CNN
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- "Now, come, travel back in time. See where and how these rulers lived," Harrison Ford's deep voice beckons just before double doors swing open into a labyrinth of galleries displaying more than 130 ancient Egyptian artifacts.
The recorded introduction a la "Indiana Jones" welcomes visitors to a new exhibit featuring treasures from boy king Tutankhamun's tomb and artifacts tied to rulers spanning 2,000 years of Egyptian history.
"Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs," presented by Emory University's Michael C. Carlos Museum, premieres in the United States on November 15 at the Atlanta Civic Center.
An array of objects associated with rulers dating from Egypt's Fourth Dynasty into the Late Period (about 2600 B.C. to 660 B.C.) makes this the largest and most encyclopedic exhibit featuring Egyptian pharaohs presented in the U.S., according to exhibition curator David Silverman, who has worked on other exhibits focusing on Tutankhamun.
"A lot of people, when they hear 'Tut,' they think of gold, they think of the mummy, and they think of the discovery -- all of which is important. But when you think of more than 300 pharaohs, 31 dynasties, [Tutankhamun's] is only one of them," Silverman said.
Carefully focused pools of light illuminate stone pharaohs, gold and carnelian jewels and objects intended for the afterlife in darkened galleries looking at themes including the family life, religion, court and gold of the rulers.
A golden mask found on the mummy of Psusennes I presides over the gold gallery. Considered by ancient Egyptians to be the skin of the gods, gold was highly prized and used extensively in royal burial to assure pharaohs' divinity in the afterlife. A gold collar found on the body of Neferuptah, daughter of Amenemhat III, showcases an intricate arc of carnelian and feldspar that terminates with golden falcon heads.
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