The Grand Egyptian Museum is a world-class complex of buildings and landscape with one identity, demonstrating the progress, evolution and development of the Egyptian Civilization. Seamlessly woven together, the museum and landscape emerge from a strict design grid that references both the lushness of the Nile River and clear sightlines of the distant, iconic pyramids.
The landscape design draws inspiration from the River Nile, the wealth derived from its flood plains, and how nature was integral to ancient Egyptian agriculture and civilisation. The three main spaces include the Nile Park, Entrance Plaza and Palm Grove. These lush spaces will enable visitors to learn about the diverse ecology of the river. West 8 provided a catalogue of landscape references, plant libraries, and research into ancient Egyptian culture to inform the design of the open space.
About the museum
The Grand Egyptian Museum will be a world-class complex of buildings and landscape, designed to demonstrate the history and development of Egyptian civilization. Located two kilometers from the Pyramids of Giza, the total area of the development covers 50 hectares of land. Seamlessly woven together, the museum and landscape emerge from a strict design grid, established by heneghan peng architects. Stretching outwards like a fan, the five walls of the museum are positioned to visually align the entrance of the site with the three points of the distant, iconic pyramids of Giza. Running through the complex is a second, meandering path that represents the Nile’s journey through the Egyptian desert. This concept influences the design at all scales – from site plan to exhibition show-cases. Following the competition for the new Grand Egyptian Museum, West 8 joined the winning architectural team to refine the concept of the museum, prepare a design for the garden spaces and to develop a master plan for the museum environment in relation to the pyramids of Giza.
Design and construction team:
- Lead architects: heneghan peng architects
- General contractor: BESIX
- Architects (Cairo): RMC
- Structural | Civil | Traffic: Arup | ACE (Cairo)
- Building Services: Buro Happold | Shaker Engineering (Cairo)
- Design Team Management: Davis Langdon
- QS: Davis Langdon
- Facade Engineering: Arup
- IT | Security | Fire | Acoustics: Buro Happold
- Landscape: West 8 | Sites (Cairo)
- Specialist Lighting: Bartenbach LichtLabor
- Signage: Bruce Mau Design
- Exhibition Masterplanning: Metaphor
- Museology: Cultural Innovations
Client
Ministry of Culture of Egypt
