A Multianalytical Study of an Ancient Egyptian Mirror at the Grand Egyptian Museum

Abstract

This paper will present the results of a multianalytical study on an ancient mirror disk stored at the Grand
Egyptian Museum (GEM). The metal mirror disk was discovered at the Tura El-Asmant archaeological site in
the governorate of Cairo, Upper Egypt, dating to the Late Period. The mirror is in poor condition and covered
with corrosion layers which required suitable conservation treatments in order to preserve and display it in
the GEM. The primary goals of the study are to identify the various types of corrosion and deterioration that
have degraded the mirror in order to determine the most suitable method for the conservation. The study
uses many techniques, including scanning electron microscope (SEM), radiography, metallography examination, and portable X-ray fluorescence, which allows compositional analysis and gets information about the
technique used to produce it. The mirror’s past, present, condition, documentation, conservation techniques,
preservation, and storage recommendations will be explored in this contribution.