Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum — San Jose, California

Remember when you were young, dreaming of being a great adventurer or archeologist like Indiana Jones or Lara Croft? Has Egypt, with its ancient mysteries and culture, always intrigued you? Well, if you’ve answered “Yes” to the above questions and happen to be in San Jose, California – you must visit the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum and Park.

This magnificent educational complex is located in the beautiful Rose Garden district of San Jose. It is one of our treasured unique landmarks, that is home to the Egyptian Museum, Planetarium, Labyrinth, Library, and soon to be added Alchemy Museum!

The Egyptian Museum and Tomb Expedition

The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum exhibits over 4,000 artifacts, making it the largest collection on display in the Western United States. All of them are authentic, with the exception of 20 or so replicas. Here are some of the highlights from our visit to the museum.

The Stowaway Mummy

The 1971 Neiman-Marcus Christmas Catalog offered a pair of “His and Hers” mummy cases. “His” case belonged to the priest Usermontu, who lived in Thebes in the Twenty-Sixth Dynasty (ca. 600 BCE). When the two mummy cases arrived from England to Florida and went through Customs, the X-rays revealed that Usermontu’s case was occupied! After an investigation, the mummy was then released to the care of the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum.

Researchers poured over the find. They discovered that the mummy occupying the case was much older than originally thought! Most likely of… the Nineteenth Dynasty, 600 years earlier than the mummy should be! What was it doing in Usermontu’s case?

And the surprises didn’t stop there. The detailed X-rays revealed a METAL PIN joining the mummy’s femur and tibia. WOW! Were the ancient Egyptians even more advanced in surgery and medicine than given credit for?

As of right now, the identity of this mysterious mummy is still under investigation. But, the research suggests that he is a male of an upper-class, most likely related to Royals. Who knows what other secrets he might hold…

Animal Mummies

Ancient Egyptians mummified a variety of different animals, and their mummies can be found throughout the museum. This display hosts baby crocodiles, a rare Apis Bull Head mummy, and cat mummies.

The Apis Bull was honored as “a spokesman of Ptah”, the god who created the universe, according to the Memphite creation myth. When the Apis Bull died, it was treated as a pharaoh, earning a proper burial of a living deity on earth.

Remarkably, the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum has a curious artifact from the Ptolemaic Period, the time when mummification of animals was so widespread, that the sacred animal farms were becoming depleted.

This amazing Baboon mummy is an offering to god Thoth (god of writing and wisdom). The baboon is perfectly seated, cross-legged in a traditional position of the Egyptian scribes. Only… it’s not a mummy at all!!

You see, with decreasing availability of sacred animals, some priests decided that a mere piece of an animal inside the offering would be acceptable. X-Rays show that this baboon “mummy” doesn’t contain a single bone!

The talent of the artist must be applauded. He constructed the body of the baboon around a jar, made a head out of wool, and even added false eyes! Can you believe that? As mummies go, the realism of this creation is fascinating!

Cleopatra VII Statue

This statue of the most famous queen of Egypt is one of only SEVEN statues of Cleopatra VII to survive the ancient world. The last active ruler of Egypt, before it succumbed to the Roman Empire, Cleopatra VII was equally praised for her intellect and beauty. She was a highly educated woman of her time, who spoke over a dozen of languages, and was proficient in mathematics, philosophy, and astronomy.

Look closely – this statue is a piece of art, as much as a political statement. The pose, the headpiece is classical Egyptian. After all, Cleopatra came from the family that ruled Egypt for over three centuries. Cleopatra’s facial features, however, are done in Greco-Roman style. She was born in Egypt, but traced her roots to Macedonian Greece. The majority of her images and statues were destroyed by Romans after her death.

Daily Life in Ancient Egypt

The exhibitions in this particular gallery are simply astounding, giving visitors a chance to travel through time and see for themselves what the daily routine in Ancient Egypt may have looked like.

Aside from creating an occasional snake coffin (with two mummified baby cobras inside), used as a votive offering to the snake goddess Wadjet, the ancient Egyptians were just like us.

They loved their perfumes:

They used makeup (Both men and women, to please Hathor, the goddess of love and beauty):

And on occasion, they enjoyed a beer and a philosophical conversation about life after death. By the way, in Ancient Egypt beer was made from fermented barley.

Tomb Expedition

Speaking of the afterlife, the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum invites you to descend into its very own Tomb! Modeled after the rock-cut tombs at the Beni Hasan cemetery, this tomb is done in the Middle Kingdom style (2066 — 1650BC).

It contains an offering chamber, where the visitors would leave their donations for the deceased one, including everyday items and food for his success in the after-life.

It also has the burial chamber, that would typically be sealed off after the sarcophagus with the mummy was placed inside. The burial chamber walls would be decorated with scenes from the deceased life, and also depicting the journey the person must undertake to reach the afterlife.

The Guided Tomb Tours are offered daily, and not to be missed! Wednesday, Thursday, Friday at 2.30 and 3.30pm, and on the weekend at 1.30, 2.30, 3.30 and 4.30pm. They last about 20-30 minutes. One of our favorite attractions in the museum!

