Secrets of the Tomb: Egypt 2000 B.C. Exhibition at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Stan Parchin

The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston presents Secrets of the Tomb: Egypt 2000 B.C. from October 18, 2009 to January 10, 2010. The exhibition introduces the viewer to the Egyptian concept of the afterlife through the funerary equipment of Djehutynacht, a local governor, and his wife during the civilization's Middle Kingdom period (2040-1640 B.C.).

Discovered by the MFA, Boston during a 1915 joint excavation with Harvard University, Djehutynacht's tomb, previously disturbed by robbers, contained the official's painted severed head, four decorated sarcaphagi, canopic jars, jewelry, walking sticks and other adornments. Some 60 different model boats were founded with two dozen wooden facsimiles of shops for bakers, brewers, brick-makers, carpenters and weavers, all representing aspects of daily life in ancient Egypt. The objects were awarded to the museum in 1921 and suffered slight water damage while aboard a transport ship that caught fire. Usually only the famous Bersha Coffin and Procession are on display in Boston.

The exhibition includes the remarkable finds from Djehutynacht's tomb as well as royal and other statuary from collections of Egyptian art worldwide.