tutankhamun the metropolitan museum of art bulletin v 34 no 3 winter 1976 1977

8/12/2019 Tutankhamun the Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin v 34 No 3 Winter 1976 1977

1/52

: ,,,,:::,: ::::?-a-::I - r;n-?i?:4;-? :-i9,:? aibi Iwi -I ;;"-?i--: I_i,-ia? :"i- c?: aL 8- Ii:h"'I

in

ii i_i s?i iw? i:.? I

W 1 K?i?-?:":-" i8_ t I::i8' -- 4

Al "O B?3"i

I_'---i-il?


2/52

?e%lI

-I-?

-? ?


3/52

TUTANKHBlack and white photographs by Harry Burton

Color photographs by Lee BoltinCaptions drawn from text by I. E. S. Edwards

THEMETROPOLITANUSEUMOFARTCopyright? 1976 by The MetropolitanMuseum of ArtPhotographson pages 7, 22, and 25 copyright bythe Griffith nstitute, AshmoleanMuseum,Oxford


4/52

z- t f ;iJ


5/52

Tutankhamun'stomb was cut into the bedrock of theValley of the Kings, the royal burial ground of theEgyptian pharaohs. When Howard Carterdiscovered itin November 1922, it had not been entered in over thirty-two hundred years, although ancient robbers had brokeninto it twice, probably fairly soon after Tutankhamun'sdeath in about 1325 B. C.

The lovely head at the left was found in the entrancecorridor, perhaps dropped by a thief as he fled. It repre-sents a popular Egyptian creation myth: the sun godemerging from a lotus that floated on the primeval ocean.The features are those of Tutankhamun,and it was in-cluded in his tomb to assure, through magic, his rebirthas the sun god. The cup shown below, of alabaster in theshape of a white lotus, is inscribed with a wish thatTutankhamunmay spend millions of years "beholdinghappiness."The picture overleaf illustrates the sight that greetedCarter'seyes when he first broke down the blockingbetween the corridor and the Antechamber: enormousanimal-shaped funerary couches, mysterious blackshrines, and chests containing a jumbled variety ofobjects both precious and mundane.

ENTR NCP SS GE

N DNTECH


6/52

11511 uIS11S IS

66 7 ....

6; ,, 666;;66' 76 66666 :7


7/52

ElN~~~~~~~~~


8/52

p,1

iRI


9/52

emptied by thethieves in their search for loot, and then haphaz- . ..:the priests who resealed the tomb,were disorderly and often incongruous.a linen glove, necklaces, rings,cloth, and a wooden bowl as well as the two _iillustrated here. The gilded wooden leopard'sat the left was attached to a real leopard skin decor-golden stars,part of the priestly regaliaTutankhamun, as high priest of all the gods, might Jin the afterlife. The crook at the right, part of hismust have been made very early in hissince it bears his name in its original form, Tut-before he changed it to Tutankhamun in honorthe principal god of Thebes. It is possible that Tut- jthis crook during his coronation,about nine years old.

7:7

f---- ---::J

7


10/52

A


11/52

Some fifty alabaster vases held more than ahundredgallons of scented oils andunguents,which were so valuable in ancient Egypt thatmen were willing to risk their lives for them:the first group of robbers ransacked thetomb in search of precious metals, but thesecond group came for the costly oils it con-tained. The robbers transferred the un-guents from the heavy vases (left) to waterskins, which were lighter and easier to carry.The residue of the contents of jar 61 stillretained a faint fragrance.The chest below is the only survivingexample of an ancient Egyptian portablechest. The inscriptions on its ebony veneerpromise Tutankhamun that he will begranted all the benefits that can be accordeda king when he is among the blessed dead,and that he will enjoy the sweet cool breeze,wine, and the odor of incense.


12/52

4

It is easy to imagine the archaeologists' amazement asthey picked their way through the tomb, finding marvelafter marvel. "It was certainly an astounding exper-ience," remarked Carter."Here, packed tightly togetherin this little chamber, were scores of objects, any oneof which would have filled us with excitement underordinary circumstances, and been considered amplerepayment for a full season's work."Beneath one of the animal-shapedcouches lay twofolding stools with duck-head feet (139 and 140 in thepicture above) as well as the exquisite chair shown aboveand illustrated in color at the right. Only twenty-eightinches high, it was probably made for Tutankhamunwhen he was a child.


