On Tuesday, I went to Alexandria to give a lecture at a geotechnical engineering conference. Afterwards I visited the National Museum of Alexandria to view a new statue that will be exhibited and went to the Jewelry Museum to view the progress of the restoration work.

In the morning, I gave the Heritage Lecture at the 17^th International Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering held at the Library of Alexandria. I was glad to support this conference, as soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering play an important role in archaeological work in Egypt. In my lecture, entitled ‘Hidden Egypt,’ I wanted to show the audience that there are still great discoveries waiting beneath the sand. I spoke about my recent work in the Valley of the Golden Mummies and the Valley of the Kings, and about my search for the tomb of Mark Antony and Cleopatra at Taposiris Magna. I talked about my recent research to identify the mummy of Hatshepsut and the family of Tutankhamun, and I shared some amusing stories about my adventures in Egypt.

After my lecture, I went to the National Museum of Alexandria to look at a marble statue that was uncovered in excavations in Alexandria this May. The excavators believe it is a statue of Alexander the Great, due to its characteristic pose and diadem visible on the head. I think this is a very interesting possibility, and although it cannot be proven for certain as there are no inscriptions, it is still likely. However, it is also possible it could be a statue of a Ptolemaic ruler or a god.   In any case, it is the most beautiful piece recently found in Alexandria, and will be the masterpiece that people will come to see at this museum. This discovery shows that Alexandria is still rich in archaeological artefacts, and Amal El-Gayar, a journalist from Al-Ahram, said the best thing about this statue was that I came from Cairo to meet Alexander the Great.

I also visited the Jewelry Museum in Alexandria, which is currently undergoing restoration work in preparation for its opening in November. The museum building is a palace that was built between 1919 and 1923, it was designed in an Italian style and the interior decoration was inspired by Italian mythology. For the restoration, we brought in a Russian team of conservationists who worked for seven years to return the palace to its original glory. Now the palace has been restored and the museum exhibits are being installed. The displays are well designed, with cases designed by German experts. The jewellery displayed there is from the collections of the family of Muhammad Ali, which contains all types of beautiful jewelry. This collection was the first jewelry to truly capture my heart and I am happy it is going to be available to the public. The Jewelry Museum will be completely finished and opened to the public on November 1^st. This museum is unique, there is no other museum like it in the world, and I am telling everyone to come to Alexandria and experience one of the most beautiful museums in the world.