Tomb painting of a woman holding a sistrum
Visit the world of ancient Egypt during a day at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore with Jacquelyn Williamson, Egyptologist and an associate professor of ancient art and archaeology at George Mason University. A guided tour explores the museum’s collection of statuary, reliefs, stelae (commemorative stone slabs), funerary objects, jewelry, and objects from daily life that date from prehistoric to Roman Egypt (5th millennium B.C.E. to the 4th century). Among the most impressive pieces are two 3,000-pound statues of the lion-headed goddess Sekhmet; sarcophagi; an intact mummy still in its elaborate wrappings; images of private individuals and kings; and distinctive jewelry.
After a catered lunch of Egyptian street food from Koshary Corner, Williamson gives a lesson on the basic hieroglyphic offering formula, which appears on memorial statuary and is designed to provide the dead with essential goods in the afterlife. Participants then return to the collection and practice recognizing and translating hieroglyphics.
Williamson also lectures en route to the museum.
World Art History Certificate elective: Earn 1/2 credit*
Know Before You Go
- The tour departs by motorcoach from downtown Washington, DC with a designated secondary pick-up outside the city. Content delivered by the study leader on the way to the destination, after the secondary pick-up, is an integral part of the study tour experience. Meeting the group once the tour is en route is discouraged.
- Tour participants meet at and leave by bus from the Holiday Inn Capitol, 550 C St., SW, with a stop at the I-495 Exit 27 carpool lot at 9:25 a.m.
General Information
- Registration for this tour will end by 2 p.m. ET on Friday, February 21, 2025.
- Smithsonian Associates is a mask-friendly environment. Please feel free to bring and wear a mask at any time during a tour, both for your safety or the safety of others.
- As we aim to move away from single use water bottles, guests are strongly encouraged to get in the habit of bringing their own reusable water bottle on tour.
- For additional tour information:
*Enrolled participants in the World Art History Certificate Program receive 1/2 elective credit. Not yet enrolled? Learn about the program, its benefits, and how to register here.