13/52

I Ir~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~?~~~


14/52


15/52

> ~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

::-::::~~ ~~~~ ... ...-Ml-Z, ....


16/52


17/52

One of the greatest treasuresof the Antechamber is this littleshrine, about twenty inches high. It is covered with thicksheetgold decoratedwith charming scenes featuring Tutankh-amun and his wife. Although the scenes are depicted in theintimate style of the art of the preceding Amarna period,they seem to represent some of the coronation ceremonies.One of the purposes of the shrine may have been to commem-orate the king's coronation, and through magic to renewhis coronation in the afterlife.

The photograph at the left shows a statuette pedestal in-side the shrine. The statuette itself - probably made of gold -had been stolen in antiquity, but the pedestal still bears theimprint of tiny feet.


18/52

1_

rr

I 1

1 i ;

r '

1


19/52

The next room, the Burial Chamber,was almostcompletely filled with four enormous gildedwood shrines that surrounded the king's sarcoph-agus. Carter was delighted to find that the sealfastening the doors of the second shrine wasunbroken, indicating that this part of the tombhad never been entered since the day Tutankh-amun was buried. In the picture on the oppositepage, Carter and his crew have squeezed be-tween the wall of the chamber and the outside ofthe first shrine to study the other shrines within.Between the shrines and the wall lay theweird emblem at the top of this page, a symbol ofthe god Anubis, found in a corner behind someoars that would enable the pharaoh to navigatein the afterlife. Between the innermost shrineslay the magnificent gold fan below: Tutankh-amun himself is shown hunting the ostricheswhose plumes (now disintegrated) were used toadorn the fan.

17


20/52

In the foreground of the picture above is part of alinen pall decorated with golden flowers,which,darkened by age and torn by its own weight, hasfallen from the top of the second shrine. Nestledbehind are two alabaster unguent jars; the lionthat decorates the one at the right was probably in-tended to suggest the character of the king, andTutankhamun's name is written on its body.Among the many objects from the tomb that

remain unparalleled in Egyptian art are two smallfigures of the king, one in gold (left) and theother in silver, that topped staffs made of the samemetals. Their use is unknown, and nothing in thedress of the king indicates their purpose. Hiscrown, sometimes incorrectly called the war hel-met, was commonly worn in many different cir-cumstances: in battle, in religious and secular cere-monies, and in private life. He is representedwearing the same kind of pleated kilt in some ofthe scenes on the small gold shrine and shootingthe ostriches on the golden fan. Since the sticksdepict Tutankhamun as a chubby child they mayrepresent him at the time of his coronation.


21/52

//

Il Iit i i '

A.*-

:>k,

:

^1

4 ArI,IF SO e

U : -I :d X j.


22/52

ii-ii:,::x:::::;_:,::_:-:::: __i

::: :::::::::::::-::::: iiiiiii:::::::::::i-iili-_::-i-ii:i:ii-i:.:::---i:i-iB:i:ii_-i:iiiiyi:i:::::::::-::::: ii:i-iiiii:i"

: :-:-::-i:ii _-i:-:i-:: :ii

:_::

::-:-::-----:i-:'--:-':I1'I-'iii'-'-i: ---:--:---:----'--::-.-iiiiii-::i::::--::'::---- :::::::::::-:

:::::-::::::: :: :::::Ii:-r:---i::ii-il-::::-iiiii:i-:i-::::::::::::::-:-:::---::::::::-'"Lls"" : ::::::::i:_j::::j:(:-::l:::ii:iiiiiiiiiii-i_:ii -: _:?::-: _-:-_-----i?r- _: _-:--::-?---:i-:---_:_I_iiliii:I;j,i:i,i:i:_i:ii__i:i_ii:i_i

