RUBBER ADDICT

Ostrich Fan of Tutankhamun

This hunt fan was found in the burial chamber of Tutankhamun, between the two innermost shrines; from the remains of its feathers it was clear that it had been fitted with thirty ostrich feathers, white and brown, alternately set.

The inscription on the stick says that Tutankhamun hunted ostriches in the desert near Heliopolis and provided the feathers for this fan. Made out of wood covered with sheet gold, length of the handle, 95 cm, stumps of feathers may still be seen in the holes on the outer edge of the palm.

New Kingdom, late 18th Dynasty, reign of Tutankhamun, ca. 1332-1323 BC. From the Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62), Valley of the Kings, West Thebes. Now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. JE 62001