Indiana Jones and phoney pharaohs whip up cash

An Egyptian Fantasia: Fundraising event to rehouse the UCL Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology We live in hard times.

Is there no institution that doesn't have to think about raising money? But if you have to ask people to dig into their pockets you can at least show them a good time. And that's exactly what the Friends of the Petrie Museum did last Saturday as they began their campaign to raise £26 million for a new building to house their collection of Egyptian art and artefacts.

Many people were in costume. There was lady in a pith helmet clutching a magnifying glass, someone dressed as a scribe, and Cleopatra. …

"At the moment," said a high priestess called Josephine, "we are a bit hidden away, and the new complex will be easier to find." "It will be on three floors," added Sally MacDonald, director of the museum. She was dressed as Lynette Doyle, from Death on the Nile. "I thought about coming as Lara Croft," she said, "but..." She shrugged philosophically.

Managers sometimes have to crack the whip, but few would be so bold as to stuff one in their belt. Step forward Harrison Ford, or in this case Michael Worton, Vice-Provost of UCL. Having seen what Indiana Jones can do with a strip of cowhide, I gave him my full attention.

The Petrie's new building won't be shaped like a pyramid, and it will house Old Masters, rare books and manuscripts. "We have Jewish, Christian and Islamic art here," said Indiana, pushing his hat back on his head and screwing his eyes up at the late afternoon sun, "and we want to stress how these different cultures can exist in harmony."

The Petrie was the first museum in the world to put all its collection online, and the latest cultural heritage technologies will be an integral part of the new building. …

And then on to dinner and the highlight of the evening - an auction of prints, jewellery and work donated by Tracey Emin and Bridget Riley. The two are quite different but their pieces both went for £2,500. …

Gary Day, 'The Times Higher Education Supplement'