What can you see at the Cairo Egyptian Museum? National Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt Cairo Egyptian Museum - exhibits.

The complex, founded in 1885, has the highest concentration of archaeological artifacts in the world. This museum houses more than 100 thousand artifacts dating back to all periods Egyptian history. Wherever you look, you will see something interesting. It will take several years to explore all the treasures of this fantastic place! Since most people come to Cairo for only a few days, it is better to focus your attention on the most popular and important exhibits for Egyptian history.

Egyptian Museum in Cairo - video

Cairo Museum - photo

For those who were impressed by the pyramids, or here is the original statues of Pharaoh Djoser. There is also a small ivory figurine depicting Pharaoh Cheops (the only image of the pharaoh that has survived to this day) - the creator of the Great Pyramid of Giza. And the beautiful statue of his son Khafre is one of the masterpieces of ancient Egyptian sculpture. He is protected by the god Horus in the form of a hawk. Hidden in a corner of the first floor are several stone fragments that were found directly under the head of the Great Sphinx. These are parts of the ceremonial beard and king cobra that once adorned the statue.

Those who have visited the ancient city of Akhetaten probably want to see the hall in which they are located. images of Pharaoh Akhenaten and Nefertiti. Egyptologists believe that when creating a new religion, Akhenaten wanted to be depicted in male and female guise at the same time, as the supreme creator.

Remember the Pharaoh who pursued Moses and his people in the Sinai desert? This is Ramses the Great. There are quite a few statues of him in the Cairo Egyptian Museum (he reigned for 66 years). You might want to look him in the eye hall of the royal mummies- this is an indescribable feeling.

Almost everyone who comes to Egypt visits, and the Cairo Museum has a special section for them. Everybody wants to see treasures of Tutankhamun's tomb. Almost half of the second floor of the Egyptian Museum is devoted to the exhibition of these priceless artifacts. There are more than 1,700 exhibits occupying 12 halls! Here you can see a beautiful statue of Tutankhamun standing on the back of a panther; a magnificent throne made of wood, inlaid with gold and precious stones, on back side which depicts the pharaoh with his young wife, who was his half-sister; You can also see golden amulets and sarcophagi made of pure gold, as well as small (38-centimeter) golden sarcophagi in which the pharaoh’s entrails were stored. And, probably, the main treasure of Tutankhamun is the golden death mask that covered the mummy’s face. The mask, made of pure gold and decorated with azure brought from what is now Afghanistan, is one of the main treasures of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Cairo Museum - opening hours, ticket prices

You can visit the Cairo Museum daily from 9:00 to 17:00.

Tickets to visit cost 60 Egyptian pounds. To visit the hall with mummies you need to pay an additional fee of about 10 dollars.

Cairo Museum - how to get there, address

Address: Al Ismaileyah, Qasr an Nile, Cairo Governorate.

The Egyptian Museum is located in the center of Cairo. You can get to it by metro - first (red) line, Urabi station.

Cairo Egyptian Museum on the map

On our travels we rarely visit museums, but sometimes it happens. There are interesting things in the world history museums with incredible exhibits telling the stories of cities and countries, people and events. The Cairo Egyptian Museum is one of them. I admit that if we had gone to Cairo on our own, we would not have visited it. Before the trip, I knew nothing about the museum and its collections and only knew that photography was prohibited there, there were long lines to get in, and that it was worth setting aside almost the whole day to visit it. But circumstances were such that the Cairo Egyptian Museum became the main attraction on par with the pyramids. All the photographs presented below were taken by me, but before writing this note I knew only a few of the exhibits. Therefore, we had to do a lot of work to not only show you the museum’s collection, but also tell you about what we saw. So I’ll be a little guide for my beloved readers :)

The second day of the excursion program "Cairo 2 days" from the tour operator. March 15, 2018, Egypt, Cairo. Previous and this trip.
01.

The second day began at 7 am from the cafeteria of the Cataract Hotel in Cairo. After which the group met with the guide, boarded the bus, and we went to meet the first attraction - the museum. On the bus we were met by a new guide - Ahmed - he will conduct all the excursions. Now it’s his turn to entertain tourists with stories about the construction of the pyramids, and our main guide Mohammed at that time was only dealing with organizational issues. Ahmed gave the name to our group of 20 people and 3 small children “Aladdin”, with this word we will have to run to the guide if he demands our attention. His Russian was worse and, despite the fact that my mother and I moved closer, it was more difficult to understand his speech. And regarding the pyramids, Ahmed told long-established tales and did not even mention a new discovery - another way how pyramids could be built, which scientists are now more inclined to, but for now this option is in the process of searching for evidence.

At 8:45 our bus arrived at the gates of the museum, and we entered a large area noisy with crowds of tourists, which greeted us with a small Sphinx. I thought that there was only one Sphinx in Egypt, but it turned out that there are quite a lot of such statues and monuments.
02.

The Cairo Museum was opened in 1902. This is the world's largest repository of ancient Egyptian art - about 160 thousand exhibits, collected in more than 100 rooms.
03.

The museum was still closed to the public, but the line of people wishing to get there stretched for more than 50 meters and in 4 rows. Ahmed said that we have 15 minutes to walk around the territory while he and Mohammed organize entrance tickets and audio guides. According to the guide, all the monuments on the streets are authentic and original, and they can be viewed completely free of charge.
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We walked to public toilet. The smell was felt from afar. The toilet is ugly and I wouldn’t say it’s clean, although the cleaning ladies were washing the floors when we entered it. There is a feeling that Egyptian women believe that, rather than more water on the floor, the cleaner it is. And I was afraid of getting my white slippers dirty)) Toilet paper The cleaning lady tore it off with her bare hands, having previously set aside the mop and bucket. I didn’t use the paper, although I don’t consider myself to be squeamish. When leaving, I decided not to even wash my hands in order to quickly leave the smelly room, but a plus-size cleaning lady (like three of me) blocked the way and pointed to the washbasin. Warden, damn it)) Okay, I washed my hands, wiped them on my pants and I want to go out, and this Egyptian woman holds out her hand with the words “mani-mani.” The guide seemed to say that the toilet was free, but this lady clearly did not want to let me out. I took out 5 pounds, which I had put in a separate pocket especially for such purposes, and gave it to her. She smiled, was very happy and released me. And then the mother comes out of the booth and the African woman comes to her. “No,” I say, “she’s with me.” The cleaning lady waved her hand and let her through.

After this adventure, we returned to the group, where the guide handed out tickets and audio guides to everyone. With the help of such a walkie-talkie, Ahmed will be able to convey useful information to us in a very noisy museum and gather us with the code word “Aladdin” if anyone gets lost.

The entrance fee to the museum was 120 Egyptian pounds and was included in the excursion program to Cairo. Although I now remember that on one of the tourist sites in Egypt, I saw a price of 60 pounds and even with a sign for tourists, hmm... If you want to take pictures inside, you need a separate ticket for 50 pounds (3 dollars) and the guide will take care of to purchase it for you. Also, before the tour, the guide recommended buying a disc with photos and videos from the museum.
06.

A little more queuing, checking tickets, scanning things and going through the scanning gates for people, and we were inside.
07.

In the first hall, which is also the main one, we stopped at just one stand, although the hall is very large and with a considerable number of exhibits. It seems that Ahmed was talking about the writing of the Egyptians, but it was impossible to understand, much less get closer.
08.

That's why I got distracted by other exhibits.
09.

