Restoration of last statue of Ramses II begins

CAIRO – 28 November 2018: The Egyptian-American archaeological mission began the restoration and assembly works of the last statue of King Ramses II, located in front of the Luxor Temple.

Mustafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, clarified that the renovation works will be carried out in cooperation with the Chicago House.

The renovation works will include the assembly, restoration, re-installation and elevation of the statue to its original location in the first edifice of the Luxor Temple.

During the previous two years, the restoration and collection of two other statues were carried in Luxor, making this the last statue for King Ramses II to be restored.

Waziri further commented that Minister of Antiquities, Khaled al-Anani, recommended that the works be completed by April 2019 to unveil the statue in conjunction with the celebration of World Heritage Day.

Ahmed el-Araby, general manager of the Luxor Temple, commented that the statue was made of pink granite and was found in several parts, the largest being the head of the statue.

Araby added that the remains of the statue were discovered during excavations of the Egyptian archaeological mission headed by Mohamed Abdel Kader inside the temple from 1958 to 1960.

The excavations were able to detect several statues that were found destroyed likely due to an earthquake. Abdel Kader took the destroyed blocks and assembled/restored them, placing them on wooden terraces beside their original place to protect them.