The Egyptian Museum, Egypt
Posted On November 27, 2009
The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities is popularly known as the Egyptian Museum is located in the Cairo city in Egypt. The museum has a huge collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities. There are around 120,000 items in the museum, a huge number of articles are kept on the display and the remaining articles are kept in the storerooms.
Around 27 royal mummies are stored in the museum’s Royal mummy Room. The mummies belong to the paranoiac times. In the year 1981 the museum’s Royal mummy Room was been closed down on the orders of the then President Anwar Sadat. The display was opened again in 1985 but the number of mummies was reduced. Today there are nearly 9 mummies that are kept in the display. The mummy of Queen Hatsheput which was newly discovered is also a part of this exhibition.
The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities has a collection of many items that belong to the ancient Egyptian History. It has the largest collections of Paranoiac items. The treasures of King Tutankhamen are also exhibited. The museum was built in year 1835 by the Egyptian Government near the very famous Ezbekeyah Gardens. Due to the small size of the building and the increasing number of the artifacts the museum was later transferred to Boulaq in the year 1858. Later a French architect was appointed to redesign and again construct the museum. The construction of the museum’s new building was to be made in Boulaq on the banks of the river Nile. The antiquities were later shifted to a different museum in Giza as this museum was completely destroyed due to the flood that took place in the Nile River. The artifacts were later moved to the museum in Tahrir Square in the year 1092 for the last and final time.
The museum does have a ground and the first floor. The coins are papyrus which were used in the ancient world are been displayed on the ground floor. There are many papyrus pieces usually they are in small wreckage. They have been decade for nearly two millennia. Languages such as Latin, Greek, Ancient Egyptian, Arabic are found inscribed on these pieces.
The coins which are displayed on this floor are made up of different metals namely bronze, silver, copper, gold etc. The coins displayed here are not only Egyptians but also Islamic, Roman and Greek. These coins helped in the study of the trade in Egypt in ancient times. The artifacts which belong to the United Kingdom and which belong to the era of 1550 up to 1070 BC are also displayed on the same floor. The size of these artifacts was much larger than the artifacts which were created in the earlier times. The artifacts from the United Kingdom are Coffins, statues as well as the tables. On the floor you will find the artifacts that belongs the ancient Egypt’s last two dynasties. Many artifacts have their existence with the Valley of King.
Cairo International Airport is the nearest airport from where you can just take a car or cab to reach the museum.
