A team from the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) began packing on Monday King Tutankhamun’s treasured collection at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square in a step towards transferring to its permanent location at the GEM.

Tarek Tawfik, GEM supervisor-general, said that the team is now packing the golden king’s funerary bed which is made of wood gilded with golden sheets and decorated with the head of the goddess Sekhmet.

Before packing the bed was subjected to scientific documentation and first aid restoration to guarantee its safe transportation.

Zidan during packing process

GEM's head of first aid restoration Eissa Zidan told Ahram Online that the packing process is carried out in collaboration with a Japanese scientific team and will take eight hours to complete. The team will use acid-free packing materials and equipment to minimise vibrations during the bed’s transportation.

Zidan said that devices to measure heat and vibration intensity would be used on the bed during its transportation.

All the Tutankhamun artefacts are to be packed and transported to the GEM according to a planned schedule until the soft opening of the new museum in mid-2018.

Japanese expert during packing

Tutankhamun's bed