Mummies at the Penn Museum, Conserving Egyptian Mummies

Mummies Visit the Penn Museum

January 25, 2013 By Jeff Belonger

‘Mummy Conservation at the Artifact Lab at Penn Museum’

Who wants their mummy.

Here is your chance to get up close and personal. Hop on over to University City to where the Penn Museum brings to you, In the Artifact Lab: Conserving Egyptian Mummies.

The museum is known for having one of the largest Egyptian collections in the world, home to more than 42,000 ancient artifacts, in which a select portion are held in the Egypt Gallery (the rest are in storage, in traveling exhibitions, and in conservation such as the mummies). The museum now offers you the chance to visit the Artifact Lab, giving you a glimpse at the work that goes into conserving and maintaining the pieces of ancient Egyptian history.

Molly Gleeson, the project conservator, with other Penn Museum Conservators, will be working on-site periodically throughout the week. Not only will you get to see them in action, as they study, examine, clean, mend, and meticulously conserve artifacts, but visitors will get a chance to ask them questions in person.

The question and answer periods will take place Tuesday through Friday from 11:15 – 11:45 am and 2:00 pm – 2:30 pm and on weekends from 1:00 am – 1:30 pm and 3:30 pm – 4:00 pm.

The glass-encased lab will be equipped with many nifty tools, helping the conservators to perform their duties. Such tools as a high powered (60X) binocular microscope and even higher powered (200X) polarized light microscope in which the images would be projected onto a big screen allowing you to see the decaying matter. Other tools would be a fume extractor to get rid of noxious chemicals, optivisors and many other type of devices in helping with their studies and preserving such artifacts. There will even be museum Egyptologists working in the lab who will be copying and translating papyri and inscribed coffin sections, and the exhibition will feature detailed information about the ongoing projects on a board.

While at the museum, don’t forget to head over to the Egypt Gallery to view the 42,000 ancient artifacts, to include the 12-ton red granite sphinx. One thing you don’t want to do is wait to check out the Artifact Lab exhibit considering that there is no end date just yet. You wouldn’t want to miss this awesome and unique exhibit at Penn Museum. Get a chance, check out Molly Gleeson’s blog.

In the Artifact Lab: Conserving Egyptian Mummies

Location

Penn Museum
3260 South St (University City)
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Dates

October 16 – Unknown, 2013

Hours of the Conservators

Monday | Closed
Tuesday – Saturday | 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Costs

Exhibit Free with Admission | General admission timed tickets (includes admission to the Penn Museum)
Adult | $12.00
Senior (65+)/Military(w/ID) | $10.00
Students (full-time with ID) & children (6 to 17 years) | $8.00
FREE for Museum members, children 5 and under, and PENNcard holders (Penn faculty, staff and students)
“Pay-what-you-want” general admission during the last half hour of every day