The House of Howard Carter: On the Trail of the Discoverer of Tutankhamun
The House of Howard Carter, situated on a hill of the West Bank of Luxor with a panoramic view over the Valley of the Nile, is a small museum gem that offers visitors a fascinating immersion into the life and work of the man who made the most celebrated archaeological discovery in history. This modest construction in mud bricks with the characteristic domed roof was the residence of the British archaeologist during his long years of work in the Valley of the Kings, and today it has been restored and transformed into a museum dedicated to the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun.
Howard Carter (1874-1939) was not only the discoverer of the tomb of Tutankhamun: he was an artist, a self-taught Egyptologist, a stubborn and passionate man who dedicated his life to the ancient Egyptian civilisation. His house in Luxor is the place where this passion took shape, where the dreams of discovery became excavation strategies, and where perseverance overcame the scepticism of colleagues and financiers.
The Man and His House
Howard Carter: a Portrait
Howard Carter was born in London on 9 May 1874 into a family of artists. His father, Samuel Carter, was a painter and illustrator who taught him drawing from early childhood. This artistic ability would prove fundamental in Carter's career: it was precisely as a draughtsman that, at only 17 years old, he obtained his first assignment in Egypt, copying the reliefs of the tombs of Beni Hasan for the Egypt Exploration Fund.
Carter did not have a formal academic training in archaeology or Egyptology, but compensated for this gap with an innate talent for observation, a tireless dedication to fieldwork and an uncommon archaeological intuition. His personality, however, was difficult: proud, irascible and not very diplomatic, he came into conflict with the British and Egyptian authorities on several occasions, losing for a period his official assignment.
The Construction of the House
The house was built at the beginning of the 20th century as an operational base for Carter's archaeological activities on the West Bank of Luxor. Situated in a strategic position, on the hill of el-Elwat el-Diban, the house allowed easy reach of the Valley of the Kings and the other archaeological sites of the zone.
The building is a modest but functional structure, built in mud bricks dried in the sun (adobe) according to the traditional building techniques of Upper Egypt. The roof is characterised by domes typical of Nubian architecture, which guarantee effective natural ventilation and good protection from the heat. The house comprised several rooms: a dining room, a study-laboratory where Carter catalogued and restored the finds, bedrooms and a terrace with a view over the valley.
The Daily Life of Carter
From this house, Carter directed the excavation operations in the Valley of the Kings for almost twenty years. His daily routine began at dawn, when he set off on donkey-back towards the valley to supervise the work of his workmen. At sunset he returned to the house to catalogue the findings, update his meticulous excavation diaries and correspond with Lord Carnarvon in England.
After the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922, the house became the headquarters of a monumental archaeological enterprise that continued for ten years. The most delicate objects of the funerary equipment were transported from the tomb to the house, where Carter catalogued, photographed, drew and packed them for the transport to the museum of Cairo. It was a titanic work that required infinite patience and extraordinary competences.
The Museum
The Restoration of the House
After the death of Carter in 1939, the house was abandoned and fell into ruin. For decades, the building remained in a state of degradation, exposed to the weather and to neglect. In 2009, thanks to a project financed by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities and by international organisations, the house was accurately restored and transformed into a museum open to the public.
The restoration sought to restore to the rooms the aspect that they had during the years of the great discovery, using period photographs as reference. The adobe walls were consolidated, the domes of the roof repaired and the interiors furnished with furniture and objects that reconstruct the atmosphere of the epoch.
The Exhibited Collections
The museum exhibits a collection of personal objects of Carter, period photographs, archaeological instruments and documents that recount the history of the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun. Among the most significant objects are the reproductions of Carter's excavation diaries, where the archaeologist meticulously noted every phase of the works, and the photographs taken by Harry Burton, the official photographer of the expedition, which document every moment of the discovery and of the clearance of the tomb.
The walls are decorated with explanatory panels that retrace the chronology of the discovery, from Carter's arrival in Egypt in 1891 until the completion of the clearance of the tomb in 1932. The texts, available in Arabic and English, provide a gripping account that mixes history, adventure and science.
