GEM receives a total of 49,797 antiquities

CAIRO - 30 September 2019: The Grand Egyptian Museum received 331 artifacts, including the 42 pieces belonging to King Tutankhamun that were on display at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir.

In addition, the Grand Egyptian Museum received 27 pieces of wood from King Khufu's second ship that was located at its restoration lab near the Pyramid.

Director General of Archaeological Affairs at the Grand Egyptian Museum Tayeb Abbas said that the artifacts of King Tutankhamun include a collection of sandals made of Halfa, weaving threads and papyrus, and a wooden silo that was used to preserve grains and seeds, stressing that all of the king’s artifacts are still kept in good condition.

Moreover, among King Tutankhamun’s belongings that were transferred to the Grand Egyptian Museum are a set of food utensils and a quiver of arrows that was used by King Tutankhamun on his hunting trips. This is in addition to the statue of God Serapes, the official god of ancient Alexandria, who was worshiped in the Greco-Roman era, and another statue of a naos containing the god Harpocrates and the child Horus.

Director General of the Executive Affairs for Restoration and Transportation of Antiquities at the Grand Egyptian Museum Essa Zeidan stated that the parts of Khufu’s second ship are large-scale pieces that were transported within the Egyptian-Japanese joint project for the extraction and restoration of the ship.

This brings the number of artifacts that have been transferred from the ship to the restoration center on the site so far to 892 wooden pieces. The team carried out three-dimensional documentation and registration as well as the necessary restoration work of all the pieces before the transfer.


Zeidan further clarified that archaeologists, restorers and security staff of the Grand Egyptian Museum are in a race with time to complete the transportation and restoration works before the official opening of the museum in 2020; the Grand Egyptian Museum’s team has so far succeeded in transporting 49,797 antiquities.