Stone sarcophagus.
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A colossal statue of Pharaoh Amenhotep III with his wife Queen Tiye and their daughter Henutane in the main hall of the museum. The reign of Amenhotep III is considered as one of greatest periods heyday of ancient Egyptian civilization. On the one hand, he revered the traditional Egyptian gods and built luxurious temples for them, on the other hand, it was in his era, when royal self-deification reached an unprecedented scale, that the roots of the upcoming Amarna reform (worship of one god Amun) lay.
12.

Behind these great statues we climbed the stairs to the second floor. The guide, a great fellow, took us in a direction where other tourist groups had not gone, so so far we had met only a few people.

Sculptural dyad of Amon and Mut from Karnak. Found in the Temple of Amun at Karnak, which was the country's main national sanctuary for almost two and a half millennia. The queen's head, made of hard, superb crystalline limestone, was only one of more than a hundred fragments of a grandiose dyad depicting the god Amun and his consort, the goddess Mut. The original height of the monument reached 4.15 m. The rear part of the sculptural group, where the supporting pillars of the statues were located, was, alas, lost, as it was of the greatest value to robbers; with it, most of the inscriptions that were once on the monument were lost. The image of Amun was depicted by Horemheb, the last king of the 18th dynasty, before his accession, a famous military leader during the reign of Akhenaten. In the guise of Mut - his official wife Mutnojemet - a queen of a difficult fate, not only more noble by birth than her husband, but also belonging to the highest nobility: her older sister, apparently, was Nefertiti herself.
13.

This slab was found in a royal tomb of the 18th Dynasty, period 1356-1340. BC. It depicts Pharaoh Akhenaten, son of Amenhotep III. His wife was Nefertiti. And it is believed that Akhenaten was the father of Tutankhamun, although all his images were only with his wife and daughters. The plot on the plate: the pharaoh and his family make offerings to Aten. Aten is represented by the solar disk and the rays of the sun ending in the palms.
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Akhenaten led his people to a single god - Aten - the Sun, abolishing the polytheism that reigned in the country. He can be considered the first person in world history whose worship of the One God is documented. But after the death of the pharaoh, the priests quickly regained their influence and tried to destroy all traces of the obstinate ruler. I was very surprised when I learned that the personality of Akhenaten became the prototype for the image of the fictional pharaoh from the book “Pharaoh” by Boleslav Prus, which has long been in a prominent place in my bookcase, sparkling with gilded letters. I'll have to read it :)

The desecrated royal tomb of Akhenaten. The pharaoh's body was not found in the tomb. His sarcophagus was destroyed, but restored by archaeologists.
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After Akhenaten's hall we went downstairs again. The guide had to lead us in circles, as other groups were already gathering near some of the exhibits. And again the sphinx. I remembered that the guide talked about a woman of the pharaoh, like Hatshepsut, and this is a sphinx with her image. But then there will be another exhibit dedicated to her, which we saw as we were already heading out, and the guide did not draw our attention to it.
18.

Another empty room.
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And again we went up to the second floor. Some halls were deserted, without people, although I’m sure they also keep quite a few interesting things. If it weren't for the group, I would definitely have wandered here.
22.

View of the main hall and central entrance from the second floor.
23.

Some people from our group led by Uncle Murat... except for the cat of course))
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But this is not a cat, but Anubis. The Anubis statue is depicted as a recumbent jackal and was attached to the roof of Tutankhamun's burial chamber.

Element of a burial chamber. The image of this statue is considered to belong to the Great Wife of King Tutankhamun - Ankhesenamun - the Egyptian queen of the 18th dynasty, sister and main wife of Tutankhamun, third daughter of Pharaoh Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti. Born around 1354 or 1353 BC. e.
25.

Stretcher for the Pharaoh.
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Pharaoh's bed.
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Pharaoh's toilet.
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This hall is entirely dedicated to one pharaoh - Tutankhamun. His gilded throne, decorated with precious stones, evokes involuntary admiration. On the back there is an image of the pharaoh and his young wife.
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The image is on one of the side walls of the chest. The guide said that many people order this painting to hang in their homes, but I’m a bad listener)) Tutankhamun is also depicted here.
30.

What wonderful slippers, truly a work of art. Tutankhamun was buried in them.
31.

There were also two separate halls with Tutankhamun’s belongings found during excavations. We were given 15 minutes of free time to study them. These were mainly gold figurines, dishes and jewelry. And the most famous exhibit is the funeral mask of the pharaoh, which is on display in the museum for public viewing, but photographing it is prohibited (probably because it is gold), although you can easily find photographs on the Internet. Some have tried to take photos with their mobile phones and many succeed. I was unlucky with two German old women, who, when they saw that I was pointing my smartphone towards the mask, raised such a cry that everyone turned around, not just the one looking - they were fascists, damn it, I should have taken a picture of them))

Wooden bust of the boy King Tutankhamun, found in his tomb. He ascended the throne at the age of 9-10 in 1333 BC. This is a very intriguing artifact. Notice the difference between the torso and head? Apparently this is a mannequin of a young pharaoh used for tailoring. It seems strange that it was buried with the pharaoh. Now he looks at all the tourists passing by, who are clearly much better off than standing in this glass box))
32.

But such a statue, a copy of it, stood in our Hilton Hotel. By the way, a couple of them were found in the small entrance room of Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings. They resemble sentinels and have been identified as statues of "Ka" or representations of his soul or spirit. Both figures wear a very seriously ruffled kilt.
33.

We were given 15 minutes of free time to once again walk around the hall of Tutankhamun and visit the hall of animal mummies. Maybe there was a hall of royal mummies here somewhere? All of us went first to the hall of animal mummies, and then simply waited not far from the guide. Or did I still listen to something? Although the guide showed us a mummy of a human fetus, which you had to shine a flashlight to see, and photography with flash is prohibited. Maybe this was the hall of mummies? Although no, I read that out of respect for the dead, excursions are not allowed here. But at least the guide could lead you and say “go there.” Now I’m looking at the layout of the halls. The Hall of Animal Mummies No. 53 and the Hall of Royal Mummies No. 56 (not even marked on some maps) are located along different sides, not close at all. Why don't they give out maps at the museum?

In general, we found ourselves in a hall of mummified animals and birds from various necropolises in Egypt. They testify to the prevalence of animalistic cults at the end of the pagan era, when their adherents embalmed everything from bulls to mice and fish.
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Just a funny element))
39.

Afterwards we walked around the second floor and looked at the first. It looks like one of the exhibits is being restored in this room. Interesting, they found something new...
40.

Another room. The guide talks about jewelry that belonged to some Egyptian queen. I don't remember us coming here.
41.

Hall with stone sarcophagi. We haven't been here either.
42.

The meeting point with the guide is the atrium overlooking the main entrance.
43.

Hall No. 48, dedicated to Tuyi and Iuyi, is also located here.
44.

Funeral masks of Tuya and Iuya. Tuyi, along with her husband Iuyi, were buried in the Valley of the Kings. They received this unprecedented honor because they were the parents of the Great Royal Consort of Amenhotep III of the 18th Dynasty Pharaoh, and also because they held high positions under Akhenaten. Tuya's funerary mask is made of canvas, plaster, gold, alabaster and glassy alloy. Its height is 40 cm. Initially, the mask was covered with a black cover, which can be seen on the wig. Iuya's funeral mask is made of cardboard and gilding.
45.

Then we very quickly rushed past the rows of sarcophagi.
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47.

And we went down again to the first level.
48.

Fragment of a wall with reliefs. But in this photo I captured our group with children. There are two of them here, but in general one family had three small children. Explain why such children should be taken on such excursions. I didn’t understand a lot of what I saw there, and what they would understand and remember. And the adults themselves will remember at least something from this trip, except how they changed diapers, calmed crying children and constantly fed and entertained them.
49.

