The Society hosted Dr. Zahi Hawass,  Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities in South Africa on a short lecture tour – visiting Johannesburg where he gave a lecture on Monday 14th August 2006 at the Great Hall of  the University of the Witwatersrand with Egyptian Ambassador Mona Omar in attendance. Unfortunately problems with publicity resulted in a smaller attendance at Wits than expected. The subject of the lecture was  The Mysteries of the Pyramids. Dr. Hawass also gave a question and answer session to students at Wits University who took advantage of this unique opportunity of meeting the most famous Egyptologist in the world today.

Accompanied by Acting Chairman Jean Smith and Peter Mulder, Dr. Zahi Hawass arrived in Cape Town on Tuesday 15th August where he stayed at the Cape Grace Hotel at the Waterfront. Two lectures were given at the Baxter Concert Hall on 16th and 17th August with Cape Town City Mayor, Helen Zille as guest of honour.  On both occasions the Concert Hall was sold out with many people turned away. Following the first lecture a “Meet & Greet” event was arranged for guests and TESSA members. Many took the opportunity to have books by him duly autographed.

During his Cape Town stay, Dr. Hawass visited the University of Stellenbosch where he talked to students and enjoyed the hospitality of the university and that of Professors Sakkie Cornelius and Johann Cook.  The TESSA Committee ensured that Dr. Hawass saw as much as possible of Cape Town during his short visit.  He visited Cape Point, ascended Table Mountain by the cable car and was well entertained at various dinners where his exuberance and enthusiasm for Cape Town were well noted.  Dr. Hawass suggested that he would like to return to Cape Town and there is the hope and expectation that he will indeed do so.  We truly look forward to that.

Corporate member Egypt Today CC, plus EgyptAir and Marcus Brewster Publicity sponsored part of the costs and kind donations were  received from Mike & Shirley  Beaumont, Debbie Blinkhorn, Anlen Boshoff, Dr. Rob Brown, Colin & Marian Cohen and Norma Harris.

The entire project was co-ordinated  meticulously by Jane Mulder, assisted by her sub-committee – Peter Mulder, Nerine & Thomas Dorman and Robin Hammond.  Well done everyone and especially Jane Mulder. – Brava!

The Society has completed its first decade having achieved national and international visibility in line with the objectives of the Society to foster an  appreciation and understanding of ancient Egypt. There are few societies in Cape Town, perhaps even in South Africa, that are as active as ours – with a strong membership and attendance at meetings, financially secure and with excellent facilities. Members have access to a superb free specialised lending and reference library, regular meetings and lectures, national and international visibility with an unsurpassable record of world-ranking lecturers like Dr. Kent Weeks, Prof. Mostafa el Abbadi and the redoubtable Dr. Zahi Hawass. TESSA also has the benefit of superb local lecturers and some are shown in photographs in the special commemorative edition of SHEMU.

Gazing in awe at the monumental geometry of the Giza   pyramids, one cannot avoid pondering the fundamental questions. By whom, when, how and why were these enormous stone structures built? We know that the traditional or mainstream response from the hallowed halls of academia is that pharaohs of the fourth Dynasty built the pyramids of Giza around 2,500BC. Conventional thinking suggests that the  ancient Egyptians used ramps to build the pyramids that were destined to be the tombs of their kings. At the opposite end of the supposition spectrum, the new-age esoteric paradigm proposes that the pyramids were built in some remote pre-history by aliens using  technology now lost to us. Their purpose was to provide a signpost for the future of mankind. So what do you think?

Consider first the identity of the builders. Most visitors, staring at the amazing structures, believe that the Giza Pyramids sprang up spontaneously in a bronze-age agrarian culture that did not appear to possess the necessary construction technology. They contend that the archaeologists are erroneous in crediting the pharaohs of the fourth Dynasty with such wonders. Furthermore, they argue there are no inscriptions, no historic records and no dating techniques to support the Egyptologists’ contention that Khufu (2551-2528BC), Khafra (2520-2494BC) and Menkaura (2494-2472BC) built these colossal stone structures. And if the small satellite pyramids were for the Kings’ wives or daughters, is it likely that Khufu and Menkaura each had three, while Khafra had none?

But, in truth, there was no spontaneity about Giza. We can trace the development of building skills from the immensely talented Imhotep’s ground breaking construction of Djoser’s stepped pyramid (2630-2611BC), through the efforts of the architects of Sneferu (2575-2551BC) who built the Meidum, Bent and Red pyramids. Much can be learnt in a century! After all, we have progressed from the Wright Brothers to ultrasonic stealth fighters in the same time.

I concede that there are no inscriptions, apart from some dubious daubs on a granite slab in the relieving chamber of the Great Pyramid. No foundation stone has been uncovered inscribed with the Pharaoh’s name! Such an oversight would not occur in later times! Or would it? Are the builders of the Coliseum, the Parthenon or even Westminster Abbey celebrated in sandstone or granite? No! In fact it is far more common for ancient building to be anonymous!

