A WORLD OF ART, RESEARCH, CONSERVATION, AND PHILANTHROPY | Winter 2019
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A WORLD OF ART, RESEARCH, CONSERVATION, AND PHILANTHROPY | Winter 2019
By Neville Agnew
Senior Principal Project Specialist
and Lori Wong
Project Specialist
Getty Conservation Institute
S
ince ancient Egyptians believed so pro-
foundly in the afterlife, one might imagine
that the boy king Tutankhamen (ruled
1332–1323 BCE) was luckier in death than dur-
ing his time on earth, which was probably shorter
than 20 years. Not only did his mummy survive
the depredations of tomb robbers, the bane of
royal graves throughout pharaonic history, but
so did his grave goods, although archaeological
evidence suggests that attempts were made to
rob his tomb. Ironically, it appears that a flood,
ordinarily the destroyer of a subterranean tomb,
saved it from being plundered. Flood debris bur-
ied the entrance soon after it was sealed, and the
tomb was lost to memory for more than 3,000
years.
When the tomb was discovered by archae-
ologist Howard Carter and his patron Lord
Carnarvon in 1922, the media frenzy that fol-
lowed was unprecedented, and continues to this
day. Carter and his team took 10 years to clear
the tomb, so great was the density of objects—
golden treasures that Carter himself described as
“wonderful things.” Carter must be credited for
the pioneering documentation and stabilization
CONSERVING
of the tomb’s contents. These incredible grave
goods, now on display in Cairo, continue to draw
dense crowds, and Tutankhamen exhibitions
travel the world. If, as according to the ancient
Egyptians, a man dies twice—first when his soul
AND MANAGING THE leaves his body and a second time after the death
TOMB OF
of the last person who speaks his name—the boy
king Tutankhamen will outlive us all.
While the objects Carter’s team so assidu-
TUTANKHAMEN
ously catalogued and stabilized were housed and
secured, the tomb itself became a “must-see”
attraction for visitors willing to pay an extra fee.
Since its discovery, the tomb of Tutankhamen
has been open to the public and has been heavily
visited. The tomb still houses a handful of original
objects, including the mummy of Tutankhamen
himself, the quartzite sarcophagus with its gran-
ite lid on the floor beside it, the gilded wooden
The project team undertakes wall painting
conservation in the tomb of Tutankhamen’s
outermost coffin, and the wall paintings of the
burial chamber. Photo: Lori Wong burial chamber.
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Concerns for Preservation tourism industry caused by the turmoil for sustainable maintenance and visita-
The great demand for entry to the small of recent years. Undoubtedly, visitor tion of the tomb. Because the project
tomb gave rise to concerns among numbers will swell again when stability allowed for unprecedented study of the
Egyptian authorities about the condi- is reestablished, and when they do, the tomb and its wall paintings, its findings
tion of the wall paintings. It was thought tomb’s inherent fragility will remain a have provided a deeper understand-
that the brown spots—microbiological concern. ing of tomb construction and decora-
growths on the burial chamber’s painted tion practices from the New Kingdom.
walls—were growing, threatening to Conservation Planning The findings have also shed light on
engulf the paintings. “Your last chance to These concerns prompted a multi- the tomb’s condition and the causes of
see Tutankhamen’s tomb,” read a news year collaboration between the Getty its deterioration, and have helped the
blog from The Guardian. “Visitors are Conservation Institute (GCI) and development of measures to counter
causing so much damage to the tomb Egyptian authorities. In 2009 Egypt’s ongoing risks.
of Tutankhamen that Egypt’s Supreme Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA)
Council of Antiquities wants to close it and the GCI initiated a collaborative Implementing the Plan
and open a replica instead.” project principally focused on the inte- Tutankhamen’s tomb is simple in com-
The apprehension over the impact grated conservation and management parison with other royal tombs in the
of visitors on the tomb is well founded, of the tomb and its wall paintings, to valley. With only four chambers, it is
since visitors introduce humidity and ensure a sustainable future. The GCI one of the smallest. (In contrast, the
carbon dioxide, as well as dust and lint. already had considerable experience tomb of the sons of Ramesses II, KV 5,
Humidity promotes microbiological working in Egypt on the Tomb of Queen the largest in the valley, has more than
growth, and may also physically stress Nefertari project in the Valley of the 130 chambers and is still being exca- On the east wall of the burial
chamber, Tutankhamen’s mummy
to mechanical damage caused by visitors. Newly under magnification and then mounted in cross
the wall paintings when the amount of Queens (1986–1992) and on the plan for vated.) Even for a tomb of a historically is shown lying in a shrine mounted designed barriers now restrict visitor access in section. Analytical investigation confirmed that
water vapor in the air fluctuates. Carbon the conservation and management of insignificant king, its diminutive size on a sledge, being drawn by 12
men in five groups. The men wear
these areas. Further losses can be connected to the spots were microbiological in origin, but con-
dioxide creates an uncomfortable atmo- the Valley of the Queens Project (begin- is unusual, as is its location in the main white mourning bands over their physical interventions on the paintings, such as cluded that they were dead, and thus no longer a
sphere for visitors themselves. But per- ning in 2006). As with all GCI site proj- valley rather than in the neighbor- brows. The last pair, distinguished
by their shaven heads and different
dusting. The installation of a filtered air supply threat. Because the spots have penetrated the paint
haps even more harmful has been the ects, intensive study and documentation ing Western Valley, where other 18th dress, are the two viziers of Upper and exhaust ventilation system in 2015, and the layer, they were not removed, since this would
physical damage to the wall paintings. of the condition were the first order Dynasty rulers, including his successor, and Lower Egypt. Photo: Carleton
Immersive Media Studio, Carleton
implementation of recommendations to limit harm the wall paintings.
