Plans to build the Grand Egyptian Museum were first revealed in 1992 when former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak designated a location for the project, about two kilometers from the Giza pyramids.
Realization began in 2012, nine years after the studio Heneghan Peng Architects from Dublin won the international design competition, he writes portal HrTurizam.hr
And now, more than two decades after the foundation stone was laid, The Great Egyptian Museum (Grand Egyptian Museum) finally opened its doors to visitors. Journalists who were among the first to pass through its doors report that the treasures that can be viewed there are truly incredible. The first thing they came across was a huge statue Pharaoh Ramses II in the lobby.
Next are the treasures of Queen Heteferes, mother of the builders of the Great Pyramid, including her chair, bed and bracelets. Ordinary objects, such as fragments of papyrus and mirrors, impress almost as the main attractions. There is also the building itself, whose special feature is a huge window with a view the pyramids of Giza.
The opening was planned for 2018, but a series of political and economic obstacles caused the museum to open its doors only recently.
The biggest in the world
The design of the museum by architectural studio Heneghan Peng encompasses 90.000 square feet on a 50-hectare site, making the Great Egyptian Museum officially the largest in the world. Until now, the title was held by the Parisian Louvre which covers 73.000 square meters.
It was built for the Egyptian Ministry of Culture to house more than 100.000 pharaonic artifacts from ancient Egypt. In addition to the exhibition space, the museum has a children's department, a conference center, an auditorium, conservation areas and gardens.
A large collection of pharaonic artifacts from ancient Egypt will include antiquities from the tomb of the king Tutankhamun which will be shown in their entirety for the first time since they were discovered in 1922.
Here you can also see the 'solar ship' called Khufu's ship, which was buried next to the Great Pyramid around 2500 BC.
Numerous artefacts are on display in the 4000 square meters of permanent exhibition space, which Heneghan Peng Architects describes as a space the size of almost four football stadiums.
One of the striking features of the project includes a monumental entrance vestibule with a grandiose staircase and a 3200-year-old sculpture of the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II.
Cover photo: Screenshot / Grand Egyptian Museum
Sources: Grand Egyptian Museum, Deezer
