Ancient Egypt conjures images of pyramids, mummies, Tutankhamun and Cleopatra, but there is so much more to the civilisation that dominated the known world for 3000 years.
Egypt: In The Time Of Pharaohs opens at Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum today showing the largest collection of Egyptian artefacts ever to tour Aotearoa New Zealand.
“Ancient Egypt was a foundational civilisation that inspired many societies around the world and continues to do so,” said museum chief executive Dr David Gaimster. “Ancient Egyptians created symbols of power that we still recognise today and had sophisticated spiritual beliefs. They demonstrated humanity’s ingenuity in architecture, engineering and construction, and used the River Nile landscape to support a rich and complex culture.”
The exhibition features more than 350 pieces, the combined collections of the University of Aberdeen Museums, Lokschuppen Rosenheim, Roemer- und Pelizaeus-Museum, Hildesheim, and Museums Partner Austria, and was co-curated by Professor of Egyptology at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Regine Schulz.
“We put this exhibition together with our partners at Aberdeen University – they have a wonderful Egyptian collection and, with ours, together we have more than 300 objects from Ancient Egypt, from a timeframe 3500BC to the 1st or 2nd century AD,” Professor Schulz told the Herald. “You can learn and see a lot from the Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs, of the people who lived there, the tools they used and the beautiful art.”
Professor Schulz revels in the stories that the objects tell, even disparities in the quality of figurines within a single tomb are a rich source of history.
Pointing to a figure she explains what it reveals.
“You can see a gentleman; his name is Ankh - this means life – and his wife, done by a great, great artist,” Professor Schulz said. “When you come to the other figures, then you realise they are not so high quality.
“You have the master who started to work in the tomb of one of the officials, and then, when he was so far ready, the other figures he gave to the assistants. They are not so experienced so you can see the heads are a little bit smaller and the quality is not as high.
“There are many, many things that an artist must do, particularly as a master, so you need a lot of assistants. Sometimes it was working out fine and sometimes, not so.”
The exhibition showcases ancient Egyptian culture and how it flourished along the banks of the Nile, revealing the economic, political, religious and cultural life of the pharaohs and the ruling classes, as well as the day-to-day experience of the population as a whole.
“Egypt: In the Time of Pharaohs is an exceptional exhibition that brings one of the largest travelling collections of ancient Egyptian artefacts to Aotearoa New Zealand for the first time. This is a once-in-a-generation experience,” Dr Gaimster said.
Visitors will learn about the role of religion and how pharaohs were seen as living gods on Earth. The exhibition also unveils the secrets of ancient texts and revelations about rituals surrounding death and mummification.
“From the 15th of this month, you can meet Mr Ankh and his wife and see a lot of objects – more than 300 – from Ancient Egypt,” said Professor Schulz. “It’s a high-quality show and we are very happy that we had the chance to show it to all the people in New Zealand and I think it will be a pleasure if a lot of people are coming here and enjoy Ancient Egyptian art, history and religion, which is so exciting.”
Egypt: In The Time Of Pharaohs at Tamaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum June 15- November 12. Tickets available at the museum, or free for members and under 5s. https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/