Egyptian Culture Minister Farouq Hosni and his Hungarian counterpart Istvan Hiller opened Saturday 7/11/2009 an exhibition showcasing 140 artifacts discovered by the Hungarian archaeological mission in Egypt.

Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) Zahi Hawwas was present.

The exhibition, which was held at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square, is organized to mark the 102nd anniversary of the Hungarian archaeological mission operating in Egypt.

Members of the Hungarian archeological mission and several Egyptian archaeologists attended the event, in which the Egyptian and Hungarian culture ministers hailed bilateral cooperation in the cultural and archaeological fields. The Hungarian mission operated in and around Thebes 102 years ago, Hawwas said.

The mission then decided to develop cooperation with Egypt in the archaeological sphere to include archaeological maintenance and management and the rescue of archaeological monuments and sites as well as temples from the hazards of underground water, he added during the celebration which was held to mark the occasion.

Hawwas said that the previously-signed agreements between Egypt and Hungary will set a date to kick-start carrying out projects in this regard.

The move signals a new boost to Egyptian-Hungarian cooperation at the archaeological level, he added. Thebes is the Greek name for a city in Ancient Egypt located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile.