ABSTRACT
With the increase of accommodation for tourists and of facilities for travelling after tbe occupation of Egypt by the British, public opinion grew and waxed strong, and the advisers of the late Khedive found it necessary to consider the task of the removal of the Egyptian antiquities from
BuJa~ to a safer and larger resting-place. The Egyptian Government had no funds at their disposal with which to build a new Museum, and after much discussion it was decided to transfer the antiquities to the large palace at Glzeh, which is said to have cost five millions sterling. The usual irresponsible opposition to the scheme was offered by those who should have known better, but there seems to be little doubt that this decision was the best that could have been arrived at under the circumstances in which the Egyptian Government was placed. The fabric of the Glzeh palace is flimsy, and the appearance of the building is not that which those \\'ho are acquainted with European museums are accustomed to associate with Egyptian antiquities; it is, nevertheless, a large building, and the fact that it would cost nothing must have been a great inducement to transform the palace into a museum. Much was said at first about danger to the antiquities from fire, but it is quite certain that the danger from fire at Bula~ was greater than it is at Glzeh. Some excellent alterations in the building and arrangements to prevent fire were made
by Sir Francis Grenfell, and now that the further contemplated precautions have been taken the Museum is as safe from fire as any building, half French, half Oriental, can be in the East. The specially arranged fire-proof building which is being constructed in Cairo will more effectually protect the priceless relics of a great early civilization. Here the antiquities will be better arranged and better guarded in every way, and it is probable that the income which will be derived from the increased number of visits made by tourists, will in a short time form an important contribution towards the original outlay.
