A "Fruit"ful Discovery in Tut's Tomb

This colossal statue of King Tutankhamun (at 17 ft. 4 in., the tallest ancient Egyptian statue in the Western Hemisphere, and weighing in at approximately 12,000 pounds) can be found at the Oriental Institute Museum at the University of Chicago. I took this photo during my Egyptology tour of Chicago in early August. The statue was discovered near Medinet Habu (west bank at Luxor--ancient Thebes) in the Temple of Aye and Horemheb in 1930.

Below are two photos showing, somewhat poorly I'm afraid, the placard attached to the statue. (If you click on either of them you will open an enlarged view which, of course, is much easier to read.) It's a fascinating story!

The story of the recent discovery of eight baskets of doum fruits (from the doum palm) in Tut's tomb is available by clicking the title of this post.

Nefertiti Staying Put?

Further "Tales of Zahi Against the World"! Germany has decided not to allow the famous bust of Nefertiti to return to Egypt for a three-month exhibition--and now Zahi wants the bust back for good. (Click on the title of this post to read the full article.) Below is a shot of a copy of the original bust costumed for Christmas. This replica sits on top of the piano in the tea room at Chicago House.

Tut-Tut-Tut-ing Along...

This is moi in front of Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings. I was lucky enough to be invited to view the tomb on a special pass issued to the young daughter of my friend Lisa Giddy in the Spring of 2005. Chloe was allowed to bring 5 people along with her. The truly wonderful part of the experience was that we were the only people in the tomb! Amazing!!

Click the title of this post to read an article about the latest Tut discovery.