The Ashmolean has triumphed again with their wonderful new exhibition, Discovering Tutankhamun. 

There can hardly be a person alive who isn't familiar with the name of Tutankhamun and his spectacular blue and gold death mask, and it's a theme which has been explored countless times by museums, literature and the media.  This exhibition, however, takes a fascinating new angle: rather than 1330 BC, the focus of Discovering Tutankhamun is the 1920s, when Lord Carnarven, Howard Carter and their team discovered the still-sealed tomb in the Valley of the Kings.

This is a story which, perhaps unexpectedly, Oxford is in a unique position to tell;  in addition to many pieces from the Ashmolean's own collections, the exhibition includes a significant number of exhibits owned by the Griffith Institute, home of Egyptology at the University of Oxford.  These are complemented by artefacts borrowed from museums and private collections worldwide, and together they bring this multifaceted tale sparklingly to life.

The Ashmolean's particular talent is to create exhibitions which not only display beautiful, rare and interesting things, but which also use art and artefacts to explain events and ideas.  Discovering Tutankhamun beautifully describes three perspectives: underlying it all is Tutankhamun himself and the time in which he lived, his reign in its political and historical context, and what we can learn from the objects, texts and images which survive from that time.  The second layer is the relatively private story of Howard Carter's experience of discovering, excavating and preserving Tutankhamun's tomb, told through his journals, plans and paintings, and the wonderful photographs taken by his colleague Harry Burton.  Finally, the exhibition explores the phenomenon of 'Tut-Mania', and the process by which the Boy King became a household name and inspired everything from romantic novels and textile designs to fruit marketing.

It is the second of these strands which particularly caught my attention.  From the moment I entered the exhibition I found myself drawn deliciously in to the treasure hunt, feeling tingles of excitement as I read Carter's handwritten journal entry from the day of the discovery, and almost emitting a gasp of wonder as I pushed open the doors of the first gallery to discover a life-size photograph of the scene which met Carter and his team as they first entered the tomb: a jumbled pile of glittering statues, thrones, chariots and sarcophagi. 

I left with a deep respect for the Howard Carter and his team, and their meticulous work, perseverance and dedication to the task.  I feel this exhibition is a very fitting tribute and I heartily recommend it.

If your appetite for all things 'Tut' has been whetted, you'll be delighted to learn that the entire Griffith Institute archive, including Howard Carter's complete excavation records, is available to view online: http://www.griffith.ox.ac.uk/griffitharchive.html.