Egypt has officially opened the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), a vast new complex at the foot of the Giza Pyramids that houses one of the world’s richest collections of ancient artifacts.
The inauguration on Saturday (1 November 2025) was attended by world leaders, royals, and dignitaries, and marked the culmination of a project long beset by political upheaval, regional conflicts, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly hailed the museum as “a gift from Egypt to the whole world,” calling it the realisation of a national dream decades in the making.
Speaking at the lavish opening ceremony, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said the launch “writes a new chapter in the story of this ancient nation’s present and future.”
The event featured a dazzling display of fireworks, lasers, and music, as dancers in pharaonic-style costumes performed before projections of Egypt’s iconic heritage sites.
Guests included German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, and the crown princes of Oman and Bahrain.
The museum’s star attraction is the full collection of treasures from Tutankhamun’s tomb, discovered in 1922, including the boy-king’s golden mask, throne, and sarcophagus, which are exhibited together for the first time.
A 3,200-year-old statue of Ramses II, relocated from downtown Cairo, now dominates the museum’s vast entrance hall.
Designed by Ireland’s Heneghan Peng Architects, the sleek, pyramid-inspired structure spans 120 acres (around the size of Vatican City) and cost over $1 billion.
Authorities also see the museum as central to reviving Egypt’s tourism industry, a vital source of foreign currency for an economy struggling under inflation and external shocks. With its opening, Egypt hopes the Grand Egyptian Museum will become both a global cultural beacon and a symbol of national pride.
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