THE BRITISH MUSEUM PRESENTS 'JOURNEY THROUGH THE AFTERLIFE: ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BOOK OF THE DEAD'

THE BRITISH MUSEUM'S MAJOR AUTUMN EXHIBITION WILL PRESENT AND EXPLORE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BELIEFS ABOUT LIFE AFTER DEATH. 'JOURNEY THROUGH THE AFTERLIFE: ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BOOK OF THE DEAD' WILL SHOWCASE THE RICH TEXTUAL AND VISUAL MATERIAL FROM THE BRITISH MUSEUM'S UNPARALLELED COLLECTION OF BOOK OF THE DEAD PAPYRI. THE 'BOOK', USED FOR OVER 1500 YEARS BETWEEN 1600 BC AND 100 AD, IS NOT A SINGLE TEXT, BUT A COMPILATION OF SPELLS THOUGHT TO EQUIP THE DEAD WITH KNOWLEDGE AND POWER WHICH WOULD GUIDE THEM SAFELY THROUGH THE DANGERS OF THE HEREAFTER AND ULTIMATELY ETERNAL LIFE. THE BRITISH MUSEUM HAS ONE OF THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE COLLECTIONS OF THE BOOK OF THE DEAD MANUSCRIPTS ON PAPYRUS IN THE WORLD, AND THIS EXHIBITION WILL BE THE FIRST OPPORTUNITY TO SEE SO MANY EXAMPLES DISPLAYED TOGETHER. THE EXHIBITION WILL INCLUDE THE LONGEST BOOK OF THE DEAD IN THE WORLD, THE GREENFIELD PAPYRUS, WHICH MEASURES 37 METERS IN LENGTH AND HAS NEVER BEEN SHOWN PUBLICLY IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE. ALSO ON DISPLAY WILL BE THE FAMOUS PAINTINGS FROM THE PAPYRI OF ANI AND HUNEFER, TOGETHER WITH SELECTED MASTERPIECES ON LOAN FROM INTERNATIONAL COLLECTIONS. THESE TREASURES WILL BE EXHIBITED ALONGSIDE A DAZZLING ARRAY OF PAINTED COFFINS, GILDED MASKS, AMULETS, JEWELRY, TOMB FIGURINES AND MUMMY TRAPPINGS.
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