Is the Egyptian Museum Worth Visiting? Find out all the exhibits worth seeing and maybe even a reason to NOT visit the museum!
The Egyptian museum in Cairo has an amazing cultural significance for Egypt and it is not to be missed if you are traveling to Cairo. The museum houses the oldest collection in the world for Pharaonic art and it is the first national museum in the Middle East. If you are an art or antiquities enthusiasts, the Egyptian museum is worth visiting.
I have been an Egyptian enthusiast all of my life and fascinated with mummies and the country’s history. If you also love Egyptian history and mummies, a trip to the Egyptian museum is a must as it contains the world’s largest ancient Egyptian collection. Did you know ancient Egyptians had strong female Queens who ruled the country?
Is The Egyptian Museum Worth Visiting?
With 13,600 square feet of space, the Egyptian museum contains 120,000 pieces of antiquities from Egypt. The museum has 100 exhibit halls and has a collection from prehistory to Graeco-Roman period.
From the vast numbers alone, the amount of art and cultural history is so extensive that this museum is worth visiting if you want to learn more about Egyptian history. When I visited the museum, I spent at least 2-3 hours there and did not get to see everything. There were so much hieroglyphics, art, tombs, mummies, and others – all part of the history of Egypt!
If you do not enjoy walking around museums or don’t care about seeing the cultural pieces of Egypt, then you can skip this museum. It does take a lot of time to see it all.
A caveat — if you love mummies and only want to see the Royal Mummies of the King and Queens, they are not housed at this museum. This museum is more about the artefacts of Egypt!
Egyptian Museum Quick Info
- Location: El-Tahrir Square. You can take a taxi there.
- Hours: 9am-5pm. Ticket office hours 8:30am-4pm.
- Ticket Prices
- ENTRANCE FEE FOR EGYPTIANS AND ARAB CITIZENS: Adult: EGP 30/ Student: EGP 10
- ENTRANCE FEE FOR OTHER NATIONALITIES: Adult: EGP 450 / Student: EGP 230
- Payment accepted: Credit card.
- You can buy tickets online on the museum website directly.
- I recommend hiring a private tour guide to take you around the museum and give you some history and background on the important items! There are A LOT of things to see and it can be overwhelming to absorb all the info on your own.
➡️ BOOK MY SAME TOUR OF THE EGYPTIAN MUSEUM HERE!
Why The Egyptian Museum Is Worth Visiting
The Egyptian Museum contains so many pieces of important cultural history. If you are a history buff or just enjoying learning about the culture of the country, then the museum will contain many artifacts that are worth seeing! From art, statues, tombs, mummies and papyrus exhibit, you will see more than enough ancient Egyptian antiquities, including thousands of years of hieroglyphics at the museum.
Some reasons why the Egyptian Museum is Worth Visiting:
1. Cultural Significance
The Egyptian museum was created from the result of a competition set up by the Egyptian government in 1895 to find the most practical design to house Egyptian artifacts. The winner of the building design was French architect Marcel Dourgnon.
There are many cultural and historical significance to this museum for Egypt. It is not only the museum that houses the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts in the world, but it is also the oldest archaeological museum in the Middle East. The museum was also used as a place for scientific research and conservation for Egypt. It was even used as a headquarters for the National Democratic Party.
2. Mummies Hallway
On the upper floor, there is the Mummy Hallway that houses at least 11 mummies. There used to be two full rooms with mummies of old Kings and royal families of the new Kingdom, but in 2021, many of them were moved to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. That being said, you can still see some lesser known family members’ mummified bodies with beautiful coffins.
3. Statue Hallway in Central Hall
On the first floor, you cannot miss the grand hallway that houses some of the most famous statues of Egypt. This includes:
- The statues of Amenhotep III and Tiye which consists of Pharaoh Amenhotep, his wife Tiye and 3 of their daughters. It is the largest grouping of statues ever carved.
- The pyramid of Amenemhat III is a stone pyramid with beautiful Egyptian hieroglyphs from the Middle Kingdom period.
- The Sarcophagus of Queen Hatshepsut, one of the most famous Queens of Egyptian history.
- The Sarcophagus of King Merenptah. Merneptah was a pharaoh of the 19th dynasty of ancient Egypt and a son of Ramses II.
4. The King Tutankhamun Exhibit
King Tutankhamuan, aka King Tut, was a boy King who ascended the throne at age 9. He died around age 18 — and the cause of death to this day is still relatively unknown.
Since he was a young King who ruled for less than a decade, he was only famous in modern history due to the fact his tomb was discovered in 1922 by British Egyptologist Howard Carter and most of the artifacts remained untouched.
Most of the time when a tomb is found, the original contents are usually stolen by tomb robbers since items are usually of high value. However, with King Tut, the tomb contents consisted of over 5,000 items were still entact, and gave the rest of the world a new spotlight on ancient Egypt.
This King Tut exhibit at the Egyptian museum houses the many artifacts from the tomb of King Tutankhaumn, including the famous mask that is still shown in full colors. The exhibit also includes the ceremonial seat, statue and throne of King Tut. Many artifacts were also transported to the Great Egyptian Muuseum.
You can see a virtual tour here of the King Tut exhibit!
