From the gold mask of Tutankhamun to the bust of Nefertiti, ancient Egyptians produced objects that remain iconic today.
Spanning broadly the pharaonic era from around 3100 – 30 BCE, The Makers of Ancient Egypt*, is the first exhibition to consider ancient Egypt through the lens of its craftspeople. From spectacular decorated coffins and rarely exhibited Books of the Dead to exquisite jewellery and ceramics, this major exhibition reveals untold stories of the makers, technology and techniques behind these extraordinary objects.
It will combine exciting new discoveries from the Fitzwilliam’s own collection with star loans – from The Louvre, Paris and the Egyptian Museum in Berlin, some never seen before in the UK – to shed new light on how the ancient Egyptians lived, worked and worshipped.
For more than forty years, the Fitzwilliam Museum has been at the forefront of research into how Egyptian artefacts were made and this exhibition will reveal how makers of objects from the domestic to the divine were creating and combining materials, often working at the very edges of technical capabilities.
Though we rarely know their names, innovative interpretation and immersive displays will encourage visitors to meet the people behind these objects, to learn how others in Egyptian society viewed them and how they viewed themselves.
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