King Tut’s Last Campaign Around The World2 min read

King Tutankhamun campaigns around the world for his final time before permanently residing to his throne at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt in 2022.

Discovery

King Tutankhamun, also known as Th Boy King for his early ascension at 9 years old, or just King Tut, was the pharaoh of ancient Egypt during 14 century BCE. Less renowned in life, he popularised in 1922 when his tomb was discovered in the Valley of the Kings by Howard Carter. Howard Carter was a British artist and archeologist born in Kensington, London. Thanks to the connections of his father, Carter was hired by Lord Carnarvon. Upon receiving a license to excavate on the Amarna site, Lord Carnarvon passed down the job to Carter and he hired a crew to begin the search. Public and media interest arose in light of discovering King Tut’s tomb because of its grandiose opulence and surprisingly favourable condition.

Reign

Ironically, because of the discovery of King Tut’s well intact tomb, it has made him the most popular and well-known Egyptian kings despite accomplishing little in his life, dying early in his youth (at 19), and having his name stricken from the records as a result of the Amarna period. The Amarna period was a controversial historical moment in Egypt where religious turmoil was initiated due to the conversion from a polytheistic faith to that of a monolithic faith. Akhenaten, the king of that period, made his god, Aten, supreme over the others and this reform lasted until pharaoh Horemheb’s ascension. This reform of religion exemplified the earliest example of monotheistic religion.

Current Campaign

150 of King Tut artefacts will be making their rounds throughout the world from 2019 to 2022 until establishing their permanent residency at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt which opens in 2021. The King’s campaign started in Los Angeles and from there went to Paris, and is currently in London’s Saatchi Gallery. Confirmation dates are still pending for their trip to Japan, Canada, South Korea. The exhibit will stay in London until early May. After, it will continue onto Sydney and end in Cairo for the Egyptian Museum’s grand opening. 2022 will mark the hundredth year since the discovery of The Boy King.

Photo by Alex Azabache on Unsplash