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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 January 2000 Issue No. 465 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 January 2000 Issue No. 465
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Travel Web
Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA)
Where can you find information about Egypt's ancient history, recreational tourism, sites and facilities? Look no further than the official site for the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA). A comprehensive, lively and well-organised Web site, its main purpose is to cover the activities of the SCA in the field of conservation, restoration and archaeological discoveries. One can even contact Egypt's antiquities officials via the site.
Divided into several sections, the most important section of this site is the "News Bulletin." In the November 1999 update, which is the most recent, the exciting field of underwater archaeology is examined with information on the discoveries at the site where Napoleon's fleet sank off of the coast of Abu Qir, just east of Alexandria. Ongoing restorations of the Giza Pyramids is another topic dealt with in this bulletin. As bulletins are archived, access to information about SCA's activities and discoveries prior to November of last year is available at the click of one's mouse.
When one tires of looking into the past, insight into the future can also be obtained from the site. A section prepared by Dr Mohamed El-Saghir, head of the Egyptology section of the SCA, outlines the department's plans to restore various ancient Egyptian monuments including those in Luxor, Gebel El-Silsila in Kom Ombo, Seti I temple in Gurna, the Isis temple in Aswan, and the Tree of the Holy Virgin in Matariya, a Cairo suburb.
The section titled "SCA staff" is a link that introduces the Internet user to the people who make the council work. It includes the full formal titles of the SCA's people -- critical information for anyone wishing to contact the council.
In depth articles on a variety of topics have the potential to turn casual browsers into Egyptology enthusiasts. Topics include the recent unearthing of Old Kingdom tombs found beneath agricultural land in Manshiet El-Ezzat in Dakahlia governorate; the survey conducted along the Mediterranean coast which revealed an ancient harbour with wrecks of sunken ships; and the newly discovered church in the monastery at the foot of a mountain called Kubet El-Hawa in Aswan.
Other site highlights include an article on the discovery of a Ramses II inscription on a basalt stone in a mosque in the north-west area of Jordan by Dr Gaballa Ali Gaballa, head of the SCA. An interview with Dr Gaballa is also included. The site wouldn't be complete without an interview with the outspoken director general of the Giza Plateau Zahi Hawas, who discusses the SCA's future projects.
Rounding out the site's treatment of the past and the future are links to Egypt-related news stories found on the Internet.
