Funerary golden mask of King Tutankhamun

Artefact Details

Gallery number: 3 – Upper Floor

Period: New Kingdom

Dynasty: 18th Dynasty, Reign of Tutankhamun (1327-1318 BC)

Size: Height: 54 cm, Width: 39.3 cm, Weight: 11kg

Place of discovery: Valley of the Kings – Thebes

Material: Gold, lapis lazuli, glass paste, obsidian, turquoise

This golden mask is the most famous of all the artefacts of ancient Egypt, a true icon of the pharaonic civilization. It will be the last artefact to be transported to the new museum.
The king is portrayed with the nemes, white and blue stripped line headdress: a uraeus (holy cobra) and a vulture adorn his forehead and a false beard made from gold and glass paste. The king’s eyes are reproduced with quartz and obsidian. On his back, magical inscriptions are engraved taken from Chapter 151b of the Book of the Dead.