Close examination of the condition of of business, with the wall paintings a the pharaoh Ay, are buried. University visitor numbers, will help control humidity and The project was completed in the fall of 2018. A
the surfaces shows an accumulation of focus, given the claims of their perilous These circumstances tend to con- carbon dioxide levels and also mitigate dust intru- bilingual maintenance manual for the installations
damage, including scratches and abra- state. The GCI—mandated to investigate firm the widely accepted belief that sion. These measures will lessen the need for in the tomb was provided, together with training
sion in areas close to where visitors have the tomb’s actual condition—went on after Tutankhamen’s untimely death, dusting, thus helping reduce risk of damage to the for SCA personnel. Also offered: recommendations
access, and from inadvertent damage to carry out the most thorough study the tomb was hastily adapted from one paintings. for visitor numbers and management that include
likely caused by film crews with equip- since Carter’s time. The team of experts already under construction. This might Wall painting stabilization was undertaken, guidelines for filming inside the tomb.
ment operating in the burial chamber’s included an Egyptologist to conduct also explain why only the burial cham- including paint flaking stabilization, plaster Looking forward, a symposium is planned for
tight spaces. Dust is also a serious prob- background research; environmental ber was decorated; the other cham- repairs, dust removal, and reduction of coatings early 2019, during which the project will be pre-
lem in the tomb. The visitors constantly engineers to investigate the tomb’s bers were left with the bare rock walls from previous treatments. (Past treatments were sented. A monograph will be published, as well as
pouring through carry dust on their microclimatic conditions; microbi- exposed. Also, technical inconsistencies not always based on thorough understanding of the a book for the general public. Conservation work
shoes and clothing that settles on the ologists to study the brown spots; in the paintings were observed from paintings’ conditions and the causes of their dete- at other heavily visited sites, meanwhile, can be
floor and horizontal surfaces. A more documentation specialists, architects, wall to wall, including differences in rioration.) Condition monitoring protocols were informed by what was learned in Tutankhamen’s
serious consequence is that the dust and designers to upgrade the tomb’s setting-out technique and the omission also established to better evaluate future changes. tomb.
forms a gray veil on the uneven surfaces infrastructure; scientists to study the of a ground layer on one of the walls— Another major concern has been the mystery “This project has greatly expanded our under-
of the walls, obscuring the brightness of original materials of the wall paintings; again suggesting haste in the tomb’s of the brown spots that mar the painted surfaces. standing of one of antiquity’s best-known sites,”
the paintings and necessitating cleaning, and conservators to carry out condition preparation. Other tombs do not show the same phenomenon, says Tim Whalen, John E. and Louise Bryson
which increases the risk of paint loss. recording and treatment and to train The paintings were in relatively and the spots were already present when Carter Director of the Getty Conservation Institute. “It’s
The effects of high humidity (a con- local conservators. stable condition, apart from localized first entered the tomb. Egyptian authorities won- also representative of the kind of collaborative
cern for the paintings), excessive carbon The objectives of this collaborative flaking and loss of paint. Flaking was dered if the presence of visitors was causing spots effort the GCI undertakes with colleagues to cre-
dioxide, crowding, and poor presenta- project were to conserve the paintings; especially prevalent with the black and to grow, so research was conducted to identify the ate a model of practice that can be shared and used
tion have also made for an unpleasant improve environmental conditions; red pigments on the east and west walls, microorganisms and determine if they posed a at other sites around the world. So much cultural
visitor experience as tides of humanity upgrade the infrastructure (lighting, but not on the north and south walls. continued risk to the paintings. A comparison of heritage is at risk, and without the engagement of
flow in and out of the tomb. Like the walkways, viewing platform, and ven- Because of this irregularity, the flak- the spots with historic photographs from the mid- skilled professionals, it will disappear. That’s why
golden treasure that the tomb formerly tilation) and presentation (signage ing was likely due to inconsistencies 1920s showed no new growth. To confirm this find- we partner with conservation colleagues interna-
held, ticket sales have been a golden and interpretive materials); undertake in the materials used and their appli- ing, DNA and chemical analyses were undertaken tionally to expand the body of knowledge needed
egg—at least prior to the collapse of the training of staff; and devise a program cation. Other losses were attributed and physical samples of the spots were examined to care for our shared cultural legacy.”
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