My final day in Egypt.
I spent part of the day revisiting the Egyptian Museum. The artifacts there are phenomenal, probably the greatest collection anywhere.
The museum itself does not measure up to its contents. It's dark and dingy, similar to the attic of your grandmother. Many of the cases have no labels at all, and many were made when typewriters were in use. One of the problems is that in 2002 President Mubarak decided to build a brand new museum for all the artifacts. Once Mubarak was deposed the project stalled, and, even though they are still working on it, there is no scheduled opening date.
In the meantime no money is spent on the old one. I have been to several museums on this trip, and the good ones are much better presented than this one.
Having said all that it is the place to see great things.
I saved the King Tut exhibit for today, and it is worth the visit. It's much newer, and must better presented. The amount of stuff is hard to believe. And it stunningly beautiful.
He was buried in 5 different coffins, similar to a set of Russian dolls, all covered in gold, all wonderfully decorated.
There are piece of jewelry, furniture, chariots, you name it it's there. I particularly liked the alabaster pieces. A beautiful material, and the pieces are astounding.
Another couple of curiosities about the museum. The gift shop has mainly reproductions of larger pieces, life size statues, huge coffins, reproductions of the huge beds
found in King Tut's tomb. Not the kind of stuff you can take home without a moving van.
The other thing is that there is a restaurant, but it is permanently closed. Which is strange, because the museum draws large crowds.
I'm all packed and ready to head to the airport; a long day, my plane doesn't leave until midnight, but it is a direct flight.
It's been a great trip, and I have enjoyed Egypt very much. I have met some wonderful people, saw some great things.It will take me a long while to absorb everything I have experienced.
Thank you all for your comments.
See you in Canada
Ralf
I spent part of the day revisiting the Egyptian Museum. The artifacts there are phenomenal, probably the greatest collection anywhere.
The museum itself does not measure up to its contents. It's dark and dingy, similar to the attic of your grandmother. Many of the cases have no labels at all, and many were made when typewriters were in use. One of the problems is that in 2002 President Mubarak decided to build a brand new museum for all the artifacts. Once Mubarak was deposed the project stalled, and, even though they are still working on it, there is no scheduled opening date.
 |
| Tutenkhamun's Burial Mask |
Having said all that it is the place to see great things.
I saved the King Tut exhibit for today, and it is worth the visit. It's much newer, and must better presented. The amount of stuff is hard to believe. And it stunningly beautiful.
He was buried in 5 different coffins, similar to a set of Russian dolls, all covered in gold, all wonderfully decorated.
There are piece of jewelry, furniture, chariots, you name it it's there. I particularly liked the alabaster pieces. A beautiful material, and the pieces are astounding.
 |
| Tutenkhamun's Second Sarcophagus |
 |
| Pectoral with Winged Scarab |
 |
| An Alabaster Jar |
The other thing is that there is a restaurant, but it is permanently closed. Which is strange, because the museum draws large crowds.
I'm all packed and ready to head to the airport; a long day, my plane doesn't leave until midnight, but it is a direct flight.
It's been a great trip, and I have enjoyed Egypt very much. I have met some wonderful people, saw some great things.It will take me a long while to absorb everything I have experienced.
Thank you all for your comments.
See you in Canada
Ralf
Posts
