Egyptomania
With the deciphering of the Rosetta Stone in the early part of the century, the understanding of Ancient Egypt grew exponentially. As a result, the ability to read ancient manuscripts and decoration covering Egyptian monuments, the foundations of Egyptology as a science were laid. By the century’s end, the design features and styles of this historical Egypt had become a visible part of Victorian art, public and domestic life, and popular culture.
The great exhibition of the works of all nations was the creation of Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert. Housed inside an innovative and spectacular glass construction in the heart of London, it was a showcase of design, technology, and culture, bringing all the nations of the world together under one roof.Among a bewildering variety of over 100,000 other displays, visitors could gaze in wonder upon giant statues showing the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II. These were copies of two figures at the entrance to the temple of Abu Simbel in Egypt.
Later, when the exhibition building was moved to another London location, an elaborate Egyptian court was created, complete with standing figures copied from the originals. The erection of obelisks, inspired by the wonders of Ancient Egypt, was not only popular in European cities, where many were actually originals transported from their homeland. In Washington, D.C., theWashington Monument became the world’s biggest and most famous obelisk.
In Britain, with the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the Mediterranean was connected to the Red Sea, joining the Occident to the Orient. The Middle East became a lifeline for the British Empire, making travel to India a key part of Britain’s worldwide economic influence easier than ever. Egyptomania had acquired a political dimension, that in the coming decades, would shape how the Victorians viewed their presence in the Eastern Mediterranean.
British occupation extended south into Sudan, resulting in the Mahdi Wars in Sudan. A Muslim uprising, led by the self-proclaimed Mahdi, led to the killing of the British Consul General Gordon in Khartoum and the invasion by British troops to quell the uprising, making a reputation of British military commander, the then later Lord Kitchener.
The unofficial occupation of Egypt by the British in 1882 meant the country, in every part of its culture and history, began to figure prominently in the minds of politicians and commentators. To the Victorians, it must have seemed that, more than they could ever imagine, the destinies of Egypt and Britain were intertwined.
Years later, in the 1920s, the seeds of Egypt-mania planted by the Victorians would reap a rich harvest when Howard Carter discovered the tomb of the Egyptian King, Tutankhamen. The discovery captured the imagination of the world, triggering an explosion of interest, even more powerful than the one which had swept 19th century Britain. Victorians had established an obsession continued into the next century. Their legacy was an obsession with the beauty, history, and death found in Ancient Egypt.
Link: Middle East and North Africa/ England / Scotland / France/ Germany
