The Grand Egyptian Museum, an ambitious $1 billion project that will house the largest collection of artefacts from ancient Egypt, is set to be completed by the end of 2020.
The confirmation comes from Major General Atef Moftah, who is also an engineer and was tasked by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah Al Sisi to lead the endeavor in 2016. Located on the Giza plateau, the archaeological museum will measure nearly half a million square metres is now "96.5 per cent" complete, says Moftah.
The museum will contain around 100,000 artefacts that will be installed over a period of months before the official opening in 2021.
Its construction has been stalled for decades. Plans for the project were first announced in 1992, and the museum was meant to open in 2011, but efforts have faced numerous setbacks. Even the 2021 schedule is the result of a recent delay after Al Sisi halted construction activities across Egypt in April due to the coronavirus pandemic.
What to expect when it opens
Designed in 2003 by Heneghan Peng, an architecture firm from Dublin, the museum will feature a triangular wall motif, much like its neighbouring structures the Pyramids of Giza, which can be see through large glass windows from inside the building.
At the heart of the museum’s collection are 5,000 artefacts from the tomb of Tutankhamun. The millennia-old artefacts feature golden treasures, from statues, fans and jewellery, to objects owned by the pharaoh, such as boomerangs and walking sticks.
Since the 1960s, a number of Tutankhamun’s treasures have been touring the world via the exhibition Tutankhamun: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh organised by entertainment company Exhibitions International. However, there has been controversy around the legality of the loaning of the works, according to a BBC investigation. The report revealed that the loan may have breached Egypt’s Antiquities Protection Law, which states that artefacts cannot be lent to commercial companies.
The objects are set to permanently return to Egypt when the exhibition ends in 2024, which means that the Grand Egyptian Museum may open without the much sought-after collection.
A statue of Ramses the Great will tower over visitors in the atrium that has been specifically customised to its size. At 11 metres high, it will be the largest artefact in the museum once it opens. Made of red granite and weighing 83 tonnes, the statue arrived at the site in 2018, transported from just outside of Cairo’s main railway station where it used to be displayed.
On Thursday, August 6, two royal statues arrived in Egypt from the US after the artefacts were displayed in the touring exhibition The Sunken Cities: The Enchanting World of Egypt, which started in 2015 and has also previously travelled to Paris, London, and Zurich.
The two pink granite statues, both five metres high and depict a Ptolemaic king and queen, will also be housed inside the museum.
Along a grand staircase in the main hall, 87 statues of pharaohs and Egyptian gods will stand as a testament to the region’s ancient history. Preservation efforts of other objects and artefacts, specifically Tutankhamun’s treasures, are still underway to make them display-ready when the museum finally welcomes visitors.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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Directed by: Todd Phillips
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Winner Bella Fever, Dane O’Neill (jockey), Mike de Kock (trainer).
7.05pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Woven, Harry Bentley, David Simcock.
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Winner Beyond Reason, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
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The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
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Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More on Quran memorisation:
Jumanji: The Next Level
Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
More on animal trafficking
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Directed: Smeep Kang
Produced: Soham Rockstar Entertainment; SKE Production
Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Jimmy Sheirgill, Sunny Singh, Omkar Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma
Rating: Two out of five stars
'Operation Mincemeat'
Director: John Madden
Cast: Colin Firth, Matthew Macfayden, Kelly Macdonald and Penelope Wilton
Rating: 4/5
