Ceremonial Throne of Tutankhamun

**Admin** Wed Feb 24, 2010 7:10 am

This highly decorated throne is one of the masterpieces of King Tutankhamun's treasure, and was found in the room called the "Annexe" in his tomb. It is in the form of a folding stool with the back added. The carved wooden seat is inlaid with ebony, ivory and is colored with pigments to simulate leopard skin, while the legs terminates in beautifully inlaid ducks' heads. Between the legs there is half of an openwork Sema-tawi symbol, which represents the unification of the Two Lands; the other half appears to have been stolen by robbers for the gold foil that covered it. The glory of this chair is the back; it is made of wood covered with gold foil and is inlaid with semi-precious stones and colored glass. On the upper part of the back, we see the vulture goddess with her outspread wings protecting the names of the king. It seems that this throne was made early in the reign of Tutankhamun because of his name, which is written in the royal cartouche as Tutankhaten. This beautiful throne was compared by Carter with the folding stools used by bishops in cathedrals. In addition, the wooden miniature-work of the back has a great similarity to miniature Islamic art.

Dimensions: Width 70 cm Height 102 cm