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The claim: Ramesses II was issued a passport 3000 years after his death to be able to fly his mummy to Paris
A viral meme circulating on social media points to the passport of Pharaoh Ramessess II, who allegedly had to have travel documents 3,000 years after his death to fly his remains to France for maintenance work.
“In 1974, Ramesses II was sent on a flight to Paris for conservation and maintenance work,” reads a January 29 Facebook post, which posted a picture of a tweet. “But since French law required every person, living or dead, to fly with a valid passport, Egypt had to issue a passport to the pharaoh 3,000 years after his death.”
Below the text is a picture of the alleged passport and a photo of his antique face. The date of birth is 1303 BC and the date of issue is 3 September 1974.
“Imagine you’re the person sitting in the small box at passport control,” the Facebook user wrote a caption to the message, with more than 8,000 shares.
USA TODAY directed the user for comment.
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France issues a passport to Ramesses II
It is true that the mummy of Ramesses II received a passport in 1974.
Ramses II turned 96 and was, according to the Ancient History Encyclopedia, the third pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty.
When the mummy had to be flown from Ramses to Paris for recovery, a genuine Egyptian passport was issued containing a photo of his ancient face. His profession was referred to as ‘King (deceased)’, reports National Geographic.
His body was buried in the Valley of the Kings, but it was later moved by ancient Egyptian priests due to unbridled looting, according to National Geographic.
Archaeologists note the deteriorating condition of the mummy and treat it for a fungal infection in Paris.
The French military plane carrying Ramesses’s remains from the Cairo Museum was greeted by the Garde Republicaine, France’s equivalent of a U.S. Navy guard of honor, according to a 1976 article in The New York Times.
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The image of the passport was created by an artist
A reverse Google search shows that the image claiming the passport was originally posted on the archaeological site Heritage Daily.
The article, published on March 25, 2020, titled “The Passport of Ramesses II” contains the passport photo as the headline. A red indemnity at the bottom of the article indicates that the image is an artist’s creation of the passport and that the pharaoh’s passport is not publicly available.
The India Times also published the passport photo, with acknowledgment to Heritage Daily, noting that the passport is for representative purposes only.
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Our rating: Missing context
It is true that there must have been a passport three years after the death of Pharaoh Ramses II. The mummy was transported to Paris for restoration and he obtained a valid Egyptian passport. However, the image that appears in viral reports and is presented as an image of the passport is an illustration. The actual passport is not publicly available. We judge such a claim as a MISSING CONTEXT.
Our sources for fact checking:
- Ancient History Encyclopedia, 9 September 2009, Ramses II
- National Geographic, October 26, 2018, “Mummy mugshots and other weird passport facts”
- National Geographic, May 28, 2013, “5 Great Mummy Discoveries”
- The New York Times, September 28, 1976, “Paris Mounts Honor Guard For a Mummy”
- Heritage Daily, 25 March 2020, “The Passport of Ramses II”
- India Times, October 26, 2020, “Ramses II’s Egyptian Mummy Issued Passport 3000 Years After His Death”
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