September 2014 Auction Ends Thursday, September 25th, 5pm Pacific
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 9/25/2014
Official Egyptian government correspondence about the excavation of King Tut's tomb. Typed letter signed is addressed to Egypt's Director of Antiquities, Pierre Lacau, sent from Egypt's Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Public Works in Cairo. Content concerns the excavation of the tomb after the death of the Earl of Carnarvon, who had supplied the initial funding for the dig. Letter is undated, but likely dates to not long after 5 April 1923, the day of Carnarvon's passing. Written in French, letter is headed, ''Discovery of Antiquities in the Valley of the Kings by Lord Carnarvon'', and translates to, ''I have the honor of referring you to the matter of your two letters No. 27.2/5 dated 19th December 1922 and 27th January 1923, about the antiquities discovery in the Valley of the Kings by Lord Carnarvon. In the 3rd paragraph of the 2nd letter you state that the excavator would be responsible for the packing and transport of the objects they find from Luxor over to the Museum of Cairo, and that the Antiquities Service would only be in charge of it if the excavator doesn't do the job properly. You added (in that 3rd paragraph) that Lord Carnarvon would carry out this work with meticulous care and in excellent scientific conditions. But now that Lord Carnarvon is dead, this Department would like to know what measures you propose to take in order to assure the care, restoration work, packing and transport of the found objects. [The following paragraph has been struck through but remains legible] Please let me know: 1) How much money you would need for this; 2) If you have the necessary funds for carrying out this work in your budget for the current year, or how much more will be required if not. Yours Sincerely, [signed by the Under Secretary of State, likely Abdul Hamid Soliman]''. Single page measures 8.5'' x 13.5''. Hand corrections throughout, else near fine.
Letter From the Egyptian Government on King Tut's Tomb -- ''...now that Lord Carnarvon is dead...what measures [do] you propose to take in order to assure the care...of the found objects...''
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