Ancient Egyptian pharaohs moved to new homes.
The mummy of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II is being transported to the new museum on the evening of the 3rd (local time) on a truck decorated with the crest of an ancient Egyptian royal family. AFP=Yonhap News
On the 3rd (local time), the Egyptian government held a grand celebration parade to move the 22 royal mummies from the old Egyptian Museum in the center of Cairo to the new National Egyptian Museum in the southern part of the city. A massive car parade was held from the museum near Tahrir Square, where the mummies were sleeping, to the National Egyptian Civilization Museum in Fustat, the southern end of the city.
The mummies were put in special temperature-controlled cases and carried on a truck decorated with the crest of the old pharaoh’s royal family, and moved to a new sanctuary that took about an hour. The transport truck was decorated in the shape of an ancient wooden ship that transported mummies to the tomb when the ancient pharaoh entered Yeongmyeon.
22 ancient Egyptian mummies are being transported from the Egyptian Museum to the New National Museum on the evening of the 3rd. AFP=Yonhap News
The transfer event of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh mummy was planned as a splendid parade and broadcasted on TV. Reuters = Yonhap News
The mummies transferred this time are the mummies of the New Dynasty Pharaoh who ruled Egypt from 1539 B.C. to 1075 B.C. It includes Ramses II, the most famous pharaoh in Egyptian history, and Hatshepsut, the only female pharaoh. Mummies began to be excavated from the 19th century. The unearthed mummies were transported to Cairo on the side of a ship along the Nile. Some were displayed in glass cases, and some were kept in the storage. Ramses II’s mummy flew to Paris in 1976, where French archaeologists worked on restoration.
Egyptian pharaoh’s mummies are leaving the old museum on the evening of the 3rd. EPA=Yonhap News
The mummies of Egyptian pharaohs are being transported to the new museum on the evening of the 3rd. Shinhwa History = Yonhap News
The mummies of Tutmose III act as a new museum. AP=Yonhap News
An ancient Egyptian mummy loaded onto a vehicle and headed for the new museum. Reuters = Yonhap News
An ancient Egyptian mummy loaded onto a vehicle and headed for the new museum. Reuters = Yonhap News
People in ancient Egyptian costumes march in the mummies transfer parade on the 3rd. Shinhwa History = Yonhap News
A pharaoh tank that participated in the mummy transfer event. EPA=Yonhap News
Egyptian leadership, including President Abdel Fatah Elsisi (center), also attended the pharaoh mummy transfer event. Reuters = Yonhap News
This pre-mummy parade is part of the Egyptian government’s efforts to promote ancient artifacts and attract foreign tourists. Egypt’s tourism industry has shrunk significantly due to political unrest and the recent Corona 19 pandemic after the fall of President Mubarak’s long-term ruling system due to the Arab spring uprising in 2011. Minister of Tourism and Cultural Heritage Khaled stressed that “this march is the only event on Earth that no one can repeat.”
The march held on the evening of the 3rd was broadcast domestically and internationally, and the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Relics also broadcast live through social media. 20 mummies arriving at the new national museum are exhibited, and two enter the collection.
Reporter Choi Jeong-dong
