Finally! Some appreciation of Montet's work! His finds didn't even make it into global news with the outbreak of WWII, and I have a personal mission to make his finds known. On top of Psusennes (quite literally!) Montet also found the coffin of another King- Sheshonq. It's all so fascinating, hence my selection of avatar (I posted this as an introduction on ). I suppose this is a good introduction to the finds of Montet:

My avatar is of the silver coffin of Psusennes I, the most famous of the XXI Dynasty Pharaohs. Psusennes' tomb, discovered just prior to the outbreak of World War II, contained treasures that were at the time arguably the most fantastic to emerge from Egypt. These treasures included solid gold bracelets and pectorals, and most famously his silver coffin and mask. Pierre Montet, the Egyptologist leading the expedition also uncovered six royal tombs at Tanis, including the resting places of at least three other Pharaohs- Amenemope, Osorkon II and Sheshonq III. The unusual coffin of Seshonq III, found hidden in the tomb of Psusennes is unique, as it shows the Pharaoh in avian form, his face encrusted with precious minerals, electrum and silver, a metal more valuable to the Egyptians even than gold.

Unfortunately, Montet's work was dwarfed by the outbreak of the second world war, which prevented his amazing discovery from making headline news. My avatar also shows the nomen and praenomen of Psusennes. My favourite of those two names is, "Pa-Seba-kha-em-Niut", which translates to "The Star arises in the City". All of those words appear within the first few chapters of Gardiner's Egyptian Grammar, except for the definite article- 'pA'.

As you probably guessed, I feel that Montet's work has been somewhat understated by the Egyptological community. I am also considering subscribing to one of those magazines. I hear so many good reviews and comments regarding them. . .

With respect, the mask of Tutankhamun was ripped apart and frantically resized so that it would fit his head, was made of (comparitively) cheap materials and not even originally intended for him. Furthermore, the size of the complex discovered by Montet was much larger than Tut's tomb.

And aren't you fed up of seeing his mask on Egyptology books?!

Well, I can say I'm sick of Tut. Everyone's fascinated by him because his tomb was pretty much the biggest factor in the growth of recent Egyptology. Just to spite them is the reason I don't care for Tut.

However, you've said it yourself - Psusennes was overshadowed by the war, and thus, no one cares! As bad as it might sound, Psusennes needs dedicated people like you to bring his name back to full glory! You're smart, you'll grow up to be a great Egyptologist - and then you can have some reputible credit! You don't want to be some random crazy yelling, "Hey! Lookie here! Silver is more valueable than gold!" - you'll be stoned, possibly even caned!

Thanks for the complements (??) I have actually been considering taking a degree in Egyptian History at UCL, but as the careers are so limited in Egyptology I fear that I might end up doing something else instead. Also, the pay is just about enough for sustenance (18K-25K), and in London, where most of the jobs are, that's even worse because everything costs more there.

I dunno. The sounds intriguing, but it can be very competitive. (don't moan horribly!)