Tutankhaman tomb family's museum gift

09 August 2007

A Norfolk museum has received a gift of paintings linked to the archaeologist who discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun.

They are the work of relations of the Egyptologist Howard Carter who grew up in Swaffham.

The four pictures have been loaned to Swaffham Museum by Susan Allen, from Swaffham, and they include two landscape scenes by William Carter.

A third painting, that is signed by Henry Carter and dated 1916, is of Sporle Road House, in Swaffham. There is also a picture of a foal in a forest by HW Carter that was painted in 1885.

Howard Carter is most famous for his discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt in November 1922, after 15 years of searching.

Kate Ayres, curator of the museum, said: “It is an honour for the museum to be loaned these paintings. It is nice for us to have something that is related to the family of Howard Carter that is not in a big national museum.”

The four paintings are due to be displayed in the museum sometime after October.

The museum has also recently restored two paintings by another William Carter - two portraits entitled Aunt Emma and Henry.