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Ancient Egypt exhibition opens at Leeds Museum
Leeds curator of archeology Kathryn Baxter with a gneiss sphinx statue of Pharaoh Amenemhat (1801-1799 BC).
For thousands of years they ruled the lands of ancient Egypt and honoured their gods.
But now the secrets of the Pharaohs are set to be unravelled as visitors are taken back in time at Leeds Museum.
A chilling hieroglyphic tale on papyrus foretells the tale of how Pharaoh Amenemhat met his demise and visitors can even find out what was buried in the tombs of great kings and queens of Egypt.
Among some of the striking exhibitions is an eye-catching wooden guardian who closely protected the tomb of Pharaoh Ramses I in the Valley of the Kings.
The rare eight-foot figure dates back thousands of years and was carefully transported from the British Museum in London to Leeds’ latest exhibition Pharaoh: King of Egypt.
A 3,000-year-old wooden bed from the Tomb of Pharaoh Ramses IX and linen cloths used to wrap mummies are among some of the ancient artefacts on show.
Katherine Baxter, curator of archaeology, praised the exhibition and said: “It is so unbelievably exciting to have the exhibition here in Leeds.
“Usually people have to travel to London to see this quality of Egyptian artefacts but it is fantastic to have it here.
“My favourite piece has to be the tomb guardian because it is amazing. He used to guard the deceased Pharaoh for the afterlife.
“It is such a rare find and it took four people to secure him into place.
“I really hope that this will excite the people of Leeds and capture their imaginations.”
Developed by the British Museum the exhibition explores the lives of the pharaohs and their roles over 3,000 years of history.
It complements the museum’s famous ‘Leeds Mummy’ Nesyamun, who was a priest at the Temple of Amun in around 1100 BC.
The touring exhibition opens today and will run until Sunday, June 17.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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