One of the many relief paintings depicts what appears to be an offering of food to the pharaoh. And if you use your imagination, you can even imagine such an Egyptian menu for lunch)) For example, the first man on the right is carrying a pot, there are some elements and birds below - that means it’s chicken soup; the second carries a dish, and a fish is drawn below - it means fried fish, etc.))
50.

This exhibit is called "Seated Scribe" and belongs to famous works art of Ancient Egypt. Literacy was available to few in Ancient Egypt. In general, the statue of the scribe adheres to the canonical forms, but the author decided to separate the arms and torso from the stone block. Facial features are also given personality characteristics. The scribe's gaze is directed into the distance. He is thinking. With his left hand he holds the papyrus, and in his right hand he holds a writing stick. The statue was found in Saqqara in 1893 during archaeological excavations. It is made of limestone. Height - 51 cm. Dates from the first half of the Fifth Dynasty (mid-25th century BC).
51.

And this statue is remarkable for its eyes. They are like a living person. The eyes are made of alabaster, crystal, black stone with a copper rim that imitates eyeliner. This is a statue of the priest Kaaper (Village Chief). Made from sycamore (one of the species of the ficus genus). Wooden statues were common in the Old Kingdom. The material is more pliable than stone, but less durable. Therefore, few wooden statues from that time have survived to this day.
52.

Diorite statue of Khafre (Chefre). This is the fourth pharaoh of Egypt from the IV dynasty, the builder of the second largest pyramid at Giza, to which we will soon go. In addition, he is credited with the construction of the Great Sphinx (hence, his face was the prototype of the one depicted on the Sphinx).
53.

But most of all I liked that Egyptian schoolchildren come to this museum to sketch the exhibits. And we met them very often and a lot. This is how you should go to a museum, otherwise everyone takes pictures with smartphones)) Although you can’t show so much, and to sketch the main things, one day won’t be enough)
54.

The girl makes a sketch of the statue of the caretaker of the pyramids Niuserra and Neferirkar, whose name was Ti. This is a copy of a statue found in 1865 in Saqqara.
55.

Sometimes it is not only the museum exhibits that are interesting, but also the museums themselves, which carry the spirit of history within their stone walls.
56.

Solid sphinxes.
57.

The guide walked around this exhibit and did not comment. But I found on the Internet that this is the head of a statue of Queen Hatshepsut, the female pharaoh of the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt from the 18th dynasty. She is considered one of the most famous Egyptian rulers along with Tutankhamun, Ramesses II and Cleopatra VII. This statue head was found at Deir el-Bahri in a temple that Hatshepsut built during her reign. Hatshepsut appears as the god Osiris with a beard and crown. The face of the statue is painted red. This color was only used on male statues. It is assumed that the head was decorated with a double crown, White of Upper and Red of Lower Egypt. A little higher we stopped near the sphinx with her face.
58.

That's all. A quick acquaintance with the history of Egypt and recalling memories from school textbooks is over. The guide took us past the shopping arcades at the exit of the museum without stopping, collected our audio guides, and we boarded the bus again for the onward journey to the next attraction.
59.

While I was writing the article, I found information about the cost of the ticket, and yes, entry costs 60 pounds for visitors, and 120 pounds is the cost of entry to the hall of the royal mummies. And this was definitely not in the program. The Egyptians, damn it, in a word, are liars the world has never seen before. I also didn’t like the one-sided communication with the guide via the audio guide at all: the sound hissed, the hum in the museum was still audible through the headphones, and the guide deliberately jabbered so that, despite his seemingly good Russian, it was impossible to understand anything. Imagine for yourself when all these unfamiliar names and dates described above are put into your ears without stopping against the background of general noise, all you hear is “Aladdin”, “Tutankhamun” and that’s it))

It took us a little more than an hour and a half to explore the museum; at 11:00 we were on the way to the pyramids. This is so little for such a rich collection. It’s not even possible to visit more than 100 halls. It is believed that it will take several years to examine all the exhibits in the Cairo Museum. With a tour and a guide, you will do this much faster, but you will come out more consciously on your own when you have time not only to photograph the exhibit, but also to read the signs and examine the details. I was able to realize where I was and what I saw only now, when I started choosing photos and looking for descriptions for them. I hope my note will help someone get acquainted with the museum in advance and not make my mistakes.

Fresh review

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There is one paragraph on the dust jacket:

The monument to the Soviet Soldier-Liberator in Treptower Park is evidence of the unforgettable heroism of the sons and daughters of the Soviet people who gave their lives in the struggle for the liberation of humanity from Nazi fascism. He calls and obliges people of all nationalities, sparing no effort, to fight for the preservation of peace on earth.

Ancient civilizations attract people with their secrets and riddles. One of the places of attraction is Egypt. The amazing history of this country, ancient myths and unique artifacts arouse the interest of both scientists and ordinary people.

The Cairo Egyptian Museum houses many historical relics. Today, the halls and storerooms of the museum contain more than a hundred thousand unique items related to different eras and of historical and cultural value.

When was it created?

Unfortunately, for a long time no records of archaeological finds were kept. Ancient tombs were plundered by ordinary citizens who did not realize the value of the objects found there. These items were sold to Europe for next to nothing or simply thrown away. There were also organized expeditions of archaeologists who carried out excavations and simply removed everything they found without asking permission from the authorities.

It was only in the 19th century that a special commission was created to take into account valuables and provide conditions for their storage. The first systematic collection of valuables was collected by O. Mariette in the middle of the 19th century. This collection was kept in one of the Cairo districts, Bulak. However, after a severe flood occurred, most of the collection was lost. It was then that it was decided to build big museum to preserve a collection of antiquities there.

For this purpose, according to the design of the French architect M. Dunon, a two-story building in the neoclassical style was built. The discovery took place in 1902.

Collections

The collection of exhibits, which the Cairo Museum of Egyptian Antiquities is rightfully proud of today, began back in the thirties. years XIX century. Nowadays, all finds that have historical value go to this museum.

Almost all parts of the exhibition are dedicated to the era of the reign of the pharaohs. At the same time, the exhibits are systematized in chronological order. But since the museum has more than a hundred rooms, viewing the entire exhibition will take a lot of time.

On the ground floor of the building there are collected objects dating back to the times Ancient kingdom. Here you can see statues of the pharaohs and princess Nofret. In addition, the halls display an extensive collection of vessels and figurines.

The second floor is dedicated to special halls that house artifacts discovered in the burial of Tutankhamun, and a unique hall of mummies. The peculiarity of this hall is that it maintains the temperature and humidity corresponding to the conditions in the Valley of the Kings. This is necessary for the safety of mummies. After all, the exhibits are very ancient. For example, the mummy of a monkey from the Cairo Museum is estimated by experts to be more than 4,500 years old.

What should you pay attention to?

Any exhibit in the exhibition is of undoubted interest, but it is impossible to see everything in one visit. Therefore, it is worth preparing a program for examining the most interesting relics in advance.

For example, it is very interesting sculptural group, recovered from the tomb of Pharaoh Menkuar. The group depicts the pharaoh himself surrounded by goddesses. The age of the sculpture is surprising; it was created around the third millennium BC.

It is worth looking at the images of the famous Queen Nefertiti and her husband, Pharaoh Akhenaten. A separate room has been allocated for these exhibits.

In a separate room, objects recovered from the tomb of Queen Hetepheres are also displayed. It is this queen, who was the mother of Cheops, who owns the famous Egyptian chair in the Cairo Museum. The chair is made of wood, decorated with inlay. Also, visitors can admire the queen’s jewelry and other household items. In the same room there are granite sphinxes and sarcophagi, made of black and red stone.

