CAIRO, Dec 4 (NNN-MENA) – The newly-restored Imhotep Museum was reopened yesterday, at the Saqqara necropolis, south of the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
Named after Imhotep, an architect and a minister to Djoser, the second king of Egypt’s third dynasty, the museum houses 286 artefacts in six halls, in addition to about 70 artefacts on temporary display.
Imhotep was considered the architect of the Step Pyramid of Djoser, built in the 27th century B.C., making it the earliest colossal stone building in Egyptian history.
The museum is “one of the most beautiful archaeological site museums,” Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Ahmed Issa, said, at the reopening ceremony.
Its collection ranges from statues, vessels, and stelae, to monument-building and burial tools, most of which were excavated in Saqqara. The necropolis has been enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage site, together with the pyramid complexes of Giza and Dahshur.
Located in an area of about 1,500 square metres, the museum was opened in 2006, until it was closed for renovation, in Mar, 2022, by Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.– NNN-MENA
