PM inspects outer coffin of King Tutankhamen

CAIRO – 4 August 2019: Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli inspected on August 3 the outer golden-plated coffin of ancient Egypt's young king Tutankhamen, which was transferred from Luxor's Valley of Kings to the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) in Giza.

The tomb of the young king was discovered in 1922. Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities said earlier that the outer coffin was transferred to GEM to be restored.

When discovered, the external coffin was found to contain another coffin thatis made from wood and covered with gold, the antiquities minister said, while accompanying the prime minister on his tour. This middle coffin is now found in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo's Tahrir square.

Another coffin was found inside the middle one, made of pure gold and weighing 110.4 kilograms. The mummy of the boy-king lied inside it wearing his famous golden mask.

The middle and internal coffins were put in Cairo's museum for display, but the outer coffin was left inside the tomb in Luxor since it was discovered almost a century ago. It was transferred to GEM on July 12 to be restored and protected from the damage factors caused to the cemetery.It is also planned to display the three coffins together in GEM.



The coffin has suffered weakness and damage, including cracks in the golden layers particularly in the cover and the base, said Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.

The coffin was transferred after being secured in coordination with the antiquities police and restoration specialists from the ministry, Waziri said.

He explained that the stage of sterilization of the coffin began on July 22, 2019 to complete the plan of the restoration, expecting that the restoration period will take about 8 months.

The total number of artifacts found inside the tomb of King Tutankhamen is 5,398, of which 4500 have been transferred so far to GEM, he added.

Tutankhamen is one of the kings of the 18th Dynasty. Heis one of the most famous pharaohs as his tomb and treasures were completely discovered, and because he ruled the country and died at a young age.

His tomb was discovered by British archaeologist Howard Carter.

Minister of Tourism Rania al-Mashat said in April that the Grand Egyptian Museum will be inaugurated in the last quarter of 2020.

The Grand Egyptian Museum is one of the largest archaeological museums in the world. Thousands of artifacts will be displayed during and after its launching, which will attract many tourists from around the world.

The museum is built on a land area of 117 acres. The project’s foundation was laid in February 2002. Construction of the mega project began in May 2005. A total of 100,000 artifacts are being restored to be displayed in the GEM.Furthermore, GEM consists of 19 restoration labs, making it the largest artifact restoration center in the world.

In addition, GEM consist one of the biggest artifact documentation units for selected artifacts worldwide. Some of the artifacts planned to be displayed in the GEM date back to the pre-Pharaonic dynasties era (pre-family era).

The cost of GEM is estimated at $1.1 billion backed by the Japanese government through two loans worth $450 million.