The true pearl of the collection are the treasures obtained from the tomb of Emperor Tutankhamun. This tomb was miraculously preserved intact; archaeologists studied it, so almost all the artifacts were preserved.

Priceless artifacts are stored in twelve halls of the museum. But the most famous of them, of course, is the golden mask of Tutankhamun. This elaborate replica of the young ruler's face is made of pure gold and precious stones.

Here you can see the golden sarcophagus of the pharaoh. This is a rather massive structure, decorated with inlays. The collection also includes numerous jewelry from precious metals and stones (precious and semi-precious).

Pharaoh's furniture was also discovered in the tomb, for example, the pharaoh's throne, the back of which is decorated with elaborate carvings.

Mysteries of ancient civilizations

Among the exhibits found, there are also those that arouse great interest among mystery lovers.

For example, the bird from Saqqara may not at first attract much attention, since it is made not of gold, but of wood, and is not particularly attractive in appearance. But it turns out that this model can glide in the air for hours. That is, this is a preserved copy of a model of an ancient aircraft created before our era!

It is impossible to describe all the artifacts of the Cairo Museum in one article. Moreover, everyone knows that it is much better to see everything for yourself once than to read or hear information from other people a hundred times.

Helpful information

Cairo is the capital of the country, but it is not located on the sea, so tourists rarely stay in the city, preferring to visit resort areas on the coast. However, almost all hotels offer organized excursions to Cairo with a visit to the museum. The distance from the most popular resorts is about 500 kilometers. You can get to the capital either by flight or by bus, which is significantly cheaper. As a rule, a tourist group leaves by bus in the evening to arrive in Cairo early in the morning and have a good time.

The museum is located in the central part of the city on Tahrir Square, opening hours from 9 to 19, no days off.

A ticket to enter the museum will cost $10. You must pay in local currency. If you want to visit the hall of mummies, then you should stock up on Egyptian pounds; entrance to the hall is paid, and there is no exchange office on the territory of the museum.

On your first visit, it is better to use the services of a guide, since it is quite difficult to understand the exhibition on your own. Tours in the museum are conducted in different languages; finding a Russian-speaking guide is not a problem.

According to tourists' reviews, excursion services in the museum are organized very well. Despite the fact that many tourists visit the museum every day, there is no crowd. The guides work very harmoniously, moving their group from exhibit to exhibit so as not to create congestion.

At the entrance to the museum, tourists can receive a receiver with headphones, so the guide’s explanations will be perfectly audible, even if you are a little behind the group. The guides at the Cairo museum are well trained; they don’t just recite a memorized text, but actually know the subject and can answer questions.

Video and photography in the museum is prohibited. The equipment you bring with you can be returned to the storage room. However, some tourists manage to take photos of the exhibits with mobile phone cameras. Only entry into the hall of mummies is allowed after mobile phone will be disabled (there is no need to return the phone to the storage room).

Located in the northern part, the Egyptian Museum seems almost as archaic as the civilization it describes. Founded in 1858 by Auguste Mariette, who excavated several of Upper Egypt's largest temples (and was later buried on the museum grounds), it has long outgrown its existing building, which now barely has enough space to house artifacts from the Pharaonic era. If you spend one minute on each exhibit, it will take nine months to examine all 136 thousand monuments.

Another 40 thousand are hidden in the basements, many of them have already been swallowed up by soft soil, so new excavations are required under the building itself. A new large building of the Egyptian Museum is currently under construction nearby; it will house some of the exhibits from the current collection. It is planned to open at the end of 2015. At the same time, despite the clutter, poor lighting and lack of accompanying inscriptions in the old museum, the wealth of the collection makes it one of the few truly great museums in the world that no visitor to Cairo should miss.

One three- to four-hour visit is enough to view the exhibition of Tutankhamun’s treasures and some other masterpieces. Each visitor has his own favorite objects, but the list should include the halls of Amarna art on the ground floor (halls 3 and 8), the best statues of the Old, Middle and New Kingdoms (halls 42, 32, 22 and 12) and objects from the Nubian cache (hall 44). On the second floor are Fayyum portraits (Hall 14), models from tombs (Halls 37, 32 and 27) and, of course, the hall of mummies (Hall 56), although there is an additional entrance fee.

Before entering the museum, notice the pond in front of the main entrance. The water lilies growing there are the now rare blue lotus, a plant with psychotropic properties that was used as medicine by the ancient Egyptians. Judging by some frescoes and reliefs, they immersed lotus flowers in wine.

When you enter the museum, you may be offered a guided tour, which usually lasts two hours (around £60 per hour), although the museum deserves at least a six-hour tour. The guides have excellent knowledge of their subject and will help you understand what you see, and if you are visiting the museum with a small group, their services will not be so expensive. Another option is to rent an audio guide with a filmed tour (20 pounds in English, Arabic or French), which has buttons on the panel with the numbers of the exhibits in question.

However, since the exhibits were numbered according to at least two various systems, not to mention the new numbers used by the audio guide, matters become much more complicated. Some objects now have three different numbers, and often there are no other labels on them. The best published museum guide is the Illustrated Guide to the Egyptian Museum (£150), with many photographs of the museum's best exhibits.

The monuments in it are not described in the order they are presented in the exhibition, but at the end there is an illustrated index that will help you navigate the text of the book. In addition, this book is a wonderful souvenir of your visit to the museum. The entrance to the cafe-restaurant, located on the ground floor, is through the gift shop on the outside of the museum.

First floor of the Egyptian Museum

The exhibition is organized in a more or less consistent chronological order, so, going clockwise from the entrance through the external galleries, you will pass through the Old, Middle and New Kingdoms, and end with the Late and Greco-Roman periods in the east wing. This is correct from the point of view of history and art criticism, but a very tedious approach.

An easier way to explore is to walk through the Atrium, which covers the entire era of Pharaonic civilization, to the wonderful Amarna Hall in the north wing, and then return and go through the departments that interest you most, or go up to the second floor to the exhibition. dedicated to Tutankhamun.

To cover both options, the article divides the lower floor into six sections: Atrium, Old, Middle and New Kingdoms, Amarna Hall and East Wing. Whichever route you choose, it’s worth starting from the Atrium foyer (Hall No. 43), where the story of the pharaonic dynasties begins.

• Rotunda and Atrium

The Rotunda, located inside the museum lobby, displays monumental sculptures from various eras, in particular, the three colossi of Ramses II (XIX Dynasty) standing in the corners and a statue of Amenhotep, the son of the royal architect Hapu, who lived during the reign of the XVIII Dynasty. Here, in the northwest corner, are sixteen small wooden and stone statues of a 24th century BC official named Ibu, depicting him at various periods of his life.

To the left of the door is a limestone statue of a seated Pharaoh Djoser (No. 106), installed in the serdab of his step pyramid at Saqqara in the 27th century BC and removed by archaeologists 4600 years later. Those who consider Djoser's reign to be the beginning of the Old Kingdom era call the preceding period Early Dynastic or Archaic.

The real beginning of dynastic rule is immortalized in a famous exhibit located in room No. 43, at the entrance to the Atrium. The Narmer palette (a decorative version of the flat tiles used for rubbing paints) depicts the unification of the two kingdoms (circa 3100 BC) by a ruler named Narmer or Menes. On one side of the monument, a ruler in the white crown of Upper Egypt strikes an enemy with a mace, while a falcon (Chorus) holds another captive and tramples underfoot the heraldic symbol of Lower Egypt - papyrus.

