Did anyone else visit the Tutankhamen exhibition in 1972 at the British Museum?

[Fordian]

‘The Treasures of Tutankhamen’. Just watching Prof Alice Roberts on her train trip down the Nile, reminded me of our family day out, aged 9, queuing for maybe 2 hours to get in?

We went Egyptian mad at primary school, and lots of TV shows.

It was amazing. Dark room, beautifully lit. We were ferried past the death mask on little travelators? Or just shuffled quickly? - no lingering (like the Crown Jewels, now!), with people watching through horizontal slits around the walls, but the IRA were the concern, not theft. You could see the glint of their glasses through the slits.

We also got to see the mummies! Now, understandably, unacceptable.

Was amazed to see the same gold death mask, ‘77; in Cairo, apparently casually drop-kicked into a municipal museum dusty case, ‘guarded’ by a tired old bloke snoozing over a rifle as protection…🤭

No, I didn't see the 1972 one. I wasn't born and didn't live in the UK at the time.

I did go to an exhibit in London pre-covid. Literally within weeks of lock down, but they only had some bits. I've been to Cairo and Luxor separately to see the mask and actual tomb and body.

I keep getting adverts about a virtual Tut tour to London coming soon. Anyone know if its worth it?

Yes, me too. Totally unforgettable. I still have the exhibition catalogue.

We went on a Sunday afternoon. We had been to London for something else completely and were just driving back past the British Museum and we saw there was NO QUEUE!

We just found somewhere to park and went in. Amazing.

Twenty years later I went to work at the British Museum, although that was entirely unconnected to my brush with King Tutankhamen.

I was also 7 and have exactly the same memories as PP. I remember being very impressed with the black fabric covered recesses that all the exhibits were mounted in and the spotlights that illuminated them; it all seemed very glamorous and mysterious. And I too remember the queue and the mask, and still have the souvenir book, which my mum bought. I read it repeatedly, could probably have managed to create a pretty decent inventory of the tomb.

Yes, I went with a friend. I'm afraid I remember queueing but not much about the exhibition. I'm wearing a raincoat in the photo my friend took that day, so it must have been cool/wet.

In the 1980s I saw the treasures again in Cairo.

Had previously seen the mummies at the BM on a primary school trip. Friend and I (different friend) dawdled and got left behind. I remember the two of us aged 7-8 scuttling along between the mummies trying to catch up before anyone noticed we were missing, to avoid a telling off.

Have been to the BM many times since.

Yes-me!

I queued with my Dad and younger brother when I was 8 on either a Saturday or Sunday. We queued for 3 hours, and it was dark, magical and awe-inspiring. I remember walking slowly past the mummies and seeing the mask. Even though I was 8 I remember lighting, so dramatic. I still have my blue and gold postcard of the mask, and I believe I have the booklet/programme somewhere at my Mums.

Yes! I was around 11. I remember the queue and the excitement and build up, and the quote 'what can you see? Wonderful things' on the wall, and the mask. And I saw it again in Cairo too, couldn't believe the difference, as you say, just in a dusty case in a plain room.

Your descriptions were so evocative I went to have a look. There are short videos of the Queen visiting and a much longer BBC doc - if you go to 44min you get the death mask looming out the dark as you all described.

I did with my very first boyfriend, coincidently he Whatsapped me this week.

Yes I went in 1972, but I can't remember whether it was with my parents or a school trip. I mostly remember the enormously long queue.

Thanks @Downthemarshes! that really brings back memories. I’ll watch it all tomorrow.

Yes, what a difference; the glorious curation of the BM exhibition, albeit ‘1970’ style; and then seeing the Death Mask in Cairo, in what could have been the ‘Devizes or Cleethorpes County Museum’ (sorry, Devizes!) 😬 in 1989-90. Dusty glass- enclosed boxes, clanking radiators, dead moths; and some dozing old boy with a rifle ‘guarding’ it.

@SwornToSilence yes, awe-inspiring. It was.

Yes I was the same age. We may even have seen each other. It was amazing.

My mum and dad went. Day trip from Liverpool on the train, it really was a huge event. My dad still has the guide book! I poured over it as a child, fascinated, I was only 2 in 1972 though that’s why I didn’t go with them.

My DM took us out of school for a day. We went round the museum first and joined a queue , we didnt realise it wasnt the back of the queue which was in the street.
Like Op was so disappointed when DH and i visited the Cairo museum where the display was so dull compared to the British Museum.

The queue was the thing I remember most! There were notices as we shuffled, 'there is an hour wait from here', 'there is a 20 minute wait from here' etc. Built up the excitement! It started off my fascination with Egypt. I quite liked the jumble in Cairo museum, it brought into perspective that Tutankhamen was way down the list of important pharaohs. His tomb at Luxor was tiny, I can't believe all those wonderful things fitted in!

I went with my parents and brother. Sure we queued for 4 hours, remember my Mum talking about it. The amount of gold on display was jaw dropping, I particularly remember a scarab ring, always had a thing for jewellery. And of course the mask, that was something else.

I’ve still got the place mats my mum and dad bought. They didn’t take us unusually, because they took us to stately homes

yes I went with my mum and brother (can't remember if ny Dad was there but I suspect not, it must have been in the school holiday and he would have been working
we queued for HOURS and as others said there were people selling snacks and trinkets and stuff- I think we bought a souvenir edition of a newspaper, which makes me think it must have been early on in the season
the exhibition was dark and crowded, I remember feeling I was in a crowd that shuffled slowly past the exhibits and having no choice but to move at the same speed- the exhibits were amazing, not just the mask but other more delicate things, furniture and jewelry
we got the souvenir book which was glossy and well produced, we didn't actually have that many books (compared to what I consider normal now) so this was something quite special

I'm another who only remembers the queue I was 4 or 5 at the time.

We drove up from Essex in our Ford Cortina. My Dad took one look at the queue and decided we wouldn't be going after all!

I was 12. Remember the mask. Parents took me to London. Still have some b/w pics of me on The Embankment and at the Tower of London.

Lots of Mummies at Manchester natural history museum now

Mummy did. I wasn't born until six years later and I'm still cross she didn't take me 🙃 😆