Egypt moves famous pharaoh statue Ramses II

THE ancient, 80-ton statue of Ramses II has been transported to a new location in a grand ceremony attended by Egyptian officials and foreign diplomats.

WITH much fanfare, Egypt moved the ancient statue of one of its most famous pharaohs, Ramses II, to a new position near the pyramids of Giza, just outside Cairo.

The statue, which dates back 3300 years, was placed in the entrance hall of a new antiquities’ museum still under construction.

It has been moved four times since it was discovered in 1820 near ancient Memphis by Giovanni Battista Caviglia, an Italian explorer and Egyptologist who was a key figure in the excavation of the Sphinx of Giza.

Ramses II, also known as Ramses the Great, ruled Egypt for around 60 years, from 1279BC to 1213BC. He is credited with expanding ancient Egypt’s reach as far as modern Syria to the east and modern Sudan to the south.

The 3200-year-old colossal statue of King Ramses II during its transfer to the main entrance of the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo’s twin city Giza. Picture: AFP Photo/Mohamed El-Shahed

The famous statue of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh is surrounded by honour guards as it is relocated. Picture: AP Photo/Amr Nabil

The placement of the colossus, which weighs more than 80 tons and towers at a height of around 12 metres, took place amid a ceremony attended by Egyptian officials and foreign diplomats.

The massive statue — which for more than 50 years had graced the Ramsis Square, named after the statue, in downtown Cairo — was moved in an iron cage hung like a pendulum on a steel bridge to around 400m from where it stood earlier, at the museum compound.

“We are celebrating the arrival of the first artefact to its final venue in the atrium of the Grand Egyptian Museum,” Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani said, referring to the colossus.

The relocation of the colossus cost 13.6 million Egyptian pounds, al-Anani said, which today is about $957,995, and involved military corps of engineers and a contracting company.

The gargantuan statue is 12 metres tall and weighs more than 80 tons. Picture: AP Photo/Amr Nabil

Ramses II was discovered in 1820 near ancient Memphis by Giovanni Battista Caviglia, a key figure in the excavation of the Sphinx of Giza. Picture: AFP Photo/Mohamed El-Shahed

Al-Anani said the museum entrance hall will also host 87 other artefacts, including 43 massive statues. He said that the first phase of the new museum, including the atrium, will be inaugurated later this year. The grand opening of the new museum is expected to take place in 2022.

The museum covers about 490,000 sqm and will house some of Egypt’s most unique and precious artefacts, including many belonging to the famed boy King Tutankhamun.

Egypt hopes the inauguration of the new museum, along with a string of recent discoveries, will help spur a vital tourism industry that has been reeling from the political turmoil that engulfed Egypt following the 2011 popular uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

On Thursday, Egypt marked the seventh anniversary of the uprising.

Ramses II, also known as Ramses the Great, ruled Egypt for around 60 years and is credited with expanding ancient Egypt’s reach as far as modern Syria to the east and modern Sudan to the south. Picture: AFP Photo/Mohamed El-Shahed