The most enduring images of Egypt are its pharaonic treasures and its history, such as the relics and artefacts that live in Cairo's Egyptian Museum. But with a written history stretching back to 3,100 BC, at the time of Greek, Roman, Coptic and Islamic empires, every age and culture demands a museum of its own.
The Egyptian Museum in Cairo
Sitting in the shadows of Cairo's modern town hall, the elegant coral-pink and copper-domed Egyptian Museum strikes a gentle pose. The restrained neo-classical French exterior is little preparation for the awesome array of treasures and ancient wonders that wait silently behind it's arched windows.
Stepping through the entrance into the grand central atrium, monumental statues tower overhead from the imposing Colossus of Amenhotep III to King Djoser's life-size sculpture. The ground floor galleries take you on a trip through time, each room filled with the splendours of a great kingdom. King Narmer's 5,000 year old palette is an item of major artistic and historical importance.
Ancient Egypt's cultural wealth is also shown in many other artefacts that reveal the skill of ancient artisans.
But it's the upper floor that holds the greatest allure. The Tutankhamun Galleries house over 1,700 items including Tutankhamun's famous tomb, discovered in the Valley of the Kings in West-Thebes, opposite modern Luxor.
The Egyptian Museum is just simply unrivalled with over 136,000 items on display, not mentioning the hundreds of thousands in the basement. These items date back to the very origins of a united Egypt in 3,100 BC. The museum is renowned for holding the finest collection of Egyptian antiquities in the world.
Opening hours: 09:00- 19:00
Fri 09:00- 11:00; 1:30- 19:00
Ticket Price(s):
Regular: 60 EGP
Student: 30 EGP
Mummies Room:
Regular: 100 EGP
Student: 60 EGP
The Coptic Museum
See the distinctive blend of cultures at the Coptic Museum inCairo where are displayed hundreds of Christian Egyptian documents, statues and artefacts in which you'll distinct Ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman influence.
Take a breath of fresh air in a peaceful courtyard surrounded by green gardens when you need to relax.
The Coptic Museum is located within the Roman fortress town called Babylon in Old Cairo, step into the past and walk by the fusion of cultures inside and outside the museum in a place as old as history.
Opening hours: 09:00- 16:00
Ticket Price(s):
Regular: 50 EGP
Student: 25 EGP
Museum of Islamic Art
Displaying over 10,000 articles dating back to the Islamic era in Egypt, this is one place you don’t want to miss while in Cairo. Marvel at the giant carved wooden doors or the tiny, intricate copper sculptures.
With exhibitions from every Islamic period in Egypt, it covers the Fatimids, the Mamluks, the Abbassids, the Ummayads, the Ottomans, and the Ayyubbids dynasties.
Opening Hours: 09:00-16:00
Fri 9:00-11:30; 13:30-16:00
Ticket Price(s):
Regular: 40 EGP
Student: 20 EGP
The beautiful architecture of the Aswan Nubian Museum alone is worth seeing. But don't forget to take a walk inside this partly open-air museum where you'll find yourself wandering between a prehistoric cave with painted rock-art, ancient Egyptian statues, obelisks and columns and even a complete Nubian house.
Due to the quantities of material recovered from tombs,temples and settlements, UNESCO was encouraged in the 1980's to plan a new Nubian museum in Aswan where the objects could be stored and exhibited.
The total area of the museum and its surroundings is 50,000 square meters.
The Nubia museum contains artefacts masterpieces that were found on sites now submerged, during the UNESCO salvage campaign. The museum contains a variety of monumental objects from different parts in Egypt, collected in Nubia during the first half of the twentieth century. It displays in its permanent exhibition about 1500 artefacts showing, in chronological order, the material culture of Nubia, from Prehistory to present times.
Due to the quantities of material recovered from tombs,temples and settlements, UNESCO was encouraged in the 1980's to plan a new Nubian museum in Aswan where the objects could be stored and exhibited.
The total area of the museum and its surroundings is 50,000 square meters.
The Nubia museum contains artefacts masterpieces that were found on sites now submerged, during the UNESCO salvage campaign. The museum contains a variety of monumental objects from different parts in Egypt, collected in Nubia during the first half of the twentieth century. It displays in its permanent exhibition about 1500 artefacts showing, in chronological order, the material culture of Nubia, from Prehistory to present times.
Ticket Price(s):
Regular: 50 EGP
Student: 25 EGP
Opening Time: 9am - 1pm, 5 - 9pm
