CAIRO, Egypt — The mummified remains of 22 pharaohs,
including Egypt’s most powerful ancient queen, were to be paraded through the
streets of Cairo on Saturday, in a procession to a new resting place.
اضافة اعلان
Under the watchful eyes of security forces, the mummies will
be moved seven kilometers across the capital from the iconic Egyptian Museum,
where most have resided uninterrupted for over a century, to the new National
Museum of Egyptian Civilization.
Dubbed the Pharaohs’ Golden Parade, the 18 kings and four
queens will travel in order, oldest first, each aboard a separate float
decorated in ancient Egyptian style.
The interior ministry said both pedestrians and vehicles
would be barred from Tahrir Square, site of the current museum, and other
sections of the parade route, ahead of the 6:00 pm (1600 GMT) start.
“The whole world will be watching,” said Egyptian
archaeologist and former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass, who will commentate
as the event unfolds live on state television.
Seqenenre Tao II, “the Brave”, who reigned over southern
Egypt some 1,600 years before Christ, will be on the first chariot, while
Ramses IX, who reigned in the 12th century BC, will bring up the rear.
Another great warrior, Ramses II, who ruled for 67 years,
and Queen Hatshepsut, the most powerful female pharaoh, will also make the
journey.
The gold-colored carriages will be fitted with shock
absorbers for the 40-minute trip, to ensure none of the precious cargos are
accidentally disturbed on Cairo’s roads.
‘Raises emotions’
Discovered near Luxor from 1881 onwards, fascinating new
details of the pharaohs’ lives -- and deaths -- are still emerging.
A high-tech study of Seqenenre Tao II, involving CT scans
and 3D images of his hands and long-studied skull fractures, indicate he was
likely killed in an execution ceremony, after being captured in battle.
For their procession through Cairo’s streets as night falls
with no rain forecast, the mummies will be in special containers filled with
nitrogen, under conditions similar to their regular display cases.
Lines of floodlights were visible opposite the gated
entrance to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization early on Saturday
afternoon.
The new resting place consists of sleek, low-rise buildings
topped with a pyramid amid expansive grounds.
The mummies will be showcased individually in their new
home, in an environment redolent of underground tombs.
They will also be signposted by a brief biography.
Upon arrival, they will occupy “slightly upgraded cases,”
said Salima Ikram, professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo.
Temperature and humidity control will also be enhanced.
The “museum has what it takes to preserve [mummies], the
best laboratories... It is one of the best museums we have,” Waleed
El-Batoutti, advisor to the tourism and antiquities ministry, told state
television.
‘Curse of the Pharaoh’
The National Museum of Egyptian Civilization opened its
doors to limited exhibits from 2017 and will open fully on Sunday, before the
mummies go on display to the general public from April 18.
In the coming months, the country is due to inaugurate
another new showcase, the Grand Egyptian Museum, near the Giza pyramids.
It too will house pharaonic collections, including the
celebrated treasure of Tutankhamun.
Discovered in 1922, the tomb of the young ruler, who took
the throne briefly in the 14th century BC, contained treasures including gold
and ivory.
A so-called “curse of the pharaoh” emerged in the wake of
Tutankhamun’s unearthing in 1922-23.
A key funder of the dig, Lord Carnarvon, died of blood
poisoning months after the tomb was opened, while an early visitor likewise
died abruptly in 1923.
With the planned parade coming only days after several
disasters struck Egypt, some have inevitably speculated on social media about a
new curse provoked by the latest move.
The past days have seen a deadly rail collision and a
building collapse in Cairo, while global headlines were dominated by the
struggle to refloat the giant container ship MV Ever Given which blocked the
Suez Canal for almost a week.
The parade came the same day as the Suez Canal Authority
announced that a shipping traffic jam caused by the container vessel accident
has been cleared.
The mummies’ re-housing “marks the end of much work to
improve their conservation and exhibition,” said UNESCO Director-General Audrey
Azoulay, who will attend Saturday’s ceremony.
“This raises emotions that go much further than the mere
relocation of a collection -- we will see the history of Egyptian civilisation
unfold before our eyes.”
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