El Shinawy Palace, The winner of the best Italian architecture will be converted into a museum

Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim visited El Shinawy Palace in Mansoura, Middle of the Delta, to review the project of turning the Palace into a museum at a cost of 22 million pounds funded by the Ministry of Antiquities to host the discovered antiquities in Dakahliya governorate which including antiquities expand from Pre historic to New Kingdom.

The late owner of this Palace, Mohamed Bey El Shinawy was one of El Saadeen Party’s leaders at the time of the British occupation and a member of the Parliament

Many politicians and artists stayed in this Palace before including Mostafa El Nahas Pasha, Egyptian Prime minister for 5 times and Saad Pasha Zaghloul, the leader of 1919 revolution against the British occupation and the former Prime minister. This is why it is called "Beit El Omma in Mansoura" or House of the Nation in Mansoura

The Palace filled with Italian alabaster columns decorated in a style mixing the Arabian and European architecture. The ebony staircase was brought in one piece from Italy and it is nail-free. The ambience in this Palace doesn’t show only in the unique architecture or the art masterpieces on the walls and ceilings but also in the marble flooring in the terrace which is the same as in El Montaza Palace in Alexandria

The Palace was built in 1928 by Italian architects and won a prize for the best Italian architectural Palace was built outside of Italy at that time.

 The total area of the museum is 2450 meters square of three floors will contain 7 show rooms. The estimated time to finish the project is two years. 

#Egypt #Museum

Saving the twin statues of Amenhotep III in Kom El Hetan

Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim says: “The Egyptian European mission working on Amenhotep III temple in Kom El Hettan, started the process of moving 2 statues of Amenhotep III after discovering them in a plot of land next to the temple on the west bank”

 The Minister referred that those two statues are considered the largest of Amenhotep III. Each of the limestone statues are of 14 meters high, based on 4 meters high base. The statues represented the King standing at the northern entrances of the temple. They were discovered in 1933 then re-discovered in 2010 and recently they were submerged in irrigation water in the agriculture area where also a water pipe exploded which exposed them to great danger and required a quick intervention to safe and move the statues.

The Minister said that the moving process will take a week from now and this event will help in returning tourism to Egypt and Luxor in particular.

Dr. Mohamed Abd El Maqsoud, Deputy Head of the Egyptian Antiquities department and the head of the team, said that the moving project is considered the biggest ongoing projects in Luxor at the moment.

A German team participating in the project which is funded by the German side to move the statues 60 meters to make sure they are safe then the restoration project will start which will include rejoining more than 20 blocks to the statues.

There are inscriptions on the base of one of the statues in addition to the back of the statue which bears the name of the King whilst the other statue shows the King wearing the white crown of the South. The second statue is in better condition and no fractures on the face.

Abd El Maqsoud added “The completion of the restoration project is expected in a year’s time.”

 

For more on the discoveries in the same site please check our links below

 A statue of Amenhotep III was found: The largest so far  

 Revealing the newly re-erected colossal statue of Amenhotep III in the Funerary Temple of the King on west bank 

Amenhotep III statue found on west bank,Luxor

New Statue found on west bank,Luxor Alabaster Statue of Amenhotep III found on west bankAmenhotep III lost eye is back in Luxor

The Missing parts are here, 130 years later 

New discovery by Amenhotep III Temple on West Bank, Luxor The International Research Conference “In Search for New Concepts and Technologies for Conservation and Preservation of The Colossi of Memnon & The Mortuary Temple of Amenhotep III”