VIDEO: The treasures of Pharaoh Ramses II arrive in Australia

JASON MARSHALL, WORLD HERITAGE EXHIBITIONS:  Ultimately, I'm responsible for just about every detail of the move and installation, function, operation.

KIM MCKAY, DIRECTOR, AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM:  Well, it's in excess of $2 billion. So it's an incredible exhibition.

JASON MARSHALL:  It's a whirlwind, making sure security is in place, I mean, that's paramount to everything else, is making sure all the security bases are covered.

KIM MCKAY:  Ramses II and the Gold of the Pharaohs is probably the largest exhibition of its kind to come to Australia in about 14 years and it tells the story of Ramses, who was called the great because he was. He ruled Egypt for over 67 years.

I think the public fascination with Egypt is the same fascination I had as a child and have continued to have through life. I mean, an ancient culture up to 5,000 years ago, that was so sophisticated.

DR AMR ABOELSAFA, EGYPTIAN MINISTRY OF ANTIQUITIES:  Ramses II is a famous ancient Egyptian king. He ruled Egypt during what you call the 19th dynasty, new kingdom.

Originally, all of them are Egyptian artifacts.

Egypt is the owner. When you be the owner for this treasures, you have to be 100 per cent and more concentrating in only one thing, saving those treasures.

JASON MARSHALL:  I'm on site here for 29 days and that can seem like an eternity and we're checking off every crate at a time. Making sure the numbers match, making sure the seals match.

So it's a long tedious process, but it's what's required

We take an empty box and that's what it was when we walked in. We take it and completely transform the space. You won't, you wouldn't recognize this room, once we get done with it.

It's got to be slow and careful and methodical every step of the way because you only get one shot at it. It's not, it's not something, there's no room for mistake with it.

KIM MCKAY:  Nothing spared to honour these people. These are burial masks and they're worn by, in death, descendants of Ramses.

AUDIO:  After his death, Ramses became immortal.

KIM MCKAY:  I'm looking at jewellery that is over 3,000 years old. 

I think I could wear those earrings, and that necklace, my god. It’s beautiful. I wonder if they’d let me? No.

AMR ABOELSAFA:  We have such a beautiful collection. We selected it carefully, and you are so lucky to be received these treasures.

To just be in Australia from Ramses himself, was his coffin. You are so lucky country.

KIM MCKAY:  I asked the Minister for Tourism from Egypt when I was in Paris, I said, "I want that coffin". And he laughed, kissed my hand and then said, "Let's talk about it."

JASON MARSHALL:  The new coffin is extremely impressive. The fact that it's in the condition that it's in so many years later.

AMR ABOELSAFA:  And this, you know, it's kind of like our propaganda for our country. So you see here, 181, and you are invited to see the rest of the places, where they lived, where they discovered.

We have been a great kingdom during the ancient history, and here is our civilization.

KIM MCKAY:  Decolonization is probably the biggest issue that museums around the world are dealing with. We're dealing with it here in Australia, of course.

Museums from right across Egypt contributed to this. This is why it’s so important that this exhibition comes from Egypt itself. It comes with the Egyptian government’s endorsement.  

WORKER:  I’m sorry we couldn’t get the smell, but everything else we’ve managed.

KIM MCKAY:  Just the smell of the ages, 3000 years old, it’s pretty remarkable.