:::::-:::-:::_:?::__:-_::::::::::_:-___--_:i-:--:--::--:- ::::-s::-::-::---:-s:-:::::::-___--: -:::::: : :::::::__:--:-:::::_::_:_:_::::::::::::::-i:i-:----:---i--i-ii:-:-_:::-_::-_::::-__:-:i_-_:-:__-::-i_i-_:_:--i-:-ii-ii-:::::--:::--:--:::-_-::'::-ii-i:ii-i:--:-:::::::::::-ii:i-i::-::--i-


23/52

The task of dismantling the shrines and opening themammoth stone sarcophagus and firmly sealed coffinswas enormously complicated, made all the more uncom-fortable by the hot, cramped working conditions in theBurial Chamber.This magnificent photograph gives someidea of the moving grandeur of the tomb: "Familiaritycan never entirely dissipate the feeling of mystery,"Carterwrote, "the sense of vanished but haunting forcesthat cling to the tomb." Here, surrounded by the scaf-folding constructed to hoist the coffins out of the sar-cophagus, lies the second coffinwithin the first. As helifted them, Cartermarveled at the coffins'great weight.He was soon to discover the explanation: the thirdcoffinwas made of solid gold.


24/52

Within the coffinslay Tutankhamun's mum-my, wrapped in layer after layer of linenbandages, its head and chest protected bythis magnificent mask with its calm, almostmesmerizing gaze. It seems to be a faithfulportrait: the rather narroweyes, the shape ofthe nose and chin, and the fleshy lips re-semble features visible in the mummy. Earlyin Egypt's history, deceased kings werethought to become identified with the sungod Ra, whose body was made of gold andhis hair of lapis lazuli. Tutankhamun'smask,made of gold inlaid with lapis lazuli andblue glass, may preserve a relic of this belief.Tutankhamun is portrayed in bothfigures on the perfume vase above, found inthe Burial Chamber. In the left-hand figurehe is shown with a black face: it has noethnic significance, but black was a luckycolor in ancient Egypt and the color of thefertile Nile soil, so it may symbolize rebirth.


25/52

Al"

I~~~~~~~~~7777MM'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-


26/52

Tutankhamun'smummy was in poor condition: theprecious unguents with which it had been lavishlyanointed had carbonized the flesh and linen wrappings toa crumbling residue. The unguents had done relativelylittle damage to the 143 objects within the wrappings:these were chiefly amulets (protective charms), oftenmade specifically for funerary use. There were, how-ever, several pieces that seem to have belonged to theyoung king during his lifetime, such as some of the manybracelets (below and left) and the exquisitely crafteddagger at the right, its blade of specially hardened gold.The animals on the sheath show traces of foreign influ-ence; in this period Egypt was a rich, cosmopolitanpower, and craftsmen from many countries worked along-side Egyptian artisans in royal workshops.


27/52


28/52

*e4me;


29/52

Among the tomb's finest examples of thetechnical skill of the Egyptian jeweler,both these necklaces depict the vulture ofthe ancient goddess Nekhbet. The Nekh-bet vulture represented in the spectacularpectoral at the left spread her protectivewings over Tutankhamun's chest. Thisflexible gold collar, fragile and purely fu-nerary, is inlaid with "feathers" of coloredglass in imitation of turquoise, jasper,and lapis lazuli.The pendant below was placed closeto the mummy, and since the innermostlayers of wrappings contained Tutankh-amun's personal possessions, it was prob-ably a piece that he had worn in his life-time. It is made of solid gold, encrustedwith colored glass on the front. On thereverse, the vulture is shown wearing apendant bearing Tutankhamun's name,just as the pharaoh was wearing a pendantwith Nekhbet's symbol.


30/52

TRE SURY


31/52

Anubis, the jackal-like god who guards thedead, watched over the entrance to the thirdroom, called the Treasury. Here were placedboxes holding protective deities and sym-bolic figures to help the pharaoh through theunderworld,model boats, chests of jewelryfor his use in the afterlife, a large cow headrepresenting Hathor, the goddess of theTheban necropolis, and the breathtakinggilded shrine containing the king's internalorgans, which had been mummified sep-arately. Four goddesses stood at the sides,stretching their arms around it to spreadtheir protection over it. "A monument noteasily forgotten," wrote Carter. "Its simplegrandeur, the calm which seemed to accom-pany the four gracious little statuettes thatguarded it, produced a mystery and anappeal to the imagination that would bedifficultto describe."


