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90 years ago, in the Valley of the Kings, the necropolis near the Egyptian city of Luxor,
it happened one of the most important archaeological discoveries in history. After 14 years of
work interrupted only by World War I, archaelogist Howard Cater found the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.
Tutankhamun ascended the throne at the age of 9. Although his reign was not historically
important, has become the most famous pharaoh of all time. On November 26, 1922, Howard
Carter, together with his patron, Lord Carnarvon and his daughter, opened the antechamber of
the tomb of Tutankhamun. There, Carter could envision treasures he described as "wonderful
things." The tomb housed about 5,000 objects from the pharaoh, who died at the age of 19.
Today, a traveling exhibition recreates some of the treasures found in the Egyptian tomb.
Visitors can share the feelings of Carter at the time of discovery. The exhibition "Tutankhamun'.
The tomb and its secrets" contains replicas of furniture, clothing, weapons and ceremonial
objects found in the Egyptian king's tomb, located in its original context. The observer
experiences today what the British archaeologist saw nearly 90 years ago. On the way, you can
see the detail of the three majestic burial chambers covered with gold and the quartzite
sarcophagus that contained the coffins of the king and his mummy. These were included
within each other, like Russian nesting dolls. The exhibition subsequently breaks down the
elements of the tomb in detail, so the visitors can appreciate the full majesty of the magnificent
tomb of Tutankhamun. The objective is to recreate the feelings Carter and his colleagues had
during the excavation, research and documentation of the objects found inside the grave. The
visitor will be able to find an X-ray used to clarify the cause of death of the young
pharaoh, a replicca f the canopic vessels, where the ancient Egyptians stored the embalmed
viscera of the body after mummification, a reconstruction of one of the chariots of the
Pharaoh and some of his personal wardrobe. Bows, maces, boomerangs, jewelry and amulets
made of luxurious materials such as ebony, ivory, alabaster and precious stones that
belonged to the boy king and were buried with him to enjoy them in another life. And, of
course, the magnificent golden death mask inlaid with turquoise glass That was Placed
over the shoulders of the mummy. The mask, along with the ceremonial throne are the stars
of the show. The originals are now displayed in the archaeological museum in Cairo. Its
organizers claim that due to their dispersion and fragility, it is unlikely an exhibition
of this magnitude could be done with the real objects found by Carter. The experience is
completed with a sample of the original photographs taken during the opening of the tomb. So far,
nearly two million people have visited this exhibition in different European cities like
Zurich, Brno, Munich, Barcelona or Madrid. The exhibition can be seen simultaneously
in the cities of Manchester and Cologne.