The
life of the ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep II is being relived in a major
exhibition in Milan, reports Nevine El-Aref.
It
seems that the shadow cast over Italian-Egyptian relations is about to
disappear. The ambassadors of both countries have returned, and the ancient
Egyptians will be spending the autumn in Milan in “The Extraordinary Discovery
of Pharaoh Amenhotep II” exhibition inaugurated last week at the city’s Museum
of Cultures (MUDEC).
It
tells the story of the 18th-Dynasty Pharaoh Amenhotep II, son of Thutmose III,
the sovereign of a lavish court and heroic central figure in a rich historical
period that historians have baptised a Golden Age.
A
wonderful display of artifacts and photographs has been carefully selected from
the most important ancient Egyptian collections in the world for the Milan
exhibition. The Egyptian Museum in Cairo has loaned nine pieces, and other
source institutions include the Stichting Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden,
the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, the National Archaeological Museum in
Florence, and the Giovanni Barracco Museum of Ancient Sculpture in Rome. These
museums and other private collections have loaned for the occasion statues,
weapons, items from daily life at court, burial assemblages and mummies.
The
exhibition also sees the collaboration of the University of Milan, which has
loaned the original excavation documents for the Pharaoh’s tomb, as well as the
collaboration of the Milan civic museums network, in particular the Castello
Sforzesco Museum that has provided finds from its Egyptian collections while it
is temporarily closed for renovation.
The
exhibition poster featuring a beautifully carved marble bust of Amenhotep II
can be seen everywhere on display in Milan, in the city’s streets, stations,
shops and restaurants. The
MUDEC where the exhibition is being held has been turned into an ancient
Egyptian ceremonial arena for the occasion. To the music of harps, young men
wearing golden nemes (ancient Egyptian head coverings) and silver kilts in the
ancient Egyptian style with golden collars and belts greet exhibition visitors.
Further
inside the exhibition, the atmosphere becomes more dramatic, providing an
impressive setting for the granite, limestone, marble, wooden, golden and
faience objects on display. All in all, visitors are taken into a truly epic
experience to explore the life and history of Amenhotep II in a succession of
poetic dramatisations as well as an audio-visual demonstration...... READ MORE.