What about historic records? So far, no papyri have come to light that  specifically link the pyramids to the fourth Dynasty Kings. After nearly five millennia that is no surprise! There are also no records in stone or pigment to support the archaeologists’ claim. In place of direct evidence the Egyptologists rely on contextual evidence. There is no disputing the fact that a large construction camp once existed on the Giza plateau. Archaeologists who swelter in the pursuit of   ancient clues have found the proof. They have established the existence of sleeping quarters for many thousands of workers. They have identified the remains of refectories, of huge bakeries producing the rich bread that nourished the workers, of butcheries and of fisheries. And it is here, in the construction camp, that references have been found to the names of the working gangs including ‘The Friends of Khufu’.

But dating techniques are difficult and often ambiguous. An effort was made to ‘carbon-date’ organic material trapped between the pyramid’s huge blocks, but the material available is minute and it cannot be proved to date from the time of the original construction. The organic material found in and around the construction site however is clearly proved to be from the period of the fourth Dynasty and firmly indicates that the construction camp and the adjacent quarry were operational at that time. Given this information one has to ask the question, if the thousands of labourers housed in the camp were not building the pyramids, what were they doing there in such numbers at that time?

So the weight of evidence for ‘who’ seems to be firmly on the side of the conventional wisdom. For this student of Egypt however the question of ‘who?’ still has some unanswered aspects and one intrigues me more than most. It is virtually a given fact that in Pharaonic Egypt each King tried to outdo his predecessor. He would adopt his predecessor’s works without qualm, replacing the old   cartouche with his own. He would build a larger temple, sculpt a bigger statue and generally try to get his name, rather than that of his predecessor on the lips of the living. This was to ensure his continued existence in the Afterlife by having his name spoken in the living world. ‘Speak my name that I may live!’ Why is it then that Khafra’s pyramid is slightly smaller than that of his father Khufu and Menkaura built a much smaller pyramid than Khafra? Shouldn’t it have been the other way round?

But what if the Giza Pyramids already existed in pre-dynastic times? Then Djoser and Sneferu could be  accused of trying to copy the ancient structures! Khufu might have decided to grab an existing pyramid and having first claim, would have chosen the biggest. Khafra had next choice and poor Menkaura was left with the little one. And if by chance the pyramids were in need of some repair and maintenance, perhaps a new cladding of limestone and a paint job, Khufu would have called in the workers and set up a construction camp…perhaps?  In the next issue of Shemu I will dip the quill into the ink to discuss ‘how?’ and ‘why?’

It is 650kms as the falcon flies from the confluence of the two Niles to the Egyptian border, but the Nile inscribes a gigantic ‘S’ on the Sudanese landscape, taking 1,300kms to cover the distance. The river surges through valleys carved by millennia into the lands once called Kush and Wawat, flooding the fields as it flows forward until it confronts and overcomes its final hurdle, the cataract at Aswan. Freed from the constraints of steep banks, the waters relax and spread across the fields of one of the planet’s great fertile valleys. The water level rises daily, monitored and recorded by Priests in dank shafts and dark tunnels built to measure the quantity of each year’s gift. The word goes out and offerings are made to pagan deities to increase their beneficence, for without the flood Egypt will starve. Hapi, the Nile deity responsible for collecting the tears of Isis, responds to the supplications and the dark waters reach further across the fields, lapping at the very steps of great stone temples along its course.

The Nile is unlike the other great rivers of the Northern Hemisphere whose floods are unpredictable and at times devastating. When the bright star Sirius reappears after seventy days of exile below the horizon, the Nile flood arrives. Not if, when or maybe! But right then and there, with the only variable being the strength of the flood. Properties are valued in proportion to their propensity to be flooded and if insurance companies had existed in ancient Egypt, they would have written policies to cover the non-appearance of the flood! Imagine submitting a claim because there was no ‘Act of God’!

The muddy waters inundate the agricultural land and cover it with an opaque blanket. The width of the flooded Nile is measured in tens of kilometres. The river’s forward momentum moderates and the waters lose their ability to carry the massive load of silt. The black mud precipitates to the riverbed, trapping the finely dispersed organic detritus that has been its travelling companion for 4,000 kilometres. Then gradually, almost imperceptibly but with ever increasing rapidity the floodwaters begin to subside. The river draws the water back from the land. Like a guest at a wedding it quietly leaves its gift as it departs. The water is still dark with particles that remain in suspension, but the immense filtration system called the Nile Delta ensures that very little of the rich silt is lost to the Mediterranean Sea.

The subsiding water reveals the first mound of glistening black mud! Its organic stench is quickly reduced as the hot sun bakes a thin crust on its surface. Birds arrive to peck at the crust and uncover the delectable small creatures that believed they had found refuge in the mud. It is the beginning of a new cycle of life. The ancient Egyptians, ever cognisant of its importance, chose the appearance of the primeval mound as the first image in their creation myth.

