Tutankhamun: His Tomb and Treasures Exhibit

Over Christmas, we visited the traveling show Tutankhamun: His Tomb and Treasures in Washington, DC. The exhibit has recreations of various items found in the tomb of Tutankhamun along with full-size replicas of the nesting box coffins.

The first room gives the history of Tutankhamun's dynasty along with a general overview of ancient Egyptian culture. 

Info on the pharaohs of old

The Rosetta Stone was the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics. It was a bit of bureaucratic information which was not interesting in itself, but it was written in three languages including Greek. Comparing the texts enabled linguists to finally crack the code on Egyptian writing.

Rosetta Stone copy

More on ancient culture

Next we watched a film about the discovery of the tomb by Howard Carter in 1922. The next displays showed the few rooms that made up the burial chamber. An anteroom led to the coffin chamber and a further room full of treasures.

The layout

This first display of the nested coffins shows how tight the space Carter's crew had to work in.

Pulling one coffin out of another

The lid on the floor!

The anteroom was full of items for the pharaoh's use in the afterlife, including an unassembled chariot and effigies of servants (more on that further down).

Supplies for later

The coffin room had almost no space outside of the large box containing the coffins. The inside of the largest box was laminated in gold and decorated for royalty.

Inside the largest box

Three nested rectangular boxes contained the three nested coffins, a very elaborate set up that was not fully explained.

Three boxes that were in each other

The coffins

Certainly the most icon item from the tomb is the mummy's mask. It shows a youthful and idealized king in his glory. The asp and vulture on the forehead symbolize Upper and Lower Egypt, the two realms ruled over by Tutankhamun.

Replica of the famous mask

The tomb had many fabulous treasures. The next exhibit has a sampling of what was found in the treasury. The first display shows the canopic jars used to store the internal organs of the mummy. They also were elaborately housed in the golden box just behind them in the picture below.

Canopic storage

The pharaoh would need servants in the afterlife. Thankfully actual people were not buried with him. Hundreds of small statues called Shabtis represented those who would serve the king in the land of the dead.

Shabtis display

Many larger statues represent various gods. Below, one god is lifting up Tutankhamun.

The god of gymnastics, perhaps?

A fully-constructed chariot would not have fit in the tomb but all the parts were there. This reconstructed replica shows it is more of a ceremonial ride than one fit for battle.

King's Chariot

These sandals show Egypt's enemies back in the day--the Nubians and the Lydians. The pharaoh would have them symbolically under his feet as he walked around (even in the afterlife).

Walking on your enemies!

The pharaoh's throne is flanked by two feathered fans that would keep him cool in the shade while suppliants came to beg favors. The footstool in front also has Nubians and Libyans as part of the artwork, again putting them under the king's heel.

Pharaoh's throne

Things weren't all war and superiority in the tomb. A few board games were found, though no rules were included!

Board games

We were a little nervous about visiting the exhibit when we heard they were all replicas of the real stuff. Turns out, the place was not overcrowded and we had time to appreciate the items that we wanted to appreciate without being moved along. The whole visit was about an hour and a half and was well worth it. They closed in DC on January 5, 2025, so hopefully you got to see it or are in a city that it moves to.