Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of Egyptian Antiquities

 
Today, after seeing the Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibit, I too can also say, yes, I still see many wonderful treasures of ancient Egyptian life, says Leila Diab.

 
It has been over thirty years old since the infamous Egyptian pharaoh, Tutankhamun, better known as King Tut toured in America. And, as intriguing as time can obliterate the past, the discovery of the 1300 B.C. Egyptian pharaoh’s tomb in 1922 by the Englishman Howard Carter and his amazing discovery continues to reveal the extraordinary mystique and treasures of the Egypt’s Valley of the Kings.

While I was visiting my brother Reyaud in San Francisco this summer, he surprised me with tickets to see the treasures of Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs, at the de Young Museum, which is located in Golden Gate Park. Needless to say, as a person who is fascinated with the beauty, history and artistry of ancient Egypt, I was totally excited for the journey of Egyptian wonderment and ancient beliefs of the human spirit, then and life after death. And I knew that this exhibit would not only captivate and inspire me to the phenomenon of the ancient past, but to the many others who also ventured forward to the discovery of the many untold - 3200 year old myths and its invaluable, yet indestructible preservation of Egyptian artifacts and lessons of life and life after death.

For example, the ancient Egyptians considered gold was divine, an incarnation of the sun itself. According to ancient Egyptian beliefs, their pharaoh was called the Golden Horus, a shining raven form from the creator. New Kingdom tombs were also known as the House of Gold, and the gleaming metal was viewed as paying tribute to a king, as it does in the royal diadem found on Tutankhamun’s head. On exhibit was a beautifully crafted and bejeweled gold scarab, which spelled out the pharaohs’ name in a rebus code. I also learned that it took nearly 10 years to clear and catalog the more than 5,000 objects that were found inside the four chambers of King Tut’s tomb. As I continued to walk in amazement among the artifacts of exquisitely crafted jewelry, furniture, cosmetic jars, mirrors that take on the shape of the Ankh, a word that means life, and crowns made from gold, silver, wood, lapis lazuli, chalcedony, carnelian obsidian and malachite stone/rocks, as well as a wall plaque of and the pharaoh, Akhenaten’s belief that their could only be one god in this universe, I stopped for a moment in time while I envisioned myself thanking the Egyptian archaeologist Dr. Zahi Hawass for dedicating his life’s passion to the antiquities of ancient Egypt so that the rest of the world could better understand and appreciate the historical significance of a people who gave us the artistry and geniuses of

the Golden Age of Pharaohs.

It has often been told that with the discoveries of a lifetime, the English archaeologist, Howard Carter waited three agonizing weeks for his patron, Lord Carnarvon to join him in Egypt for the great unveiling of the antechamber. When Carter finally broke through the sealed door of the King Tut’s chamber, he thrust a candle into the gloom…and into a past that presently takes us back, into the rebirth or life after death of Tutankhamun, over 3200 years ago. While his eyes were trying to adjust to the flicking light, Carter recalled, “details of the room within the chamber as it emerged slowly from the mist, strange animals, statues and gold---everywhere the glint of gold.”

“Standing behind him an impatient Lord Carnarvon asked Carter, “Can you see anything?”

“Yes, was the reply, “wonderful things.”

Today, after seeing the Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibit, I too can also say, yes, I still see many wonderful treasures of ancient Egyptian life. Ironically, and as incomprehensible as it may seem, today’s generation can speculate after seeing this exhibit, ‘Tutankhamun came to life….after his death over 3200 years.’

Leila Diab is educator and freelance Journalist

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