Ancient Egyptian royal mummies paraded through Cairo

The convoy transported 18 kings and four queens, mostly from the New Kingdom to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Fustat, about 5km (3 miles) to the south-east.

Authorities shut down roads along the Nile for the elaborate ceremony, designed to drum up interest in Egypt's rich collections of antiquities when tourism has almost entirely stalled because of COVID-19 related restrictions.

Each mummy had been placed in a special capsule filled with nitrogen to ensure protection, Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass said.

They were carried on vehicles designed to cradle them and provide stability.

Archaeologists discovered the mummies in two batches at the complex of mortuary temples of Deir Al Bahari in Luxor and at the nearby Valley of the Kings from 1871.