“Derby Day” in the desert – 1923

BOAT- LOADS OF TOURISTS GO DOWN THE NILE
MR. CARTER AS “SHOWMAN”

LUXOR, Tuesday, January 25, 1923

To-day greater crowds than have ever before assembled at the treasure tomb of King Tutankhamen thronged there to witness the last removal of the antiquities from the outer chamber before the opening of the inner chamber, where it is hoped to find the body of the ancient Pharaoh.

Five excursion boats made the journey of 450 miles to Luxor from Cairo down the placid waters of the Nile and emptied their great burden of tourists upon the historic Theban Plain at dawn. But, once arrived there, there were not sufficient donkeys, carriages, or sand-carts to take the visitors across the desert to the Valley of the Kings, so camels and oxen, patient beasts of burden in Egypt from immemorial time, were pressed into service.

The scene at the tomb awakened memories of Epsom Downs on Derby Day. The road leading to the rock-enclosed ravine, where the sovereigns of a long-forgotten age are ensepulchred deep down in the heart of the hills, was packed with vehicles and animals of every conceivable variety. the guides, donkey-boys, sellers of antiquities, and hawkers of lemonade were doing a roaring trade. Fabricated photographs of King Tutankhamen, sacred scarabs, miniature sphinxes, beads of “miraculous” properties, and spurious antiquities in unending variety were offered to the tourists at extravagant prices.

The immense crowd surrounding the tomb on all sides waited patiently under the burning sun for several hours. It was noticeable that the women outnumbered the men by four to one. Every one of them had a camera, and the whole battery of instruments was levelled at Mr. Carter like an array of machine guns as, shortly before noon, he emerged from the tomb with his assistants bearing a grotesque elongated cow built on the lines of a dachshund.

A REMARKABLE COW

The inanimate beast of gold and wood formed one of the sides of Tutankhamen’s imperial couch. It was far from being one of the Guernsey or Jersey variety of cow, for the body was as slender as a wolfhound, the tail was curled up in a perfect circle, and the head had the delicate lines of a deer.

“What is it – calf, donkey, goat, deer, or rocking-horse?” ejaculated the crowd.
“It is an Egyptian cow, 3,350 years old,” explained Mr. Carter, with a smile. “It has guarded King Tutankhamen throughout his 33 centuries of sleep.”

The wooden effigy was then carefully laid to rest in a huge crate and carried away with all pomp and ceremony to the adjoining tomb of Seti II. A second cow was then brought out of the treasure vault, the brilliance of the gilding with which it was covered glistening in the bright sun with an iridescent light. Finally the beautifully-carved couch itself, designed especially to conform with the King’s contour, was brought out. It was covered liberally with a protective solution and cotton padding, so that the crowd could but little appreciate the exquisite beauty of its design. The couch was laid like a piece of delicate bric-à-brac in a huge wooden case which it took eight men to carry.

It is probable that to-morrow will see the last removal of the reliquaries from the magic storehouse for the time being, as Mr. Carter is going to Cairo to meet Lord Carnarvon, and to make with him the final arrangements for the unsealing of the burial chamber. In the meanwhile the experts will be busy repairing, retouching, and conserving some of the more delicate antiquities in the tomb, which are beginning to show signs of disintegration after their long entombment.

When the last articles had been removed from the corridor of the tomb the newspaper correspondents began a spirited dash across the desert to the banks of the Nile upon donkeys, horses, camels, and in chariot-like sand-carts in a race to be the first to reach the telegraph offices, for there is neither a telephone nor a telegraph line from the sacred precincts of the ancient Egyptian tombs to the town of Luxor. The oldest valley known to history still remains aloof from the restless developments of the outer world, and neither aeroplane nor wireless has as yet penetrated its peaceful serenity. P.A. Foreign Special.

KING TO VISIT THE TOMB
LUXOR, Wednesday

King Fuad has ordered his private train to be refitted and repainted, and it is anticipated that he will travel in state to Luxor. Unlike his ancient predecessors, who crossed the river only when upon their pilgrimage of death, King Fuad will be taken in a high-powered British motor-car across the Theban plain to the towering cliffs which form the great gorge known as the Royal Necropolis.