Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) received on Tuesday 10 relics of the ancient Khufu Ship to undergo restoration in preparation for displaying the antiquities during the museum's opening in 2020. For decades, the relics were kept in the same place where they were found near of the Grand Pyramid. The transfer of the 10 relics brings the total antiquities belonging to the ship planned to be showcased at the GEM to 852 relics. The restoration of Khufu Ship relics will be carried out along with King Tutankhamun's golden coffin, which was also transferred to the GEM last week. Minister of Antiquities Khaled Anany followed up the transfer process, and witnessed the start of the coffin's restoration. Unlike the coffin that was reported to be seriously damaged, the Khufu Ship pieces are in good shape. The restoration of the young Pharaoh's golden coffin would last for approximately eight months. The coffin "suffered a lot of damage, including cracks in the golden layers of plaster and a general weakness in all golden layers," Eissa Zidan, head of the First Aid Restoration and Transportation of Antiquities Department at the GEM, said in a press release. A detailed report on the condition of the coffin showed all the damages before its transfer to the GEM's restoration labs. Tarik Tawfik, the general director of the GEM, previously told Daily News Egypt that the museum's restoration labs are open for visits for EGP 200, with a maximum 10 people at a time to enter the lab. Most of the antiquities planned to be on display at the GEM are currently under restoration preparing for the opening by the last quarter of 2020. The mega museum will not only host the complete collection of Tutankhamen's belongings for the first time in history since they were found, it will also display 20,000 antiquities that have been never on display.
