MuseumChick | Danee Gilmartin

    In preparation for my trip through Egypt and Jordan and for my visit to the Egyptian Museum of Cairo, I went looking in Paris for some Egyptian history to absorb before I head off. Paris has one of the original Egyptian obelisks right in the middle of the busy Place de la Concorde but since it's cold outside I saw this only briefly while heading indoors to visit the Egyptian collection at the Louvre.

  Since it's holiday time and there are so many tourists visiting Paris, the Louvre is packed all day with huge lines to get in. So to avoid the madness, I went on a Wednesday night when the Louvre stays open until 9:45pm and it's much less crowded. This is a tip to anyone who wants to see the Louvre without the crowds and actually get up close to the objects — go at night. The only down side is that there is no natural light coming in through the windows to highlight the objects, only artificial light.

    I made my way up the escalator into the Sully wing of the Louvre where the bulk of the Egyptian collection starts. That's me waving! Moving through the collection, I thought it would be most interesting to find objects related to what I would also see in the Egyptian Museum of Cairo. Since Sphinxes are always arranged in pairs, I found one at the Louvre that has a counterpart conserved in the Egyptian Museum. This giant pink granite Sphinx is from 1750 B.C. and weighs 9.5 tons! It comes from the Egyptian city of Tanis, in the Nile's Delta. Now I'm interested to look for its mate when I'm in Cairo.

Heading to the Sully wing waving to Mr. MuseumChick!

Pink Granite Sphinx

Close up of the hieroglyphics on the Sphinx

Looking out the window in the Sully Wing at the Louvre courtyard

    While I was here, I had to see the main highlight of the Louvre's Egyptian collection, the Seated Scribe, from 2600-2350 B.C. One of the masterpieces of Pharaonic art, the Scribe is amazing for how ancient it is and also for its realistic eyes and proportions. The statue is made of painted limestone and the eyes are encrusted with quartz and copper that make them reflect. This was made by using white stone for the cornea with a copper ring and quartz inserted inside the stone. The sculptor then smoothly polished the eyes to reflect the light, giving them a life-like look. The Seated Scribe was found in the ancient burial ground of Saqqara, in northern Egypt. I'll be visiting Saqqara on my trip and now I'm excited to see the place where the Seated Scribe was found.

The Seated Scribe

On the first floor of the Egyptian collection the rooms are especially embellished

    Another highlight of the Louvre's Egyptian collection is Le Roi (the King) Amenphis IV Akhenaton from 1350 B.C. This sandstone pillar fragment is from a building east of the Karnak temple complex. It was a gift of the Egyptian government for France's support of the preservation of the Nubian monuments.

    Check back for the highlights of my trip to the Egyptian Museum of Cairo February 8th!

Statue of King Amenphis IV Akhenaton

King Amenphis IV Akhenaton is a star!