Discovering Ancient Egypt cements top spot as National Museum of Australia's most successful show for visits and economic impact
The National Museum of Australia's record-breaking exhibition, Discovering Ancient Egypt, has smashed another record, generating $27.7 million in total economic stimulus for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).
The blockbuster exhibition had more than 208,000 visits during its showing in Canberra between December 2023 and September 2024, with the $27.7 million including expenditure in the ACT from locals and visitors who saw Discovering Ancient Egypt.
National Museum of Australia Director Katherine McMahon said the figures not only made Discovering Ancient Egypt the most visited exhibition in the Museum's 23-year history, but the show that had generated the greatest economic impact.
'Discovering Ancient Egypt has been the most popular show in the National Museum's history and we are absolutely delighted with how well received it has been with locals, and interstate and international visitors,' Ms McMahon said.
'We have a strong history of bringing innovative and world-class exhibitions to the nation's capital for everyone to enjoy. Discovering Ancient Egypt is another wonderful example of our commitment to delivering unrivalled experiences for visitors to the National Museum.
'International blockbusters like Discovering Ancient Egypt have important cultural and social value, giving Australians and other visitors a chance to experience history and the world in ways they might not usually get to.
'And of course, exhibitions like this provide a major boost for Canberra's tourism sector and local economy, firmly establishing the capital as a must-see destination. We are proud of Discovering Ancient Egypt's roaring success and of making such a significant cultural and economic contribution to the ACT and Australia.'
Discovering Ancient Egypt attracted a total of 208,900 visits over 9 months. More than half of visitors, 53%, were from interstate with 3% from overseas. Additionally, 34%, were first-time visitors to the National Museum.
National Museum senior curator Craig Middleton said the popularity of Discovering Ancient Egypt showed just how strong people's fascination with ancient Egypt is today.
'Ancient Egyptians have left an incredible historical legacy, with their society, culture and religion continuing to inspire and capture our imaginations,' he said.
'Our exhibition brought people into direct contact with rare and inspiring artefacts from ancient Egypt – from one of the world's finest collections outside of Egypt – and insights into an incredible history spanning more than 3,000 years.
'What's also really pleasing about the numbers we've seen for Discovering Ancient Egypt is that they came at a time when there were two other exhibitions on ancient Egypt taking place on the east coast of Australia.
'Clearly Australians can't get enough of Egypt! Archaeologists have only scratched the surface of what there is to know about the country's past, so this fascination is not going anywhere any time soon.'
Discovering Ancient Egypt was originally developed by the acclaimed Dutch National Museum of Antiquities (Rijksmuseum van Oudheden) with three exhibitions taking place across Australia as part of a collaboration between the RMO and the Western Australian Museum, the National Museum of Australia and Queensland Museum. The National Museum of Australia's exhibition was supported by funding from the ACT Government.
Discovering Ancient Egypt is followed by the National Museum of Australia's next blockbuster show, Pompeii, which opens in Canberra on 13 December. The exhibition combines 90 incredible artefacts from the ancient Roman city, many never before seen in Australia, with a powerful, multisensory immersive experience, including the eruption of Mt Vesuvius.
Tickets for Pompeii are now on sale.
