THE Reebok Stadium will be transformed into a corner of ancient Egypt next month when a glittering exhibition hits town.

Tutankhamun and the Treasures of the Pharaohs will take visitors back 5,000 years to the time of the pyramids and the Sphinx.

Featuring more than 300 copies of artefacts taken from Tutankhamun's tomb -- the real things are forbidden from leaving Egypt by law -- it will take place at the Middlebrook Exhibition Centre from April 8 to 29 as part of a UK tour.

Items on display will include a golden throne, three golden sarcophagi (coffins), funerary beds and the famous Tutankhamun mask of the living god.

All the original items were taken from the tomb by the archaeologist Howard Carter in 1922 and caused a worldwide sensation.

It was the first time the tomb had been entered in 3,265 years and his finds followed 20 years of excavation.

Bolton already has a long association with the history of ancient Egypt.

There is a highly respected Egyptology department in Bolton Museum and Art Gallery, and a committed history of interest in Ancient Egypt which stretches back to benevolent local mill owners.

The original treasures of the pharaohs and the treasures of Tutankhamun are housed in the Museum of Cairo and have not left Egypt since 1981.

But the next best thing will be available at the Reebok Stadium in Bolton and the exhibition will cost adults £6, concessions £5 and children £4. School groups will be charged at £3 per child.

Family tickets for two adults and two children will cost £13.