Pharaoh Khufu's solar boat was moved to the Grand Egyptian Museum

Khufu's Solar Boat is 4500 years old and is considered to be one of the oldest boats discovered almost intact. It took decades for the reassembly process to complete. It is said that the boat is in use and can sail without problems on the water.

Khufu’s Solar Boat could be admired until August 2021, at the Museum of Solar Boats near the Pyramid of Khufu.

On August 7, 2021, at sunrise, the boat arrived at the Great Egyptian Museum that will open this year.

The boat is 43.4 m long and 5.9 m wide and weighs 20 tons.

The boat took 48 hours to move, according to the Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities. The boat was transported in a metal box that was placed on a remote-controlled vehicle (statement made by the Project Manager of the Great Egyptian Museum)

Khufu’s solar boat

In 1954, a solar boat was discovered buried near the pyramids, on the plateau of Giza.

1 224 pieces of wood that made up a boat were discovered.

Those who participated in its discovery called it the Khufu’s solar boat because it was found in a cave near the pyramid of Khufu.

The boat is 4500 years old and is considered to be one of the oldest boats discovered and is almost intact.
It took decades for the reassembly process to complete.

The Egyptian Department of Antiquities studied dozens of ancient drawings and eventually rebuilt the boat without using any nails.

There are various theories about this boat: some scholars believe that it played a ritual role and was built for Pharaoh Khufu, who ruled Egypt between 2589 BC and 2566 BC, to serve his soul as a means of transportation, in the world beyond.

Another theory says that it was used to transport the huge stones that form the famous pyramids.
Whatever the truth, it is said that the boat is in use and can sail without problems on the water.

The concept of the solar boat in ancient Egypt

In Egyptian mythology, Ra passes into the afterlife every night in a boat.

Ra is an Egyptian god representing a personification of the sun, being the most powerful of all gods.

Every morning, Ra and his solar boat rises in the east, symbolizing the defeat of the evil spirit of the river, Apophis.

It is said that the ancient Egyptians believed that Apophis succeeded in destroying the boat of the god Ra and Ra himself every time there was a solar eclipse.