Rembrandt's Late Religious Portraits
The Apostle Paul
Posted on 06/27/2005 11:01:22 AM PDT by Jubal Harshaw
Just came back from the King Tut exhibit in LA. I saw the exhibit in '76, and have seen the Tut exhibit in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, and have been to the Luxor Museum / Valley of Kings / Valley of Queens / Abu Simbel / etc. My girlfriend never saw any of the Tut exhibits before, so together we represent a wide range of pre-existing knowledge about Tut and about ancient Egypt.
We both thought the LA exhibit, soon touring the USA, was a waste of time. The exhibit included no closely Tut-related paraphernalia bigger than a breadbox. The largest item is the gilded Coffin of Tjuya, which was apparently found in the tomb of a nobleman who might (or might not) have been Tut's great grandfather. Tjuya herself therefore might (or might not) have been Tut's great grandmother. That coffin is large, but it is likely three generations removed from Tut, and, even if related to Tut, is from a then non-royal branch of the family. It's a nice piece, but that's as good as it gets.
The famous gold bust of Tut? Not there. Tut's sarcophagus? Not there. The famous lion bed? Not there. All that's in LA that Tut might actually have owned is jewelry, trinkets, and a few small statues, many broken and not restored. Presumably so that people didn't know what they were missing, the museum didn't even have color photographs of the glorious finds that didn't make it on the tour.
All in all, for us it was a waste of time. The price was OK (~$20.00 each), but it was probably worth ~$10.00 / person. If you have a free afternoon, and want to see a few second-rate Egyptian trinkets that may be related to Tut, then it's a way to kill a few hours.
When we got to Cairo (drove from Israel), the government confiscated our hotel for some reason of another earlier in the day. A replacement was found in downtown Cairo - a beautiful 1/4 star hotel, the Hotel Tonsi. Main course consisted of chicken and stars soup and a forgettable roasted animal offering. The building was not entirely dedicated to human habitation, as we could hear the lowing of cattle and bleating of sheep as the elevator went by the floors where they were quartered.
But the exhibit was huge and saw lots of gold this-that-and-the-other.
On our flight out, we took TWA 847, piloted by Capt. John Testrake. Yep, same flight number and pilot as the one that was hijacked - we missed it by a couple of weeks.
If you are buried with a significant fraction of the wealth of your nation in the form of art, precious metals and jewels, then if 3000 years later the materials you were buried with are one of the largest collection of artifacts from your era, then there would be no significant difference. Otherwise, the difference is huge.
Beat me to it.
Now when he was a young man he never thought he'd see (King Tut)
People stand in line to see the boy king (King Tut)
How'd you get so funky (funky Tut)
Then you'd do the monkey
(Born in Arizona moved to Babylonia King Tut)
Now if I'd known the line would form to see him (King Tut)
I'd take up all my money and buy me a museum (King Tut)
Buried with a donkey (funky Tut)
He's my favorite honky
(Born in Arizona moved to Babylonia King Tut)
Dancing by the Nile
Ladies loved the style (waltzing Tut)
Rocking for a mile (walking Tut)
He ate a crockodile
He gave his life for tourism
Golden idol
He's an Egyptian!
They're selling you
Now when I die now don't think I'm a nut
Don't want no fancy funeral just one like old King Tut (King Tut)
He coulda won a grammy (King Tut)
Buried in his jammies
(Born in Arizona moved to Babylonia
Born in Arizona got a condo made of stone-ah (King Tut)
I posted the pic, you posted the lyrics. We're a team!
Thanks for this post.
What's the best part of the Getty (other than finding it)?
There's a story by (I think) Edgar Allen Poe about a private mummy un-wrapping party that didn't turn out too badly...
haha...
Too bad. I went to a museum in London in the early 70's and saw some fabulous things related to Tut and others. Egypt is the only place on the African continent that I would like to go.
I think the best part of the Getty is the building / grounds / setting / view. The building has a fabulous view of LA and of the Pacific, and it's very pleasant to sit and have a snack near the outside fountain and gardens. If you go, don't forget to look for fossils in the marble near the inner fountains and some high-traffic areas.
As for art, the Getty is (deservedly, in my opinion) known for it's collection of Greco-Roman antiquities. It has some very nice pieces, and those galleries are the ones I would see if I had limited time there.
Burning desired to be embalmed alive and wake up in 1,000 years?
Some Word With a Mummy, by E. Allen Poe
http://eserver.org/books/poe/some_words.html
Thank you for the heads up. I was going to fly up to Florida in November to catch it, but my plans just changed.
Thanks again for saving me the price of a plane ticket.
I went to Turkey, Texas to see the Bob Wills Museum. They had his actual fiddle. I also visited the grave site of Davy Crockett's second wife at Acton, Texas.
I doubt Hill&Bill looted them; the exhibit never was at the White House.
Well for starters you probably won't have a solid gold death mask and 4 coffins.
Tut-Tut!
That's the one...What a neat website! Thanks.
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