Friday 30 September saw Antiquities Minister Mamdouh al-Damaty open the exhibition “Era of the Pyramid builders” in Kyoto, Japan. Kyoto is the fifth leg of an eight-city 23-month-long tour the exhibition is making in Japan; it has already been to Tokyo, Matsuyama, Sendai, and Kagoshima; after Kyoto it will visit Toyama, Fukuoka, and Shizuoka. The tour is the first after a three-year hiatus; the previous Egyptian exhibition touring Japan was in 2012 and was under the theme “Tutankhamun: The Golden Age of the Pharaohs.”
The current exhibition ends September 2017.
The exhibits include more than 120 pieces of antiquity gathered from various museums in Egypt and dating back to the Old Kingdom (2686 BC – 2181BC); an era known as the Pyramids age. Some of the pieces have never been on public display before.
The most important objects in the exhibition include a statue of King Khafre, the builder of the second Giza Pyramid; a golden mask of King Amenemope; and a signature of King Khufu, builder of the largest Giza Pyramid which is among the seven wonders of the world. There is also a collection of statues of servants, workers, makers of beer and bread, as well as a statue of a scribe.
A film of Tutankhamun’s mask—the first time the piece has been filmed outside of its display case—will be shown in high definition at a 4K theatre.
The exhibits have been insured at USD138,570,000.
Dr Damaty expects the revenue of the exhibition to reach USD2,000,000, an amount that would increase the ministry’s income sufficiently to help complete several projects, such as the construction of museums and development of archaeological sites.
Japan has financed a number of archaeological projects in Egypt, among which is the Great Egyptian Museum and the restoration of the second sun boat of King Khufu.
Watani International
1 October 2016