King Tut Exhibit

Mom and I outside the line to get into the exhibit.

Mom and I went down to the Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul to see the exhibit “Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs.” I had thought the exhibit went through October, but it was actually ending the next day, so Mom and I went down so we wouldn’t miss it. It was great! Mom and I left after church, and did a quick drive through at Mickie D’s for lunch. We got to the Science Museum about an hour before the Omni Theater movie time, so we hit the gift shop first. Mom got a necklace and earrings and we both got the exhibit book for the last exhibit at the Science Museum, The Dead Sea Scrolls, off the clearance shelves for only $2 each – great buy! Next, we headed out and looked around at some of the exhibits, which were neat.

Finally, our 3pm movie, Mummies, was about to start, so we headed to the Omni Theater. The movie was really cool, and I really enjoyed it. It was all about mummification, and why and how the Egyptians did it. The film went back and forth between “ancient” times and modern times. After the film, Mom and I had about 45 minutes before our entrance time into the King Tut exhibit. We wandered around the human body area and saw some icky and interesting things!



The entrance area to the King Tut exhibit

 Finally, at about 4:20pm, we headed over to the line for King Tut! After a few pictures, we headed in, got our audio tour, and went into the outer room for a short introductory video. The exhibit had about 15 separate rooms, and all were walled like stone, with pillars and frescoes around the room. There were a ton of pieces in the exhibit from various Pharaohs during the “golden age” of the New Kingdom.

I went to the "King Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs" exhibit in Chicago in 2005, and this exhibit was very different, which I really enjoyed. The Chicago exhibit included more items from King Tut’s tomb, and had some items from the previous three Pharaohs, mainly jewelry and small statutes and items at that exhibit, and plenty of them. This exhibit had many more statues, most especially large ones, but less items from King Tut’s tomb. Also at this exhibit, there was information at the end about the DNA process done on King Tut (done in 2009/2010), which was very interesting.

Here are some of the major pieces I got to see: 

The exquisite gold death mask of Psusennes I

 

The largest image of King Tut ever unearthed at 10 feet tall, made of quartzite and found at the site of the funerary temple of Tut’s high officials



A dazzling and intricate gold canopic coffinette that held King Tut’s mummified stomach



Up close view of the coffinette

Not pictured:

-- Gold sandals and finger and toe coverings found on King Tut’s mummy

-- A bed that King Tut most likely used in life

-- An imposing colossal bust of Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten), King Tut’s father

-- A sarcophagus that held a “royal” cat

-- Statues of prominent pharaohs, including Khafre, builder of the Great Sphinx and one of the pyramids at Giza; Hatshepsut, the queen who became a pharaoh; and Ramesses the Great

Synopsis of the Bible, the Word of God (Found on the fly-leaf of D. L. Moody’s Bible)

This Book contains the Word of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers.

Its doctrines are holy. Its precepts are binding; its histories are true, and its decisions immutable.

Read it to be wise. Believe it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you.

It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s charter.

Here Paradise is restored, Heaven opened, and the gates of Hell disclosed.

Christ is the grand object, our good its design, and the glory of God its end.

It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet.

Read it slowly, frequently, and prayerfully.

It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of judgment.

It is given you in life, will be opened at the judgments, and be remembered forever.

It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and condemns all who trifle with its sacred contents.

Experimentation in the Kitchen

I have a recipe for a “Mexican” dish that is all made in a pan on the stove that I really like, so I decided to modify it and make an “Italian” dish of my own recipe loosely based on the Mexican one. Surprisingly enough, it went fairly well!

I bought a zucchini, sliced mushrooms, a red onion, carrots, and added that to a few items I had at home, chicken, diced tomatoes, instant rice, mozzarella cheese, and pita pockets. I cut up the onion into chunks and added those, along with the mushrooms, garlic, and olive oil to a large pot. After a bit of sautéing, I added chunks of zucchini and carrots to the mixture and gave it a few more minutes to cook, but not so much that the veggies were too soft. Finally, I added pre-cooked chicken, two cans of diced tomatoes, the kind that has the garlic, basil, and oregano already mixed in, and 1 ¼ cup of water. Once it was boiling, I added 3 cups of instant rice, removed it from the burner and let it sit for 5 minutes. Next, I took some shredded mozzarella cheese, and mixed it in the pot. I spooned the mixture into a pita pocket, and had myself a hot sandwich!

I figure if I want a little less casserole-style dish, I’d omit the rice and water, and have just the veggies and chicken in the pita. Either way, I have a new recipe!