Conflicted Antiquities provides a comprehensive overview of European and Egyptian interest in the material and human culture of ancient Egypt from the early 19th to the mid-20th century.
Colla unravels this complex relationship by first presenting the biography of one of the world’s most famous Egyptian sculptures – the upper part of a colossal stone statue depicting the pharaoh known as the Memnon head, which is thought to have inspired the poet Shelley to write Ozymandias.
Colla emphasises the museum “artefaction” of this object as a transformation from curiosity into contextualised artefact on its installation in the British Museum in 1819.
Colla presents the history and politics surrounding the Egyptian view of its ancient past, drawing on medieval and contemporary Arabic literature to illustrate the “pharaonist” Egyptian attitude: to them, ancient Egypt represents the “eternal soul of the Egyptian” and remains the lynchpin of their national strength despite then being under colonial rule.
The dichotomy between the Egyptians and the colonial agenda of archaeologists from Europe is illustrated with a discussion of the politics surrounding the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun.
Colla intertwines material and social histories to create a debate on the struggle for the ownership of pharaonic Egypt that is indispensable for Egyptologists, museum professionals and enthusiasts.
Anna Garnett is a trainee curator at the British Museum/Manchester Museum
Colla unravels this complex relationship by first presenting the biography of one of the world’s most famous Egyptian sculptures – the upper part of a colossal stone statue depicting the pharaoh known as the Memnon head, which is thought to have inspired the poet Shelley to write Ozymandias.
Colla emphasises the museum “artefaction” of this object as a transformation from curiosity into contextualised artefact on its installation in the British Museum in 1819.
Colla presents the history and politics surrounding the Egyptian view of its ancient past, drawing on medieval and contemporary Arabic literature to illustrate the “pharaonist” Egyptian attitude: to them, ancient Egypt represents the “eternal soul of the Egyptian” and remains the lynchpin of their national strength despite then being under colonial rule.
The dichotomy between the Egyptians and the colonial agenda of archaeologists from Europe is illustrated with a discussion of the politics surrounding the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun.
Colla intertwines material and social histories to create a debate on the struggle for the ownership of pharaonic Egypt that is indispensable for Egyptologists, museum professionals and enthusiasts.
Anna Garnett is a trainee curator at the British Museum/Manchester Museum
