The Australian Museum (AM) is set to host the extraordinary Tutankhamun: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh blockbuster exhibition thanks to a $50 million refurbishment.
NSW Minister for the Arts Don Harwin revealed Sydney will host the most impressive King Tutankhamun exhibition to ever leave Egypt in early 2021 for a six-month run at the Australian Museum following an expansion of it exhibition spaces.
“The Tutankhamun exhibition is a game-changer for Sydney and Australia,” said Mr Harwin. “Sydney is the major cultural city in the Pacific/South East Asian region, and the significant upgrades to the Australian Museum will ensure we have world-class museum exhibition spaces for visitors as well as residents to enjoy.”
“As well as the transformed exhibition space, the refurbishment will also create new education facilities, enabling school student visitors to double to 100,000 a year – all completed in time to host the Tutankhamun exhibition.”
Tutankhamun: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh features more than 150 objects from King Tut’s tomb, including 60 treasures never previously displayed outside Egypt. The exhibition also features advanced display technology and the latest science about King Tut’s life, health, death and lineage.
Sydney forms part of a 10-city world tour to mark the centenary of the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922 by British archaeologist Howard Carter. Produced by IMG, it is the last time these objects will travel outside Egypt now that the new Grand Egyptian Museum in Giza is nearing completion.
Director and CEO of the Australian Museum, Ms Kim McKay said that the refurbishment is a critical step in the future development of the Australian Museum. “Repurposing existing storage space will see the significant expansion of the touring exhibition halls to 1500 square metres across two levels – allowing the Museum to host either one big blockbuster or two exhibitions simultaneously,” she said.
“The project has a BCR (Benefit Cost Ratio) of 1.55 and it will provide great flexibility to the AM to ensure the very best exhibitions and experiences are presented at the AM in the future. We have a world-class collection and now we’ll have world-class spaces to show them in.”
Tutankhamun: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh opens at the Australian Museum in early 2021. For more information, visit: www.australianmuseum.net.au for details.
Image: Wooden Guardian Statue of the King. Wood, Gesso, Black Resin, Gold Leaf, Bronze, White Calcite and Glass for the Eyes Reign of Tutankhamun 1336-1326 B.C.E – photo by © Laboratoriorosso, Viterbo/Italy