In an unprecedented live exhibition, the Grand Egyptian Museum has commenced the meticulous reassembly of a 4,500-year-old royal boat belonging to Pharaoh Khufu, allowing visitors to witness history being restored in real time.
A Century's Most Significant Restoration
The ambitious project, described by Egypt's Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy as "one of the most important restoration projects in the 21st century," began on Tuesday, 23 December 2025. Dozens of visitors watched as experts started piecing together the 1,650 individual wooden parts of the colossal cedarwood vessel.
Issa Zeidan, head of restoration at the museum, stated that the assembly of the 42-metre (137-foot) -long boat is expected to take approximately four years to complete. The boat now sits in the exhibition hall next to its already-assembled twin, which was discovered alongside it.
Unravelling the Mystery of the Solar Boats
The vessel is one of two boats discovered in 1954 opposite the southern side of the Great Pyramid of Giza, which Khufu himself commissioned. While the exact purpose of these majestic boats remains a subject of scholarly debate, experts posit they were either used in the pharaoh's funeral procession or were intended for his symbolic journey with the sun god Ra in the afterlife.
The painstaking excavation of this particular boat's wooden components began back in 2014, according to the museum's official records. The launch of its public reassembly marks the culmination of over a decade of preparatory conservation work.
A Billion-Dollar Boost for Heritage and Economy
This landmark event underscores the cultural significance of the $1 billion Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), inaugurated just last month and touted as the world's largest museum. Located near the Giza pyramids on the outskirts of Cairo, GEM is now home to nearly 50,000 artefacts, including the complete treasures from King Tutankhamun's tomb.
Authorities anticipate that the museum, and unique ongoing projects like the boat reassembly, will provide a substantial boost to Egypt's vital tourism sector, helping to revitalise the nation's economy. The chance to observe such a rare conservation process firsthand is expected to be a major draw for international visitors and history enthusiasts from the UK and beyond.