The Reconstructed Rooms
Carter's study has been reconstructed with care, showing the desk where the archaeologist worked, the maps of the Valley of the Kings that he used to plan the excavations and the drawing instruments with which he documented the findings. The fidelity of the reconstruction allows one to imagine concretely the daily life of an archaeologist in the first decades of the twentieth century, before the era of digital technology.
The dining room shows how Carter lived during the long excavation seasons, far from European civilisation. Although life in Luxor was spartan, Carter maintained certain British standards: afternoon tea, evening conversations with colleagues and visitors, and a diet that combined local dishes with provisions imported from England.
The Replica of the Tomb of Tutankhamun
A Complementary Experience
In the vicinity of Carter's house is the replica of the tomb of Tutankhamun, realised by Factum Arte with three-dimensional scanning technologies at very high resolution. This faithful reproduction of the funerary chamber allows visitors to admire the wall paintings of the tomb in optimal conditions of illumination and without the limitations imposed in the original tomb for reasons of conservation.
The replica was created using data acquired with laser scanner and high-resolution photogrammetry, which captured every minimal detail of the surfaces of the walls, including the irregularities of the rock, the veining of the pigments and even the traces left by the brushes of the ancient artists. The result is a reproduction so faithful as to be practically indistinguishable from the original.
The Value of the Replica
The replica of the tomb of Tutankhamun represents an innovative model of conservation and enjoyment of cultural heritage. By visiting the replica, tourists can enjoy an immersive experience without contributing to the deterioration of the original tomb, caused by the humidity, the body heat and the carbon dioxide produced by the thousands of daily visitors.
Moreover, the replica offers objectively better conditions of visit compared to the original tomb: the illumination is studied to exalt the colours of the paintings, there are no time limitations, and the space is more comfortable. For many visitors, the experience in the replica is paradoxically more satisfying than that in the authentic tomb.
The View over the Valley
A Breathtaking Panorama
One of the most evocative aspects of the visit to Carter's house is the panorama that one enjoys from the terrace and from the surroundings of the building. The elevated position on the hill offers an extraordinary view over the alluvial plain of the Nile, with its cultivated fields of a brilliant green that contrast with the ochre colour of the surrounding desert.
To the east, beyond the fields, one glimpses the Nile and, on the opposite bank, the temples of Karnak and Luxor. To the west, the Theban mountains rise like a natural barrier that protects the Valley of the Kings. It is a landscape that Carter contemplated every day from his house, and that today visitors can admire exactly as he saw it over a century ago.
The Landscape Context
Carter's house is inserted into a landscape that still conserves in large part the rural character that it had at the beginning of the twentieth century. The villages of Gurna, with their adobe houses, the palm groves, the donkeys and the goats, the fields of sugar cane and of wheat offer an authentic scenario that evokes the Egypt of the romantic travellers.
Tips for the Visit
How to Get There
The house of Howard Carter is located on the West Bank of Luxor, in the area of el-Elwat el-Diban, a short distance from the road that leads to the Valley of the Kings. It is reachable by taxi, carriage or bicycle from the ferry quay. The majority of organised tours of the West Bank include Carter's house in their itinerary.
Practical Information
The entrance ticket is economical and includes access to the house museum. The replica of the tomb of Tutankhamun requires a separate ticket. The visit to the house requires about 45 minutes, to which one can add 30 minutes for the replica of the tomb. The site is generally not very crowded, allowing a tranquil and relaxed visit.
When to Visit
The best period for the visit is from October to April. The position on the hill makes the site particularly exposed to the sun in the central hours of the day, especially in summer. It is advisable to visit early in the morning or in the late afternoon. Bring water, a hat and sun protection.
Combining the Visit
The house of Howard Carter pairs perfectly with the visit to the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings, creating a thematic route dedicated to the greatest archaeological discovery in history. The ideal order is to visit first the house museum, to understand the context of the discovery, and then go to the Valley of the Kings to see the original tomb. The replica of the tomb, situated near the house, offers a precious complement for those who cannot obtain the ticket for the original tomb or desire a more satisfying visual experience.
The house of Howard Carter is much more than a museum: it is a place where the myth of the discovery takes concrete shape, where the stones and the mud recount the history of a man who pursued a dream for decades and in the end realised it, changing forever our way of seeing ancient Egypt.
