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Cairo - The Egyptian Museum |
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The greatest collection of Egyptian antiquities
is, without doubt, that of the Egyptian Museum in
Cairo. It is a place of true discovery and, even
after many visits, I continue to make new and
delightful discoveries every time I venture into
its many galleries.
To be sure, the museum can be daunting in the
sheer numbers of its antiquities on show, but
there is an order within its layout and it is a
dream come true for anyone wanting to study
Egyptian antiquities.
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However, the negative
side is that the environmental and display
conditions leave a great deal to be desired.
Labels on some exhibits date from early in the
century and many items have no labels at all.
Guidebooks are available at the museum, although
they are limited to some of the major items.
The museum's ground floor follows the history of
ancient Egypt. Upon entering through the security
check in the building, one looks toward the atrium
and the rear of the building with many items on
view - from sarcophagi and boats to enormous
statues.
Just in front of these
you will find an Object of the Month on display.
Behind it are some of the most important items
from the time of the unification of Upper and
Lower Egypt some 5,000 years ago, including the
famous slate palette of king Narmer - one of the
first documents of Egyptian history.
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Also on show are small masterpieces of sculpture -
keep in mind that these are some 50 centuries old.
This is an area that should not be missed!
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The photographs shown
here feature the atrium area and the area to the
right of the entrance. From the entrance area
itself, turn left and you will find an amazing
diversity of small statues from the Old Kingdom -
they depict individuals, families, and people at
work. Continuing around the building in a
clockwise direction takes you forward in time as
you duck into the different rooms. At the far end
of the building you will be confronted by material
from the time of the heretic pharaoh, Akhenaten.
Keep moving and eventually you will have reached
the Graeco-Roman period and walked through more
than 3,000 years of history!
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Upstairs on the first
floor (i.e.second level) are thousands of smaller
items from the span of Egyptian history. Of
course, everybody wants to see the treasures from
Tutankhamun's tomb - these occupy a large area
along almost two side of the upper floor.
Chariots, gloves, jewellery, the famous mask -
many of the antiquities from his tomb are
displayed here.
Tutankhamun's tomb contained four gilded shrines
nested one inside the other. All four of these
shrines are on display in the museum. They are
lined up in order of decreasing size. The
innermost of these covered a stone sarcophagus
which remains in the tomb.
Inside the stone sarcophagus were three coffins -
the innermost being made of 110 kilograms of solid
gold. Inside that lay the pharaoh himself wearing
the famous gold mask (at right). Tutankhamun
remains in his tomb to this day.
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