I think the coolest exhibit of the museum is King Tut’s exhibit, and that alone can make the Egyptian Museum worth visiting since it’s such an important part of Egyptian history,
5. Yuya and Thuya Mummies
Yuya was a powerful Egyptian nobleman who lived around 1390 BC. His wife, Thuya, was an Egyptian noblewoman who held high status and offices in the government and religious circles. Thuya was allegedly the descent of Queen Ahmose-Nefertiti.
Yuya and Thuya had a daughter Tiye who ended up the royal wife of Paraoh Amenhotep III. Royal wives are held in great esteem as they received the highest religious position.
The tomb of Yuya and Thuya were significant because it was one of the most spectacular and well-preserved tombs ever found in the Valley of the Kings— that is, until the they found King Tut. Most tombs are usually robbed by the time they are discovered, but their tombs had many artifacts remaining like chariots, chairs, and even Yuya’s copy of the Book of the Dead.
Most importantly, their mummified bodies were well preserved and largely undisturbed. Their faces were mostly preserved in the mummification process which helped show the actual human faces.
Yuya and Thuya’s masks, with their mummified bodies and sarcophagus, are on display on the second floor of the Egyptian Museum. Personally, I think this exhibit and King Tut’s, since theirs tombs were so special in preservation, makes the Egyptian Museum worth visiting.
6. Animal Mummies
Ancient Egyptians gave a great deal of respect to animals, as they believed animals were important to their physical and spiritual well-being. Animals would be shown in hieroglyphics and paintings, along with keeping them as household pets.
With this knowledge, it is no surprise ancient Egyptians also mummified their animals. On the top floor, you’ll find an area in the museum dedicated to mummified animals, even a crocodile!
7. Papyrus Exhibit
Papyrus is a material like paper that Egyptians used for writing among other things. It is made from a papyrus plant that can be cut into strips, pressed together and dried into paper. It can also be made into rope, baskets, and even sandals.
In the papyrus exhibit, you can see how the Egyptians used papyrus to depict ancient writings and artwork. You can even buy your own at a papyrus shop! Our tour group stopped by an amazing papyrus shop where you can choose various Egyptian painting printed onto papyrus paper. I got one that glowed in the dark!
Why The Egyptian Museum Isn’t Worth Visiting
If you want to see royal mummies, the Egyptian museum is not the place to see famous mummies of Egyptian history. While there are some lesser known mummies here, it’s mostly of the lesser noblemen and family members. The mummies of the Kings and Queens of Egypt are housed at The National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in The Royal Mummies Hall.
This museum is mostly filled with artifacts like statues, art, furniture, etc. You will see a lot of hieroglyphs on stones and parts of old temples. And there are a LOT of those, so you don’t enjoy that type of museum, it will get boring quickly. If you just want to see mummies and tombs, the other museums in Egypt will suit you better.
Egyptian Museum Tips For Travelers
Here are some practical visiting tips for when you visit this incredibly large museum! Wear comfortable walking shoes as it will be a long day walking around.
Come Early or Later in Day
The museum is huge but can get very crowded with tourists. It took us several hours to walk around and see everything. I would recommend going either early in the day or later after 2pm to avoid the tour groups.
Egypt is best to visit between November-April, so if you do come off tourist season (May-October), the museum should be much quieter.
Start with Upper Floor First
The place can be overwhelming and I would recommend starting with the upper floor and work your way down. The mummies and famous masks are upstairs, along with the papyrus exhibits and smaller artefacts. Yuya and tuya are upstairs and those were beautiful to see.
The lower level houses most of the bigger items like the big statues and larger tombs.
Read the timeline on Egyptian Museum website
On the main website, the museum provides an easy to read timeline of Egyptian history that will help you with some context of what you are seeing at the museum.
Wear comfortable walking shoes
You would be surprised how many steps I took at the Egyptian museum over several hours- over 15,000 steps! There are not any places to sit around the museum to rest. You may see one or two benches everyone is hovering around!
Bring your own toilet paper
There are limited bathrooms and they always have a huge line for women and do not provide toilet paper. Make sure you bring your own toilet paper to the bathroom.
FAQs
What should I expect at the Egyptian Museum? Questions to the most popular questions below!
What is special about the Egyptian Museum?
The Egyptian museum houses more than 120,000 artefacts of Egyptian history and was the first museum of Africa and Middle East that was built specifically to house ancient artefacts.
Is the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities the same as the Egyptian Museum?
Yes! The Egyptian museum is also known as the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities.
How long should you spend at the Egyptian Museum?
Depending on how long you want to see each piece of artefact, you can be there for 2-4 hours. Wear some comfortable walking shoes and bring water!
Do I need a tour guide for Egyptian museum?
I highly recommend this tour as it is a huge museum and your guide can highlight the ones of more historical significance. It can be overwhelming to walk around on your own, as there is so many artefacts to see!
Does the Egyptian Museum have mummies?
Yes! About 11 mummies of the nobles of Egypt. You can see Yuya and Tuya’s mummified bodies on the upper floor which are well-preserved. The royal mummies of Kings and Queens are now housed at the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization.
Summary: Is the Egyptian Musuem Worth Visiting?
The Egyptian Museum is a staple to Egyptian culture and it’s worth visiting to see its ancient antiquities. But if you ONLY want to see the royal mummies, then the National Museum would be a better fit! If you do go to the Egyptian Museum, plan to spend several hours there and get a tour guide to help you navigate the museum efficiently!
Check out my other posts about visiting Egypt!