A remarkable new exhibit will explain how a jeweler from Harrogate was among the first visitors to the fabled Tutankhamun tomb in more than 3,000 years when it was found by British archaeologist Howard Carter in 1923.
Historic expedition - Flashback to the Valley of the Kings in 1920s Egypt including Harrogate jeweller James R Ogden and archaeologist Leonard Woolley. (Picture Ogden of Harrogate)
Egyptomania, a historic event commemorating 130 years of the family jewelers and their extraordinary connections to Tutankhamun, is being held at Ogden of Harrogate on the 100th anniversary of the tomb's exciting discovery in the Valley of the Kings.
When James R. Ogden started his jewelry company in 1893, he had to travel far to find the exquisite jewels for which the company became well-known.
Howard Carter invited Ogden to the Valley of the Kings to appraise and measure the gold, including Tutankhamun's casket, after he uncovered Tutankhamun's tomb, one of the best-preserved pharaonic tombs ever excavated.
One of the first people to access the tomb in more than three millennia was the jeweler from Harrogate.
Tutankhamun's discovery in 1923 captured people's attention all around the world.
Mr. Ogden developed a greater understanding of archaeology as a result of his fascination with the stunning discoveries made at the time in the Middle East.
Under the leadership of JR Ogden's great, great grandsons Robert and Ben Ogden, the company is still successful today.
Robert Ogden said: “The history of our business is our corner-stone and we have recently been cataloguing our archive, where we have a vast collection of our great, great, grandfather JR Ogden’s memorabilia, including a remarkable collection of 10,000 lantern slides of his travels to Tutankhamun’s tomb, and artefacts from his expeditions to Ur, Babylon, Palestine, Syria, and Assyria. There are also hundreds of letters that are fascinating glimpses of the key characters of that time, and their explorations.”
Part of an advert for a lecture tour given in the 1930s by Harrogate jeweller James R Ogden about his archaeology expeditions to Egypt which fascinated audiences across the UK. (Picture Ogden of Harrogate)
In the brand-new Harrogate event, some of these artifacts and letters will go on display for the first time.
An understanding of the social and political environment in which archaeology was conducted at the period is provided by the display.
James R. Ogden spent the 1920s getting to know Howard Carter, Lord Carnarvon, Max Mallowan (Agatha Christie's second husband), and the archaeologists Leonard and Katharine Woolley in particular.
Since Katharine Woolley, a trailblazing female archaeologist, requested that all of her personal papers be destroyed upon her death, the show includes her previously unpublished letters, which are of great importance.
In addition to being a restorer and replica builder, Mr. Ogden used his understanding of the workings of gold to help analyze the material discovered during digs.
He produced several copies of the artifacts discovered at Tutankhamun and Ur and gave them to the British Museum.
He also delivered seminars to enthralled crowds across the UK while displaying his slides. Some of the hundreds of newspaper articles about archaeological digs that JR Ogden gathered will be shown. The Ogden archive will be made available to historians for additional research, according to Robert Ogden. Who wouldn't be enthralled by the exploits of these early archaeologists and the secrets they uncovered? “Like fine jewels, there are no doubt more romantic and enchanting stories waiting to be unearthed.”
Between September 7 and 21, Ogden of Harrogate, located at 38 James Street in Harrogate, will host Egyptology, an excursion divided into three sections: Tutankhamun, Expeditions in Ur, and historical jewelry sales from the last 130 years.
