The only remaining evidence of Memphis is this noteworthy open-air museum, built around a magnificent fallen colossal limestone statue of Ramses II. Its position on its back gives a great opportunity to inspect the carving up close – even the pharaoh’s nipples are very precise. Its twin is the statue that stood in Midan Ramses in Cairo until 2006 when it was moved to stand guard by the Grand Egyptian Museum construction site.
Other highlights of the museum include an alabaster sphinx of the New Kingdom, two statues of Ramses II that originally adorned Nubian temples, and the huge stone beds on which the sacred Apis bulls were mummified before being placed in the Serapeum at Saqqara.
