The Egyptian Museum, which is second only to the famous museum in Turin, takes up some of the rooms of the Archeological Museum. The first group of Agyptian antiquities was put together in the 17th century to include also pieces that had been collected by the Medici, although it was significantly increased during the 18th century by Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, who purchased new collections and financed, together with Charles X, King of France, a scientific expedition to Egypt in the years 1828 and 1829.

The expedition was directed by Jean François Champollion, the famous scholar and interpreter of hieroglyphics and by Ippolito Rosellini from Pisa, who would soon become the father of Egyptian studies in Italy and a friend and disciple of Champollion. After the return of the expedition, the numerous objects collected during the expedition and during excavations of archeological sites or purchased by local merchants, were equally divided between Florence and the Louvre.

The Egyptian Museum of Florence was officially established in 1855. In 1880 the Piedmontese Egyptian scholar Ernesto Schiaparelli , who was to become the director of the Egyptian Museum of Turin, was assigned the task of transfering and organising the Egyptian antiquities in the present day location, which is also seat of the Archeological Museum. Schiapparelli suitably increased the collections of the Museum with objects found during his personal excavation campaigns and purchased in Egypt before his final transfer to Turin. The last group of works acquired by the Egyptian Museum of Florence includes pieces donated to the State by private contributors and scientific institutions.

Today the Museum exhibits over 14,000 pieces, displayed in nine rooms and two warehouses. The exhibition rooms have been totally renewed. The old layout of Schiaparelli has now been replaced by the new one arranged, when possible, according to a chronological and topographic order. The collection comprises material that ranges from the prehistoric age down to the age of Copta, with several groups of steles, vases, amulets and bronze pieces of different ages.

The most remarkable pieces are some statues dating back to the age of Amenofi III, the chariot of the 18th dynasty, the pillar of the tomb of Sety I, the cup of Fayence with square mouth and the belongings of the wet nurse of the daughter of Pharao Taharqa, the woman portrait of Fayum, the collection of fabrics belonging to the Copt Age and an important group of chalk moulds dating back to the end of the 19th

The museum now has a permanent staff including two professional egyptologists. It houses more than 14,000 artifacts, distributed in nine galleries and two warehouses