Egypt prepares for ‘Golden Parade’ of ancient mummies

ANKARA

Egypt is gearing up to hold a historic procession for the remains of 22 royal mummies through the streets of Cairo on Saturday.

The ancient mummies -- 18 kings and 4 queens -- will be transferred from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo’s Tahrir Square to the new National Museum of Egyptian Civilization.

In preparation for the procession, dubbed the “Pharaohs’ Golden Parade”, a special wagon was manufactured for each of the mummies, bearing a unified logo, the mummy’s name, and surname in Arabic, English, and hieroglyphs.

According to the Egyptian media, 400 channels, half of which are international, are expected to broadcast the event, in addition to a huge ceremony hosted by a number of Egyptian and foreign celebrities.

“The procession is the first in Egypt’s history that brings these kings together and will last an hour,” Ahmed Ghoneim, the CEO of the Egyptian Museum of Egyptian Civilization, said in a statement.

The mummies that were discovered in two batches from a site in southern Egypt in 1871 and 1898 were prepared to be an icon in the new museum with a view to attracting visitors, according to statements from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism.

The paraded mummies include King Ramses II, King Seknen Ra, King Tuthmosis III, King Seti I, Queen Hatshepsut, Queen Meritamen, wife of King Amenhotep the First, and Queen Ahmose-Nefertari, wife of King Ahmose.

*Bassel Barakat in Ankara contributed to this report