Two exhibitions announced for revamped museum

Two major exhibitions have been announced for the newly revamped National Museum of Scotland next year.

Fascinating Mummies will feature ancient Egyptian artefacts and explore the complex rituals surrounding death and the afterlife in ancient Egypt. The museum will be the only venue in the UK to stage the exhibition, which will run from February to May.

It will be followed by Catherine the Great, a one-off exhibition charting the reign of one of Russia's most successful rulers and marking the 250th anniversary of her accession to the throne.

The exhibition, exclusive to Edinburgh, will run from July to October. It will include imperial court costumes and uniforms and is being mounted in partnership with the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg.

The museum in Chambers Street is due to reopen later this month after its multi-million pound revamp which began in 2008.