Egypt will open tombs to reinvigorate tourism

Queen Hetepheres II (left) embraces 

her deceased daughter Meresankh III (right)

 (MFA 30.1456)

GIZA, Egypt — More than 4,500 years since the paint was first applied, the reds, yellows and blues still stand out on the walls of the tomb of Queen Meresankh III.

A hunter throws a net to catch water birds, craftsmen make papyrus mats, and a stream of people carry baskets filled with offerings for the afterlife.

Decorating the walls all around are paintings, reliefs, and statues of Meresankh, draped in a leopard-skin cloak, standing beside her mother in a boat pulling papyrus stems through the water, or being entertained by musicians and singers.

Egypt’s tourism industry has been battered since last year’s revolution, but here, beside the pyramids of Giza, officials are trying to attract the visitors back.