Did you know that San Jose’s Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum houses over 4,000 ancient Egyptian artifacts?
Items include real human and animal mummies, ancient jewelry and sculptures, fascinating tools, and stone tablets. The impressive collection is presented alongside several beautiful gardens, a labyrinth, and a walk-in tomb.
If you grew up in the Bay Area, there’s a good chance that you took a 6th-grade field trip to the Rosicrucian. But if not, or if you’d like to refresh your memory, it’s just an hour away from San Francisco by car.
Here’s a closer look…
Mummies, statues, and a walk-in tomb
Among the thousands of artifacts on display, the real human mummies may be the most compelling. The collections include a mummy of a high-status female child between 4.5-6 years old, a priest from the temple of Min, and a mysterious male mummy whose name is unknown.
The male mummy was found in the coffin of a priest named Usermontu, which the museum acquired sealed in 1971. When they opened the coffin, the mummy’s presence was a complete surprise. Since the style of mummification does not match the coffin itself, curators believe he was placed there centuries after he died in the place of the real Usermontu.
Other notable artifacts include an ancient statue of Cleopatra; an Apis bull head mummy, which was mummified in the style of a pharaoh; and early Mesopotamian and Babylonian objects, such as a spirit house and cuneiform tablets with astronomical information.
Another highlight is the fascinating walk-in replica of a real Egyptian tomb, which is modeled after sketches and photographs of Beni Hasan, a cemetery from the Middle Kingdom (2066 – 1650 BCE). The interior is modeled after the tomb of Khnumhotep II, who was a monarch from the Twelfth Dynasty.
Visitors can walk into the tomb’s Offering Chamber and Burial Chamber, which are modeled to feel like an excavation site.
Parks and gardens
The surrounding Rosicrucian Park hides even more treasures, including a contemplative labyrinth, a Peace Garden authentic to the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, a Grand Temple resembling the Temple of Dendera, a planetarium, and an authentic Alchemy Garden.
The Alchemy Garden is an extension of the planned Alchemy Museum, which is currently under construction. At its full scale, it will one day be the nation’s first alchemy museum and the largest in the world.
About the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum
The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum dates back to 1928 when the Ancient Mystical Order Rosæ Crucis (AMORC) founded it in San Jose. It continues to be operated by the Rosicrucian Order and is world-famous for its extensive collection.
Rosicrucianism is a movement dedicated to studying the “Natural Laws governing the Universe,” which include the nature of time and space, psychic consciousness, metaphysical healing, and more. Rosicrucians are part of a brotherhood centered on the belief that they possess sacred knowledge passed down from ancient times.
🎟️ Tickets: Admission is $15 for adults; $12 for seniors and students with ID, $10 for children under 18, and free for children under 7.
📍 Location: 1660 Park Ave, San Jose, CA 95191
🕜 Hours: 10am-5pm on Friday, 11am-6pm on Saturdays and Sundays
🌐 Website: EgyptianMuseum.org
