While the debate on the existence of a side-chamber in Tutankhamun’s tomb has been a hot topic in national and international news in recent months, few people realize that British artist Adam Lowe has created an exact facsimile of the young pharaoh’s burial chamber in the grounds of Howard Carter’s house on the West Bank in Luxor. Having visited the original many times, the precision of the replica is slightly unnerving. But perhaps more important than the discoveries made during the scanning of the original tomb are the aesthetic issues surrounding the reconstruction which are shifting our general perception of art history. Adam Lowe is what is called a “copyist” and he has produced reproductions of some of the greatest masterpieces in the world. Lowe founded Factum Arte in 2000 with Spanish artist and engineer Manuel Franquelo. Its aim, Lowe told Egyptian Streets, is to bridge the “gap between new technologies and traditional crafts – it’s all about mediation and transformation.” Factum Arte has developed its own 3D scanners and printers, which Lowe says “allow us to to see the surface as the eye sees it, but also some of…
Copying the Kings: Preserving Egypt’s Heritage for Generations to Come
May 22, 2016