The water has subsided and the river has contracted to its normal width. The dark fertile ribbon along Egypt’s main artery gives rise to the name of this ancient place, Kemet – the Black Land. Farmers scatter seeds of barley and wheat on the munificent mud. No need to plough or to fertilise. The Nile has done the hard work. All that remains is to watch and wait while the crops grow and ripen under the golden sun. And so it was for more than five thousand years until concrete barriers were built to challenge the natural order and man spurned the gift of the Nile. But that is another story.

On 21 June 2003, the Egypt Exploration Society held a Study Day at the School of Oriental and African Studies, situated close to the British Museum, entitled The Lord of the Two Lands: Aspects of Egyptian Kingship. Members were invited to attend four intriguing topics: The Man in the God, Symbols of Egyptian Kingship, Lord of Bow-Land and The Gods’ Wives of Amun. An array of four Doctors of Archaeology and Ancient History made the presentations. Although the subjects were of interest, I found the presentations dry and academic. I was reminded of the maxim that a lecturer talks to his subject while a speaker talks to his audience. These were lectures! Comparison to TESSA’s Day School was inevitable and TESSA won hands down.

Readers of SHEMU will know that the painting “The Subsiding of the Nile” by Frederick Goodall, R.A. painted in 1872, has been the subject of recent research by TESSA. The 4m x 2m painting that hung for years in our City Hall was taken down, loaned to the South African Cultural History Museum where it has remained crated, pending a decision on its future. I visited the Guildhall Art Gallery in the City of London where hangs a painting by Goodall under the same title. This beautiful painting, which the Guildhall Gallery considered to be the only original until recently, is about one third of the size of the Cape Town work. The Guildhall version was painted by Goodall in 1873, a year after he completed the larger one. The Gallery is now aware of the existence of the earlier painting and the notice describing their painting refers to the larger and earlier original work in Cape Town.

In the course of further research I found that a third later version exists in the Russell Coates Gallery in Bournemouth. The Guildhall Gallery curator said that prior to printed reproductions, artists themselves painted smaller copies of their works to be hung in homes. The curator thought that the large original was still on show in Cape Town and she was saddened to hear that such an important painting is currently in a crate. More work needs to be done to get the Cape Town painting displayed.

The Petrie Museum was on our list of places to visit in London this trip and duly protected against the vagaries of the English summer (sun lotion and umbrella) my friend and I arrived on the doorstep on a Monday morning to find that the Museum is closed on Mondays! Students and archaeologists were working with the collection, but with great understanding the guard let us in and for two hours we were the only visitors to one of the richest Egyptian archaeological collections in the world. The 70,000 items, still categorised according to Petrie’s own and slightly obscure method will soon be moved to a new home where we were assured both the display and the system will be improved. It is a fascinating collection of mostly small pieces.

Previous visits to London always included the British Museum, and this visit was no exception. 2003 marks the 250th Anniversary of the Museum and one of the celebratory activities was a two-day colloquium on ancient Egypt plus an evening lecture on recent developments delivered by Dr. Zahi Hawass. It was a must for an Egyptophile! The first morning of the colloquium presented information about beautiful artwork in the tomb-chapel of Nebamun (c.1390BC), the conservation of the art and an analysis of pigments used involving new methodology. We then were given a more light-hearted look at Egyptian haircuts! In the afternoon we saw the most amazing interactive three-dimensional study of the mummy of Nesperennub, still undisturbed in his coffin. The final presentation of the day showed pictures of items in the British Museum’s loan exhibition currently touring the USA.

The evening of day one featured the Hawass lecture. I would like to relate the good fortune we had to obtain tickets for the Hawass lecture that was oversold weeks before I applied, but it would take too much space in SHEMU. Suffice to say that we ended up sitting on the steps of the lecture hall about two metres from arguably the most famous Egyptologist extant, and even managed to have a few words with the man. He is a charismatic speaker and his 90-minute talk was wide ranging, covering many matters not yet in the public domain. We were spellbound by the latest finds at Giza and Saqqara and the programme of exploration envisaged for next season. The evening reception was held in the Egyptian Hall where we had cocktails under the stern gazes of Amunhotep and Rameses.

The second day’s colloquium was equally fascinating, particularly the work on the tomb of Sobeknakht, a governor of Elkab in the latter part of the XVIIth Dynasty (c.1550 BC).

Cleaning has revealed previously undocumented information about an incursion into Egypt by the Kushites, supported by Wawat, Punt and Medjaw that extended as far north as Elkab (just south of Thebes). We were then treated to a video on the rescue of the Taharqa wall painting from Qasr Ibrim. The excavation of Theban Tomb 99 concluded the programme.

