Ramses II, the third ruler of the 19th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, reigned for 66 years and died at the age of 90. The Egyptians called him “Great Ramses,” and many historians consider him to be the most powerful pharaoh of the country. But why are we suddenly remembering Ramses? Because, according to recent reports, he has a passport. In 1976, Ramses II's mummy was transported to Paris for preservation and restoration. The ceremonies in France were held at the level of kings. Some sources claim that the Egyptian government issued a passport on the grounds that “everyone leaving the country, whether dead or alive, requires a passport.” But is this even possible?

An image circulating on social media was claimed to be from a passport issued during the process of transporting the mummy of Pharaoh Ramses II to France in 1974 to prevent its deterioration. Two different passport images with English and Arabic text have been shared in the past. Upon examining the shared passport image, the source is traced back to a website. On this website, an article titled “The Passport of Ramesses II” dated March 25, 2020, states that the image was designed by an artist as a representation and that there is no publicly available image of the actual passport issued in Ramses' name.

The reason for issuing a passport to Ramses II was actually due to the possibility of mold growth on the mummy in 1974, which led to discussions about transferring it to France.

Ramses II's mummy was transported from the Cairo Museum to Paris in 1976 on a French military aircraft. However, the information that a passport was issued for him is one of the controversial topics in history. Although there are two different accounts on the subject in important sources, there is no officially accessible passport or document.

According to some sources, the Egyptian government prepared a passport in the name of Ramses II for the transfer to Paris, but it was not used due to French law. At that time, it was stated that a passport had to be issued for everyone leaving the country, whether alive or dead. It is also stated that this practice was intended to ensure the safe return of the mummy.

On the other hand, no such information was found in the news and documentaries of the period examined by AFP. There are no details about the passport in The New York Times archives announcing Ramses' transfer to Paris in 1976.

Élisabeth David, an expert from the Louvre Museum's Egyptian section, emphasizes that there is no evidence to support this claim. According to her, the misunderstanding may have originated from the term “passport” used in a report published by the National Museum of Natural History in 1985; this term was likely used to describe organizational confusion.

Mathieu Touzeil-Divina, a public law expert from the University of Toulouse, also notes that French law does not require passports for the deceased, that the term “passport” has been misinterpreted, but that different documents may be issued in certain cases.

Another expert interviewed by AFP, Laure Cadot, said that before the 2000s, mummies were generally considered “objects,” and therefore there was no legal obligation. It is known that the European Court of Justice also considered mummies to be “objects” in its decision dated October 10, 1985.

In conclusion, the experts' statements indicate that it is unlikely that a passport was issued for Ramses II. Since there is no clear evidence of the existence of such a document on the Egyptian side, the question of whether a passport belonging to Ramses II exists remains uncertain.

So, as you can see, the passport belonging to Ramses II is nothing more than an urban legend!