ENTER THE
PHARAOH
Trip to ancient Egypt
as close as Omaha
By Diane Broderick
Staff writer
Plenty of black eye makeup, potent
alcohol and a heavy dose of unusual
clothing.
They’re the tools of the trade for
this generation’s Goth aficionados, but
Searching for Ancient Egypt: Art,
Architecture, and Artifacts from the
University of Pennsylvania Museum
shows that they were also everyday
materials in ancient Egypt.
The traveling exhibit, now at
Omaha's Joslyn Museum, makes
ancient Egypt accessible and lends
explanation to why Egyptians practiced
religion the way they did.
It's also one of the more prominent
exhibits to find its way to the museum.
Joslyn director John Schloder said.
“This is undoubtedly one of the
biggest exhibits the Joslyn has ever put
on,” Schloder said.
The exhibit extends a glimpse into
the lives and daily practices of the
ancient people for more than 3.000
years - and not just the ruling class.
The exhibit, which has artifacts
excavated from palaces, pyramid sites,
temples and cemeteries between 1890
and 1992 - takes a look at common
place people of ancient Egypt, as well
as their more powerful counterparts.
The people of the Nile would
“sometimes drink to excess,” says a
placard accompanying a large wine jar
with a lid, from 1353-1190 B.C., deco
rated simply and elegantly with light
blue lotus leaves. Egyptians w'ere
accustomed to drinking both red and
white wines, and the artifact is just one
of several items that brings the prac
tices of the ancient Egyptians to life.
As often seen in reproductions of
tomb walls and hieroglyphics,
Egyptians often wore makeup. Their
reasons were plentiful, including
health, v anity and because it was pleas
ing to their gods.
Thetr elaborate eye makeup, much
like football players’ today, was fash
ioned to cut down on the glare the
bright sun caused.
These facts and more are explained
and illustrated in ancient artifacts the
hgyptian people nau, including cos
metics dishes and other artifacts. The
common people of Egypt serve as one
quarter of Searching for Ancient Egypt,
titled People of the Nile.
The exhibit is dissected into three
other sections: Rulers of the Realm,
Gods and Goddesses and Visions of the
Afterlife.
Carv ed stone images of pharaohs,
small statues and large photos of what
pharaohs' throne rooms would have
originally looked like pay tnbute to the
Egyptian royalty in the Rulers of the
Realm portion.
A block statue titled “The Overseer
of Priests” opens the section with the
magnificent image of a religious offi
cial who looks as if he is sitting with his
hands on top of his knees, tightly pulled
to his chest.
Hieroglyphics, including prayers to
Osiris, the god of the underworld, cover
the legs of the statue. And large black
eyes, open wide, seem to implore those
who look upon it to take the hiero
glyphics’ meanings seriously.
A small statue of the child King
Tutankhamen, who ruled from age 9 to
1X. rounds out this portion of the exhib
it. The statue serves as a reminder to an
exhibit that came to the Joslyn in 1962:
Tutankhamen Treasures.
King Tut's tomb, discovered in
1922, is considered the best-preserved
tomb ever found, and it has made his
reign more important than it was at the
time, as his reign was hardly noted
before his tomb was uncovered.
"There’s also a statue of one of the
Egyptian gods that has King Tut's fea
tures,” Scholder said. “King Tut com
missioned it.”
The Gods and Goddesses portion
consists mainly of statues large and
small of Egyptian gods and goddesses,
including the impressive “Serpent
Goddess,” 664-610 B.C., which has a
woman’s head and the body of a snake.
The remaining section of the exhib
it. Visions of Life After Death, contains
what Schloder calls the show’s most
important piece - a 4,300 year-old wall.
“It’s the real center to the entire
exhibit.” Schloder said.
The wall, which takes up an entire
room of the exhibit and was specifical
Courtesy Photo
RUNNING THROUGH JULY, the exhibition Searching for Ancient Egypt displays 138 Egyptian artifacts that explore
the religion, rituals and lifestyle of the ancient civilization.
y restored for this show, is covered
vith hieroglyphics and also has images
)f the tomb owner, an Egyptian noble
nan.
“(The wall) has a false door,”
schloder said. “The Egyptians believed
hat behind this door the spirit would
'eside.”
Offerings of food were often left
there, and the wall itself is decorated
with various food so if there were no
real offerings, according to the expla
nation, the wall paintings would come
to life to nourish the dead nobleman’s
spirit.
Mummy cases and canopic jars,
where organs were stored after they had
been removed from the body, also
enhance this section of the exhibit,
which features many notes on mummi
fication, the Egyptian cemetery and
Egyptian funerals.
The organization of the exhibit is
aided by an audio tour, included in the
admission price. The tour gives viewers
Please see EGYPT on 13
Tango Buenos Aires plays up its seductive billing
■ Tango performance brings the
spice of the South American dance
and music to the Lied Center.
By Liza Holtmeier
Senior staff'writer
Sultry, thy name is tango.
And Tango Buenos Aires serves as the play
ground for your seductive games.
Dunng a two-hour performance Friday night,
audiences reveled in the company's captivating
presentation of tango music and dance at the Lied
Center for Performing Arts.
And though the ensemble numbers sometimes
lacked synchronization, the dancers' impassioned
duets emblazoned the crowd with the ardor of the
tango.
The show began with the orchestra's presenta
tion of the song “La Cumparsita.” Behind the
musicians, a pool of light cast the silhouettes of two
dancers onto a screen of fabric. Their angular shad
ows and dramatic poses set the stage for the stream
of passionate images to follow.
In “Organito De La Tarde,” the male dancers
glided on stage with a seductive smile and gait. In
a tango of virility and strength, the men circled like
street fighters, emphasizing the masculine power
and grace of the dance.
Then, the women entered, contrasting the coer
cive force of the men. As they seductively dragged
their cafe-style chairs behind them, their legs scis
sored and plunged into fervent lunges.
In a tango called “Orillera,” one couple show
cased the frenzied passion of the dance. With light
ning speed, they entwined and unwound their legs,
twirling and twisting around the stage until their
final climactic pose.
The company ended the section before inter
mission in a dramatic number called “Quejas De
Bandoneon.”
After intermission, the dancers gave their most
seductive performance in “Verano Porteno.” In this
number, two blue-clad women danced sensuously
with their partners in squares of light. This dance
showed the intimacy and individuality of the tango.
Vanous numbers after intermission played up
the tango’s sly humor. Several couples joked
around with the dance’s inherent flirtation, slap
ping each other on the rear and coyly winking.
However, the show ended on a rather anticli
mactic note: After a piece celebrating the song and
culture of Buenos Aires, the dancers fom ent a dra
matic dance ending and merely approached the
edge of the stage, presented themselves to the audi
ence and bowed.
Fortunately, a standing ovation led to a short
encore with a more suitable, more dramatic con
clusion.
The show’s overall sophisticated style was
enhanced by the dancers’ elegant costumes.
Dramatic slits, form-fitting dresses and strappy
high-heeled shoes emphasized the women’s entic
ing grace. The men, on the other hand, appeared
boldly elegant in their 1940s-style suits and jaunti
ly worn hats.
And by the end of the show, you wanted to not
only dance .like the performers but dress like them,
too.