EDITOR’S COMMENT: Thanks Tony, for your efforts as TESSA’s Ambassador in London, and for an interesting article. Also, your kind remark about the TESSA Day Schools is greatly appreciated.
It was in June 1997 that I pointed out to the Royal Academy of Arts in London, that they were mistaken in thinking the original painting “The Subsiding of the Nile” was held in London. Even Frederick Goodall’s nephew in Canada considered the Guildhall copy to be the original.

These two tranquil figures moved me greatly, when I first saw them in the Louvre, over 30 years ago. They looked vulnerable, but yet somehow strong in their togetherness. With a sense of wonder, it suddenly struck me that they had already been immensely old when mighty Rome was yet a dusty village straddling an unimportant river crossing. The museum was full of the greatest works of man, but neither the wealth and power of the kings and pharaohs on display, nor the beauty of the magnificent art treasures, impressed me ever so much as this very ordinary couple, who had left nothing but themselves. Their fundamental humanity, decency, and the love that they had once shared for each other was still so very apparent. Back then, I was young and also in love, myself. However for those of us, who still walk this earth, life goes on, and gradually takes its insidious toll on our bodies, our affections and the commitments that go with them. We get over our losses, eventually even the most poignant memories are just excess baggage to be put aside …. But then I saw the photograph of these two old friends of my youth in a recent book. Half a lifetime had passed for me and I was a different person now, “something lost and something gained, by living every day” – but for them nothing had changed. The experiences of all those long years, since my joyful days in Paris, were but the blinking of an eye compared to the immense passage of time, since that distant Egyptian day, when the statues were taken west of the Nile to be prepared by the priests for the “opening of the mouth” ceremony. The ritual that would guarantee that the “ka”, or life force, of each of the lovers would live forever in the statues and that they would be close to their chosen one for all eternity. Old feelings came flooding back to me and I wrote my poem.

It seems long, long ago,
That wet, grey-wintered Paris day,
When I first saw the two of you,
Standing all alone in the silence of the shadows.
|Two lovers, safe within a private peace,
Calm, content to remain forever,
Amidst dreams once shared,
As lovers often are.

What ancient, ever-living dreams,
Running like threads of silver through the fabric of time,
Have nourished and sustained you gentle dreamers,
Throughout all your long, abundant feast of infinity?
While my own poor portion,
My brief rind of time,
Has already dimmed my eyes
And all but slipped away.

Yesterday,
Before the clamour grew,
Before first pharaoh dawned
To shake his fist and wear the double crown,
Standing together beside living mother Nile,
You watched your golden father of the sky
Tease rich azure,
From the home of crocodiles.

An artist, who loved you both,
Shared your spirits with an ancient log.
A gift of the river,
Brought downstream from the forests of eternity,
And with caresses of copper and strokes of flint
He left you wooded in togetherness,
Arm in arm,
To await the ends of time.

© Steve Coe – February 1998

The Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square, Cairo is being prepared for a grand celebration of its centenary. Since the museum was inaugurated on 15th November 1902, millions of people from kings, queens and emperors to commoners have walked the galleries of this treasure house viewing the world’s most famous collection of Egyptian antiquities. The Foundation Stone was laid on 1st April 1897 in the presence of Prince Abbas Hilmi and Gaston Maspéro.

A three-day festival from 9th to 11 December will mark the 100 years which will include a conference in the Cairo Opera House to be attended by museum directors and researchers from leading museums around the world. The highlight of the celebrations will be a special exhibition in the basement of the museum entitled “The Hidden Treasures of the Egyptian Museum” in which 300 objects which have been in storage for many years, will be displayed for the first time including 40 objects from the tomb of Tutankhamun comprising 30 gold amulets and items of jewellery which have never been seen before as well as Old Kingdom statuary, a limestone sphinx figure of Ramesses II and a 22nd Dynasty gold crown in the form of a cobra. Among the exhibits will be objects recovered from other countries.

The basement area, only used for storage is receiving attention for the first time. It is not only the fabric of the basement structure which requires restoration but the accumulated 30,000 artefacts, covered in 100 years of dust and cobwebs, are being moved, while some are being cleaned and prepared for display. Mr. Hussein Ahmed Hussein, in charge of the basement restoration said, “It was so filled with antiquities that it was difficult for our workers to get in at all . . . The place was swept, all the cracks had to be treated, and the walls were consolidated.”

It is hoped that the fibre-optic lighting and display techniques to be installed will be more efficient than those used in the first floor jewellery rooms including the Tutankhamun gold room. In these areas, recent “improvements” have had a reverse effect and rendered many of the objects difficult to be viewed properly. It is reported that an Italian museologist has been contracted to reorganise and improve the main museum collection which will hopefully include positive re-assessment and improvement of lighting.

As part of the celebrations, a centenary logo is being designed, and a 40-minute film will document the history of the museum, also a set of postage stamps and special gold and silver coins will be minted. A long overdue visitor’s annexe to include a new shop and a conference facility is being planned as well as air-conditioning for the museum.

