http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/featured-post/2015/9/8/the-experts-are-coming-to-fix-tutankhamuns-mask
The experts are coming to fix Tutankhamun's mask!
And they are cashed-up!
You'll recall how Tutankhamun's golden funerary mask was notoriously damaged by Egyptian Museum staff last year.
Tutankhamun's false beard was accidentally snapped off as the mask was being sloppily handled while a light bulb was being changed in its display case. In a panic, the beard was hastily glued back on using quick-dry epoxy resin. To add insult to injury, the messy 'repair' left a crust of glue on the mask, which workers tried to scrape off, slightly scratching the golden surface.
There was an international outcry.
Since then things have been moving forward behind the scenes. CT scans have been made of the mask and the epoxy resin tested to determine how best to remove it.
Later this month, an international conference of archaeologists and conservators is being held to set out the work needed to restore the beard. The German government has made a generous offer to fund the mask's restoration to the tune of $110,000.
This photo shows Tutankhamun's mask in place in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. In time it will be moved - along with the rest of Tutankhamun's treasures - to the new Grand Egyptian Museum near the Giza Pyramids. It is due to open (at least partially) in 2018.
In the meantime, a reminder that from December 1 and across the festive season, the existing Museum at Tahrir Square is allowing inside photography for the first time in years.
Photo: Nariman El-Mofty
You'll recall how Tutankhamun's golden funerary mask was notoriously damaged by Egyptian Museum staff last year.
Tutankhamun's false beard was accidentally snapped off as the mask was being sloppily handled while a light bulb was being changed in its display case. In a panic, the beard was hastily glued back on using quick-dry epoxy resin. To add insult to injury, the messy 'repair' left a crust of glue on the mask, which workers tried to scrape off, slightly scratching the golden surface.
There was an international outcry.
Since then things have been moving forward behind the scenes. CT scans have been made of the mask and the epoxy resin tested to determine how best to remove it.
Later this month, an international conference of archaeologists and conservators is being held to set out the work needed to restore the beard. The German government has made a generous offer to fund the mask's restoration to the tune of $110,000.
This photo shows Tutankhamun's mask in place in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. In time it will be moved - along with the rest of Tutankhamun's treasures - to the new Grand Egyptian Museum near the Giza Pyramids. It is due to open (at least partially) in 2018.
In the meantime, a reminder that from December 1 and across the festive season, the existing Museum at Tahrir Square is allowing inside photography for the first time in years.
Photo: Nariman El-Mofty
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