Rupert Wace – Tutankhamun 2016 Jacket.qxp_Layout 1 24/08/2017 11:42 Page 1
TUTANKHAMUN: THE ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS
About the author
Tutankhamun: The Original Photographs
Christina Riggs FSA is a writer and academic specializing in the history of archaeology,
THE DISCOVERY OF the tomb of Tutankhamun in November 1922 fascinated newspaper
photography, and ancient Egyptian art. Her book Photographing Tutankhamun will be
readers around the world – and photographs played a crucial role in bringing the tomb’s
published by Bloomsbury in 2018. She is also the author of Egypt: Lost Civilizations
treasures to life. This book captures the excitement of the excavation through a collection
(Reaktion Books, 2017) and A Very Short Introduction to Ancient Egyptian Art and
of original 1920s press photos, including many taken by photographer Harry Burton to
Architecture (Oxford University Press, 2014). She is a Reader in Art History at the University
record the tomb and its antiquities.
of East Anglia. For the first two years of work on site, one newspaper – the London Times – had an exclusive contract with archaeologist Howard Carter and his sponsor, the Earl of Carnarvon.
BY CHRISTINA RIGGS
Made to sell on to other newspapers, these prints show the story Carter and Carnarvon wanted to tell. But they show another story, too – about the British Empire’s influence in the Middle East, Egypt’s new independence, and the efforts both British and Egyptian excavators put into this remarkable find.
Tutankhamun: The Original Photographs
Illustrating all 148 photographs in the collection, and with an introductory essay by Christina Riggs, Tutankhamun: The Original Photographs marks an important new contribution to our understanding of Tutankhamun’s tomb and its legacy.