32/52

4.

*a . 1-I U"^ . ^

L_ A,I. ,,,

Vf

i . -

~.I

L


33/52

The lovely statuette shown here - made ofwood overlaid with plaster and gilded -portrays the goddess Selket, associated notonly with funeraryduties but also withchildbirth and nursing, and noted for hercontrol of magic, in particularthe treat-ment of scorpion stings by means of magic.Her symbol, a scorpion, is shown on herhead.This figure suggests how the natural-ism of the preceding Amarna period hadinfused Egyptian art with special freshnessand grace. The turn of Selket's head - as iflooking out for intruders- violates theage-old rule of frontality, which had de-creed that every three-dimensional figureshould be portrayedas if seen from thefront. Every detail, from the flowing linesof her pleated dress and shawl to the slen-derness of her neck and arms, contributesto the elegance of the piece as a work of art.


34/52

coN,)


35/52

Within the gilded shrine, the four goddesseswere again portrayed on an alabaster chest(left), which contained spaces for thepharaoh's liver, stomach (or spleen), lungs,and intestines. Each compartmentwas cap-ped with an alabaster portrait of the king:the photographs at the right show how simi-lar the representations are on one of thelids and on the golden mask, despite theirdifferences in medium and scale. In the pic-ture above, the lids have been removed, andthe tops of four miniature coffins, bathed inunguents, can be seen.


36/52

I

I

--" Rm

ft*Mm

pNftiRr t'II . e ;

.rI j

,}.-.

a tkW0


37/52

The elaborate miniature coffins (one shown at theleft) containing Tutankhamun'sinternal organsmay originally have been made for Smenkhkara,his brother or half-brother. Smenkhkara's nameseems to have been erased and replaced by Tut-ankhamun'sname in several places.Also found in the Treasurywas the gold statu-ette shown below, only two-and-one-eighthincheshigh. It was buried in a little wooden coffintogetherwith a lock of hair. It may represent Tutankhamun,although the identification is uncertain and thecrouching position is very unusual for an image ofa king.At the left, Tutankhamun's features appear ona shawabty, a figure placed in a tomb so it couldperform the chores the deceased might be calledupon to do in the next world. A spell from the Bookof the Dead is inscribed on the front, instructingit to say it is ready to do the work for Tutankhamunif he is commanded "to cultivate the fields, to floodthe meadows, or to transportthe sand of the eastto the west." All the figures illustratedhere are car-rying the crook and the flail, the emblems of royaltyand the insignia of Osiris, god of the dead.


