Since childhood, I have felt a great fascination for the Egypt of the pharaohs. I am one of the millions of people around the world who are captivated by the splendor of this civilization born nearly 6,000 years ago on the banks of the Nile. Howard Carter ---discoverer, in 1922, of the first intact tomb of a pharaoh, that of Tutankhamun--- and Jean-François Champollion ---the man who managed to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs through the Rosetta stone, in 1822--- are part of a long list of archaeologists and historians who, over the centuries, have brought to light impressive vestiges of the fabulous past of the Egyptians. Even today, Egypt is like a great box of surprises and, perhaps for this reason, it never goes out of style.
Egyptomania or passion for everything related to ancient Egypt would not be understood as a mass phenomenon without the role played by novelists and, above all, by Hollywood filmmakers. Without Mika Waltari's The Egyptian, Naguib Mahfouz's The Curse of Ra, Christian Jacq's bestsellers or, for that matter, Terenci Moix's novels, many readers would not have been captivated by the charm of Egypt. And, of course, no matter how much recent studies tell us that Cleopatra was not exactly a beauty, the Queen of the Nile will forever have Elizabeth Taylor's beautiful violet eyes.
Fiction often surpasses reality, and if not, just ask the Liceu regulars, for whom the desert landscapes of Egypt will never be as impressive as the sets that Mestres Cabanes painted in 1945 for Verdi's Aida and which miraculously survived the fire that incinerated the opera house on the Rambla in 1994. It must also be acknowledged that Egyptomania has a kitsch side closer to the aesthetic of Almodóvar's early films or, directly, to the eclectic decoration of Alaska and Mario's house than to the temples of Luxor or Karnak.
No matter how much recent studies tell us that Cleopatra was not exactly a beauty, the Queen of the Nile will forever have Elizabeth Taylor's beautiful violet eyesEl Museu Etnològic i de Cultures del Món has on display until June 15 the exhibition Udjat. The exoticism of ancient Egypt in Barcelona, an exhibition that is precisely presented as "an invitation to reflect on the survival and constant reinterpretation of one of the civilizations that has exerted the most powerful and lasting influence on Western culture: ancient Egypt." Although it is not a large exhibition nor does it have impressive exhibition resources, it is worth it.
The Museu Etnològic i de Cultures del Món has on display until June 15 the exhibition Udjat. The exoticism of ancient Egypt in Barcelona. I visited it a few weeks ago and discovered a little or unknown aspect of Barcelona, its Egyptian footprint.I visited it a few weeks ago and discovered a little or not at all known aspect of Barcelona, its Egyptian footprint.From a Hispano Suiza vehicle customized with pharaonic motifs by architect Josep Vilaseca to an Ark of the Covenant that, instead of belonging to the church of Saints Just and Pastor Martyrs of Barcelona, seems to have come out of an Indiana Jones movie.I also saw a few photographs of Barcelona facades that incorporate elements of Egyptian inspiration, pyramid-shaped tombs and a very curious image of the Barcelona carnival of 1934, with a large float that reproduced the Sphinx of Giza parading along Passeig de Gràcia.
The best example of the current Barcelona society's attraction to ancient Egypt can be found at number 284 on Valencia Street, home of the Barcelona Egyptian Museum. It belongs to the Clos Archaeological Foundation and not only exhibits valuable pieces acquired over the years or as a result of archaeological expeditions that it regularly sponsors in the Nile Valley, but, as an institution, it is a true beacon for Egyptology in the city.