Recently, the Egyptian authorities advertised an international architectural competition for a new museum building. This, together with the proposed improvements to the present museum and with the adventurous and seminal Norwegian designed Bibliotheca Alexandrina would indicate that the Egyptian authorities are entering the third millennium with progressive attitudes and thinking. We greatly look forward to the results.

In the words of H.E. Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, wife of the President of Egypt and Chair of the Board of Trustees of Bibliotheca Alexandrina: “The goal of this enormous project is to honour the past, to celebrate the present and to invent the Future . . . The role of the library is to promote dialogue of cultures specifically in the fields of knowledge, science, culture, art . . . a centre of excellence in research and documentation, and a source of pride for Egypt and the entire world”.

With these words ringing through the halls of the resurrected Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Dr. Peter Lor, National Librarian, National Library of South Africa, presented the opening address of ALEXANDRIA IN CAPE TOWN in the Baxter Concert Hall on Friday 12 April 2002.

Dr. Lor pointed out the positive cultural relationship established between South Africa and Egypt since the 1990’s and that the new library would serve to close the gaps created between peoples and their cultures over a span of many centuries. Chief guest speaker Professor Mostafa El Abbadi from the University of Alexandria was introduced by Dr. Lor and then presented the first paper of the five he was due to deliver over the two days. For convenience, the five papers presented by Professor El Abbadi will be covered first in this review..

Alexandria – “The Greatest Emporium in the Inhabited World”

Professor Dr. El Abbadi, an impeccable figure of elegance and charm, the moving “spirit” behind the re-establishing of the great library, told his audience that when first approached by the TESSA Chairman, Keith Grenville, to visit Cape Town, the prospect of such a journey appeared to be “an attempt of the impossible”. However, thanks to the persistent enterprise of Keith and his team, the “impossible” became the “possible”. The lecture covered the very beginnings of the harbour on the pre-Alexandrian site; the founding of this great city in 326 B.C. as an international centre and how it became the greatest trading centre of the world by 26 BC, when under Roman dominance, it controlled the sea route to India.

On the Transmittance of Egyptian Learning into Greek: 2nd Lecture.

Dr. Mostafa divided this huge dimension of learning between these two great peoples through the evolution of time into three phases: the first phase covered the significance of the ancient Nile flow – “the giver of life”. The second phase gave rise to uncovering the mysteries of the heavens which lead to the science of Astronomy and Time Measurement. The third phase uncovered the instruments of astronomy – technology. At this point, we as modern-day man of the 21st century, could only agree that whatever seems “amazing” in our world today, we owe to the incredible thirst for knowledge about our universe by the men of these ancient nations.

Alexander, the Egyptian Pharaoh: Lecture 3

What inspires greatness in man? Is it his own natural vision or an insatiable drive; or is it a birthright? According to the legend of the Alexander Romance, Alexander’s mother, Queen Olympias, consorted with an Egyptian magician/priest who appeared to her as the god Amun. She gave birth to a son who was to become one of the greatest Greek leaders of ancient time and was proclaimed “divine” pharaoh. His legacy of vision and courage has remained part of Greek/Egyptian history since his death in 324 BC.

The Alexandria Library, Past and Present: Lecture 4.

Professor El Abbadi modestly and briefly mentioned how he conceived the idea exactly thirty years ago of daring to imagine that the great ancient Library of Alexandria should be revived in modern times with similar aims and objectives.

It was the most inspiring and enriching lecture for me. The ancient library, established by Ptolemy I (Soter) in 288 BC, came alive and before me appeared the scholars from all over the known world speaking in their many different tongues on so many diverse subjects. Over 700,000 scrolls to pour over! Literary giants such as Plato and Aristotle, Aristarchus – the first to proclaim that the earth revolves around the sun; Hipparchus – the first to measure the solar year; Euclid – the father of geometry; Archimedes – the greatest mathematician; Callimachus – poet and the father of “Library Science” – the methodical cataloguing of books by topic and author. There was also the translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek making it accessible to all learned people. This was the greatness of the Hellenistic culture and civilization with the city of Alexandria as its centre. The inevitable question remains: was Alexandrian culture and scholarship Greek or Egyptian? There is no doubt that both peoples should be proud of this timeless legacy.

Underwater Archaeology in Alexandria and Abou-Kir: Lecture 5.

The exciting underwater discoveries originated by amateur enterprise has attained official recognition in Egypt. The lecture examined the explorations undertaken illustrated with photographs of sculpture, jewellery, coins and artefacts found beneath the water. The future prospects of this comparatively new branch of archaeology has enormous potential.

An Egyptian image of Alexandria: special guest lecturer Professor Azza Kararah.