38/52

.E\

~~~~~E*IE~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~T1~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~L~ m


39/52

Twenty-two shrine-shapedblack chests, all but one/ .carefully sealed, stood in the Treasury. Theycontained beautifully carved statuettes of deitiesor the king, placed in the tomb to accompany andprotect him. The figure at the left, showing thepharaoh harpooning from a boat made of papyrusstems, is one of the most remarkable. Egyptiansculpture in the round, if it portrays a king orqueen, rarely shows the subject performing anaction. This piece is an exception to the rule,and here the sculptor has stunningly capturedthe grace and tension of a body poised for action.The pharaoh is represented as Horus attackingthe hippopotamus of the god of evil, althoughthe hippopotamus is not shown for magicalreasons, since its presence in the tomb mightbe a source of danger to the king. At theright is a dramatic cobra with dilated neck,also seen swathed in linen in the box in which itwas found. Made of gilded wood with eyes oftranslucent quartz, it probably represents afriendly deity who would help Tutankhamunavoid the malevolent demons that lurked in theunderworld.

_ v *BB ^^37


40/52

1


41/52

An opulent example of the jeweler's art, thependant at the left embodies a complex symbol ofthe sun god. In ancient Egypt, the sun god couldbe represented by a falcon - perhaps because ofits habit of flying high in the air - or by a scarab,because the beetle's custom of pushing a ball ofdung (its source of food) suggested the tripof the sun across the heavens. In this jewel thedisparate symbols are combined: a scarab madeof semiprecious chalcedony has been given thewings, tail, and hind legs of a falcon.Another symbolic piece, one of two foundtogether in a black shrine (above), is the statueon the right, depicting the king standing on theback of a leopard. Its precise meaning is not known:the leopard may be carrying the pharaoh on hisdangerous journey through the underworld. Likeall inhabitants of the underworld, the leopard isshown black because he lived in darkness, but theking is painted gold since he represents the sungod, who brought a brief spell of light to theunderworldas he passed through it each night.


42/52

V - W


43/52

Although ancient robbers had rummaged through thetomb in search of precious metals, many pieces ofjewelry had escaped their attentions. Illustrated hereis a chest in the shape of the royal cartouche, its topbearing the hieroglyphic symbols of Tutankhamun'sname and one of his many titles. Two stages in itsunpacking are shown nearby; if you look carefully youwill see the pieces on this page as they were found:a delicate necklace representing the moon bark, a mirrorcase shaped like the hieroglyphic sign meaning both"life" and "hand mirror," and a scarab bracelet and apair of earrings, both probably worn by Tutankhamunas a boy.


44/52


45/52

The necropolis guards had made an attempt tobring order to the other rooms after they hadbeen ransacked by robbers, but the tiny chamberknown as the Annex was found exactly as thethieves had left it. Stacked against the wallin the photograph illustrated here are a bed,stools, chests, a model boat, and a large whitebox containing bows and other weapons. Behindthe box, near the center, can be seen the alabasterunguent vase in the shape of a standing lion(labeled 579) illustrated in color at the left.Its left front paw rests on the hieroglyphicsign for "protection." The lid had been wrenchedoff, but the contents - some black, dried, fattysubstance - remained intact.


46/52

WQQ

44

*:.Kwyi*.


47/52

One of the ancient thieves' footprints can be seenon the lid of the white box in the upper left-handcorner, and amid a jumble of pottery wine jars andfood baskets (most containing dried fruits andseeds) lie the top of the gameboard illustrated at theleft (345) and the elegant alabaster vase (344)illustrated in the center of this page.Also found in the Annex was the charming vaseshown above. It is unusual in two respects: it is madeof silver, much rarer than gold in Egypt, and is inthe shape of a pomegranate. Recently introducedfrom western Asia, pomegranates were probablystill prized novelties when this piece was made.


48/52

*14r.'*1

II

..-.4


49/52

This ivory headrest depictsShu, the god of the air, who,at the beginning of time,lifted the sky off the earthand thus brought order out ofchaos. Here, to indicate thatthe base represents the earth,the artist has carved twolions, symbolizing themountains on the eastern andwestern horizons betweenwhich the sun rose and set.Headrests were often placedin tombs since to the ancientEgyptians the head was theseat of life, and a headrestmight magically ensure aplentiful supply of air aroundthe head.


50/52

Roughly discarded among the woven basketsin the Annex were two of the most beautifulobjects in Tutankhamun's tomb: a casket andits lid (551 and 540 in the picture above),made of wood veneered with carved andpainted ivory. The panel on the lid (right)portrays the young pharaoh leaning casuallyon his staff as he stretches out his hand toreceive two bouquets of lotus, papyrus, andpoppies from the queen. The innovations ofthe art of the Amarna period are reflected notonly in the informal, graceful poses but alsoin what Howard Cartercalled the unself-conscious friendliness of husband and wife.A link between us and that tremendous past,such an object from Tutankhamun'stomb "helps us to visualize," Carterwrote,"that the young king must have been verylike ourselves."


51/52

/

jit: :

-;

4

I'A..A

,,7


52/52

S .1

I

'R"

tutankhamun the metropolitan museum of art bulletin v 34 no 3 winter 1976 1977

Documents