L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 24 L'Italo-Americano T ime machines — how many of us h a v e i m a g i n e d s t r a p p i n g i n t o one, flipping a few switches to then find o u r s e l v e s w h i s k e d i n t o a w h i r l i n g v o r t e x — f i n a l l y plopped into some ancient land of long ago? Only in our d r e a m s o r a g o o d m o v i e would this be possible, but there does exist one such place that is as close to a r e a l - t i m e m a c h i n e a s w e m i g h t e v e r e x p e r i e n c e : Turin's Museo Egizio – or Egyptian Museum. Museo Egizio holds the honor of housing the largest c o l l e c t i o n o f a n c i e n t Egyptian statuary and arti- facts second only to Cairo. "But why Turin?" many a vis- itor asks…including myself. The seed was planted in 1630 with the arrival in Turin of t h e e l a b o r a t e l y i n l a i d Bembine Table of Isis, an e a r l y R o m a n p e r i o d r e l i c made in stylized Egyptian form. A little over a hundred y e a r s l a t e r , K i n g C h a r l e s Emmanuel III became fasci- n a t e d w i t h t h e p i e c e , prompting commission in 1753 of archeologist Vitaliano Donati to acquire Egyptian relics. Three hundred pieces later, the foundation of the museum had been laid. B y 1 8 2 4 , t h e a m a s s e d antiquities grew to include over 5,000 objects collected b y C o n s u l B e r n a r d i n o Drovetti during his service in Egypt — it was time to open a museum! The initial collec- tion found its home in the heart of Turin, housed in the e l e g a n t P a l a z z o d e l l ' A c c a d e m i a d e l l e Scienze. Hieroglyphic code- c r a c k e r J e a n - F r a n ç o i s Champollion's famous decla- r a t i o n " T h e p a t h t o Memphis and Thebes passes through Turin" proclaimed the remarkable collection now open to the public. Impressive accumulations followed. A private stockpile of more than 1,200 items was purchased from collector G i u s e p p e S o s s i o i n 1 8 3 3 , with other private additions to follow. Perhaps the largest and most spectacular accrual w a s f r o m E g y p t o l o g i s t Ernesto Schiaparelli. His twelve expeditions between 1900 and 1920 reaped an impressive number of finds including two intact tombs. Despite its extraordinary o f f e r i n g s , t h e m u s e u m ' s appeal had faded by the turn of the millennium, save for academics coming to study. As cramped, dusty and out- d a t e d a s a f o r g o t t e n mummy, the museum des- perately needed a facelift. A novel pathway was chosen by the Italian government: privatization via a founda- tion. City, regional, and busi- ness entities came together i n 2 0 1 2 a n d g r a b b e d t h e r e i n s : t h e r a c e a g a i n s t a thousand-day deadline with a fifty million euro budget had begun. What awaited my visit to Turin's Egyptian Museum is testament to a magnificent vision of what-could-be that came-to-be. Re-opened in 2015 after extensive renova- tion and redesign, space has doubled to enable display of over 6,500 objects ranging from massive statues to the tiniest of everyday objects. I t ' s a n e x h i l a r a t i n g r i d e through roughly 7,000 years of Egyptian life. T w o m a s s i v e l i o n g o d statues stand guard at the dignified entrance, omens to t h e w o n d e r s t h a t a w a i t . O n c e t i c k e t s a n d a u d i o - guide headsets (a must) are procured, the well-laid-out j o u r n e y b e g i n s . A l l i n chronological order, the ini- tial displays begin during pre-Pharaonic 4 th century BC. Emotions are immedi- ately gripped as one gazes at a 7,000-year-old desiccated fetal-position body placed respectfully in a circular dis- play mimicking the burial hole. A scattering of objects surrounds it, positioned as t h e y h a d b e e n o r i g i n a l l y found. His intact skin, fin- gernails, possibly even an expression on his face, create wonder and reverence and awe. My thoughts raced… What was his life like? Who did he love? What made him s m i l e ? T h r o u g h o u t t h e museum, questions such as these linger as this ancient civilization comes to life. The entire museum and its