Professor Kararah’s mesmerising dramatic skill held us captivated as she gave a personal rendition of The Downfall of Cleopatra by Ahmed Shawqi (1869 – 1932), the “prince of poets” of the Arab world. This dramatic piece, written as a verse-play, shows the influence of Shakespeare whom the dramatist greatly admired.

The second piece, Miramar by Nobel Prize winning author Naguib Mahfouz, Egypt’s most highly acclaimed novelist, is set in a pensione on the Mediterranean sea front. It captures the Neapolitan nature of Alexandria in the 1960s – a turbulent political time and the writer shows great compassion as the characters face their dilemmas.

Professor Dereck Sparks (University of Cape Town) delivered a paper Alexandria – a bridge between East and West and illustrated a wealth of scientific inventions and accomplishments enabling scientific development during a rich period of history.

Stellenbosch University was well represented. Professor Sakkie Cornelius delivered a colourful and visually exciting view of The Many Faces of Cleopatra from Alexandria to Cyberspace. This informative lecture was well received at the end of the first day.

Also from Stellenbosch University was Professor Johann Cook’s The Alexandrian Origins of the Septuagint. This fascinating account of the translation of the Hebrew Pentateuch text into Greek was punctuated with examples of the development of the language. Professor Cook, with his customary energy, returned to the platform on the second day of the seminar with some details of the creation of the Coptic language in his paper Egyptian Coptic Culture.

Professor Anthony Humphreys (University of the Western Cape) delivered a very interesting and detailed paper Cleopatra: The Woman and her World which looked beyond the mythology of this extraordinary person and at the political pressures placed on her by the Roman empire.

A fascinating demo-lecture was presented by Dr. Barry Smith on the organ in the Concert Hall. He discussed the origins of the organ which was first invented as a “Hydraulis” by the engineer Ctesibius during the 3rd century. BC.

This truly memorable and enriching symposium, moderated throughout by Society Chairman Keith Grenville, was the strongest and most authoritative academic platform focused entirely on Egypt ever presented in South Africa – a mighty feather in the cap of The Egyptian Society of South Africa.

LUXOR, Tuesday, January 25, 1923

To-day greater crowds than have ever before assembled at the treasure tomb of King Tutankhamen thronged there to witness the last removal of the antiquities from the outer chamber before the opening of the inner chamber, where it is hoped to find the body of the ancient Pharaoh.

Five excursion boats made the journey of 450 miles to Luxor from Cairo down the placid waters of the Nile and emptied their great burden of tourists upon the historic Theban Plain at dawn. But, once arrived there, there were not sufficient donkeys, carriages, or sand-carts to take the visitors across the desert to the Valley of the Kings, so camels and oxen, patient beasts of burden in Egypt from immemorial time, were pressed into service.

The scene at the tomb awakened memories of Epsom Downs on Derby Day. The road leading to the rock-enclosed ravine, where the sovereigns of a long-forgotten age are ensepulchred deep down in the heart of the hills, was packed with vehicles and animals of every conceivable variety. the guides, donkey-boys, sellers of antiquities, and hawkers of lemonade were doing a roaring trade. Fabricated photographs of King Tutankhamen, sacred scarabs, miniature sphinxes, beads of “miraculous” properties, and spurious antiquities in unending variety were offered to the tourists at extravagant prices.

The immense crowd surrounding the tomb on all sides waited patiently under the burning sun for several hours. It was noticeable that the women outnumbered the men by four to one. Every one of them had a camera, and the whole battery of instruments was levelled at Mr. Carter like an array of machine guns as, shortly before noon, he emerged from the tomb with his assistants bearing a grotesque elongated cow built on the lines of a dachshund.

A REMARKABLE COW

The inanimate beast of gold and wood formed one of the sides of Tutankhamen’s imperial couch. It was far from being one of the Guernsey or Jersey variety of cow, for the body was as slender as a wolfhound, the tail was curled up in a perfect circle, and the head had the delicate lines of a deer.

“What is it – calf, donkey, goat, deer, or rocking-horse?” ejaculated the crowd.
“It is an Egyptian cow, 3,350 years old,” explained Mr. Carter, with a smile. “It has guarded King Tutankhamen throughout his 33 centuries of sleep.”

The wooden effigy was then carefully laid to rest in a huge crate and carried away with all pomp and ceremony to the adjoining tomb of Seti II. A second cow was then brought out of the treasure vault, the brilliance of the gilding with which it was covered glistening in the bright sun with an iridescent light. Finally the beautifully-carved couch itself, designed especially to conform with the King’s contour, was brought out. It was covered liberally with a protective solution and cotton padding, so that the crowd could but little appreciate the exquisite beauty of its design. The couch was laid like a piece of delicate bric-à-brac in a huge wooden case which it took eight men to carry.

It is probable that to-morrow will see the last removal of the reliquaries from the magic storehouse for the time being, as Mr. Carter is going to Cairo to meet Lord Carnarvon, and to make with him the final arrangements for the unsealing of the burial chamber. In the meanwhile the experts will be busy repairing, retouching, and conserving some of the more delicate antiquities in the tomb, which are beginning to show signs of disintegration after their long entombment.

