“French excavations in Egypt, Research, Cooperation and Innovation” is the title of the exhibition Minister of Antiquities Khaled El-Enany and French Ambassador to Egypt Stephane Romatet officially inaugurated as a temporary archaeological exhibition at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir.

The exhibition is a collection of artefacts French missions unearthed in Egypt.

Laurent Coulon, director of the French Archaeological Istitute for oriental studies (IFAO), said the exhibition falls within the framework of the French-Egyptian Cultural Year 2019, and is organised in collaboration between the Ministry of Antiquities and the IFAO.

Coulon added the exhibition highlights the French-Egyptian friendship and cooperation in archaeology.

Some 100 artefacts uncovered from different archaeological sites are showcased at the Egyptian Museum. The artefacts date back to prehistoric times through the Middle Ages.

Among the most important exhibits are king Khufu’s Wadi Al-Jarf Papyri, considered the oldest papyri found in the world. It was unearthed in 2013 in Wadi Al-Jarf port, 24km south of Zaafarana and 119km south of Suez.

The papyri show the daily life of workers at Wadi Al-Jarf during the reign of king Khufu, and how they constructed the Great Pyramid at the Giza Plateau. It tells how the workers transported stones from the Tora limestone quarry to the plateau to build the Great Pyramid of Khufu, which indicates the highly efficient administrative system during Khufu’s reign.

A collection of panels illustrating the activities of French missions at archaeological sites is also on show.

France is one of Egypt's key partners in the archaeological field, operating through three permanent archaeological centres: IFAO, the French Egyptian Centre for Karnak Temples Studies, and the Alexandria Studies Centre.