Tutankhamun (Tutenkh-amen), Egyptian (1341 BC – 1323 BC) was an Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th dynasty (ruled c.1333 BC – 1323 BC in the conventional chronology), during the period of Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom. His original name, Tutankhaten, means "Living Image of Aten", while Tutankhamun means "Living Image of Amun." In hieroglyphs the name Tutankhamun was typically written Amen-tut-ankh, because of a scribal custom that placed a divine name at the beginning of a phrase to show appropriate reverence He is possibly also the Nibhurrereya of the Amarna letters. He was likely the 18th dynasty king 'Rathotis' who, according to Manetho, an ancient historian, had reigned for nine years — a figure which conforms with Flavius Josephus's version of Manetho's Epitome
The traveling Tut exhibition, which was recently in Philadelphia, contains
more than 50 artifacts from Tut’s tomb along with more than 80 other Egyptian artifacts, organizers said today. (In Philadelphia, it attracted nearly 1.3 million visitors to the Franklin Institute in 2007.)
More than 5,000 beautifully preserved artifacts were found in Tutankhamun's tomb, and the 50 selected for this exhibition -- along with more than 80 from other royal tombs -- are among the most breathtaking objects of ancient Egypt said show curator David Silverman, Eckley B. Coxe Jr. professor of Egyptology at the University of Pennsylvania -- and a Bayonne native and a Rutgers grad.
That the exhibit is back in New York after a 31-year-absence is a source of barely concealed excitement among its organizers, including a couple of Jersey guys.
"There are some objects in this show that have never been outside Egypt and many objects that were not in New York 30 years ago," said Guy Gsell, director of Discovery Times Square Exposition and a Glen Ridge resident.
The exhibit, which runs through Jan. 2, 2011, is the final stop of an eight-city, nearly six-year tour.
Discovery Times Square Exposition's claim -- "no museum exhibit in history has captured our hearts and minds like King Tut" -- is hardly an exaggeration.
Tut -- an Egyptian king who died at age 18 or 19, more than 3,000 years ago -- took Manhattan by storm in 1979, when the Metropolitan Museum of Art was one of seven stops on "The Treasures of Tutankhamun" tour. Eight million people in all attended the three-year tour, the first true museum blockbuster. "Tutmania" -- which included Steve Martin's unlikely 1978 hit, recorded with the "Toot Uncommons" -- reigned, and more than 30 years later, that excitement shows little sign of abating.
The show will also incorporate the latest Tut news, including the mystery surrounding his death (how he died is still unknown) and recent findings from DNA testing that revealed further details about the pharaoh's family.
"This is the eighth and final city on the tour," said Mark Lach, senior vice president/creative director at Arts and Exhibitions International and the show's designer. "After this, the objects go back to Egypt forever
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