Cairo Egyptian Museum

Cairo-Egyptian Museum

The Egyptian museum contains the most important and impressive collection of Egyptian artifacts in the world.

The museum was set up and opened in 1902 by Auguste Mariette who was a distant relative of Champollion the decipherer of the hieroglyphics of the Rosetta Stone.

Mariette’s tomb and statue can be found in the garden at the entrance of the museum. A cast of the Rosetta Stone stands in the entrance room, the original is in the British museum in London. A new museum called the Grand Museum of Egypt due to open in 2009 close to the pyramids at Giza replacing the existing Egyptian Museum. Unless you are planning on a case of what has been called ‘Pharaonic fatigue’ you will not be able to see everything, reserve four hours for a more thorough viewing of the museum or two for a quick run through.

Here are must-see recommendations

n room 3: the unfinished head of the beautiful Nefertiti.

In room 12: the life size statue of Hatchepsut- the only woman who had herself crowned Pharaoh with headdress and false beard.

In room 42: the statue of Khafre, who built the second pyramid of Giza.

In room 48: the statue of Djoser the originator of the first pyramid; the step pyramid of Sakkara.

In room 51: Fragments of the Sphinx’s beard, the rest can be found in the British museum.

In room 53: the mummified remains of sacred animals.

In room 56: and an extra 70LE; the Mummy room. In 1946 public display of mummies was banned, it was considered disrespectful to the dead. In 1994 the ban was lifted and eleven well preserved mummies were properly arranged in Plexiglas caskets and shown to the public.

The most visited display of them all is:

The Treasures of King Tut.

The tomb was discovered in the Valley of the Kings in 1922 by Harold Carter. The only reason it remained intact and was not pillaged by thieves was its low position in the valley and the fact that its entrance was hidden by a construction hut used by the workers.

Although the King only ruled for nine yearsthe tomb was full of treasures of such magnificence and splendor that it astounded the entire world.

Egyptologists are now contemplating the fact that since King Tutankhamen was the last of his dynasty, 80% of the treasures were meant for his predecessors, so it was just added to the tomb.  The exhibit is outstanding, do not miss it.