Speeches, etc.

Margaret Thatcher

Speech re-opening Egyptian Sculpture Gallery

Document type: Speeches, interviews, etc.
Venue: British Museum, central London
Source: Thatcher Archive: speaking text; see also THCR 1/17/82 for speaking text
Editorial comments: 1930. Marked "Check against delivery". In the speaking text MT replaced the words "imaginatively re-arranged" with "newly displayed" and omitted the words "so solidly" in the phrase "one of the great civilisations so solidly at the roots of world history".
Importance ranking: Minor
Word count: 502
Themes: Arts & entertainment

Your Royal Highness, Your Excellency, Lord Trend, my Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Thank you, Lord Trend, for your very generous words of welcome.

We who are here at the British Museum this evening, through your kindness and that of your fellow Trustees are about to see the Museum's magnificent and justly famous collection of Egyptian antiquities, imaginatively re-arranged in this splendid Gallery. [end p1]

I had the chance, when I visited the Museum not long ago, to see the Gallery when work was in progress. So I am looking forward immensely to comparing what I saw then with the Gallery transformed as we shall see it this evening.

The Museum's Egyptian collection was assembled over many years, and not always appreciated as it should have been; the Trustees of the early 19th century were, I believe, sometimes very insensitive to some of the lovely Egyptian objects which were offered to them. [end p2]

But today admiration of Egyptian art is widespread. And nowhere more than in this country—witness the incredible response here to the Tutankhamun exhibition a few years ago. This was partly a response to beautiful things, partly our longing today, with all our uncertainties, to know more about one of the great civilisations so solidly at the roots of world history. [end p3]

And contemporary artists like our own Henry Moore [I am sad that he could not be with us for dinner tonight] have drawn inspiration from some of the pieces in this collection, pieces which demonstrate the sculptor's mastery of materials, his superb skill and his disciplined art.

The outstanding pieces include the statue of Ramesses II in two colours of granite (about 1270 BC) from Thebes, the colossal head of a King in red granite (about 1390 BC), also from Thebes, and the Rosetta Stone—of immense importance because it provided the key to our knowledge of the Egyptian language. [end p4]

I am sure that we all feel that the new setting of these noble works of art is an achievement which brings credit to all who have been involved. It has been a complex task, lasting five years, and it has meant much careful research and equal care in moving some of these massive sculptures to their new places. It is a credit to the Trustees—and it is a great pleasure to me to be able this evening publicly to thank the Trustees for all the devoted service they give to the Museum. It is a credit to the design team, to the contractors, to the Property Services Agency, and to the staff of the Museum itself. [end p5]

And I pay warm tribute, as Lord Trend has done, to the great generosity and public spirit of those individuals and organisations who have contributed to the Appeal which has made possible this transformation of the Gallery. Without this response from the private sector this major development of the Museum would have had to wait for many years. Instead, all those who love and appreciate this outstanding collection will now have the fascination, and the joy and the surprise, of seeing it in a new and most imaginative setting. [end p6]

It gives me very great pleasure to declare open the re-designed Egyptian Sculpture Gallery.