16th
Ancient Egypt: Reading’s Egyptology Collection
The 125th anniversary of the EES in 2007 was the catalyst for planning the exhibition Ancient Egypt: Reading’s Egyptology Collection. This was designed to celebrate and elucidate the Egyptian material in Reading’s collection, much of which came from excavations undertaken by the Egypt Exploration Society and the British School of Archaeology in Egypt. Generous loans from the EES, British Museum, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, and the University of Reading complemented and enhanced our own collection.
The exhibition was divided into two parts. The first explained how and why the objects in the collection came to Reading. An essential aspect of this was the provision of information about the formation and history of the EES. Many visitors had not realised that the EES had recorded the scenes and inscriptions in tombs and temples as well as undertaking excavations, and the 43 EES watercolours on display vividly illustrated this aspect of the Society’s work. The second part of the exhibition was thematic rather than chronological, highlighting various aspects of life and death. The facsimiles of dogs, cats, birds and of men and women doing ordinary things – spinning, herding cattle, using a bow drill, pouring liquid, holding a mirror like the one on display – brought the Egyptian world to life and showed objects in use. The birds are so accurately depicted that they could be used as illustrations in a bird identification guide.
Facsimile in the EES collection of ‘birds in Acacia’ from the tomb of Khnumhotep II at Beni Hasan. Painted in 1891 by M W Blackden.
During the seven months of the exhibition almost 55,000 visitors came to the Museum. They included children and their families, school parties, academics and committed Egyptophiles; of those who had been to Egypt the watercolours brought back memories of the sites they had visited.
The Thames Valley Ancient Egypt Society collaborated with the Museum on a number of talks and activities. Two family fun days attracted over 1300 visitors, and activities on these days included decorating a room with collages and figures, for which the watercolours were an inspiration. Throughout the exhibition replica Egyptian clothing supplied by Janet Johnstone was available for children to try on. It was a delight to see them wearing these clothes and looking at the paintings of genuine Egyptians dressed the same way.
Children dressed as Egyptians. Photo courtesy of Reading Borough Council (Reading Museum Service). All rights reserved.
We are delighted that the exhibition has raised the profile of the collections belonging to Reading and to the EES, and that the watercolours are now known to a wider audience.
*The EES is very grateful to Jillian Greenaway, Curator of Archaeology, Reading Museum Service for supplying the report above and the photograph of the children.
Several of the watercolours displayed in Reading were republished recently in Spencer, P (Ed.), The Egypt Exploration Society - the early years. To buy a copy please visit our distributor: http://www.oxbowbooks.com/bookinfo.cfm/ID/82885.
Further images from the Society’s archives are available here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/egyptexplorationsociety/
