2
2nd Trick
Guest
Went to the Tut exhibit in Philadelphia this weekend.
Tut's golden mask is the centerpiece of all advertising, including posters all over the city, the internet site for the exhibit (www.kingtut.org), the admission tickets, etc. But THE MASK IS NOT ON EXHIBIT. I don't know if I can emphasize how dissapointing (and frankly fraudulent) I feel this is. The single most iconic item related to Tut, and advertized everywhere, is not on display. Also not on display were the golden chariots, thrones, etc. There were really only 6 or 7 items actually from Tut's tomb.
Technically the show is not using false advertising, the mask that is used for all the ads is the “Canopic Coffinette of Tutankamun” This is a miniature coffin (about 16 inches long) that was used to store Tut's liver.
but the image is highly cropped to seem the same as the mask. The brochure does name the item correctly, but I think that 99% of all viewers would assume it is the mask. Interestingly, the coffinette is more ornate and more impressive (at the same level of detail) than the famous mask that everyone thinks of, but the mask is of course much larger. See the images below for the actual item, how the item is presented, and compare that to the mask. I think its clear from the cropping that they are trying to evoke the mask. They could have cropped less tightly to make it obvious that wasn't the mask, but still give an impressive photo.
Sixteen inch long coffinette:
Advertising poster:
Actual mask:
YES, there are "obvious" differences between the mask and the coffinette, but they are NOT differences that the general public should be expected to recognize. They CROPPED the image to mislead us -- whether that decision was done with malice or apathy for our rights, we shall never know. But they KNEW, and they tried -- and succeeded -- in getting far too many people to cough up an absurd amount of money to see the an exhibit disturbingly short of RECOGNIZABLE, ICONIC items. I feel that this was nothing short of false advertising, and no amount of scholarly indignation that we "should have known" will change that.
Tut's golden mask is the centerpiece of all advertising, including posters all over the city, the internet site for the exhibit (www.kingtut.org), the admission tickets, etc. But THE MASK IS NOT ON EXHIBIT. I don't know if I can emphasize how dissapointing (and frankly fraudulent) I feel this is. The single most iconic item related to Tut, and advertized everywhere, is not on display. Also not on display were the golden chariots, thrones, etc. There were really only 6 or 7 items actually from Tut's tomb.
Technically the show is not using false advertising, the mask that is used for all the ads is the “Canopic Coffinette of Tutankamun” This is a miniature coffin (about 16 inches long) that was used to store Tut's liver.
but the image is highly cropped to seem the same as the mask. The brochure does name the item correctly, but I think that 99% of all viewers would assume it is the mask. Interestingly, the coffinette is more ornate and more impressive (at the same level of detail) than the famous mask that everyone thinks of, but the mask is of course much larger. See the images below for the actual item, how the item is presented, and compare that to the mask. I think its clear from the cropping that they are trying to evoke the mask. They could have cropped less tightly to make it obvious that wasn't the mask, but still give an impressive photo.
Sixteen inch long coffinette:
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Advertising poster:

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Actual mask:
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YES, there are "obvious" differences between the mask and the coffinette, but they are NOT differences that the general public should be expected to recognize. They CROPPED the image to mislead us -- whether that decision was done with malice or apathy for our rights, we shall never know. But they KNEW, and they tried -- and succeeded -- in getting far too many people to cough up an absurd amount of money to see the an exhibit disturbingly short of RECOGNIZABLE, ICONIC items. I feel that this was nothing short of false advertising, and no amount of scholarly indignation that we "should have known" will change that.