What are the most prominent artifacts received by the New Administrative Capital Museum?

CAIRO – 25 November 2020: The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities is working on equipping several archaeological museums for their official openings, including the New Administrative Capital Museum.

Recently, the Supreme Committee for the Museum Exhibition Scenario finished placing the mummies of priests and priestesses of the deity Amun, in their designated showcases, within the exhibition scenario of the Museum of Egyptian Capitals in the New Administrative Capital.

Among the mummies of the priests and priestesses of the deity Amun, the mummy of Nasi Khonsu, the second wife of the high priest of Amun, Banjum II, was received, which is considered a distinct model for the development of the family mummification method during the  21st Dynasty. The eyes embedded with stones and the dark yellow color of the complexion gave the skin a feeling of vitality and freshness.

The mummy of Banjum II, the high priest of Amun, was also received, whose skin was colored yellow and dark red, and the mummy was wrapped in thin linen with colored fringes.

The mummy of the grandfather of Ptah, Uf Ankh from the 21st Dynasty was also received and placed. His fingers and toes are decorated with rings.  As for the mummy of Hanutawi, the wife of the chief priest of Amun, Banjum II,  was received with a face plump to show vitality.

Also, the New Administrative Capital Museum received more than 100 artifacts from a number of museums and archaeological stores nationwide.

Among the pieces were a group of stones depicting King Akhenaten and his wife Queen Nefertiti from the Luxor Museum store, a Cuban vehicle, and a model of a war wheel that was dedicated to King Farouk.

The museum also received a group of mummies from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir of priests and chiefs of state, and a number of canopic vessels and a wooden box with an inscription of an image of the deity Anubis, and a wonderful double statue of King Merneptah and the goddess Hathor from the monuments of Mit-Rahina.

The Museum of the Capitals of Egypt tells the history of the Egyptian capitals through different eras. It consists of a main gallery in which the relics of a number of ancient and modern capitals are displayed.

There are 7 capitals; namely Memphis, Thebes, Tell El-Amarna, Alexandria, Islamic Cairo, Khedivial Cairo.  The patterns of life are represented in each historical period of each capital separately, such as decorative tools, tools of war and fighting, the system of government and various correspondences.

As for the second section of the museum, it is a wing that represents the afterlife in ancient Egypt. It consists of the tomb of Tutu, which was discovered in 2018 in Sohag Governorate, in addition to a hall for mummies, coffins, and two shelves containing canopic jars and a set of false doors and alternate heads that simulate religious rituals in  Ancient Egypt.

The museum’s display will use modern technology, where the exhibition galleries are equipped with screens displaying an interactive panoramic film showing the history, and an illustration of each of the ancient Egyptian capitals.

Additional reporting by Angy Essam