vast collection are magnif- icent. However, several high- lights leave one in almost r e v e r e n t s i l e n c e f o r t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o h a v e w i t - nessed them. And Ernesto Schiaparelli is to thank. Not only an Egyptologist whose expeditions wrought m a s s i v e h i s t o r i c a l f i n d s , S c h i a p a r e l l i w a s a l s o t h e museum's curator from 1894 until his death in 1928. His discovery of three intact tombs remains a crowning m o m e n t i n t h e w o r l d o f archeology. Concentrating his focus on Deir el-Medina on the west bank at Luxor, and Gebelein, about 15 miles south of Luxor, Schiaparelli unearthed here the first of h i s i m p o r t a n t f i n d s : t h e Tomb of the Unknown. Virginio Rosa, Schiaparelli's young assistant, meticulously hand-drew the uncovered tomb, as well as the findings. The entire tomb and its con- tents have been re-erected in t h e m u s e u m d u e o n l y t o Rosa's work. Although not t h e g l i t z a n d g l a m o u r o f Tutankhamen's resting place, this tomb gave up fascinating everyday goods such as fur- niture and objects of daily life, all at the ready for the afterlife. Schiaparelli's second dis- covery revealed the temple of Iti, a high-ranking offi- cial, and his wife Neferu, a couple who lived during the First Intermediate Period (2118 – 1980 BC). Perhaps most notable are the fabu- lous wall paintings that were carefully removed and are now displayed in the muse- u m . R e m a r k a b l y v i b r a n t , these murals illustrate daily life, stubborn donkeys and all. It's a marvelous thing to see how appreciably alike we are, despite the passage of time and difference in cul- ture. The most profound and e x c e p t i o n a l f i n d f o r Schiaparelli — and possibly the most memorable display in the Egyptian Museum — was the tomb of Kha and his wife Merit. Kha was an i m p o r t a n t f i g u r e , t h e Director of Works during three administrations of the New Kingdom (1428 – 1351 BC). This tomb was found in 1906, untouched and unseen by humans since the floor was last swept and the door sealed shut. The wing containing Kha and Merit's life is phenome- n a l , a s c l o s e t o a t i m e machine as we'll know out- side of fantasy. The coffins, multi-layered like Russian nesting dolls, are elaborate and elegant, the paint and details as fresh as the day t h e y w e r e s e t i n p l a c e . Perhaps most sensational, however, are the objects of everyday life. Display after display treats us to personal belongings: bedroom furni- ture, grooming parapherna- lia, makeup bottles still hold- ing Merit's night creams and ointments, jewelry, clothing. Afterlife snacks sit in bowls, dried but recognizable as f r u i t s a n d n u t s . M e r i t ' s human hair wigs look as if made yesterday and ready for wearing. Over sixty pairs of underworld briefs sit fold- ed and ready for Kha's after- life comfort. Other museum highlights i n c l u d e t h e P a p y r u s Gallery and its most covet- ed treasure, a complete list- ing of the Kings of ancient Egypt. The massive Royal Gallery, a dazzling, mir- rored room filled with mas- sive statuary, is towards the end of the exhibits. Perhaps it should be placed earlier in the tour, I pondered. I was b e y o n d s a t u r a t e d a t t h i s point, almost unable to grasp the glories of these ancient monstrosities that sat direct- ly in front of me. I can't fail to mention the amazing 3-D and high-tech displays placed throughout the museum. Planners did well to bring the advantages o f m o d e r n t e c h n o l o g y onboard to further open a magic time machine window, allowing us to feel as if we've not just toured a museum, b u t b e c o m e p e r s o n a l l y acquainted with a magnifi- cent culture and people lost to the annals of time. LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE The Egyptian Museum in Turin is second, for the amount and importance of its collection, only to that of Cairo (Photo: Dreamstime) PAULA REYNOLDS Face to face with ancient Egypt: Turin's Egyptian Museum

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