King Tut treasures return to US

The gilded treasures of Tutankhamun have returned to the United States more than 25 years after the sensational success of their first visit, and this time Egypt intends to cash in on the enduring popularity of the boy king.

The comeback museum tour has all of the trappings of a Hollywood blockbuster sequel: a "gold carpet" opening in Los Angeles, a high-powered marketing effort and the potential for a massive box office with tickets as high as $30 each.

"I am not going to send any exhibit for free anymore. We took you for a free lunch and dinner a lot. Now is the time to pay for your dinner," said Zahi Hawass, head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Hawass said at an event to launch "Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs" that Egypt would raise about $35 million from the 27-month tour of the United States to help pay for the preservation of its national treasures. The tour opened at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art on Thursday.

Tut-mania swept the United States during the late 1970s, when about 8 million Americans viewed the artifacts during a tour that became a pop culture phenomenon spawning new hairstyles, dance moves and a hit single, "King Tut," by comedian Steve Martin that sold more than 1 million copies.

Adult tickets to see the exhibit in Los Angeles cost as much as $30, a price tag that would cause little consternation if the visit had been to a theme park such as nearby Disneyland but came as a shock to some in the museum community.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, one of the hosts of the first tour in the late 1970s, turned down the chance to participate this time.

"The economics of the exhibition would have required the museum to charge $20 to $25 for admission and the museum has a long-standing policy of not charging for any special exhibition," said Harold Holzer, vice president for external affairs at the museum.

The exhibit will be in Los Angeles until November and then opens in the Museum of Art in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Other stops on the tour are the Field Museum in Chicago and the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia.

Tut's last tour?

This year's exhibit will have about 120 pieces, about twice the number shown in the 1970s, but one of the most famous artifacts, Tutankhamun's golden mask, is staying in Egypt.

Many of the artifacts not seen previously in the United States come from other tombs in Egypt's famed "Valley of the Kings."

"This is the first time you are going to have an exhibit which is not just about the discovery of King Tut. It is about the Valley of the Kings," Hawass said.

Egyptologist Bob Brier of Long Island University said the fascination with Tutankhamun, who ruled Egypt more than 3,000 years ago, was due partly to the tale of the discovery of the tomb by Howard Carter in 1922.

"People love to hear that story again and again," he said.

Brier said interest was also heightened by the mystery surrounding Tutankhamun's death at the age of about 19 and the still raging debate about whether he was murdered.

"What is so fascinating about King Tut is that there is a story about an untimely death. I think that is what moves people more so than just looking at pretty pieces," said John Norman, president of Arts and Exhibitions International, one of the backers of the show.

The comeback tour could be the last chance to see the exhibits on US soil.

"I have said I don't think King Tut can travel again. I think he should stay home and you can come and visit King Tut at home" in Egypt, Hawass said.

Egypt's tourism minister, Ahmed El Maghraby, said he expected the exhibition to spark a surge in the number of Americans visiting his country as it did 25 years ago.

"Right now we are expecting to receive 200,000 people this year from the United States. I think by the end of this tour I would not be surprised to see over half-a-million Americans visit Egypt," he said.