NEW YORK, NY.- “Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” will arrive in New York City in April 2010, marking the first time a collection of treasures from King Tut’s tomb has visited the city since the groundbreaking 1979 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art launched “Tutmania” and attracted 1.8 million visitors. Following the New York showing of this National Geographic exhibition, the treasures are scheduled to return to Egypt to eventually be housed in a new Grand Museum in Cairo, which is in part being funded with proceeds from this exhibition, along with other antiquities preservation and conservation efforts.

The exhibition will be on display from late April through December 2010 at the new Discovery Times Square Exposition facility, which opened this spring in the former location of The New York Times printing presses in the heart of Times Square . Beginning today, ticket pre-registration is open at www.kingtutnyc.com. Anyone who signs up before the end of the year will have an opportunity to purchase tickets before they go on sale publicly next year, giving pre-registrants priority access to choice dates and times. Tickets will be designated for a specific date and time to avoid long entrance wait times.

“Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” is more than double the size of the 1979 exhibition, and only a handful of those artifacts are returning with this exhibition. With more than 130 ancient Egyptian artifacts in all, more than 50 are from King Tut’s tomb, including his royal diadem — the gold crown discovered encircling the head of his mummified body that he likely wore as king — and one of the gold and precious stone inlaid canopic coffinettes that contained his mummified internal organs. The treasures in the exhibition are between 3,300 and 3,500 years old.

The exhibition is organized by National Geographic, Arts and Exhibitions International and AEG Exhibitions, with cooperation from the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities. Northern Trust is a proud cultural partner of the exhibition, and American Airlines is the official airline.

“Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” has drawn more than 6 million visitors and has set records in each city it has traveled to, including London , Los Angeles , Chicago , Ft. Lauderdale , Philadelphia and Dallas . It is currently on display at the de Young Museum in San Francisco .

“I personally invite everyone to see this great exhibition so that a new generation of people will experience the history and magic of the boy king,” said Zahi Hawass, secretary general of Egypt ’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Discovery Times Square Exposition is located at 226 West 44th Street (between 7th and 8th Avenues). Tickets to the King Tut exhibition can be reserved now at www.kingtutnyc.com and will go on sale early next year. Group tickets for 15 or more visitors can be reserved now by calling 1-888-9-TUT-NYC (1-888-988-8692).