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Pharaoh Ramses II’s Sarcophagus in Paris for Rare Loan 

A great warrior and temple builder, Ramses II ruled Egypt from 1279-1213 BC. (AFP)
A great warrior and temple builder, Ramses II ruled Egypt from 1279-1213 BC. (AFP)
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Pharaoh Ramses II’s Sarcophagus in Paris for Rare Loan 

A great warrior and temple builder, Ramses II ruled Egypt from 1279-1213 BC. (AFP)
A great warrior and temple builder, Ramses II ruled Egypt from 1279-1213 BC. (AFP)

The sarcophagus of ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II is to return to Paris in April for the first time in almost 50 years, in a rare loan of the relic outside Egypt. 

The ornate coffin will be on show in the French capital from April 7 to September 6, the star attraction alongside an exhibition previously shown in San Francisco and which will conclude in Sydney -- minus the sarcophagus. 

"I almost wept for joy that I would be seeing him again here when they told me he was coming to Paris," said Dominique Farout, an Egyptologist at the prestigious Ecole du Louvre art history school who is scientific commissioner to the exhibit. 

"I was 16 in 1976" when Ramses II was last in Paris, Farout added. "I had a big poster in my bedroom. I went eight times in a row." 

Farout said Egyptian authorities had made an exception in loaning the yellow-painted cedar-wood sarcophagus to France. It did not travel to San Francisco and will not be included when the rest of the exhibition packs up and heads to Sydney. 

The gesture marks gratitude towards Paris, where scientists preserved Ramses II's mummy by treating it against fungus when it was exhibited in 1976. 

This time, the sculpted coffin will be shown empty, as Egyptian law now forbids transporting royal mummies abroad.  

It depicts the recumbent king in bright colours with his arms crossed on his chest holding his scepter and whip of office.  

His eyes outlined in black, he wears a striped pharaonic headdress and a braided false beard.  

One of the best-known pharaohs, reputed as a great warrior and builder of temples, Ramses II ruled from 1279-1213 BC. 

Inscriptions on the sarcophagus' sides detail how his body was moved three times from 1070 BC, after his tomb in Luxor's Valley of the Kings was raided by grave-robbers. 

Its final resting place was discovered in 1881, just as it too was being pillaged. 

As well as the coffin, the Paris exhibition will include vast numbers of ancient Egyptian objects, solid gold and silver jewels, statues, amulets, masks and other sarcophagi. 

Only animal mummies will be on show, including cats which were "raised and sacrificed to the gods", Farout said. 

Other treasures come from the capital Tanis that Ramses II built east of the Nile Delta, including a solid silver coffin, finger and toe sheaths and solid-gold masks decorated with jewels. 

Exhibition organizers hope large numbers of people will make the trip to the La Villette exhibition center in northeast Paris. A previous exhibition about Tutankhamun drew 1.4 million visitors to the same place in 2019. 

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Varieties

Mobile Cinema Brings Tunisians Big Screen Experience

Movie theaters are scarce in Tunisia, numbering at just 15 and largely concentrated in major urban hubs - AFP
Movie theaters are scarce in Tunisia, numbering at just 15 and largely concentrated in major urban hubs - AFP
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Mobile Cinema Brings Tunisians Big Screen Experience

Movie theaters are scarce in Tunisia, numbering at just 15 and largely concentrated in major urban hubs - AFP
Movie theaters are scarce in Tunisia, numbering at just 15 and largely concentrated in major urban hubs - AFP

Like many of his fellow Tunisians, 23-year-old Amine Elhani has never been to the cinema, but now, thanks to a mobile theater touring the country, he can finally enjoy the big screen.

The bright red truck of CinemaTdour, or "moving cinema", has transformed parking lots and factory grounds in underserved towns and neighbourhoods across the North African country into pop-up theaters.

In the central town of Djemmal, dozens of workers unloaded the expandable truck, easily setting up a fully equipped outdoor movie theater with 100 seats.

"The screen is huge, and the sound effects are amazing," said Elhani, who had so far only watched films on his phone or computer.

He had "never had the chance to go to a movie theater", he told AFP.

"It's a fantastic experience, especially because I'm watching with friends."

Movie theaters are scarce in Tunisia, numbering at just 15 and largely concentrated in major urban hubs.

Recognizing this gap, CinemaTdour was launched in May by private cultural network Agora and nonprofit Focus Gabes, with funding from private donors.

"We wanted a way to reach as many viewers as possible, in a short time and on a limited budget, while offering them an authentic cinematic experience," project director Ghofrane Heraghi told AFP.

Mobile cinemas have long existed in other countries, but Heraghi said CinemaTdour was "unique" for turning a truck into a full-fledged theater.

Without government funding, CinemaTdour relies heavily on partnerships with private companies to cover costs like film rights, maintenance and staffing.

The truck itself was purchased on credit for about one million Tunisian dinars ($315,000), Heraghi said, with annual operating expenses of around 500,000 dinars.

For 10 days in Djemmal, residents could watch films for free thanks to a partnership with German car parts manufacturer Draxlmaier, which has a factory in the town.

Jihene Ben Amor, Draxlmaier's communications manager in Tunisia, said the company wanted to "contribute to the development" of remote and underserved regions where it operates.

For many workers, earning up to 1,000 dinars a month, the cost of tickets and the journey to a main city with a movie theater can be prohibitive.

"Having this cinema right outside their workplace also gives workers a sense of pride and belonging," said Ben Amor.

- 'Social impact' -

After Djemmal, CinemaTdour set up in Hay Hlel, an impoverished neighbourhood of the capital Tunis.

Many children gathered around the pop-up theater, eager for their turn.

Yomna Warhani, 11, was beaming with excitement, anticipating her first ever movie screening.

"I can't wait to see what it's like inside and what films they'll show," she said.

Nejiba El Hadji, a 47-year-old mother of four, said: "It's not just the kids who are thrilled, believe me."

To her, the mobile cinema was a rare source of joy in an otherwise bleak environment.

"We have nothing here, no cultural centers and no entertainment, just the streets," said Hadji.

"People say our kids are lost, but no one does anything about it."

CinemaTdour's two-week stay in Hay Hlel was funded by the World Health Organization, with screenings themed on mental health, smoking and drug abuse, and violence against women.

The shows were tailored for younger audiences as well as for viewers with hearing or visual impairments.

Heraghi, the project head, said that "what drives us is the social impact of culture."

"We want to break stereotypes, shift mindsets, and promote values like social cohesion and community spirit."

In just a few months, CinemaTdour has reached more than 15,000 people, including 7,500 in the southern oasis town of Nefta where a month of free screenings was sponsored by a date exporter.

The project now hopes to secure funding for additional trucks to expand its activities across the country.

But Heraghli has even bigger aspirations, she said, "taking it to Algeria, Libya, and maybe even across Africa".