Tutankhamun

Royal Mail marked the centenary of the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun with a set of eight stamps and a miniature sheet on November 24.

The Egyptian boy pharaoh and the treasures which accompanied him to the afterlife were unearthed by a team of British archaeologists led by Howard Carter and funded by Lord Carnarvon in November 1922.

The discovery, in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, shaped our understanding of the religion and culture of ancient Egypt, and awakened modern eyes to the riches of the civilisation.

Tutankhamun reigned from about 1332-1323 BC, during what is known as the New Kingdom, and is thought to have died at the age of 18 or 19. He restored the ancient religious beliefs abandoned by his father, but is chiefly famous for the riches found in his tomb.

This was the first royal burial of the pharaonic period found intact, and it was full of golden jewellery and furniture. Four gilded shrines surrounded a sarcophagus containing three nested coffins.

It took 10 years to clear, document and conserve the 5,000 objects packed into the small tomb, which are now housed in the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

The eight individual stamps illustrate a selection of the most significant artefacts, including the iconic gold mask placed over the king’s head, photographed by Araldo De Luca.

The miniature sheet has an additional four stamps which follow the discovery through a selection of photographs taken by Harry Burton in 1922-23, with the border showing the entrance to the tomb.

The issue was designed by Andy Altmann and printed in litho by Cartor Security Printers, with the counter-sheet stamps available in four horizontally se-tenant pairs.

2nd class HEAD OF THE KING
The head of the king emerging from a lotus flower represents part of the ancient Egyptian creation myth, in which the sun-god Re appears from a lotus flower floating on the primordial waters. Tutankhamun, like Re and the sun, would be born again each day.

2nd class INLAID FAN
Eight beautifully decorated fans were found in the tomb this one placed between two of the shrines in the burial chamber. The two cartouches (oval name rings) contain the king’s regnal name Nebkheperure and his personal name Tutankhamun.

1st class GOLD MASK
The most iconic object from the tomb, the mask of Tutankhamun, is made of pure gold inlaid with blue glass and semi-precious stones. It is an idealised portrait of the king with a striped headdress, bearing the royal insignia of a cobra and a vulture, and a long plaited false beard.

1st class FALCON PENDANT
Made of gold inlaid with semi-precious stones, the falcon pendant portrays Re-Harakhty, a merged form of the royal god Horus and the sun-god Re, as a hovering falcon wearing the sun disk on its head. The king was considered a living god, who embodied Horus and was also the son of Re.

£1.85 LION COUCH
The tomb contained three gilded couches modelled as animals, including the lion couch with its striking face inlaid with crystal and blue glass. The couches were used during the funerary rites, representing the mother-goddesses present at different stages of the king’s passage towards rebirth.

£1.85 THRONE
Made from gilded wood with gold sheets applied to the seat and backrest, the throne is is lavishly carved and decorated with lapis lazuli and other materials. It shows the king wearing a short wig and a diadem, topped by a tall plumed crown.

£2.55 BOAT MODEL
The model of a boat found in the fourth chamber is made from calcite (Egyptian alabaster) and decorated with gold and ivory. It has ibex heads and female figures at the prow and stern, and carries a papyrus-columned pavilion. Its design may be connected to the king’s rebirth.

£2.55 GUARDIAN STATUE
This life-size statue, made of black painted wood with gilded details, shows the king wearing a striped headdress with a cobra at the front as a symbol of royal authority. In Egyptian belief, black symbolised regeneration because it was associated with the dark, fertile soil deposited by the annual flooding of the River Nile.

MINIATURE SHEET

1st class OBJECTS IN THE ANTECHAMBER
Photograph of the objects in the antechamber taken before anything was touched, illustrating the ‘wonderful things’ first seen by Carter when the tomb was opened.

1st class HEAD OF THE OUTERMOST COFFIN
Photograph of the head from the lid of the outermost coffin, showing the royal insignia on the forehead still adorned with a tiny garland.

£1.85 EXAMINING THE INNERMOST COFFIN
Photograph showing Carter and an Egyptian colleague examining the innermost coffin, investigating the blackened funerary unguents covering its lid.

£1.85 MOVING SMALL SHRINE TO LABORATORY
Photograph showing some of Carter’s team transporting an artefact from the tomb to the conservation laboratory.

ADDITIONAL PRODUCTS
Produced in partnership with the Griffith Institute of Egyptology at the University of Oxford, the presentation pack tells the story of the discovery of the tomb and investigates the significance behind the featured artefacts.

A press sheet of 18 unguillotined miniature sheets is available, in a limited edition of just 200, as are first day covers, coin covers and stamp cards.

PRICES
Set of 8 stamps £12.06
Miniature sheet £5.60
Press sheet £100.80
Presentation pack £18.55
First day cover (stamps) £15.15
First day cover (mini sheet) £7.40
Coin covers from £19.99
Stamp cards £5.85

VERDICT
COMMEMORATIVE WORTH 3/5
Although this is Egyptian culture, it was rediscovered by a British team

QUALITY OF DESIGN 4/5
The images of the artefacts are stunning, and well presented against a black background

WOW FACTOR 4/5
The counter-sheet stamps cannot fail to attract attention if they are used on commercial mail

X