The Alchemy Exhibition

In anticipation of completion of the Alchemy Museum in 2020, the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum has provided a sneak-peak for its visitors to see some of the items from the upcoming collection. It will be the first Alchemy Museum in the United States and the largest Alchemy Museum in the World!

Alchemy is a protoscience that originated independently in three parts of the world: Egypt, China and India, paving a path to modern chemistry and physics. Alchemy has been studied throughout the centuries. In the Middle Ages alchemy reached its peak in popularity, but later driven underground.

Some famous alchemists include legendary Hermes Trismegistus, Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel, Paracelcus, Avicenna, John Dee, Roger Bacon, Sir Isaac Newton, Count of St. Germain, and St. Thomas Aquinas, just to name a few.

It’s no surprise that an alchemy museum is opening in Silicon Valley, the land of science and technology. Just as the alchemists before us, we still work on transmuting metals, but using atomic colliders. Alchemists tried to create homunculi and golems, and we build AI-powered robots. We look for a miracle solution to cure deadly diseases and prolong human life, similar to the alchemical quests for the Philosophers’ Stone.

The new Alchemy Museum will most likely concentrate on the Egyptian School of Alchemy. It will cover its seven stages: Calcination, Dissolution, Separation, Conjunction, Fermentation, Distillation and Coagulation. In addition, several practical labs will be open for visitors to try their hand on the experiments with the help of curators. Wouldn’t that be fun?! Everybody is welcome to support this awesome project!

The Research Library

If you are interested in alchemical manuscripts or other esoteric subjects, you are welcome to browse through the many books in the Library. The Research Library is open to the public from Friday to Tuesday during business hours, and the friendly librarians will be happy to assist in your studies.

The Library also hosts a collection of rare original manuscripts, including Archidoxa (1574) by Paracelsus, Viatorium (1651) by Michael Maier, and Himalaya (1921) by Nicholas Roerich.

The Peace Garden

The grounds outside the museum are as much of a wonder as the collection inside. The gardens are inspired by the findings of archeological excavations of the Tell el Amarna ruins.

The garden areas have a tranquility pond, Egyptian-style structures, and winding walkways adorned with unique and exotic plant-life. Many of the plants and trees on the property are authentically Egyptian, and were originally used for food and medicines.

See that sphinx statue in front of the building? It has a secret! In 1934, a time capsule was hidden inside its chest. In 2015 the capsule was removed, and its contents are now on display at the Visitor’s Center inside the museum. Since then, a new time capsule has been placed back inside the sphinx for future generations to reveal!

While strolling through the gardens, pay attention to the various symbols located throughout the property (on walls, above entryways, on the ground, etc.). There are lots of them. To the casual observer these symbols may go unnoticed, but a curious eye will spot them right away.

Can you spot the symbol for Ether on the ground? What about the other four Elements? Air, Earth, Water, and Fire?

How about now? 😊 If you find yourself in this area of the grounds, congratulations – you’ve just discovered the Alchemy Garden! Each Element of Nature has its own section, with plants and trees associated with that particular element.

The Labyrinth

Designed after the famous mystery-shrouded labyrinth of the Chartres Cathedral in France, the Rosicrucian Labyrinth is a meditative space. The paths are lined with native plants, and the labyrinth itself is surrounded by an oak grove.

Some researchers believe that the Chartres Cathedral was built by Freemasons, so, it is rather appropriate that the Rosicrucian Labyrinth reflects its design.

The Rosicrucians

It’s hard to believe that all this splendor has been envisioned by one individual’s imagination and drive, fueled by a humble 5-inch Egyptian figurine on his desk. The Museum’s founder H. Spencer Lewis had a small statuette of the goddess Sekhmet on his desk. When guests inquired about the item, he would reply, “This is the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum!”

This Sekhmet statuette from the Ptolemaic Period can be seen in the Museum now, and is catalogued under “RC 1”, the very first artifact of the vast museum collection!

The first museum exhibition was open to the public in 1929. And the new buildings and the current Egyptian Museum building were constructed in the 1960s. By the way, this is the only Egyptian collection in the world housed in an Ancient Egyptian architectural style building!

Actually, H. Spencer Lewis was also the founder of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC. The Rosicrucian Park houses its headquarters here as well as the Grand Temple. It is also a home to a Planetarium, the 5^th one built in the United States, with the first ever Star Projector, constructed by H. Spencer Lewis.

The Museum has always concentrated on its educational mission, so today you can participate in a variety of workshops (e.g. learning about hieroglyphs, mummification, perfume or cosmetics in Ancient Egypt). There is a very popular Young Archeologist program (sorry, kids only 😊), and upon graduation they get to have a sleepover in the Museum!

For more information, please visit the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in person, or their website. You can also download their free app for Android or iPhone.

Our special thanks go to Julie Scott, Executive Director, and the amazing staff at the Museum and the Research Library. Thank you for your hospitality and answering all of our questions! We are so lucky to be able to enjoy such a unique attraction, right in our backyard!

Want to discover more great attractions in the San Francisco Bay Area? See our posts on our visits to The USS Hornet Museum Ship, Blackhawk Museum complex, and the Winchester Mystery House!

What are your favorite local discoveries? You know we love hearing from you, so leave a comment below, and don’t forget to subscribe to our blog!