- Title: Colossus of ancient Egyptian King Ramses moved to new home, carefully
- Date: 25th January 2018
- Summary: NEWS CONFERENCE OUTSIDE GRAND EGYPTIAN MUSEUM (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) EGYPTIAN MINISTER OF ANTIQUITIES, KHALED AL-ANANI, SAYING: "3,300 years ago, [the Egyptians] went to the granite stone-pits of Aswan, to cut, erect and sculpt in stone two huge statues that were erected outside the Great Temple of Ptah in the first capital of united Egypt, Memphis, dating back to 5,000 years ago." FORMER MINISTER OF ANTIQUITIES, ZAHI HAWASS TALKING TO PEOPLE (SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER EGYPTIAN MINISTER OF ANTIQUITIES, ZAHI HAWASS, SAYING: "The statue of Ramses II now in front of the Grand Museum will be standing in front of eighty-three statues of eighty-three kings of Egypt. I believe this event is going to be the most important cultural event in the world because it will tell the world about the Grand Museum that is the largest culture project in the whole world. It will tell the people that Egypt is safe. Come to visit us because we need tourism for the preservation of the Egyptian antiquities." RAMSES II OUTSIDE GRAND EGYPTIAN MUSEUM / CROWD LOOKING ON GRAND EGYPTIAN MUSEUM / EGYPTIAN PYRAMIDS
- Embargoed: 8th February 2018 12:35
- Keywords: Egypt Archaeology Ramses II Grand Egyptian Museum
- Location: CAIRO, EGYPT
- City: CAIRO, EGYPT
- Country: Egypt
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA0037ZM1BUV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Egypt moved an 83-tonne, 3,200-year-old statue of King Ramses II to the atrium of Cairo's new Grand Egyptian Museum on Thursday (January 25) in a complex operation undertaken by army engineers and specialist contractors.
The ancient colossus was taken on its 400-metre (437.45-yard) journey inside a cage mounted on a truck and suspended like a pendulum from a steel beam to help offset any jolts from the ground during transport.
The road surfaces were treated with special materials to ensure they could adequately bear Ramses's huge weight. The transfer operation cost 13.6 million Egyptian pounds ($770,000).
Speaking at a ceremony to mark the move, former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass underlined the importance of the museum project to Egypt's tourism sector, which has been damaged in recent years by political violence.
At its new location the statue will be the first thing visitors see as they enter the museum, part of which will open later this year ahead of its expected official launch in 2022.
Egypt's tourism sector is one of the country's main sources of foreign currency but it has struggled since a 2011 uprising that led to years of violent instability including a spate of Islamist militant attacks. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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