Culture & ArtsLatest newsSightseeing

Grimaldi Forum: The Egyptian Golden Age will shine in the Principality for the whole summer

Some of the most refined masterpieces of the Egyptian Art, Ornaments and Jewelry will be shown at the Grimaldi Forum in a great summer exhibition, “The Golden Treasures of the Pharaohs, 2500 years of the goldsmith’s art in Ancient Egypt”, from the 7th July until the 9th September 2018, under the auspices of the Monegasque Government, the Municipality of Monaco and the Compagnie Monégasque de Banque. An excellent opportunity for the public to experience the delicacy of the Egyptian artists in different forms through an interactive blue-ochre fancy outfitting which will welcome both adults and young people to whom educational workshops and animations will be devoted.

The Egyptian Golden Age
Public attending the conference to launch the great exhibition “The Golden Treasures of the Pharaohs” (Grimaldi Forum).© Maurizio Abbati
The Egyptian Golden Age
Public attending the conference to launch the great exhibition “The Golden Treasures of the Pharaohs” (Grimaldi Forum).© Maurizio Abbati

«We have been working on the preparation of this exceptional exhibition for more than 2 years in close cooperation with the Egyptian Minister of Antiquity and the Cairo Royal Egyptian Museum in order to host 150 pieces of art some of which will be exposed for the first time out of Egypt», pointed out Sylvie Biancheri, General Director of the Grimaldi Forum at the premiere conference last Monday afternoon (4th June 2018). Something even more remarkable if we consider that many artworks are not supposed to be lent to any other exhibition after their placement in the new showcasing being finalized in Cairo: the Great Egyptian Museum that will be inaugurated next October. But what can we expect from this extraordinary event?

The Egyptian Golden Age
Christiane Ziegler © Manuel Vitali – Direction de la Communication Monaco
The Egyptian Golden Age
Golden death mask of the King Pseusenne I (Tanis, 11th Dynasty), made of gold and semiprecious stones. © Grimaldi Forum

This high-quality exhibition covers three pivotal millenniums of ancient Egypt starting from the First Dynasty through the New Empire (Pharaohs: Ramses II, Akhenaten and Tutankhamen) and the period of the Treasure of Tanis, a site located in the Nile Delta. «We would like to go beyond the emotions that those masterpieces elicit by focusing on the great bond which connected Egyptians to gold», highlighted Christiane Ziegler, French Egyptologist, director emeritus of the Department of Egyptian Antiquities of the Louvre Museum and editorial director of the archaeological mission at Saqqara (Egypt).

The Egyptian Golden Age
Christiane Ziegler describing the falcon dual-headed broad Useck golden necklace with counterweights.© Maurizio Abbati
The Egyptian Golden Age
Falcon dual-headed broad Useck golden necklace with counterweights (Hawara, 12th Dynasty) – made of gold, carnelian and aventurine stones. © Grimaldi Forum

This public display of works of art makes it possible to move closer to the ancient Egypt on a different perspective. Gold, in fact, used to play a crucial role being considered as a status symbol, a sign of Gods and a magical amulet for eternity, at the same time. On this basis, this precious everlasting material, was the core of any social and economic relation, at that time. Around 1350 B.C., an oriental Prince wrote to a Pharaoh that in Egypt gold was as common as the dust in the streets.

The Egyptian Golden Age
Christiane Ziegler describing the decorated bracelet with a winged scarab belonged to the King Pseusenne I.© Maurizio Abbati
The Egyptian Golden Age
Decorated bracelet with a winged scarab belonged to the King Pseusenne I (11th Dynasty) – made of gold, lapis lazuli and glass paste. © Grimaldi Forum

The refined creativity of the Egyptian art was able to work on this shiny metal combining it with silver, lapis lazuli, red jasper, turquoise, symbol of rebirth, and many other precious and semiprecious stones.

The Egyptian Golden Age
Christiane Ziegler describing the golden-silver female Swimmers Cup.© Maurizio Abbati
The Egyptian Golden Age
Golden-silver female Swimmers Cup (Tanis, 11th Dynasty). © Grimaldi Forum

The outcomes are surprising, like the decorated bracelet with a winged scarab belonged to the King Pseusenne I (11th Dynasty) or the silver bangle of the Queen Hetepheres (4th Dynasty) depicting butterfly silhouettes that look very modern. And what about the falcon dual-headed broad Useck golden necklace with counterweights (Hawara, 12th Dynasty), the golden-silver female Swimmers Cup (Tanis, 11th Dynasty) and the golden death mask of the King Pseusenne I (Tanis, 11th Dynasty), emblem of the exhibition?

The Egyptian Golden Age
Catherine Alestchenkoff, Director of the Cultural Events at Grimaldi Forum, describing the fancy blue-ochre outfitting.© Maurizio Abbati
The Egyptian Golden Age
Silver bangle of the Queen Hetepheres (4th Dynasty). © Grimaldi Forum

We just have to wait until the doors will be opened in early July, taking advantage of the special pre-sale discount available until the end of June.

The Egyptian Golden Age
Conclusions by Hervé Zorgniotti, Communication Director at Grimaldi Forum.© Maurizio Abbati
Show More
Back to top button