Ramses II Statue, Cairo

The Statue of Ramesses II is an ancient sculpture of Ramesses II, a historical figure who lived over 3,200 years ago. This statue portrays him in a standing pose and was discovered back in 1820 by Giovanni Battista Caviglia at the Great Temple of Ptah, located near Memphis in Egypt. Notably, it was crafted from red granite.

When it was unearthed, the statue was in six pieces and previous attempts at restoring it were unsuccessful. In 1955, the Egyptian Prime Minister at the time, Gamal Abdel Nasser, oversaw the relocation of the statue to a prominent location known as Bab Al-Hadid square in Cairo, which was subsequently renamed Ramses Square. There, a successful restoration effort brought the statue back to its original height of 11 meters, and it was placed on a three-meter pedestal next to a fountain. To ensure its stability, iron bars were incorporated within the statue's structure.

Over time, Ramses Square proved to be an inadequate site for the statue, as it was continuously exposed to various disturbances, such as noise, pollution, and vibrations from traffic and subway systems. Consequently, the Egyptian government made the decision to move the statue to a more suitable and honorable location. For the time being, it will be temporarily situated on the Giza Plateau, where it will undergo further restoration work. The ultimate destination for the Statue of Ramesses II will be the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), which is presently under construction.