Egypt Moves Ancient Mummies in a Grand Parade

A spectacular parade with motorcycles, chariots and men and women dressed in ancient Egyptian attire moved 22 Pharaonic mummies through Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo to their new home - the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC) last week. 

It was a truly spectacular sight as the Pharaohs' Golden Parade transported 18 kings and four queens in vehicles resembling ancient Egyptian boats which were used to carry the pharaohs to their tombs. 

The vehicles contained climate-controlled cases filled with nitrogen. Egyptian television channels broadcast every little detail about the parade, and about these ancestors who ruled the country more than 3,000 years ago.

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The royals on the move included Ramses II, the longest-reigning pharaoh in 12th century BC, renowned for signing the first peace treaty and Queen Hatshepsut, Egypt&rsquos only woman pharaoh. The queen wore a false beard to break the tradition of women playing secondary roles in the royal hierarchy. The other pharaohs belonged to the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th reigns. These mummies were formerly buried 3,000 years ago in secret tombs in the Valley of Kings.

Accompanied by Unesco Director-General Audrey Azoulay, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled al-Anani, and Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Zurab Pololikashvili, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi inaugurated the NMEC about an hour before the parade set off.

The Minister said that the main hall of NMEC, containing 1,500 artifacts, will be open for visitors from April 4, while the mummies hall will be opened on April 18. The main objective of the public procession and the new museum is to regain the attention of international tourists after the coronavirus pandemic where tourism was reduced to half.