OUR EGYPTIAN ‘CULTURAL EXPERIENCE’
- Feb 23
- 6 min read
Happy February, and what a great first half of the month touring the Nile valley with The Cultural Experience on our ‘Immortal Egypt’ tour. As the second time we’ve done this (see https://www.immortalegypt.co.uk/post/immortal-egypt-on-tour), we were able to change parts of the itinerary to factor in visits to some recently opened places, this year accompanied by the brilliant duo of expert guide Mahmoud Rehim and tour manager Ian Coyne (above).
So after our first day in and around Egypt’s first capital Memphis and its cemetery Sakkara (above), followed by a visit to the royal mummies within the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation, the second day was even better - in fact it was pure magic. For although we did visit the Grand Egyptian Museum last year when it was only half complete albeit still mind-blowing, our recent return visit revealed almost all the 5,398 objects discovered in Tutankhamun’s tomb.
With many on display for the very first time, from his complete wine cellar and food supplies to his furniture, we also saw Tutankhamun’s toys including several wooden spinning tops. So too his extensive wardrobe of clothing which we studied back in the 1990s (see: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2000/aug/10/technology1), from socks and underpants to tunics and leather scale armour, and of course his spectacular regalia, jewellery and the iconic mask (above).
Yet beyond the dazzling treasures of Tutankhamun, there were so many other new things to see, including one of the enigmatic statues of female pharaoh Tawosret I’d only previously seen in photos (above left). And despite her missing head, it really had ‘presence’, conveying a feeling of pharaonic power we’ll be exploring in our forthcoming ‘Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt’ exhibition which includes Tawosret (and her unexpected links to Barnsley!). The new GEM displays also include a superb alabaster head of Alexander the Great which I’d never seen before either (above right), his hair treated with the same kind of colour treatment found on the better known Berlin head of his illustrious descendant Cleopatra VII, the star of our aforementioned Barnsley exhibition.
And of course we had to revisit the spectacular treasures of Queen Hetepheres (see: 8 minutes into our ‘Egypt’s Lost Queens’ at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmFM-rPerL4) plus the two colossal statues of Amenhotep III retrieved from long-term storage within Karnak Temple’s magazines, and certainly my favourite pieces in the whole museum. There was even Amenhotep merchandise in the new museum shop, essential purchases to be made before a quick journey across Cairo to the old museum and all the gems this magnificent old building still houses: from the Narmer Palette and tomb marker of female ruler Merneith to the tomb treasures of Yuya and Tuya, the gold and silver funeral goods of the Tanis kings and fine statues of female pharaoh Hatshepsut (again featuring prominently in our new Barnsley exhibition), all to be enjoyed minus the previous crowds.
Then as if the day couldn’t get any better we took a late flight south to Luxor, the drive from the airport to our favourite hotel the Winter Palace passing the floodlit Luxor Temple right next door (below left).
As our destination the following day along with the much larger temple of Karnak and of course the Luxor Museum, each place was filled with yet more Amenhotep III goodies plus superb images of his inspirational predecessor Hatshepsut including her red chapel at Karnak (above right), another highlight of what is fast becoming our annual itinerary.
So too her iconic funerary temple at Deir el-Bahri (above) which we toured the next day after crossing the Nile to the West Bank, followed by a private visit to the Western branch of the Valley of the Kings. And instead of last year’s special visit to the tomb of Hatshepsut’s successor Tuthmosis III, this time we were able to switch to the tomb of Amenhotep III himself.
Having filmed there back in 2015 but only opened to the public a couple of months ago, we had the entire place to ourselves and were even allowed down into the burial chamber to scrutinise the sarcophagus lid under which the sky goddess Nut still extends her protective wings over the place where the king’s mummified body once lay. And certainly this was the personal highlight of the entire tour, an experience almost impossible to convey and the feelings no less overwhelming than on our first visit (see 52’ into https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSClqMN1hXM).
After further stops at the tombs of Tutankhamun, Ramses VI and Seti I, we rounded off our time in the valley with a detour down into the superb tomb of the aforementioned Tawosret, whose statue we’d just seen in the new museum in Cairo and really bringing home the power of Egypt’s female pharaohs.
With our usual excellent lunch in the wonderful Marsam Hotel set within the grounds of Amenhotep III’s enormous funerary temple, his Colossi of Memnon statues had now been joined by another of his enormous figures, his alabaster colossus we’d been allowed to film back in 2015 (below) now placed back in its rightful place some 14 metres above the ground only 2 months ago (https://x.com/AlArabiya_EGY/status/2000192917286052277) – another profound moment.
So too that day’s final visit to the Valley of the Queens and on to Deir el-Medina, rounded off by privileged access to the funerary chapel of our old friends Kha and Merit and so small that only 3 people are able to enter at any one time (below).
Then over the next few days our journey took us ever south, to the spectacular temples of Edfu and Kom Ombo complete with its very own Crocodile Museum, then on to the island temples of Elephantine and Philae, whose resident cats certainly enjoyed the ‘offerings’ we brought them.
And following a fascinating drive through the deserts of Nubia, we toured the twin temples of Abu Simbel which for many are the highlight of the tour. Certainly the rock-cut temple of Great Royal Wife Nefertari is very special, and while smaller than the neighbouring temple of her husband Ramses II it’s packed with stunning images of the queen herself, yet another great royal woman featuring in our forthcoming exhibition.
And having begun our tour at the site of Egypt’s oldest pyramid at Saqqara, we ended with its most famous, the Pyramids of Giza, touring the Valley Temple of Khephren with its Great Sphinx, the burial chamber of the pyramid of Menkaure and examining the black basalt pavement of the Great Pyramid itself.
Built for King Khufu who was the first to begin construction on this most iconic of sites, he’d started work by creating a suitable tomb for his mother Hetepheres I directly in front of his own, her burial placed closest to the east where the sun rose each dawn to initiate rebirth. And with her tomb found intact in 1925 containing lavish grave goods, her golden jewel box inscribed ‘casket containing bracelets’ did indeed contain her set of spectacular silver bangles now mostly housed at the GEM (which we’d also filmed 9 minutes into: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmFM-rPerL4) (below).
Adorned with butterflies inlaid with carnelian, turquoise and lapis-lazuli, these are among the most important pieces of royal regalia ever found, since recent analysis reveals they are made of silver imported from the Greek Cyclades (see: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352409X23001530), clear evidence that Egypt was in contact with the Greek world at least as early as the pyramid age.
So it was such a wonderful surprise to receive an exact replica as a gift just before leaving Cairo, this beautiful object one of the highlights of our forthcoming Barnsley exhibition along with spectacular ancient jewellery on loan from the British Museum.
And accompanied by key pieces from the Egypt Exploration Society and the museums of Bolton, Wigan, Scarborough, St. Helens and our good friends at the Egyptomania Museum, there’s absolutely no surprise at all when it comes to the subject of next month’s blog…. so maybe see you in Barnsley!
‘Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt’ opens to the public on 7th March: https://www.barnsley-museums.com/news/barnsley-museums-to-host-exclusive-exhibition-celebrating-cleopatra-and-the-queens-of-egypt
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