When the last articles had been removed from the corridor of the tomb the newspaper correspondents began a spirited dash across the desert to the banks of the Nile upon donkeys, horses, camels, and in chariot-like sand-carts in a race to be the first to reach the telegraph offices, for there is neither a telephone nor a telegraph line from the sacred precincts of the ancient Egyptian tombs to the town of Luxor. The oldest valley known to history still remains aloof from the restless developments of the outer world, and neither aeroplane nor wireless has as yet penetrated its peaceful serenity. P.A. Foreign Special.

KING TO VISIT THE TOMB
LUXOR, Wednesday

King Fuad has ordered his private train to be refitted and repainted, and it is anticipated that he will travel in state to Luxor. Unlike his ancient predecessors, who crossed the river only when upon their pilgrimage of death, King Fuad will be taken in a high-powered British motor-car across the Theban plain to the towering cliffs which form the great gorge known as the Royal Necropolis.

The energetic and ambitious new director-general of the Egyptian Museum, Mamdouh El-Damati, is planning to resuscitate many former museum projects which have been left on ice for the last three years. He also hopes to implement innovations of his own.

One of the first decisions taken by the new director-general after he assumed office was reviving a project to highlight a different masterpiece each month. The chosen piece is placed in a place of honour in the foyer, along with full details. El-Damati also plans to reach out to the interested public. “To develop the skills and knowledge of Egyptian archaeologists, the museum is organising a series of Sunday lectures focusing on a different aspect of ancient society each week. We shall also focus on other topics,” he says.

Early in 2002 the museum should be on the Internet. This facility will enable students and scholars from all over the world to carry out research without necessarily making their way to Egypt or visiting the museum. El-Damati says the Internet catalogue will provide a photo album of every object in the museum, with full details of size, material, historical details, the site at which each piece was found and any other relevant information. “Each photo will be numbered, and it will be possible for a viewer to purchase the right to reproduce it for a small fee through the Internet. Since each object is photographed from all angles, the navigator can decide which angle is the most suitable for his or her purposes — as a work of art, for example, or in order to read the texts. If more information is required this will be provided on request for an additional fee.”

In the early 1950s, before the revolution, a general catalogue on the Egyptian Museum gave regular details of new additions. This long-neglected project will now be reactivated. “It will not be in the form of a single catalogue, but several, each devoted to a single subject. For example ushabti figures, sarcophagi, mummies, offering tables, reliefs, etc.,” El-Damati says.

He says that in view of the immense popularity of the Mausoleum of the Mummies, another mummy hall is being prepared to display those mummies, some of them royal, which are still in storage. “The hall exhibiting animal mummies will be rearranged,” he adds.

A hall on the upper level of the museum devoted to the exhibition of sarcophagi, closed for the last 30 years, will be reopened. El-Damati says; “The hall will be cleaned and repainted, the tiling restored, and all the sarcophagi cleaned and suitably prepared for exhibition.”

These are ambitious plans, but not too ambitious for a man who has a vision of turning the Egyptian Museum into a meeting place for scholars — while at the same time catering to the interests of children and providing facilities for the disabled. “We intend to produce a bulletin outlining museum news and giving details of the planned lecture series,” the new director says. “For children, we want to produce a monthly brochure describing specific pieces which will be of special interest. As for the disabled, for the first time in the history of the museum [which was founded by Mariette nearly a century ago], plans are being made to provide some 50 to 70 replicas of masterpieces for hands-on “viewing” by the blind. “The chosen pieces will cover highlights of ancient Egyptian history. A Braille catalogue is coming out very soon,” El-Damati says.

The first object chosen to become the post- revival “Piece of the Month,” was a limestone dyad, or pair statue, showing Mery-Re, the overseer of god Aten, with his wife Ey-Yuya seated beside him in an embrace. The statue, in colour and with its hieroglyphic text intact, was found seven months ago by a Dutch-British team excavating in the south-western chapel of the priest’s tomb in Saqqara.

The texts on the back of the statues reveal the facts. Mery-Re was, among his many titles, scribe of the temple of the Aten at Akhet-Aten (Tel Al-Amarna) and the text inscribed on his kilt reveals that he was one of the Pharaoh’s most honoured officials. His double-row gold necklace was a reward presented only to the Pharaoh’s favourites. His wife, Ey-Yuya, also had several titles, among them ‘The Favoured One’ and ‘His Beloved Wife.’ The right side of her hair is swept behind her back, while her robe reaches to her ankles.

Other exhibits lined up for future exhibition as “Piece of the Month” are a head of Amun-Zeus, a Graeco-Roman masterpiece in alabaster retrieved two years ago from Jordan along with a collection of ushabti figures and six papyrus texts; and the copper statue of the fifth-dynasty Pharaoh Pepi I, now restored.

