EJIPT: Day in the Egyptian Museum

After a long night our party roused itself around 9:00 am local time and promptly investigated the breakfast situation, which is conveniently provided for guests in the apartment. Tut and Tut both enjoyed rather greasy omelets and Mummy sampled a variety of foods including falafel, cheese slices, a cinnamon roll, and some fresh veggies.

With breakfast finished we set off towards the Egyptian Museum, taking the same route we scouted the day before, once more braving the chaotic Cairo streets. Outside the museum entrance, we mistakenly purchased only two tickets, and briefly thought we had been swindled by the ticket man before figuring out the somewhat obtuse ticket system (instead of using a single ticket per attraction, cards representing different amounts of money are doled out in wads to represent the total admission fee, from which the attractions paid for can be deduced). Our ticket wads covered the fee for the main museum as well as the Hall of Mummies, home to such distinguished names as Ramses, Thutmose, and Hatshepsut.

The museum itself was built in 1902 and houses thousands of artifacts in gallery-lined wings on two levels. Labels are few, and some of the artifacts are in the process of being moved to another museum in Giza. The majority of the exhibits consist of funerary equipment such as sarcophagi (in great numbers as well as all shapes and sizes), miniature Shabti figures (meant to help the deceased in the afterlife), shrines, canopic vessels, furniture, mummified food, charms, and a whole slew of everyday items (both genuine and representative models) meant for use by the dead.

There are a fair number of other, non tomb related artifacts, mostly monumental in nature like statues (from miniature in size to colossal), sphinges, pyramidal carved stones, and inscribed tablets.

Perhaps the most notable of the artifacts are those recovered from the tomb of King Tut, which span the rear of the second level. An air conditioned room adjoining the middle of this corridor contains his legendary gold mask as well as a slew of other gold and gilt items, mostly jewelry but also several sarcophagi and canopic jars. We spent a considerable time poring over the cases of these items, admiring their exquisite workmanship and pondering the meanings of their symbol-laden surfaces. Unfortunately it is forbidden to photograph these latter items, probably to dispel an ancient curse or inhibit the masterminding of a heist to make off with them.

The same also holds true for the Hall of Mummies, which is arranged in two rooms on opposite, second level corners in the front of the building. The residents of these rooms also enjoy an air conditioned abode, a marvel unheard of when they walked the Earth. Here we saw the withered and desiccated remains of a score of ancient notables, including Ramses I and II, various Thutmoses, Pepi II, and Hatsepshut. Most mummies were wrapped but for their heads, at least one was completely covered and I believe one was completely unwrapped. Some of the mummies had been violated in antiquity and re-wrapped later by the Egyptian priesthood.

Our wanderings in this great museum consumed many hours, and was ended prematurely when we were ushered out at 5:00 pm despite the supposed 7:00 pm closing time. Despite this inconvenience we were all satisfied with our visit, as we had thoroughly wandered through the majority of the galleries, just missing one or two near the exit.

Outside the museum we paused at a memorial to a slew of famous Egyptologists. Conspicuously absent is Howard Carter, who discovered King Tut's Tomb, as he had several run ins with the Egyptian government concerning his discovery (and the keeping of souvenirs).

We finished our day with another walk along the Nile, where we were accosted by several more seemingly friendly strangers in search of money. Some of these are quite devious and will probably be described in greater detail in a future blog post. Not feeling too adventurous for dinner, we returned to the same venue previously enjoyed, this time with Tut and Tut ordering some sort of beef diced over rice and meatballs with rice, respectively, and Mummy getting what looked like the patty in a falafel burger.

At breakfast

Examining the intricate hieroglyphics carved into a sarcophagus.

A stone sarcophagus, whose visage serenely gazes through the veils of time (and probably hears real well too by the looks of those ears).

A pair of Egyptian sphinges wearing the nemes headdress adorned with the ureaus (little protective cobra associated with royalty)

Many a fine rubbing could be made with carved surfaces such as this.

Nathaniel with a lion statue, doubtless from the Ptolemaic era.

A statue in the Greco-Roman room, whose figures bear a definite Hellenistic physiognomy, and are interestingly adorned in traditional Egyptian attire.

A fine looking mortuary mask in an otherwise empty gallery in the process of being renovated.

Mummy behind a case of Ptolemaic candle holders.

An example of the fascinating Egyptian symbolism. The kneeling man with outstretched arms is the hieroglyph for 1,000,000. He holds staffs made of many stacked repetitions of the hieroglyph for year. These staffs rest on tadpoles, the hieroglyph for 100,000. An ankh, the symbol of life, is hung on his arm. Collectively this means "may whosoever live for millions of years". Note the solar disk and uraeus above his head. I am not sure what are hanging from the staffs.

Several mummiform Shabti figurines. These were placed in the tomb to assist the dead in the afterlife. At one point, it was typical to have 401 of these figures, representing a workman for each of the 365 days of the year with 36 additional overseers (1 for each 10 day period).

A statue that once protected King Tut. Note the funny pyramidal portion of his kilt. We are unsure of its significance but saw several instances of this garment, both on statues and depicted in carvings.

King Tut's throne. The royal couple is shown on the seat back. Nine prisoners of non Egyptian race (Nubians and Asiatics) are depicted bound on the foot rest.