1998 - Egyptian Death Mask
This Egyptian death-mask was purchased in 1998 with funds from former UQ Vice Chancellor, the late Em. Prof. John Hay, along with the Friends of Antiquity group and the Alumni Association of The University of Queensland.
The mask is a typical example of its kind, created from cartonnage (linen stiffened with plaster) and decorated in bright colours. A large bird, perhaps a vulture (sacred to the goddesses Nekhbet and Mut) or a falcon (sacred to the god Horus), appears on top of the head, its wings spread and clasping shen (eternity) signs in its claws. In 2010, the mask was voted UQ’s favourite treasure, and remains one of Museum's the most popular attractions. Radio-carbon dating undertaken by an Honours Student in UQ's Archaeology discipline in 2014 dated the mask to 390-340 BC, some 40-90 years earlier than stylistic dating had suggested.