CAIRO: Nestled near the iconic Giza pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) is preparing for a lavish opening, featuring a towering statue of Ramses II and more than 100,000 artefacts, including Tutankhamun`s golden treasures.

After two decades of planning, the GEM is set to open fully on July 3, following a partial opening in October. Its longawaited debut comes after years of delays caused by political instability, economic crises, and the global pandemic.

Ahmed Ghoneim, the museum`s director, said the inauguration could span several days, with celebrations extending beyond the museum and pyramids to sites across Egypt and even abroad. `It will be a spectacular showcase of Egypt`s historical and touristic potential, Ghoneim told Egypt`s ON TV.President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has invited US President Donald Trump and Spain`s King Felipe VI to attend the ceremony. `This museum is the (world`s) largest museum for a single civilisation, which is the Pharaonic civilisation,` Sisi said in December.

Spanning50 hectares (120 acres), the GEM is twice the size of both Paris`s Louvre and New York`s Metropolitan, and two and a half times the British Museum, according to its director.

`The landscape of Egypt contributed to this rich civilisation and we wanted to reflect that in the design,` said Roisin Heneghan, co-founder of Dublin-based Heneghan Peng Architects the firm behind the museum`s design. `You see the pieces in the museum in the context of the pyramids. You are reminded of the place where this all happened,` she said.-AFP