The ancient Egyptians weren’t the only ones that mummified their dead for the sake of posterity. In more modern times, there have been multiple examples of mummification, using a range of weird and wonderful techniques from simple embalming to submerging the cadaver in a chemical-filled preservation tank, or perfusing it with wax, effectively rendering the corpse a giant human candle. Here we examine ten of the most famous examples of modern mummies, their stories, and some of the methods used to preserve them for eternity. The deceased range from an Argentinean First Lady, a Soviet Head of State and various…
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Luca Zan Professor of Management Luca Zan is Professor of Management at GIOCA, University of Bologna, and teaches at MAM, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh. He has published extensively in international journals on strategic management and change, management and accounting history, and the management of museums and cutural organisations. Luca Zan’s research deals with: Management and accounting history, both in terms of theories, and practices (especially in pre-industrial settings, such the Venice Arsenal 16th century). Strategic change processes, looked at through the lenses of strategic management, management accounting and organization theory traditions. The diffusion of economic and managerial discourse in non profit…
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Jon Cannon Expert and writer on British heritage Jon Cannon writes about old places in general and teaches medieval architectural history in particular. He teaches at the University of Bristol and frequently gives talks and leads tours on the subject. He has also published several articles on Avebury, and contributes a regular profile of a historic area – from ancient prehistory to 20th century heritage – to British Archaeology magazine. He has worked in the heritage industry for nearly 15 years, including working for the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, and English Heritage. He went freelance in…
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Curator specializing in King Tut Dr. David P. Silverman serves as the curator, advisor and academic content creator for the exhibition Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs. This exhibit truly completes a full circle for him; in 1977, he was in charge of curatorial content for the exhibition Treasures of Tutankhamun at Chicago’s Field Museum. He also co-authored the text panels and labels that traveled around the United States with the exhibition, which attracted an unprecedented 1.8 million visitors in its run at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1979 and inspired the phenomenon known as ‘Tutmania’. A…
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Key Dates 1333 BC 18th Dynasty Key People Tutankhamun and his wife Ankhesenamun There were four senet sets in the tomb of Tutankhamun, some ceremonial and others for day-to-day use. One such daily set was made of solid ivory and was found in a wooden chest with many compartments. Howard Carter comments: ‘From the contents… that were found in the chest it becomes obvious that the chest was made for the knick knacks of a boy’ which could be indicative that this set was probably played with by Tutankhamun. This gaming box is particularly small and therefore portable. On the…
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In 2009, we saw the Terracotta Warriors tour America, racking up record attendance figures, while King Tut exhibitions criss-crossed the globe and the Staffordshire Hoard went on show in London just months after being unearthed in a West Midlands field by an avid metal detectorist. 2010 looks set to be equally as big a year for heritage exhibitions around the world. The iconic and controversial Lewis Chessmen will be reunited in Scotland for the first time in over 150 years in Edinburgh this May. The massive Shanghai World Expo will open around the same time, with a number exhibits themed…
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Who are we? The genetic make-up of the British people is a hotly contested subject in academic and political circles. Britain has a tumultuous history that includes Anglo-Saxon, Norman and Roman invasions, but what legacy of these settlers and invaders remains in the DNA of Brits today? The BNP’s Nick Griffin, who has recently gained a foothold in British politics, claimed recently to represent the “indiginous people” of Britain, comparing modern English, Scots, Irish and Welsh with the indiginous populations of North America and New Zealand. But today’s Brit is a complex melting pot of influences. A revealing Channel 4…
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Key Dates Led the Iceni revolt against the Romans in 60-61 AD. Relationship People Partners Prasutagus Boudica, also known as Boudicca and Boadicea, was a queen of the Iceni tribe which was based in the modern county of East Anglia in England (Watch the Ancient World in London video about Boudicca). VIDEO: Episode 6: Boudicca, Warrior Queen Her husband, Prasutagus, was king of Iceni and was an ally of the Roman occupiers of Britain. When he died, his will stipulated that his kingdom should be divided between his daughters and the Roman empire. The Romans flouted this completed by raping…
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As the protests in Egypt gained momentum over the weekend, reports came out that the ruling National Democratic Party headquarters were ablaze, a building which is next door to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, where looters damaged several priceless artefacts and mummies, including contents of King Tutankhamun’s Tomb. When a curfew was declared at 6pm in Cairo, all but three police officers abandoned their posts at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square, the heart of the capital where protesters are focussing their anger against President Hosni Mubarak. Like many famous Egyptian attractions such as the Pyramids of Giza, the Egyptian…
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Esther Jacobson-Tepfer Professor of Asian Art at the University of Oregon, Expert on the Archaeology of Mongolia Esther Jacobson-Tepfer is Maude I Kerns Professor Emeritus of Asian Art at the University of Oregon, where she taught undergraduate courses in the History of Indian Art, Art of the Silk Road, and Nomadic Art of Eurasia, and undergraduate and graduate courses in Scythian Gold, North Asian Rock Art, and Judaic Art. Dr Jacobson-Tepfer is a past recipient of the Ersted Award for Distinguished Teaching, and was the first director of the University’s Center for Asian and Pacific Studies. Dr Jacobson-Tepfer received her…