Grand Egyptian Museum will dazzle the world: Minister of Antiquities

CAIRO – 5 May 2018: Minister of Antiquities Khaled al-Anani inaugurated on Saturday the fourth International Tutankhamun Conference, organized by the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) at Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel.

As part of the conference, the GEM will receive the sixth and last historic chariot of King Tutankhamun, which was moved from the Military Museum in Saladin Citadel on Saturday to the GEM.



Minister of Antiquities Khaled al-Anani and Egyptian Archeologist Zahi Hawass during the inaugurated on Saturday, the fourth International Tutankhamun Conference, organized by the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) at Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel - Hassan Mohamed/ Egypt Today


In his speech, Minister of Antiquities Khaled Anany said that the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is scheduled to be inaugurated in December, 2018, will be a great global Museum that will dazzle the whole world, adding that the museum is expected to be one of the largest museums in the world.

“From two years ago the achievement percentage of establishing GEM was less than 20 percent now it is over 70 percent. At this precise moment that I am talking to you dear guests, 43,257 artefacts have been transferred to GEM, in addition to 4,549 artefacts from Tutankhamun’ s belongings; the total of his belongings are 5,000 pieces,” said Anany.

Anany explained that the rest of Tutankhamun’s belongings have not yet been moved to the GEM to ensure that tourists can enjoy seeing them until the opening of the new museum. “When we transfer the last Tutankhamun piece from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir to the Grand Egyptian Museum, other valuable artefacts and magnificent treasures from Toya, Yoya, San el Hagar, as well as many others, will be displayed in the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir,” Anany added. The new museum will offer tourists the chance to see more and do more in Egypt.

Anany’s speech was followed by displaying a documentary about the achievements that have occurred in the GEM.



The Grand Egyptian Museum has been organizing the conference since 2015 to discuss the best methods to restore and preserve Tutankamun’s funerary collection, ensure its safe transportation from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square to the GEM and to come up with the best display techniques to present the Golden King’s collection in its new permanent exhibition halls at the GEM.

On October 3, 2017, the Grand Egyptian Museum team packaged the second historic chariot and bed of Tutankhamun to transport them to the Grand Egyptian Museum, located about two kilometers from the Giza Pyramids.


Egyptian Archaeologist Zahi Hawass during the inaugurated on Saturday, the fourth International Tutankhamun Conference, organized by the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) at Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel - Hassan Mohamed/ Egypt Today

The repair team used modern materials and methods in the process of packing and moving the bed. They also used precise air lifters that facilitated moving the bed from the base area without exerting any mechanical stress on it. Previous studies on the internal structure and wooden joints of the king's bed have been implemented using an X-ray device, which greatly helped to identify the weak points in the bed and determine the amount of intervention needed to maintain it during the transfer process.

The treasures of King Tutankhamun were exhibited in the Egyptian Museum located in Tahrir Square since their discovery inside King Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of Kings on the western bank of Luxor in 1922.

In earlier statements, the Minister of Antiquities had revealed that 50 percent of the work needed to build the new museum has been finalized and that the first phase will be inaugurated in 2019. The first phase will include a room for Tutankhamun’s relics.