Museums worldwide offer wondrous displays of ancient Egyptian art and culture. The region's early archaeology is chronicled in one traveling exhibition.

Fueled by archaeological discoveries and recent advancements in science, ancient Egypt's lure is still unabated. The large number of exhibitions around the world that are dedicated to this glorious Near Eastern civilization is a testament to its enduring and long-standing popularity.

Mummies: Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt... Treasures from The British Museum

Some 140 funerary objects, mummified human remains and richly decorated sarcophagi or coffins illustrate the ancient Egyptians' religious beliefs regarding death, resurrection and the hereafter.

• Bowers Museum of Cultural Art, Los Angeles, CA USA: April 17, 2005-March 31, 2008

Amarna: Ancient Egypt's Place in the Sun

Egyptian art and culture in the short-lived capital of the "heretic" pharaoh Akhenaten (r. 1353-1336 B.C.), the presumed father of the boy-king Tutankhamun (r. 1332-1322 B.C.), are explored through more than 100 objects from UPenn's world-class archaeological holdings.

• University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia, PA USA: Opened November 12, 2006

Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs

Some 130 precious antiquities describe society, religion and art preceding and during ancient Egypt's revolutionary Amarna Period (ca. 1353-1336 B.C.), focusing on the young Pharaoh Tutankhamun (r. 1332-1322 B.C.) and Akhenaten (r. 1353-1336 B.C.), perhaps his successor's father.

• Franklin Institute Science Museum, Philadelphia, PA USA: February 3-September 30, 2007
• O2, London, England: November 15, 2007-August 30, 2008
• Dallas Museum of Art, TX USA: October 3, 2008-May 17, 2009

Pharaohs, Queens, and Goddesses

This focus exhibition shows how ancient Egyptian women of power (historical figures and deities) were depicted in sculpture. Among them are: Hatshepsut (reigned ca. 1479-1458 B.C.), Egypt's most formidable female pharaoh; Nefertiti (ca. 1352-1336 B.C.), principal wife of the visionary ruler Akhenaten (r. 1353-1336 B.C.); and the mighty goddesses Nephthys, Mut and Bastet.

• Brooklyn Museum, NY USA: March 23, 2007-January 20, 2008

Egypt's Sunken Treasures

More than 500 sculptures, pieces of jewelry, cult objects and coinage, recovered by underwater archaeologists off the coast of Egypt, disclose interesting aspects of the country's ancient history and life from the end of the pharaonic age through Roman rule.

• Art and Exhibition Hall, Bonn, Germany: April 5, 2007-January 27, 2008

A Passport to the Egyptian After-life: The Book of the Dead of Ramose

A freshly conserved Book of the Dead (ca. 13th Century B.C.) displays incantations recited by ancient Egyptian priests to guarantee the deceased's inviolable passage to the underworld. The papyrus includes depictions of animals and foliage native to the Nile River environment.

• Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, England: June 19-September 16, 2007

Egyptian Antiquities from the Louvre: Journey to the Afterlife

Over 200 objects from Paris' Musée du Louvre trace the development of ancient Egyptian funerary rituals and religious beliefs from the Old Kingdom age of the pyramids (ca. 2686-2125 B.C.) through the Ptolemaic Period (332-30 B.C.). Passages from the Book of the Dead form the exhibition's thematic backdrop.

• Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, Australia: July 21-October 28, 2007

Excavating Egypt: Great Discoveries from the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, University College London

Some 220 assorted artifacts and works of art describe ancient Egypt's history and culture from predynastic times through Roman rule. Significant finds from Tell el-Amarna, the capital of the iconoclastic pharaoh Akhenaten (r. 1353-1356 B.C.), are gems of the exhibition. Among them are a Torso of a Princess (ca. 1344-1336 B.C.).

• Museum of New Mexico, Santa Fe USA: August 24, 2007-January 6, 2008
• Columbia Museum of Art, SC USA: January 24-June 8, 2008
• Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami, FL USA: June 28-November 2, 2008
• University of Kentucky Art Museum, Lexington, KY USA: March 14-June 14, 2009

Egyptian Mummies: Immortality in the Land of the Pharaohs

The history of mummification, religion and ideas of the afterlife in ancient Egypt are examined through some 350 objects from 34 museums and collections in six European countries.

• Wurttenberg State Museum, Stuggart, Germany: October 6, 2007-March 24, 2008

Gifts of the Gods: Images from Egyptian Temples

This landmark presentation features approximately 70 bronze, copper, gold and silver sculptures. They document the importance of metal statuary in ancient Egyptian religious ceremonies, particularly during the Third Intermediate Period (1070-664 B.C.).

• The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY USA: October 16, 2007-February 18, 2008
• Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Martigny, Switzerland: March 14-June 8, 2008

Temples and Tombs: Treasures of Egyptian Art from The British Museum

Ancient Egyptian society from earliest times to the Fourth Century A.D. is characterized by some 85 sculptures, cosmetic and funerary objects, pieces of jewelry and papyri.

• Albuquerque Museum of Art & History, NM USA: November 18, 2007-February 10, 2008

World of the Pharaohs

This international loan exhibition traces more than 3000 years of ancient Egyptian history, largely emphasizing the Old Kingdom age of the pyramids.

• Canadian Museum of Civilization, Gatineau, Quebec: November 11, 2008-August 16, 2009

World of the Pharaohs: Egyptian Masterpieces from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

More than 200 works of art and artifacts describe the daily life and funerary customs of the ancient Egyptians.

• Museum of Idaho, Idaho Falls, ID USA: February 22-November 29, 2008
• Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, AK USA: September 10, 2009-June 27, 2010