The tickets are expensive; tickets for the exhibition are 22.50 for adult members, and 27.50 (weekday M-Th), and 32.50 (weekends and holidays F-Su). Ticketholders are given a time when they may enter the exhibit; I chose the first showing of the day, at 9am. An audio tour is available ($6 members, $7 non members), which contains additional information about some of the objects in the exhibit, and is narrated by Omar Sharif.
The deYoung, which I am a regular patron of, has added an additional ticket area in order to accommodate the crowds for the King Tut exhibition; ticket booths to the left of the inner main entrance display the exhibit name and the ticket prices largely and brightly; ticket holders are then assigned a timeslot, and stand in line for the appropriate timeslot, much like standing in line for a movie at the local cinema. Ticketholders are then directed down the ramp to the lower level, where they are in line to enter the exhibit (and/or purchase the audio tour or a collectible limited edition print) . At the entrace of the exhibit, there are two large wooden doors, similar to the large doors at the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland. Beyond the two wooden rooms is a short 90 second film, which all viewers watch before allowing patrons to go within the exhibition area. This is the first and final reminder of no food and drink, and no photography of any kind within the exhibit.
Museum security is tight, with several guards watching patrons within a room at all times; this has been the only show at the deYoung I've been to in all my years where photography is prohibited and the patrons respect that prohibition; I saw no errant flashes, nor did I hear a single click of a shutter during my viewing; I did however see a guard demand that an artist put away her sketchbook, as "sketching within in the exhibit is not allowed".
The rooms in which the items are exhibited are of varying sizes and light levels; one room may have normal light levels, while others are practically pitch dark, with only the items and placards illuminated by spotlights; the exhibits show a lot of care in the design of the display; the little information cards in the display case which detail the item are also posted up in larger print above the display, as well as the number which corresponds to the supplementary audio tour. Most of the items on display are sealed behind plexiglass from all sides, allowing a 360 degree viewing of the item; some items are relatively small items, and can be hard to see with the crowds; the exhibition itself is quite large, boasting over 130 items from the age of the Pharaohs.
While some of the pieces that one would expect are not part of this exhibit, it's still quite a breathtaking spectacle to see a golden funerary mask, even if it isn't King Tut's, and view with amazement that all of the items on display are over 3,000 years old. It should be said that not all the objects in the 130 count are from King Tut's tomb; approximately 40% of the objects on display are from Tutankhamun's tomb; the rest are items from that epoch and help describe the time period and customs of the ancient Egyptians; many of items I have seen before in books; the pictures in the books are misleading, as several of those items are smaller than I realized; but some things, such as the golden sarcophagus on display are much larger and more detailed than I imagined.
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