Egyptian State Information Service

After an interlude of overcast sky, with a very high wind, almost a gale,making the river like a choppy sea, greatly disturbing the sand, and veiling the landscape, we have once more most glorious sunshine and a perfect blue sky.

Yesterday there was little activity of real interest at the tomb. Lord Carnarvon, accompanied by Lady Evelyn Herbert, arrived this morning by train from Cairo and was met by Mr. Carter with whom Lord Carnarvon went to the Valley of the Kings after lunch. During the morning, M. Pierre Lacau, Director-General of the Department of Antiquities, arrived and visited the valley. Among other visitors were Lord Leigh, Lady Juliet Trevor, Sir Phillip Sassoon, and Sir Louis Mallett. Those visiting the tomb to-day included Lord and Lady Granby, Mr. Mervyn Herbert, Mrs. Herbert, and the Sultana Malak, widow of the Sultan Hussein, who, accompanied by one of the Princesses, was paying her second visit.

A TRIUMPHAL CHARIOT

To-day the work of removal has been resumed at the tomb in the presence of a remarkably small number of spectators. The removals included a magnificent chariot, quite the best of those which have been discovered. It is decorated with sheet gold, and inlaid in much detail with various stones and coloured glass. On the front part of the body are cartouches of the King, while on the inside, with other ornamental devices, are portraits of vassals, with the names of their conquered countries. The chariot, which was evidently the King’s triumphal chariot, is in excellent condition, the workmanship is of the finest, and the gold and stones glistened in the sunshine as it emerged from the tomb and was carried up the hill. With the chariot was a pole on which remained hanging a leopard’s skin which once covered the floor of the body of the chariot.

Finally came a tray covered with a sheet, bearing two wheels. Owing to the delicate nature of the beautiful ornamentation of these wheels, it was considered advisable to cover them completely. The wheels belong to the fourth chariot, the body of which is completely broken. It will have to be removed in parts, and will require the most delicate handling owing to its fragile condition. This broken chariot, part of the harness of the Lion ceremonial couch, and two statues of the King are all that now remain out of the 167 principal objects found in the ante-chamber.

While the work of clearing the various chests and boxes found in the ante-chamber of the tomb is undoubtedly exacting, at the same time it has consoling features. One of these assuredly resides in the uncertainty as top what each box contains, and the possibility that its clearance may disclose new treasures.

As has already been explained, most of the boxes found in the ante-chamber were not opened before their removal from the tomb. Even when they were opened, only the articles which lay on the top were recorded, as their fragility prevented any attempt to see what was underneath until the covering article had received in the laboratory, proper preservative treatment, and its design and all details recorded. This is what has occurred in the case of the red box, the commencement of the clearance of which was reported a few days ago.

When it was opened, all that could be seen was a large robe of woven tapestry fabric, on which was sewn a magnificent gold scarab buckle, the details of which were given in the dispatch of February 8. This robe has now been removed, and has already disclosed several things of the greatest interest. Among the items taken out are a number of beautiful faience libation vases in imitation lapis lazuli and bearing the King’s cartouche in yellow. A unique article of alabaster has also been found. It is Greek in form and is nothing less than a wine-strainer, the first of its kind ever found in relation to the Dynastic period.

A SUPERB SPECIMEN

But the gem of the articles so far disclosed is a large corselet in elaborate mesh of faience pennants, with gold clasps, ties, and ornamentation inlaid in glass in imitation of semi-precious stones. That corselets of this description existed was well known, as they figure among the mural decorations in the tombs of the kings and the chapels of nobles. But never before has the actual article itself been found, nor was its intricate detail or superb workmanship ever realized until the present specimen came to light.

The advent of generally warmer weather has necessitated a slight modification of the working arrangements at the tomb. As previously mentioned, the carpenters’ shop has been set up at the cache, where also, is the staff dining—-room, just within the natural gateway to the sanctuary forming the Royal necropolis. The joinery work, however, has become so heavy that it has been found necessary to remove it to a place where there is more shade and where the operations will not disturb the staff when taking their very brief rest afforded by the midday meal. The carpenters’ shop has been transferred to the rock platform outside the tomb of Seti II, thus also greatly reducing the transport, since the cases can be made on the spot where they are wanted. What this means can be appreciated when it is mentioned that, in addition to the ten thousand feet of wood already obtained, a further large quantity has since had to be procured.

The public should be warned not to believe some extraordinary stories which get into print purporting to emanate from Luxor. The latest of these is a tale of a wonderful papyrus, discovered in the tomb, giving the whole dramatic story of the ancient robbery of the tomb and its punishment, which is given prominence by some Egyptian newspapers. No such papyrus has been found, nor indeed, any papyrus whatever.

The original press cuttings from which these reports are drawn, together with some early photographs, were donated by Member Jim Willcocks, and are held in the Society’s archives.