The golden burial mask of Egypt’s King Tutankhamun was broken off during an attempted cleaning at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo sometime last year. Under orders to fix it quickly, curators used epoxy glue to reattach the beard. Epoxy sets very quickly. The beard ended up slightly crooked, with a visible gap between the face and beard, and some epoxy showing. What’s more, an attempt to remove the excess glue with a spatula ended up scratching the mask.
Three of the museum's conservators reached by telephone gave differing accounts of when the incident occurred last year, and whether the beard was knocked off by accident while the mask's case was being cleaned, or was removed because it was loose.
They agree however that orders came from above to fix it quickly and that an inappropriate adhesive was used. All spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of professional reprisals.
An investigation by the Antiques Ministry is underway to determine exactly who did what to King Tut. -via The Mary Sue
(Image credit: Jon Bodsworth)