The Nubian Museum (officially called the International Museum of Nubia) is located in Aswan, Upper Egypt, and is entirely dedicated to Nubian culture and civilisation. It was designed by architect Mahmoud El-Hakim and cost about $22 million, and was opened on 23 November 1997. In 2001, the archaeological museum was awarded the Aga Khan Prize for Architecture.
The Nubian Museum covers an area of 50,000 square metres, 7,000 of which are buildings, the rest of which are gardens and other public spaces. The building has three floors of exhibition halls, office and utility rooms, and also houses a library and information centre.
A large part of the museum is occupied by monumental works reflecting the stages of development of Nubian culture and civilisation. There are three thousand exhibits representing different ages; fossil prehistoric, pharaonic, Roman, Coptic and Islamic periods that succeeded each other in Nubian territory. The Open Doors (outdoor) exhibition includes 90 rare monumental works, the exhibition halls contain 50 priceless pieces dating back to prehistoric times, 503 objects from the Pharaonic period, 52 from the Coptic era, 103 Islamic artefacts, 140 from the Nubian era and 360 objects reflecting the history of Aswan.
The museum is built on a steep cliff, its area allows for three-dimensional compositions and architectural structures typical of settlements in Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt. The buildings are surrounded by natural botanical gardens with a variety of Egyptian flora.
The museum is located in the centre of the city.
