‘On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt’ exhibition currently being held at the Shanghai Museum in the People's Republic of China has achieved widespread success since its opening on July 19, attracting 136,000 visitors in the first two weeks.
This impressive turnout has prompted the Shanghai Museum to extend visiting hours into the evening for four days a week, ensuring the exhibition can accommodate the set number of visitors for each session.
Dr. Mohamed Ismail Khaled, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, explained that the evening visiting hours will begin at 5:00 PM, immediately following the morning session, and will extend until 9:00 PM on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays throughout the summer vacation period for schools and universities. This extension reflects the exhibition's success and the Chinese public's eagerness to learn more about and engage closely with ancient Egyptian civilization.
He emphasized that this exhibition serves as a means of promoting Egyptian tourism, particularly cultural tourism, which is a key interest for Chinese tourists.
It is noteworthy that ‘On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt’ exhibition was inaugurated on July 19, 2024, and is scheduled to run in China until August 2025.
The exhibition features 787 artifacts selected from the collections of several renowned Egyptian museums, including statues of ancient Egyptian kings such as King Ramses II, King Akhenaten, King Tutankhamun, King Amenemhat III, and King Merneptah, as well as deities like Osiris, Isis, Bastet, Hathor, the Apis bull, and Thoth.
The exhibition also showcases a collection of gold bracelets inlaid with gemstones, vessels, crowns, royal cartouches, and items representing the ancient Egyptian concept of the afterlife, such as a distinguished collection of painted wooden coffins and canopic jars.
Additionally, it includes several artifacts discovered by the Egyptian mission in the Saqqara archaeological area, including colored coffins, mummified animal remains, a faience ushabti figure, and a group of limestone statues from the Old Kingdom period.