Antiquities Min. Opens Tanta Museum Free for Public for 2 Weeks

Egyptian Minister of Antiquities Dr. Khaled El-Anani said that Tanta Museum will be opened free of charge for visitors during the coming two weeks.

This comes during the museum’s inauguration ceremony after 19 years of closure. The inauguration comes in the framework of the ministry’s plan to renovate and reopen closed museums throughout the country.

The Minister added that Tanta Museum is the oldest regional archaeological museum in Egypt, as it was established in 1913.

El-Anani noted that the museum is of great importance to Al-Gharbia governorate because it will help in creating new tourist attractions, in addition to spreading the archaeological awareness to the residents there.

The minister also thanked the governor of Gharbia for the efforts made to develop the museum and accelerated its re-opening.

The governor presented the province's shield to the Antiquities Minister.

The idea of establishing an archaeological museum in Tanta is one of the oldest projects aiming to establish regional museums in Egypt. In 1913; the city’s municipal building was chosen to be the first archaeological museum in the province, but it was closed, while the antiquities were transferred to the entrance of the municipal cinema building in 1957.

On October 29, 1990, the museum was re-opened, but due to the problems faced by the building, it was closed again in 2000, while it continued to provide its cultural and educational services to the people of the province.

Tanta Museum includes 8579 artifacts from various eras including the Pharaonic, Roman and Greek eras. It is the only preserved archaeological museum in Gharbia.

The Display Scenario Committee changed the museums former display in order to present the numerous artifacts in a modern eye-catching manner.

The museum displaying scenario will be pided into two sections; the first section includes the archaeological discoveries of the excavations that took place in Gharbia Governorate, and the second section includes pieces that depict daily life, resurrection and immortality.

The museum consists of five floors- the first floor is dedicated to distinguished services, the second and third floors will be used to display various artifacts. The fourth floor is reserved for the administrative offices of the museum staff, while the fifth floor has lecture and conference halls.