The reverse side depicts how the ruler in a red crown inspects the bodies of the dead, and also destroys the fortress in the guise of a bull. The two tiers of images are separated by figures of mythical animals with intertwined necks, which are held back from fighting by bearded men - a symbol of the political achievements of the ruler. Along the side walls of the hall there are two funeral boats from (Senusret III - XII dynasty).

As you go down to Hall 33, which is the Atrium of the museum, you will see pyramidions (keystones of the pyramids) from Dashur and sarcophagi from the New Kingdom era. Overshadowing the sarcophagi of Thutmose I and Queen Hatshepsut (belonging to the period before she became pharaoh), stands the sarcophagus of Merneptah (No. 213), crowned with the figure of the pharaoh himself in the form of Osiris and decorated with a relief image of the sky goddess Nut, protecting the ruler with her arms. But Merneptah's desire for immortality did not come true. When the sarcophagus was discovered at Tanis in 1939, it contained the coffin of Psusennes, the ruler of the 21st Dynasty, whose gold-covered mummy is now on display on the top floor.

In the center of the Atrium is a fragment of a painted floor from the royal palace at Tel el-Amarna (XVIII Dynasty). Cows and other animals roam along the reed-covered banks of the river, teeming with fish and aquatic birds. This perfect example lyrical naturalism of the art of the Amarna period. To learn more about this revolutionary era in pharaonic history, ascend past the imperturbable colossi of Amenhotep III, Queen Tiye and their three daughters, the predecessors of Akhetaten and Nefertiti, whose images are in the north wing.

But first you must go through Hall No. 13, which (on the right) contains the victory stele of Merneptah, also known as the stele of Israel. It got its name from a phrase from the story of the conquests of Merneptah - “Israel is devastated, its seed is gone.” This is the only mention of Israel known to us in the texts of Ancient Egypt.

That is why many believe that the Exodus took place precisely during the reign of Merneptah, the son of Ramses II (XIX Dynasty), although in Lately this point of view is increasingly criticized. On the other side is an earlier inscription telling of the deeds of Amenhotep III (father of Akhenaten), committed to the glory of the god Amun, whom his son later rejected. At the other end of the hall is a model of a typical Egyptian house from the excavations of Tell el-Amarna, the short-lived capital of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, who are privileged to have their own separate exhibition in rooms 8 and 3, a little further on.

• Halls of the Ancient Kingdom

The southwest corner of the first floor is dedicated to the Old Kingdom (circa 2700-2181 BC), when the pharaohs of the 3rd and 6th dynasties ruled Egypt from Memphis and built their pyramids. Along the central wing of halls No. 46-47 there are funerary statues of important nobles and their servants (the custom of burying servants alive with their master was interrupted with the end of the second dynasty). The relief from the temple of Userkaf (room No. 47, on the north side of the entrance to hall No. 48) is the first example known to us of depicting paintings of nature in the decor of royal burial structures. The figures of the pied kingfisher, the purple moorhen and the sacred ibis are clearly visible.

Along the northern wall of Hall 47 are six wooden panels from the tomb of Khesir depicting this senior scribe of the Third Dynasty pharaohs, who is also the earliest known dentist. Hall No. 47 also displays ushabti - figurines of workers who are depicted preparing food (No. 52 and 53). There are also three slate sculptural triads of Menkaure from his valley temple at Giza, originating from the temple at Giza: the pharaoh is depicted next to Hathor and the goddess of the Aphroditepolis nome. A pair of alabaster slabs with lions at the fourth pillar on the north side may have been used for sacrifices or libations at the end of the Second Dynasty.

Among the most impressive exhibits in room No. 46 are figurines of the keeper of the royal wardrobe, the dwarf Khnumhotep, a man with a deformed head and hunched back, who apparently suffered from Pott's disease (No. 54 and 65). Fragments of the Sphinx's beard are located at the end of the vestibule (hall No. 51), on the left under the stairs (No. 6031). Another meter-long fragment is located in. The beard was apparently 5 meters long before it was broken into pieces by Mamluk troops and Napoleon's soldiers during target practice. In addition, in room No. 51 there is a sculpted head of the V Dynasty pharaoh Userkaf (No. 6051), which is the earliest larger-than-life-size statue known to date.

At the entrance to Hall No. 41, reliefs from a V Dynasty tomb at Meidum (.No. 25) depict desert hunting and various types of agricultural work. On another slab (No. 59) from the V Dynasty tomb at Saqqara we see the weighing, threshing and sorting of grain, the work of a glass blower and a statue carver. The women depicted on these reliefs are dressed in long dresses, the men in loincloths, and sometimes without clothes at all (you can see that the rite of circumcision was one of the Egyptian customs). Hall No. 42 boasts a magnificent statue of Khafre, his head surmounted by an image of Horus (No. 37).

The statue, brought from the valley temple of Khafre in Giza, is carved from black diorite, and white marble inclusions successfully emphasize the muscles of the legs and clenched fist of the pharaoh. No less impressive is the wooden statue of Kaaper standing on the left (No. 40) - a figure full man with a thoughtful look, which the Arabs who worked on the excavations at Saqqara called "sheikh al-balad" because he resembled their village chief. One of the two recently restored wooden statues on the right (No. 123 and No. 124) may represent the same person. We also note the remarkable statue of a scribe (No. 43), spreading a papyrus scroll on his lap.

On the walls of room No. 31 there are reliefs made on sandstone, found in Wadi Maragha, near ancient turquoise mining sites. Paired limestone statues of Ranofer symbolize his dual status high priest the god Ptah and the god Sokar in Memphis. The statues appear almost identical, differing only in the wigs and loincloths, both of which were created in the royal workshops, possibly by the same sculptor.

Hall 32 is dominated by life-size statues of Prince Rahotep and his wife Nefert from their mastaba at Meidum (IV Dynasty). The prince's skin is brick-red, his wife's is creamy yellow; such a distinction is common in Egyptian art. Nefert is dressed in a wig and tiara, her shoulders are shrouded in a transparent veil. The prince wears a simple loincloth wrapped around his waist. Pay attention to the one on the left live image dwarf Seneb and his family (No. 39).

The face of the keeper of the royal wardrobe, whom his wife embraces, looks peaceful; their naked children raise their fingers to their lips. In the second niche on the left side hangs a bright and lively example of wall painting, known as the “Meidum Geese” (III-IV dynasties). The heyday of the Old Kingdom is represented only by the statue of Ti on the left (No. 49), the period of decline of this era is much richer in monuments: directly next to the entrance there are the oldest metal sculptures known to us (about 2300 BC) - statues of Pepi I and his son.

The furniture of Queen Hetepheres, exhibited in Hall No. 37, was restored from a pile of gold and fragments of rotten wood. Hetepheres, wife of Sneferu and mother of Cheops, was buried near her son's pyramid in Giza; along with her, a bier, golden vessels and a bed with a canopy were placed in the tomb. In addition, in the same room, in a separate display case, there is a tiny figurine of Cheops, the only portrait image of the pharaoh known to us - the builder of the Great Pyramid.

• Halls of the Middle Kingdom

In Hall No. 26 you find yourself in the era of the Middle Kingdom, when, under the reign of the XII Dynasty, centralized power was established and the construction of the pyramids resumed (around 1991-1786 BC). A gloomy relic of the previous era of internal unrest (which ended the First Transition Period) is on the right. This is a statue of Mentuhotep Nebkhepetra with huge feet (a symbol of power), a black body, crossed arms and a curly beard (features characteristic of images of Osiris).

