The Met Celebrates Temple of Dendur Anniversary with a Day of Activities Today, April 15
Given to the United States by Egypt in 1965, awarded to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1967,
and installed in The Sackler Wing in 1978.
Saturday, April 15, beginning at 11 a.m.
Join us in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the award of The Temple of Dendur to The Met in a day filled with special offerings and activities. One of the Museum’s most iconic and best-loved works of art, the temple was built of sandstone in around 15 B.C. and rescued during the 1960–80 UNESCO Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia. A gift of Egypt to the United States, it was awarded to The Met by President Lyndon B. Johnson in April 1967. It is now located in The Sackler Wing at The Met.
Families will enjoy Art Trek, a tour aimed at young visitors (ages 7–11) and their adult companions. The new Family Guide: Explore The Temple of Dendur—a full-color brochure available at no charge at the Museum’s information desks—will help young visitors continue the exploration on their own.
Visitors of all ages will have several opportunities to learn more about ancient Egyptian art. Museum curators and a conservator will lead a series of 15-minute pop-up talks about The Temple of Dendur and will be on hand to answer questions from the public.
Presented throughout the day will be Color the Temple, an experimental display that, through lights, suggests how the temple originally appeared 2,000 years ago. Access fascinating facts and useful information about The Temple of Dendur from the Museum’s Audio Guide on The Met app. New essays about various aspects of the temple are included in a special 50th-anniversary feature on The Met website. Moments from the temple’s recent history will be featured in a slide presentation.
Finally, in the evening at the Great Hall Balcony Bar, the Nile Sunset—a specialty cocktail with a Temple of Dendur theme—will be available for purchase. Featuring fig vodka, pomegranate, elderflower, lemon, and sparkling wine, the cocktail’s two predominant flavors reference favored fruits from ancient Egypt.
#Dendur50
The program is free with Museum admission.
Schedule
| 11 a.m. |
Art Trek, a tour for families with kids, ages 7–11 |
| Noon |
Niv Allon, Assistant Curator, Department of Egyptian Art, “Milk and Wine for the Gods” |
| 1 p.m. |
Diana Craig Patch, Lila Acheson Wallace Curator in Charge, Department of Egyptian Art, “A Pop of Color on The Temple of Dendur” |
| 2 p.m. |
Art Trek, a tour for families with kids, ages 7–11 |
| 3 p.m. |
Niv Allon, Assistant Curator, Department of Egyptian Art, “Reading off the Wall: The Temple’s Inscriptions” |
| 4 p.m. |
Anna Serotta, Assistant Conservator, Department of Objects Conservation, “The Conservation of The Temple of Dendur” |
| 5 p.m. |
Diana Craig Patch, Lila Acheson Wallace Curator in Charge, Department of Egyptian Art, “Light to Dark: Envisioning Creation in an Ancient Egyptian Temple” |
| 6 p.m. |
Adela Oppenheim, Curator, Department of Egyptian Art, “Architecture and Ritual in The Temple of Dendur” |
| 11 a.m.–6 p.m. |
“Ask the Curator / Conservator”—Met staff will be on hand to answer visitors’ questions about ancient Egyptian art in general or The Temple of Dendur specifically. |
| 1-6 p.m. |
Slide show of historical photographs |
| 4-8:30 p.m. |
Appetizers and cocktails available for purchase at the Great Hall Balcony Bar (last call, 7:45 pm) |
Ongoing
Special viewing hours for Color the Temple are noon–8:30 p.m. on April 15 only. The regular schedule (through April 22) is 4–5:30 p.m. Sundays–Thursdays, and 4–8:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Download Audio Guide stops on your smartphone. #3590 (Main), 103 (part of the Director’s Tour), 1140 (Family Tour), and 63 (Architecture Tour).
New essays about the temple, written by staff in the Departments of Egyptian Art and Objects Conservation are included in a special 50th-anniversary feature on The Met website. Additional content will be posted throughout the month of April.
A different archival photograph from the temple’s history will be posted on Instagram each week in April, and images from the anniversary month will be featured on Facebook and Twitter.
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