Ismailia Monuments Museum

Ismailia Monuments Museum 

The Ismailia National Museum, a magnificent testament to Egypt's rich history and cultural heritage, stands proudly as one of the oldest regional museums in the country. Located in the Al-Afrang neighborhood of Ismailia governorate, this esteemed institution opened its doors in 1932, housed within a building that pays homage to the iconic Greco-Roman architecture of Egypt.

The Ismailia Museum of Antiquities, which was first opened to the public in 1934 AD, and is considered one of the oldest regional museums in Egypt. The idea of ​​establishing it came at the end of the 18th century, and coinciding with the Suez Canal Excavation Project (1859-1869 AD), when the French archaeologist "Jean Cledat” who carried out excavations in archaeological sites around the Suez Canal region and North Sinai. 

As all excavation work was at the time, funded and supported by the International Suez Canal Company, and under the supervision of "Maspero", the director of the Egyptian Antiquities Authority, and when the monuments resulting from the excavation work were accumulated, the idea of ​​allocating a place to put these artifacts was suggested, and through Numerous administrative correspondence between "Cledat" and Ferdinand De Lesseps, the idea of ​​establishing the museum came to light.

The Ismailia Museum of Antiquities was officially inaugurated on the 13th of February 1934 AD, and was opened to the public on the 4th of March of the same year, and it is located in the Khan El Franj neighborhood, one of the old neighborhoods in Ismailia.

Museum of Antiquities in Ismailia received a sandstone stela dating back to the 26th dynasty, that kings erected during military campaigns towards the east. It was discovered by a citizen in his farm & he immediately notified the Tourism and Antiquities Police.

The museum includes about 3800 artifacts covering various historical stages of Egyptian civilization. Among the most important pieces that have been unearthed in Ismailia Governorate is a granite statue of the Sphinx from the era of the Middle Kingdom, and a marble sarcophagus of a person named "Jed Hur" dating back to the Ptolemaic era, in addition to a harem from the era of King Ramses II, it was uncovered in the eastern city of Qantara during the digging works of the Suez Canal.