A collector's journey: the Egyptian Museum's latest acquisitions

Barcelona"It was a very tough war, but in the end I was able to overcome it," says the founder of Egyptian Museum from Barcelona, ​​​​and hotelier, Jordi Clos. Proudly showing the statue of the vizier Sekhemanjptah (2416-2392 BC), which now guards access to the museum and centuries ago stood at the entrance to a mastaba (where high dignitaries were buried in Ancient Egypt). The statue was put up for sale at an auction in which Clos had to compete with representatives of museums from countries with deep pockets, such as Qatar. The vizier had belonged to a Canadian couple and was sold to create a fund for a university. Each piece in the Egyptian Museum helps us understand what Ancient Egypt was like, but it also has its own story, and some have traveled a long way.

Over the course of more than half a century, Clos has accumulated 1,300 works that he has acquired on a journey that has taken him all over the world. This Thursday, he was showing nineteen pieces he has purchased at various international auctions, with the exception of a funerary stele that belonged to a Catalan family. "I've spent 57 years building this collection, and these latest pieces complement others we already had; it's a way of closing the circle," he assures. This doesn't mean Clos will stop collecting. "Right now, I have the latest acquisition at home and I'm studying it. I like to have them at home for a while, so I can look closely, observe them... before taking them to the museum," he explains. However, it's increasingly difficult to find pieces from Ancient Egypt because things have changed a lot in recent years, and governments, understandably, are very protective of their heritage. Furthermore, competition is fierce. Clos prefers not to mention or think about all the money he's spent. "Many pieces sold at auction come from collections that began at the beginning of the 20th century and are now being sold by heirs," Clos assures. He goes on to explain that he has continued collecting because his children have inherited his passion for Egypt.

The pieces found remain in Egypt

In fact, every year the founder of the Egyptian Museum excavates in Sharuna with one of his sons. Just over a year ago, some plaques from the Ptolemaic period (305-30 BC) were found in one of the tombs. These plaques were used as a mold for the Bennu, the Phoenix, a mythological bird that symbolizes transformation and resurrection. Obviously, he couldn't take it with him. "We were able to buy some replicas from an Egyptian antique dealer, and they have great sentimental value," says Clos. Another of the pieces had belonged to Édouard Louis Joseph Empain, a Belgian engineer who made a fortune: he founded his own bank, built electric tram lines throughout Europe, Russia, Congo, and Egypt, and created several electrical companies. In Cairo, he had an immense Buddhist palace built in which he kept a funerary mask, which also ended up being auctioned. The mask belongs to a woman from the Ptolemaic period and has been used by the museum to complement a tomb. Other unique pieces include a model of a wooden boat, showing a crew of five men with bare torsos (1991-1783 BC), and a sarcophagus cover (664-525 BC). "It's exceptional. The person who created it was striving for aesthetic perfection," says Clos. There are hieroglyphic texts and the four sons of Horus.

For the first time, the museum will display a bronze statuette of Anubis (664-525 BC), the god who watches over tombs. Clos has also added ushabtis to his collection. These are small figurines representing a servant and placed in tombs to serve the deceased. There could have been hundreds surrounding each death. "There are seventeen museums that have ushabtis from Psamtik's tomb. It was a find from the early 20th century, and these pieces could have been distributed back then. Now, that would be impossible," says Clos.