Guided Search: Arts and Culture, Egyptian

It's a celebration of all things Egyptian at this World Culture Day. The galleries come to life with a medley of activities to help visitors discover ancient Egypt, one of the world's oldest civilizations. Guests enjoy an Mummy Makers workshop, interactive belly-dancing, hands-on crafts and games, Egyptian hieroglyph lessons, and talks on Egyptian history and archaeology. Egyptologists Josef Wegner and Jennifer Houser Wegner tell stories from their new book, The Sphinx That Traveled to Philadelphia: The Story of the Colossal Sphinx in the Penn Museum.

Penn Museum will a day of free admission and special programming for adults and families, as part of the Association of Art Museum Directors’ (AAMD) Art Museum Day, coinciding with International Museum Day on Monday, May 18, 2015 Last year, the Penn Museum—along with 180 other AAMD member museums across North America—participated in Art Museum Day.

At the afternoon talk, Dr. Hawass shares an inside perspective on a host of recent archaeological discoveries in Egypt. Dr. Hawass has excavated around the Sphinx and the Pyramids of Giza for many years.

He found the tombs of the pyramid builders that tell the story of the workmen who were involved in the massive construction projects.

He also drilled under the Sphinx to learn more. At Giza, he directed a scientific research team that used a robot to search for secret doors inside the Great Pyramid of Khufu.

Enter the reconstructed palace of the Pharaoh Merenptah, and see a 12-ton sphinx, the sixth largest in the world, as part of a guided tour at the Penn Museum.

In two special exhibitions, visitors discover the story behind a short-lived royal city where King Tut was born, and explore “The Egyptian Mummy: Secrets and Science.”

Info: 215-898-4000 or www.penn.museum.

Literacy, Social Studies, and Music Educators are invited to attend this workshop about preeminent Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum whose extraordinary life provides a window into Arab arts, culture, and history. The workshop, offered by Penn's Middle East Center and Al-Bustan, will guide teachers through a new online curriculum unit about the life and legacy of Umm Kulthum created by a team of educators, artists, and digital designers with Al-Bustan.

Experience the magnificence of 5,000 years of ancient Egyptian culture presented in galleries on two grand floors. Enter the reconstructed palace of the Pharaoh Merenptah, and see a 12-ton sphinx, the third largest in the world. In two special exhibitions, visitors discover the story behind a short-lived royal city where King Tut was born, and explore The Egyptian Mummy: Secrets and Science.

The Summer Wonder Club at the Penn Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology celebrates cultural diversity through performing arts and live demonstrations. On July 25, Al Bustan Music Program will present an ensemble of musicians playing classical Arab music from Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. Al Bustan Music is a program organized by Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture--a West-Philadelphia based organization that presents and teaches the Arab language, arts, and culture. Tickets to view the show are included with price of Museum admission.