Egyptian Museum in Turin is a unique place!
Firstly, this is the largest collection of exhibits in Europe, which is dedicated to the ancient Egyptians’ culture. It can be compared just with a collection of Cairo.
Secondly, there is kept the most ancient geographical cart, made of papyrus. It depicts the representation of the world by ancient civilizations.
Thirdly, in Egyptian Museum you can see the items from the tombs of Nefertiti and Ramses II.
The collection of Ancient Egyptian items is connected with the name of Sardinian King Charles Emmanuel III. Once, he got nameplate from an ancient temple’s altar. It interested him, and he decided to explore the culture of the ancient civilization. But Turin got this collection only in the 19th century. That was the time of interest to the artifacts’ rise. During the conquest wars in Egypt, a confidant of Napoleon, Bernardino Drovetti, collected more than 8000 items of Egyptian art. These were sarcophagi, papyrus, decorations, statues, and even mummies. King Charles Felix bought it and added its content to the collection of the royal family. This is how he opened the first Egyptian Museum in the world.
Later, the number of exhibits increased owing to Ernesto Schiaparelli, the first director of the museum. He managed the expeditions to Egypt and brought unique artifacts. So, nowadays the collection counts 30000 items.