In ancient times it was hidden in an underground chamber near the mortuary temple of Mentuhotep at Deir el-Bahri and was subsequently discovered by chance by Howard Carter, whose horse fell through the roof. On the opposite side of the hall stands the sarcophagus of Daga (No. 34). If the owner's mummy were still in it, then she could, with the help of a pair of “eyes” painted on the inside wall of the coffin, admire the statues of Queen Nofret standing at the entrance to Hall No. 21 in a tight-fitting dress and wig of the goddess Hathor.

The figurines at the back of Hall No. 22 amaze with the atypical liveliness of their faces, contrasting with the manic, frozen gaze of the wooden statue of Nakhti on the right. The hall also displays portrait images Amenemhat III and Senusret I, but what will catch your attention first is the burial chamber of Harhotep from Deir el-Bahri in the middle of the hall, which is covered inside with picturesque scenes, spells and texts.

Surrounding the chamber are ten limestone statues of Senusret from his pyramid complex at Lisht. Compared to the cedar wood statue of the same pharaoh in the display case to your right (No. 88), these sculptures are very formal. On the thrones of these statues are depicted different variants symbol of Semataui unity: Hapi, the god of the Nile, or Horus and Set with intertwined plant stems - symbols of both lands.

The main idea of ​​Egyptian statehood is expressed by the unique double statue of Amenemhat III (No. 508) in Hall No. 16. The paired figures - personifications of the Nile deity presenting fish to his people on trays - can symbolize the Upper and Lower or the pharaoh himself and his divine essence ka. When you leave the halls of the Middle Kingdom, you are followed by five sphinxes with lion heads and standing on the left. human faces. The Age of Anarchy - the Second Intermediate Period and the Hyksos invasion - are not represented in the exhibition.

• Halls of the New Kingdom

Moving to Hall No. 11, you find yourself in the New Kingdom - the era of the revival of the power of the pharaohs and the expansion of the empire during the XVIII and XIX dynasties (about 1567-1200 BC). The Egyptian empire uniting Africa and Asia was created by Thutmose III, who had to wait a long time for his turn while his not at all warlike stepmother Hatshepsut ruled as pharaoh. The museum contains a column from her great temple at Deir el-Bahri: the sculpted head of Hatshepsut, crowned with a crown, looks down on visitors from above (No. 94). On the left side of the hall there is an unusual statue of the ka of Pharaoh Horus (No. 75), installed on an inclined base, symbolizing his posthumous wanderings.

In room No. 12 you will see a slate statue of Thutmose III (No. 62), as well as other masterpieces of art from the 18th dynasty. At the back of the hall, in the sacred ark from the ruined temple of Thutmose III at Deir el-Bahri, there is a statue of the goddess Hathor in the form of a cow emerging from a thicket of papyrus. Thutmose himself is depicted in front of the statue, under the head of the goddess, and also on the side of the fresco, where he sucks milk like a baby. To the right of the ark is a stone statue of the vizier Hatshepsut Senenmut (No. 418) with the daughter of Queen Nefrur, in the second niche on the right is a smaller statue of the same couple.

The relationship between the queen, her daughter and the vizier gives rise to many different speculations. A fragment of a relief from Deir al-Bahri (second niche on the left) depicting an expedition to Punt dates back to the same period. It depicts Queen Punta, suffering from elephantiasis, and her donkey, as well as Queen Hatshepsut, watching them during their journey to this fabulous country.

To the right of the relief stands a statue of the god Khoneu made of gray granite with a lock of hair, symbolizing youth, and the face (as is commonly believed) of the boy pharaoh Tutankhamun. She was taken from the temple of the moon god at Karnak. On either side of this sculpture and the Punt Relief stand two statues of a man named Amenhotep, depicting him as a young scribe of humble origins and an eighty-year-old priest, honored for overseeing large-scale construction such as the Colossus of Memnon.

Before you turn the corner into the north wing, you will see two statues of the lion-headed Sekhmet, found at Karnak. Hall No. 6 is dominated by royal sphinxes with the heads of Hatshepsut and members of her family. Some of the reliefs on the south wall come from the Maya tomb at Saqqara. The tomb was discovered in the nineteenth century, then lost and found again in 1986. Hall 8 is largely an addition to the Amarna-era hall and also contains a monumental double statue of Amun and Mut, broken into pieces by medieval stonemasons and lovingly reassembled from fragments long lying in the vaults of the museum at Karnak, where the monument originally stood . Those pieces that could not be inserted into the puzzle are displayed in a stand behind the sculpture.

To the left of the stairs in Hall No. 10, note the colored relief on a slab from the Temple of Ramesses II at Memphis (No. 769), which depicts the king bringing the enemies of Egypt into submission. In a motif repeated on dozens of temple pylons, the king holds a Libyan, Nubian and Syrian by the hair and swings an ax. The pharaohs of the Ramessid dynasty, who never fought themselves, were especially fond of such reliefs.

The hall ends with an artistic rebus (No. 6245): the statue of Ramesses II depicts the king in the form of a child with a finger to his lips and a plant in his hand, he is protected by the sun god Ra. The name of the god in combination with the words “child” (mes) and “plant” (su) forms the name of the pharaoh. From Hall 10 you can continue your exploration of the New Kingdom in the east wing or take the stairs to Tutankhamun's gallery on the next floor.

• Amarna Hall

Hall No. 3 and most of the adjacent hall No. 8 are dedicated to the Amarna period: the era of the break with centuries-old traditions, which lasted for some time after the end of the reign of Pharaoh Akhenaten (about 1379-1362 BC) and Queen Nefertiti. Rejecting Amon and other Theban gods, they proclaimed the cult of a single god - Aten, built new capital in Middle Egypt to get rid of the old bureaucracy, and left behind mysterious works of art.

Four colossal statues of Akhenaten look down at you from the walls of Hall No. 3. Their elongated heads and faces, plump lips and flared nostrils, rounded hips and stomachs suggest a hermaphrodite or a primeval earth goddess. Since these same features are also characteristic of the images of his wife and children on some steles (in the left niche and in the glass cases opposite) and tomb reliefs, there is a theory that the artistic style of the Amarna era reflects some kind of physical anomaly of Akhenaten (or members of the royal family), and the inscriptions hint at some kind of perversion.

Opponents of this hypothesis object: the head of Nefertiti, stored in, proves that this was only a stylistic device. Another feature of Amarna art was the expressed interest in private life: the stele depicting the royal family (No. 167 in Hall No. 8) depicts Akhenaten holding eldest daughter Meritaton, while Nefertiti rocks her sisters in the cradle. For the first time in Egyptian art, for example, a breakfast scene appears. The masters of the Amarna era focused their attention on the earthly world, and not on traditional subjects associated with the afterlife.

The art is filled with new vitality - note the free brush strokes on fragments of the fresco with scenes on the swamp, presented on the walls of room No. 3. In the window "A" located to the left of the entrance to the hall, some of the documents from the Amarna archive are displayed (the rest are in London and Berlin). They call for troops to help the pharaoh's supporters in Palestine, the aftermath of his death, and Nefertiti's search for allies to fight those who were urging Tutankhamun to reverse the Amarna Revolution. These cuneiform tablets in baked clay “envelopes” were kept in the archives of the Amarna diplomatic department.

Akhenaten's coffin, inlaid with carnelian, gold and glass, can be seen in Hall No. 8, its lid displayed next to the gold lining of the lower part. These treasures disappeared from the museum between 1915 and 1931, but were discovered in Switzerland in 1980. The gold decoration has now been restored and placed on a plexiglass model in the supposed shape of the original coffin.

• East wing

An incentive to move further from the halls of the New Kingdom to the eastern wing can be the statue of Nakht Min's wife (No. 71), located in hall No. 15, which looks very sexy. Room 14 houses a huge alabaster statue of Seti I, whose sensuous facial modeling evokes a bust of Nefertiti.

