This is a blog post about my trip to Bolton Museum (04/08/23)
Bolton Museum and Art Gallery has probably one of the most impressive Egyptological collections I have ever seen. They have a decent amount of objects on display, and have one of the coolest rooms ever! (Don't worry, we'll get to that shortly.)
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| Bolton Museum and Art Gallery, with an awesome Egyptology display |
I was delighted when I walked into the gallery, to be greeted by a small amount of ancient objects. And I mean this in the best way. Around this small space is modern history. A mixture of pop culture and Victorian collecting history. It was refreshing to read about Egyptomania in the 1970s, and so interesting to read about what the Egyptians experienced when the British came to Egypt from their prospective.
As I turned the corner, I saw a display that was just incredible. Information and interactives all on the walls, and glass case tunnels down the corridor. The way the objects have been separated by theme and how they have been displayed, has been done in a way I have never seen before. (If anyone has seen a gallery space like this before, please comment where so I can go see!) Even the way the jewellery is displayed, it is so different from how the are normally (on a slanted platform). This is such a great way to use the space, making the walk ways big enough for people to go in either direction, for accessibility purposes, and also to fit as many pieces in as they could. Especially when the information panels are next to them, by the walls. This section mostly has an everyday theme, with sections on communication, wildlife, careers, beauty, etc.
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| The incredible walkway that brings light to the everyday life of an Egyptian |
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| A close-up view of the jewellery display (Yes. I am that impressed) |
Following the gallery round, you end up at a big, dark room with the theme of death (probably the the most used theme with ancient Egypt). It holds objects associate with the burial rituals: statues of Osiris (God of the Egyptian Underworld), shabtis, canopic jars and a huge false door that is probably bigger than your fireplace (if you have one that is).
Next up is the highlight of the entire museum - and no I'm not exaggerating. A tiny corridor with coffin cases and part of a doorway inside the mortuary temple of Thutmose III, which is at Deir-el-Bahari, Thebes. It leads onto a reconstruction of the current state of "The House of Gold", one of the chambers of the tomb of Thutmose III.
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| The inside of "The House of Gold" at the Valley of the Kings. Link from Photo down below. Check out the reconstruction on my social media pages linked below. |
Just a brief explanation on who Thutmose III was. Thutmose
II (his father) died when he was two years old from 1479-1425 BC. He was too young to
rule Egypt, so his step-mum Hatshepsut became a regent queen (she ruled on his
behalf), who later made herself king. They ruled together side-by-side.
Thutmose III commanded the army, while she ran the country. When she died, he
remained on the throne for another 32 years, before he was buried in the tomb in the Valley
of the Kings. Part of which is this "House of Gold".
The fact that you can stand in this space is awesome, and it saves a trip to the Valley of Kings! They have a print of the entire tomb, from the ceiling, to the art on the walls, even to where the sarcophagus is. Unfortunately,
Thutmose III himself is not in Bolton (that would be pretty impressive wouldn't
it!). In his place in an unwrapped mummified body, whose name is unknown,
though certain tests have been performed, so we know a little bit about him.
The reason we don’t know his name is because the coffin he is in, does not
belong to him. Instead, it belonged to a woman names Tawuhenut, a priestess of
the god Amun-Ra, who we also, know nothing about. There is a possibility that
he himself was a priest, as his wrapping were good quality, he had no hair, and
he was a eunuch. Studies show he was roughly 30 years old when he died, though
there is no theory on how.
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| A small scene of the sun-god Ra on his journey through the Duat (the Egyptian afterlife) |
One more important highlight of the Egypt gallery, is actually not in the Egypt Gallery. Annie
Barlow (1863-1941) was the woman who had the biggest role in collecting the
Egyptology collection. She had a personal interest in “ancient things”. At the
age of twenty-four, she joined the Egypt Exploration Fund (now known as the Egypt
Exploration Society). Through this she became the Honorary Secretary for Bolton
and her involvement with he fund aided the Thomas and William Midgely (the founders of the
museum) to build their collection.
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| Embroidered image of Annie Barlow |
Even though this blog is about Egyptology, there is one last thing to mention. THE SHOP!
They have a lovely, modern shop as before you enter the gallery spaces. There is a small Egyptology shelf, but so much more about the history of Bolton, and items made by local craftspeople.
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| A lovely view of the shop |
Please go along and discover the interesting history of the city and their link with Egypt. And a little wander round the shop too! Many people aren't aware that there are a number of museums in the North-West that have an Egyptology collection that are collected by women. I aim to do a number of posts about these collections, but if you want a head start there is a link below to a site called Gold and Grimes. Check out some of the other links below, and keep up to date on social media. There was also a video I am unable to upload, so it will also be on the Instagram and Facebook.
FINAL THING! Just wanted to say a huge thank you to the gallery staff for being welcoming, helpful and knowledgeable.
Links:
If you are interested in the history of northern Victorian women collecting Egyptian objects, click here
If you are interested in learning more about the Egypt Exploration Society, click here
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