Tutankhamun the Twentieth-Century Diplomat: The 1972 Treasures of Tutankhamun Exhibition at the British Museum as a Landmark in Anglo-Egyptian and in American-Egyptian Relations

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, University of Sadat City

2 Department of History, Baruch College, City University of New York, USA

Abstract

The discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in the same year that Britain granted Egypt qualified independence with some reservations linked together Egyptology and Egyptian nationalism more than ever before. This same King became pivotal to Egypt’s negotiations with the United Kingdom and the United States of America during the 1970s. This article reflects upon the landmark role of Tutankhamun in shaping Anglo-Egyptian and American-Egyptian relations in 1972 in order to demonstrate the crucial role that archaeological material plays in modern diplomacy. At this time, Egypt loaned artifacts to the British3 Museum for the first major travelling exhibition of Tutankhamun material. With this exhibition, the Tutankhamun exhibit navigated a positive turn in Anglo-Egyptian relations. Meanwhile, Egypt denied the request of the United States for Egyptian artifacts, signaling a low point in Egyptian-American relations.

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