It is likely that the pharaoh was originally depicted wearing a nemes - a headdress that we can see on the funeral mask of Tutankhamun. Even more impressive is the restored triple pink granite statue of Ramesses III being crowned by Horus and Set, representing order and chaos respectively.

The new kingdom gradually declined during the reign of the 20th Dynasty and died under the 21st Dynasty. It was followed by the so-called Late Period, when predominantly foreign rulers were in power. The statue of Amenirdis the Elder, exhibited in the center of Hall No. 30, dates back to this time, which the pharaoh placed at the head of the Theban priestesses of Amon.

On the head of Amenirdis, dressed as the queen of the New Kingdom, is a falcon headdress decorated with a uraeus, which was once crowned with the crown of Hathor with a solar disk and horns. The most memorable of the numerous statues of gods in room No. 24 is the image of a pregnant female hippopotamus - the goddess of childbirth Taurt (or Toerit).

Rooms 34 and 35 cover the Greco-Roman period (from 332 BC), when the principles of classical art began to actively penetrate the symbolism of Ancient Egypt. A fusion of styles characteristic of the era is demonstrated by the bizarre statues and sarcophagi in Hall No. 49. Hall No. 44 is used for temporary exhibitions.

Second floor of the Egyptian Museum

The most significant part of the exhibition on the second floor is the halls with the treasures of Tutankhamun, which occupy the best areas. After examining these objects, everything except the mummies and a few masterpieces seems dull, although in other rooms there are artifacts that are not inferior to those on display below. To view them, come to the museum on some other day.

• Halls of Tutankhamun

The set of funerary utensils of the boy pharaoh Tutankhamun includes 1,700 items that fill a dozen halls. Considering the brevity of his reign (1361-1352 BC) and the small size of his tomb in the Valley of the Kings, the priceless treasures that seem to have belonged to at least such great pharaohs as Ramesses and Seti are even more astonishing imagination.

Tutankhamun simply went over to the side of the Theban counter-revolution, which destroyed the Amarna culture and restored the former power of the cult of Amun and his priests. However, the influence of Amarna is obvious in some of the exhibits, which are arranged approximately the same as they were in the tomb: chests and statues (Hall No. 45) in front of furniture (Halls No. 40, 35, 30, 25,15, 10), arks (Halls No. 9-7) and gold items (room No. 3).

Next to them are decorations (Hall No. 4) and other treasures from various tombs (Halls No. 2 and 13). Most visitors rush to the last four halls (halls No. 2, 3 and 4 close fifteen minutes earlier than the rest), ignoring the sequence just indicated. If you are one of these visitors, please skip the detailed description below.

When members of the Howard Carter expedition in 1922 entered the sealed corridor of the tomb, they discovered the front chamber literally filled with caskets and debris left behind by the robbers. There were also two life-size statues of Tutankhamun (standing at the entrance to Hall No. 45), whose black skin symbolizes the rebirth of the king. Directly behind them are golden statues of Tutankhamun, depicting him hunting with a harpoon.

In room No. 35, the main exhibit is a gilded throne with arms in the form of winged serpents and legs in the form of animal paws (No. 179). The back depicts a royal couple resting in the rays of the sun - Aten. The names of the spouses are given in the form accepted for the Amarna era, which allows us to attribute the throne to the period when Tutankhamun still adhered to the sun-worshipping cult.

Other worldly objects that the boy pharaoh took with him to the other world include a set made of ebony and ivory for playing senet, similar to our checkers (No. 49). Many ushabti figures were supposed to carry out tasks that the gods could give to the pharaoh in another world (on the sides of the entrance to hall No. 34).

In room No. 30 there is a casket with “Staffs of Prisoners” (No. 187), the images on which, inlaid with ebony and ivory, symbolize the unity of the north and south. The bust of a boy pharaoh born from a lotus (no. 118) shows the continued influence of the Amarna style during the reign of Tutankhamun. The ceremonial throne (No. 181) in Hall No. 25 is a prototype of the episcopal chairs in the Christian Church. Its back is decorated with luxurious ebony and gold inlay, but it looks awkward. More typical of Pharaonic times are the wooden chair and footstools and the ornate chest of drawers.

The king's clothes and ointments were kept in two magnificent chests. On the lid and side walls of the “Painted Chest” (No. 186) in Hall No. 20, he is depicted hunting ostriches and antelopes or destroying the Syrian army from his war chariot, shown larger than life-size. The end panels show the pharaoh in the guise of a sphinx, trampling his enemies.

In contrast to the warlike images of Tutankhamun on other objects, the scene on the lid of the “Inlaid Chest” is made in the Amarna style: Ankhesenamun (daughter of Nefertiti and Akhenaten) offers a lotus, papyrus and mandrake to her husband, surrounded by blooming poppies, pomegranates and cornflowers. The golden ark, decorated with idyllic scenes of family life, once contained statues of Tutankhamun and his wife Ankhesenamun, which were stolen in ancient times.

From the ivory headrests in Hall No. 15 it is entirely logical to move on to the gilded boxes dedicated to the gods, whose images in the form of animals are carved on the posts (No. 183, 221 and 732 in Hall No. 10). In the next room, No. 9, is the sacred ark of Anubis (No. 54), which was carried before the funeral procession of the pharaoh: the protector of the dead is depicted as a vigilant jackal with gilded ears and silver claws.

In four alabaster vessels with lids displayed further, placed in an alabaster casket (No. 176), the entrails of the deceased pharaoh were kept. This casket, in turn, stood inside the next exhibit - a golden chest with a lid and statues of the protective goddesses Isis, Nephthys, Selket and Neith (No. 177). In halls No. 7 and 8, four gilded arks are exhibited, which were placed one inside the other, like a Russian nesting doll; they contained the sarcophagus of Tutankhamun.

Hall No. 3, always filled with visitors, displays Tutankhamun’s gold, part of which is periodically exhibited abroad. When the treasures are in, the main attention is drawn to the famous funeral mask with a nemes headdress, inlaid with lapis lazuli, quartz and obsidian.

The inner anthropomorphic coffins are decorated with the same materials, they depict a boy king with arms folded like Osiris, protected by the cloisonné wings of the goddesses Wadjet, Nekhbet, Isis and Nephthys. Tutankhamun's mummy (which remains in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings) was found to contain numerous amulets, enamel ceremonial armor with glass and carnelian inlays, chest ornaments set with precious stones and a pair of gold sandals - all of which are on display here.

Next room jewelry is amazing. The 6th Dynasty golden falcon head (once attached to a copper body) from Hierakonpolis is considered the star of the collection, but is seriously rivaled by the crown and necklace of Princess Khnumit, and the tiara and breast ornaments of Princess Sathathor. Next to the latter's body in her tomb at Dashur were found the amethyst belt and anklet of Mereret, another princess of the 12th dynasty.

The ceremonial ax of Ahmose perpetuates the memory of the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt. The ax was found in the tomb of his mother, Queen Ahhotep. From the same cache, discovered by Mariette in 1859, comes a composite lapis lazuli bracelet and fancy gold flies with bulging eyes - the Order of Valor, a reward for bravery.

Dating back to the XXI-XXII dynasties, when northern Egypt was ruled from the Delta, exhibit No. 787, exhibited in room No. 2, dates back to the time of the XXI-XXII dynasties. Of the three royal burials excavated by Monte in 1939, the richest was the tomb of Psammetichus I, made of electrum, whose coffin was discovered in the sarcophagus of Merneptah (located on the lower floor). His New Kingdom-style gold necklace is made from several rows of disc-shaped pendants.

