Egypt seeks to revive tourism with archaeological discoveries

CAIRO－With the flourishing archaeological discoveries in several provinces in Egypt this year, the Tourism Ministry has joined the Antiquities Ministry in organizing ceremonial events to promote the discoveries as the tourism industry recovers after almost a decade of recession.

The two ministries are inviting foreign media outlets to cover the discoveries. Many foreign ambassadors are invited to visit them as well, since the envoys are believed to be messengers to the world about Egypt's safety and unique antiquities.

On World Heritage Day, April 18, the ministries marked the international event by announcing the discovery of a large 3,500-year-old rock-cut tomb on the Nile River's west bank near the Valley of Kings in Upper Egypt's monument-rich province of Luxor.

"These various discoveries, along with the different exhibitions of Egyptian antiquities abroad, attract more tourists to come to Egypt," Tourism Minister Rania al-Mashat said during the ceremony attended by the Egyptian Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly and other officials, celebrities and about 20 foreign ambassadors.

Later in the afternoon, Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anany invited all attendees, including local and foreign media outlets, to visit colorful Nefertari tomb, which belonged to the wife of legendary ancient king Ramses II.

In the evening at Luxor Temple on the east riverbank, they held a ceremony to unveil a large 60-ton, 12-meter-tall colossus of Ramses II after its restoration and re-erection to be standing next to five other statues at the temple's pylon.

The next day, they opened Opet Temple for the first time to visitors, following its recent restoration at Luxor's Karnak Temple Complex on the east bank.

The tourism industry brought Egypt about $13 billion in revenues in 2010 alone, when some 14.7 million tourists visited the country. In 2017, the number was down to 8.5 million, according to the World Tourism Organization. The decline is attributed political turmoil and relevant security challenges that resulted from the ouster of two heads of state in 2011 and 2013.

"We have a very active excavation season this year as we have made several discoveries over the past few weeks," Egyptian Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anany said at the archaeological site in Luxor, noting that such discoveries "boost cultural tourism in Egypt."

The event in Luxor came a few days after the Antiquities Ministry opened at Saqqara necropolis, near the Pyramids of Giza, the newly discovered tomb of Khuwy, a nobleman who lived at the end of the Fifth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom, some 4,500 years ago.

In February, in the desert of Tuna el-Gebel necropolis of Minya province southern Egypt, the ministry announced the discovery of a tomb including more than 50 mummies in a perfect condition of preservation.

"Cultural tourism has been declining worldwide while increasing in Egypt," Mashat said in a statement.

The massive Grand Egyptian Museum, now under construction near the Grand Pyramid of Giza, is slated to feature over 100,000 pieces and to become a destination for both tourists and the world's Egyptologists and archaeologists.

XINHUA