Egyptian mummies coming to Sarawak next year

KUCHING: Sarawak will host a major international exhibition featuring over 5,000-year-old artefacts and human remains from the National Archaeological Museum of Florence, Italy, next year. The exclusive six-month exhibition, titled "Egyptian Mummies: Journey Towards Immortality," will be held at the Borneo Cultures Museum (BCM) starting July next year.

This marks the first of its kind in Southeast Asia. Collaborations between museums of this scale are typically lengthy, but due to the challenges of bringing in the exhibits and the potential loss incurred from a shorter duration, the exhibition has been extended to six months. This new attraction promises to captivate locals. Sarawak Museum Department's success in securing this global-scale exhibition highlights the agency's capability and proactive approach in forming strategic collaborations with world-renowned museums.

Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, Sarawak Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister, also reported that Sarawak's tourism sector has seen a significant growth trajectory, with 3.52 million visitor arrivals and RM9 billion in tourism receipts between January and September 2026. Major markets include Brunei and Indonesia, accounting for 46.5% of visitors, while Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand also contribute significantly to the visitor numbers.