Between Hall 8 and the Atrium stand two wooden chariots discovered in the front chamber of Tutankhamun's tomb. They were intended for ceremonial occasions, and their gilded reliefs depict bound Asians and Nubians. The real war chariots of the pharaohs were lighter and stronger. After completing your tour of Tutankhamun's treasures, you can go either to the Hall of Mummies in the west wing or to other halls.

• Mummies of the Museum

In the southern part of the second floor of the museum there are two halls where mummies are exhibited. Hall No. 53 contains mummified animals and birds from various necropolises in Egypt. They testify to the prevalence of animalistic cults at the end of the pagan era, when their adherents embalmed everything from bulls to mice and fish.

Modern Egyptians look at this evidence of the superstition of their ancestors calmly, but the exhibition of human remains offended the sensibilities of many of them, which led to Sadat closing the famous Hall of Mummies (formerly Hall No. 52) in 1981. Since then, the Egyptian Museum and the Getty Institute have worked to restore the kings' badly damaged mummies. Their work is currently on display in Hall 56, which requires a separate ticket to enter (£70, student £35; closes 6:30pm).

Eleven royal mummies are on display here (with detailed explanations; the exhibits are arranged in chronological order if you walk around the hall counterclockwise), including the remains of some of the most famous pharaohs, in particular the great conquerors of the 19th dynasty Seti I and his son Ramesses II. The latter had a much less athletic physique than that seen in the colossal statues of him in Memphis and other places. Here is also the mummy of Ramesses' son, Merneptah, who is considered by many to be the pharaoh of the biblical Exodus. If you don't have a particular interest in mummies, it's not worth paying that much to see them.

All mummies are kept in sealed, humidity-controlled containers and most of them look very peaceful. Thutmose II and Thutmose IV appear to be sleeping, and many still have hair. Curly curls and Beautiful face Queen Henuttawi may indicate her Nubian origin. Out of respect for the dead, excursions are not allowed here, the muffled hum of visitors' voices is interrupted only by periodic calls: “Please remain quiet!”

The mummies were discovered in the royal cache at Deir el-Bahri and in one of the rooms of the tomb of Amenhotep II, where the bodies were reburied during the reign of the 21st Dynasty to protect them from robbers. To see that the mummy is empty inside, look into the right nostril of Ramesses V - from this angle you can look inside directly through the hole in the skull.

• Other halls of the museum

To view the rest of the exhibition in chronological order, you should start in Hall 43 (above the Atrium) and move clockwise, as you did on the first floor. But, since most visitors come here from the halls of Tutankhamun, we describe the western and eastern wings from this point.

Starting in the west wing, notice the “Heart Scarabs” that were placed on the throats of mummies. They were inscribed with the words of a spell calling on the heart of the deceased not to testify against him or her during the Judgment of Osiris (Hall No. 6). Among the many objects from the royal tombs of the 18th dynasty in room No. 12 are the mummies of a child and a gazelle (showcase I); Priests' wigs and wig boxes (display case L); two leopards from the cache of the tomb of Amenemhet II (No. 3842) and the chariot of Thutmose IV (No. 4113). Hall No. 17 displays utensils from private tombs, in particular, the tomb of Sennedjem from a workers’ village near the Valley of the Kings.

With a skill honed in the construction of royal tombs, Sennedjem carved out a stylish crypt for himself on the door of the tomb (No. 215), he is depicted playing senet. The sarcophagus of his son Khonsu depicts the lions of Ruti - the deities of the current and past day - supporting the rising sun, and Anubis embalming his body under the auspices of Isis and Nephthys.

In the corridor there are caskets with canopic jars and coffins, and in the inner halls there are models from the Middle Kingdom. From the tomb of Meketre in Thebes come magnificent figures and genre scenes (room no. 27): a woman carrying a jug of wine on her head (no. 74), peasants who catch fish with a net from reed boats (no. 75), cattle that are driven past the owner (No. 76). In Hall No. 32, compare models of boats with a full crew of sailors (display case F) with solar barges without sailors, designed for a voyage to eternity (display case E). Soldier lovers will admire the phalanxes of Nubian archers and Egyptian warriors from the tomb of Prince Mesehti in (room no. 37).

The southern wing of the museum is best viewed while moving at a brisk pace. The middle section features a model of a funerary complex showing how the pyramids and their temples were connected to the Nile (room no. 48), and a leather funeral canopy for a 21st Dynasty queen decorated with red and green checkerboard squares (no. 3848, near the south eastern staircase in hall No. 50). More impressive are the two displays in the central part: recent finds and forgotten treasures displayed near room No. 54, as well as room No. 43 - objects from the tomb of Yuya and Tuya.

The most beautiful of these objects are the gilded mask of Tuya with precious stones, their anthropomorphic coffins and statues of this married couple. As the parents of Queen Tiye (wife of Amenhotep III) they were buried in the Valley of the Kings, their tomb being found intact in the late nineteenth century. Beyond the entrance to Hall No. 42, note the wall panel of blue faience tiles originating from the funerary temple of Djoser at Saqqara (No. 17).

In hall No. 48 near the railing open gallery above the Rotunda there is a showcase (No. 144) with a stone head of Akhenaten’s mother, Queen Tiye, which anticipates the Amarna style, and “dancing dwarf” figurines depicting equatorial pygmies. In the same display case is a magnificent, very lively figurine of a Nubian woman (possibly also Queen Tiy) with a braided hairstyle that looks very modern.

If you come from the north wing, then the east wing opens to room 14, which displays a couple of mummies and very realistic but poorly lit Fayyum portraits found by archaeologist Flinders Petrie in Hawara. Portraits dating back to the Roman period (100-250 years) were made using the encaustic technique (dyes mixed with molten wax) from living nature, and after the death of the person depicted they were placed on the face of his mummy.

The amazing diversity of the late pagan Egyptian pantheon is demonstrated by the statues of deities in room 19. The tiny figurines are worth a close look, especially the statues of the pregnant female hippopotamus - the goddess Taurt (in case C), Harpocrates (Child Horus), Thoth with the head of Ibis and the dwarf god Ptah-Sokar (all in display case E), as well as Bes, who looks almost like a Mexican god (in display case P). In showcase V in the center of the hall, pay attention to the image of the Horus made of gold and silver, which apparently served as a sarcophagus for the falcon mummy.

The next room is dedicated to ostracons and papyri. Ostracons were pieces of limestone or clay shards on which drawings or insignificant inscriptions were applied. Papyrus was used to complete works of art and record valuable texts.

In addition to the Book of the Dead (rooms 1 and 24) and the Book of Amduat (which depicts the ceremony of weighing the heart, no. 6335 in the southern part of hall no. 29), pay attention to the Satirical Papyrus (no. 232 in showcase 9 on the north side), which depicts cats, serving mice. In images created during the Hyksos period, cats represent the Egyptians, and mice represent their rulers, who came from countries that were formerly part of the Egyptian Empire.

The image suggests that foreign rule in Egypt was perceived as unnatural. In room No. 29, a scribe's writing implement and artist's paints and brushes are also on display (near the door at the other end). In the next room, No. 34, there are musical instruments and figurines of people playing them.

In the corridor (room no. 33) there are two interesting chairs: a seat from an Amarna toilet is displayed in the “O” window near the door, and in the “S” window there is a birthing chair, very similar to the one used in our time. Hall No. 39 displays glassware, mosaics and figurines from the Greco-Roman period, and Hall No. 44 exhibits Mesopotamian-style faience wall coverings from the palaces of Ramesses II and III.

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