magnificent monuments to the past. The weekend is presented in collaboration with the Centre of the Universe and the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
Visitors will be able to indulge their "mummy" obsession on August 7-8 during Mysteries of the Mummy Weekend at the museum. Visitors can learn about the science of mummification, how to wrap their own mummy, and recreate ancient amulets to ward off harm. Dr. Bob Brier, author and host of The Great Egyptians on The Learning Channel, will give special presentations on the secrets of mummification and the controversial mystery of who killed Tutankhamun.
During the run of Eternal Egypt at the Royal BC Museum, The National Geographic IMAX Theatre will present the award-winning film, Mysteries of Egypt. This captivating cinematic journey along the Nile River Valley uncovers many of the treasures and wonders of this ancient and mighty civilization. Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from The British Museum runs July 10 to October 31 at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria. The exhibit will make its final North American stop at Montreal's Museum of Fine Arts from January 22 until May 15, 2005.
This exhibition is organized by the American Federation of Arts and The British Museum. The exhibition and its North American tour have been made possible by Ford Motor Company Fund. Additional support has been provided by the Benefactors Circle of the AFA.
PLANNING YOUR VISIT: Advance ticket purchase is recommended due to the expected high demand for the Eternal Egypt exhibit. Tickets may be purchased in person at the Royal BC Museum, online at www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca, or by phone through Tourism Victoria at 1-800-663-3883. Reserved entry time tickets include an audio tour and GST and are $22.50 CDN ($16 US) for adults, $16.25 CDN ($12 US) for seniors, students, and youth aged 6-18, and free for children 5 and under. Family tickets (2 adults and 2 youth) are $65 CDN ($47 US). Tickets for entry times are available every half hour starting at 9 a.m. with the last entry time at 5:30 p.m. (Museum closes at 6:30 p.m.). Once in the exhibit, visitors may stay as long as they wish, and may visit all other parts of the Museum any time during the day of their ticket.
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Mummy Artifacts On Display: Facts
Female Mummy
*A twenty-something female of some wealth.
*Lived during Ptolemaic Period, possibly during Cleopatra reign.
*The young woman's coffin doesn't belong to her. Still searching for
rightful owner.
*Lotus bulbs in mummy's abdomen represent eternal life.
Crocs, Hawks, and Cats
The Crocodiles
* Two of these, only 40.5 cm (15.9 inches) long.
Conservators believe they are baby crocs.
* Exact age unknown, but at least 2,000 years old.
* Inside, museum X-rays reveal a complete, intact
skeleton.
The Cat
* Split into two parts. Linen wrappings brown and
crispy like old newspaper.
* Likely mummified as beloved pet or religious token
to the cat goddess, Bass.
* Dimensions 35.5 cm (14 inches) long and 7.5 cm (3
inches) wide. When alive was probably about the size of today's housecat.
The Hawk
* Size about the same as a modern crow.
* X-rays reveal intact skeleton (even surviving
feathers!) of an Egyptian Marsh Hawk, which has local relatives today in the form of the Northern Harrier.
* Exact age unknown, but at least 2,000 years old.
* Condition good, but only partial wrappings survive.
Head, tail, legs, and a bit of a wing exposed.
* Best theory about why hawks were mummified: as an
offering to petition hawk-shaped sky god Horus for safe passage to the afterlife, much like the lighting of candles in a church.
* Mummifying hawks and other birds was big business in
ancient Egypt. One town alone produced 10,000 such mummies annually for sale to the living for a protected death.
* Wrapped bird mummies were often mistaken for human
babies by early Egypt enthusiasts.
Mummy Facts
Mummification Route to Land of the Gods
* Egyptians mummified their dead out of more than
respect. Preservation of the body enabled the person to "live again" in the Land of the Gods.
* An Egyptian mummy didn't easily pass from tomb to
afterlife. They had to face a dangerous journey to get there: fire-breathing dragons, five-headed reptiles, and serpents wielding long knives.
* Pass all the tests, and you still worked in an
agricultural afterlife. Fortunately, symbolic slaves in the form of tiny tomb figurines called "ushabtis" could assume the workload.
Egyptian Funeral Rites
* The mummification process began with "natron," a
naturally-occurring salt that was used to dry out the body of the deceased in order to assist in its preservation.
* No mummy entered its tomb with its organs, except
the heart, intact. Special knives made from a variety of materials were used to cut out organs and place them into pottery vessels called canopic jars.
* The ancient Egyptian brain hooks were bronze, and
used to extract the brain through the nostrils. It was then thrown away. The heart, not the brain, was the most important part to the Egyptians.
* A lot of linen was needed to wrap a mummy - sometimes up to 35
layers and 10.5 kilograms (23 pounds)
* It took a Greek tourist (Herodotus, 2450 years ago) to let us in on
the mysteries of Egyptian mummification. The Egyptians themselves didn't write anything on the subject. Mummy Bits and Pieces
* The word "mummy" did not originate in Egypt, but is derived from
the Persian word "mummia," their term for a black tar (bitumen) that flowed from the earth. It was similar to the resin used to embalm mummies in Egypt.
* World-renowned Egyptian expert Bob Brier (meet him
in person as part of the Museum's special Mummy Weekend, August 7-8) was the first modern person to mummify a human cadaver in Egyptian style, in 1995. Immediately after, he was inundated with offers from mummy wannabes for his next embalming project.
* There might be a real basis for the mummy curse.
Dead bodies can cause infections for the living. This likely killed quite a few grave robbers in ancient times, but today's archaeologists wear protective clothing.
* Mummy wraps were used for paper in 19th century America when cotton,
rather than wood pulp, was paper's main ingredient.
* The famous Book of the Dead is a 3,000-year-old series of magical
spells that safely sped the deceased from tomb to paradise.
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