MP addresses antiquities minister over Egyptian Museum complaints

CAIRO – 24 May 2018: Parliamentarian Suzi Nashed submitted an information request to Parliament speaker, Ali Abdel Aal, concerning the Egyptian Museum’s readiness to receive visitors.

The information request is meant to be directed to Minister of Antiquities, Khaled al-Anany, following complaints, which Nashed told Egypt Today she received, that the museum located in central Cairo is not fully ready to receive visitors.

Nashed said she received complaints that the museum lacks air conditioning systems, adding that the museum should meet all standards for the comfort of visitors, including the availability of drinking water and air-conditioners.

Egypt has witnessed a hot weather wave since Sunday, which is likely to continue until the end of the week, with temperatures holding in the 40s.

The Egyptian museum was inaugurated in Tahrir square in 1902. The museum contains about 120,000 items, holding the world’s largest collection of pharaonic antiquities.




King Tutankhamun at the Grand Egyptian Museum - Photo by Ahmed Mansour

A new museum will be inaugurated in Giza, named the “Grand Egyptian Museum”. The first phase of the museum is expected to open at the end of 2018, displaying the treasures of King Tutankhamun for the first time in history since its excavation in 1922, according to General Supervisor of the Museum, Tariq Tawfik.

The Grand Egyptian Museum is expected to be the largest museum worldwide displaying an array of collections depicting various eras of the Egyptian history. Among the eras that will be featured is the Greco-Roman era in Egypt which will be shown through a gathered collection of 50,000 pieces.

Additional reporting by Angy Essam