A press conference at the Museum of Civilization to announce the “Ramses and the Gold of the Pharaohs” exhibition in Sydney, Australia

The National Museum of EgyptianCivilization in Fustat held a press conference yesterday on the official opening of the temporary archaeological exhibition “Ramses and the Gold of the Pharaohs” at its fourth stop in Sydney, Australia, scheduled for November 17, 2023, in the presence of Dr. Mustafa Waziri, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, and the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization's CEO, Dr. Ahmed Ghoneim.

Dr. Maysara Abdullah, Executive Vice President of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization for Archaeological Affairs; archaeologist and former Minister of Antiquities Dr. Zahi Hawass; Mr. John Norman, Chairman of the company organizing the exhibition; Ambassador Dominic Goh, Ambassador of Singapore in Cairo; and Mr. Ron Tan, CEO of Neon Global Group, which is implementing the exhibition.

Dr. Ahmed Ghoneim, CEO of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization, began the conference proceedings by welcoming the attendees, and a short film about King Ramses II was also shown.

In his speech, Dr. Ahmed Ghoneim reviewed the history of King Ramses II, his inscriptions, and the story of the discovery of the coffin of King Ramses II in the Deir El-Bahari cache. He expressed his happiness at the museum hosting this conference and participating in this successful exhibition by loaning one of the most important artifacts displayed in the museum, which is the coffin of King Ramses II, which is an addition. The value of the exhibition is great because of the great fame of this king and the ancient inscriptions, statues, and buildings he left in the temples of Luxor and Aswan, Karnak, the Ramesseum, Abu Simbel, and others.

He stressed that the coffin of King Ramses II is one of the unique artifacts in the museum, which has a great impact among Egyptian and foreign visitors to the museum during their Egypt tours, and that the travel of this coffin to participate in the exhibition is considered the best ambassador for the history of ancient Egypt and its eternal civilization.

Dr. Mustafa Waziri, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, discussed the "Ramses and the Gold of the Pharaohs" exhibition's journey from its opening in the Houston Museum in the US to its third stop in Paris, where it attracted 817 thousand visitors within five months, achieving great success similar to the King Tutankhamun exhibition, which was held in 2019 in the same hall in Paris.

Dr. Mustafa Waziri pointed to the great interest that the Australian Museum attaches to hosting this exhibition and the propaganda it carried out to promote the Egypt travel packages and the exhibition in Sydney, which foretells the success of the exhibition similar to the great success it achieved during its exhibition in the La Villette Hall in the French capital, Paris.

The Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities confirmed that the exhibition is expected to have a significant impact on Egypt Christmas tours and EgyptEaster tours that will come from Australia, which is what Egypt luxury tours witnessed in terms of a large influx of French tourists to Egypt after the success of the exhibition there, explaining that the exhibition includes among its holdings 181 antiquities. Among the collections of the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir date back to the era of King Ramesses II, in addition to some artifacts from the discoveries of the Egyptian mission in the Bubastiyun area in sakkara.

In his speech during the conference, Dr. Zahi Hawass praised King Ramses II as the king of all kings, describing his 66-year reign as the most glorious and powerful in ancient Egypt, known for his monumental constructions.

He also reviewed the archaeological excavation work that he has been carrying out since 2021 at the head of an archaeological mission inside the tomb of King Ramesses II in the Valley of the Kings area on the western mainland of Luxor, which over the past centuries has been subjected to a number of thefts, torrents, and heavy rains that caused the destruction of the inscriptions and the accumulation of dirt that completely blocked the interior rooms and corridors of the tomb.

The Egyptian mission revealed the secrets of King Ramesses II's tomb, including its construction method, design, and inscriptions. The tomb is the only royal tomb with inscriptions, decorations, and architecture in the Valley of the Kings. With three inscriptions and chapters from the afterlife in each corner, the mission also developed a visualization of treasures in the tomb using internal room-size measurements. Dr. Zahi Hawass hopes the tombs of Ramesses II and his father, King Seti I, will be opened after the completion of the archaeological mission.

For his part, John Norman, head of the exhibition organizing company, confirmed that this exhibition will achieve great success in promoting Egypt day tours, including Nile cruise tours, as nearly 100,000 tickets have been sold so far about a month before the exhibition opens in Sydney, praising the fruitful cooperation between the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and the organizing company. The exhibition, which has been established since 2005 since the organization of the Tutankhamun exhibition, hopes to continue this cooperation and achieve more successes.

Kim McKay, Director and CEO of the Australian Museum, pointed out that the coffin of Ramses II will be the icon of the exhibition, adding that displaying this amazingly beautiful coffin, which is considered a work of inestimable value and a powerful symbol of one of the greatest leaders of the ancient world, is a great success for the museum, as Sydney is the city. It is only the second place in the world, after Paris, where the coffin will be displayed, stressing that it is a wonderful opportunity for the Australian public to see it in reality before they plan to have an Egypt classic tour to enjoy the rest of the distinguished archaeological pieces and places.

It should be noted that the exhibition showcases 181 artifacts from King Ramses II's Tahrir Museum and discoveries from the Bubastiyun area in Sakkara. It showcases ancient Egyptian civilization's distinctive characteristics, including statues, ornaments, cosmetics, paintings, stone blocks, and wooden coffins. The exhibition began its journey with its first stop in November 2021 in Houston, then its second stop in August 2022 in San Francisco, USA, and its third stop in April 2023 in the French capital, Paris.