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Al-Ahram Weekly 6 - 12 April 2000 Issue No. 476 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 6 - 12 April 2000 Issue No. 476
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Summit Features Focus Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Heated debates but no decisions
By Nevine El-ArefWhen you put a bunch of academics and archaeologists in a room and lob them a topic as critical as site management, you can be sure that some dignified chaos will follow.
And so was the case when Egyptologist Zahi Hawass led a heated debate on the conservation of Egypt's antiquities. The panel of experts consisted of Kent Weeks, professor of archaeology at the American University in Cairo; Michael Jones, project manager of the Antiquities Development Project at the American Research Centre in Egypt (ARCE); Christian Leblanc, director of the archaeological mission of the CNRS (Centre National des Recherce Scientific); and Fathy Saleh, professor of computer and information technology at Cairo University.
Despite general agreement that a comprehensive site management plan is a pressing need, the panelists disagreed widely on the steps that need to be taken in this direction. Some were in favour of a total moratorium on excavations for 10 years; others regarded excavation and restoration as complementary and said that they should be considered related issues. Others again said that excavations should continue -- because they are "salvage operations" for our antiquities -- but that priority should be given to areas most seriously threatened by environmental hazards or mass tourism.
Hawass, who is the secretary-general of ICE, opened the debate by raising the issues to be discussed by the panel, including the problem of inadequate early restoration. Techniques used in early restorations, such as that of the Sphinx, not only damaged many of the original blocks of stone, but previous restorers actually removed work carried out in ancient times.
UNESCO experts predicted in 1996 that many archaeological sites around the world were in danger of being completely destroyed within 200 years. Hawass was adamant about Egypt's need for a master plan. "The situation here in Egypt is even more critical," he said. "It is possible that major portions of our ancient sites will be lost within 100 years."
Archaeological sites in the Delta are now widely regarded as being threatened and most experts agree that they should take priority in excavation. "Foreign expeditions mostly work in Upper Egypt from Giza to Aswan, in contrast to the few excavations in the Delta," Hawass said, remarking that the contrary should be the case. "The dry climate in Upper Egypt helps preserve the monuments [there], but in Lower Egypt the situation is the opposite. Damage is posed to the various sites by the rising water table, agricultural expansion and urban development."
Hawass laid great stress on the importance of maps, restoration and the publication of work carried out by archaeological missions in Egypt. "There is no balance between excavation and publication," he said, "and no system of rules that anyone can follow." He called for a site management plan for all archaeological sites in Egypt to save them from the danger of urban growth and environmental pollution, like vehicular traffic.
Hawass noted that mass tourism, although welcome economically, is a detrimental factor to Egypt's antiquities. "Between four and five thousand people visit the Valley of the Kings daily," he said, "and every one of them goes to the famous tombs of Tutankhamun, Seti I, Nefertari, and Ramses III." Visits by numerous tourists cause great damage to the reliefs, not only through increased humidity, but also because they actually touch the walls. Each tourist who enters a tomb or a pyramid brings into it about 20 grams of water. Hawass noted that humidity has been raised to 85 per cent in some tombs, and salt deposits have accumulated up to one centimetre in thickness on some of them. He suggested that certain monuments should be closed to the public entirely, suggesting replica tombs and temples -- an unpopular idea.
Zahi Hawass (left) leads a discussion panel, including Gaballa Ali Gaballa (centre), debating the need for site management at the eighth International Congress of Egyptology
photo: Mohamed Wassim
Participants agreed on the need for a site management plan and that missions should continue their work while concentrating on restoration, mapping and documentation. But few scholars were in agreement on the idea of stopping new excavations or the building replica tombs.
Kent Weeks, who discovered the famous tomb now known as KV5 in Luxor, agreed that excavations should continue because they ensure that monuments are saved. "It is not true that a site may be better preserved by being buried in the sand," he said, suggesting that what is lacking is a master plan for conservation that settles the thorny issue of what is to be given priority. "We have no statement of policy; and policy implementation can only come from the SCA," he said, stressing that archaeological awareness should be increased among Egyptians and foreigners.
On the need to continue excavations, Michael Jones of ARCE said: "If excavations are stopped, then archaeologists will have no access to information and history." Ultimately, he argued, the areas will be neglected. "Excavation is the raw material of Egyptologists, from which studies are made on different topics, whether language, history, religion, art, etc." Jones said.
"Restoration and excavation are two faces of the coin," agreed Christian Leblanc, who heads the restoration of the Ramasseum. Excavations that unearth archaeological sites are crucial for saving monuments that might have been destroyed by subsoil water. "When they come to light," said Leblanc, "we save them by restoring them."
Leblanc attributed one of the main causes of the deterioration of monuments to tour guides. "They are lazy. They take tourists to the nearest tombs and are not willing to exert any effort. They are unwilling to climb a hill or walk any distance." He gave the tomb of Thutmose III, deep in the Valley of the Kings, as an example. "It is as rich in relief, decoration and interest as the tomb of Seti I, but guides take their groups to the latter, which is the nearest and least inconvenient for them. The result is too much pressure and certain deterioration of the chosen tomb," Leblanc said.
Guides should enter sites, point out the relevant features in the tomb and exit quickly, rather than give long explanations inside the tombs. If tour guides simply gave lectures prior to entry, it would automatically minimise the duration of the visit and safeguard the monument. He criticised tourist policies, arguing that visitors to Egypt should not be encouraged to take in all the sites -- Pharaonic, Islamic and Coptic -- not only because it is confusing, but because they will never come back. "They will think that they have seen it all," he said.
Hawass did not have much support for his suggestion on a moratorium on excavations. Not even Gaballa Ali Gaballa, secretary-general of the SCA, agreed. "We are not stopping excavations," Gaballa said firmly. "Foreign missions who are excavating all over the country will continue. However, for those taking out new concessions, priority will be given to endangered sites, whether in the Delta or in Upper Egypt, at sites like Akhmim."
Gaballa pointed out that some foreign missions excavate and then abandon the site, leaving it for the SCA to finish the restoration, documentation, etc. "They should be committed to complete the work themselves," said Gaballa, "even if they should need financial support from the SCA." He gave the example of the Polish Institute mission at Deir Al-Bahari, which is now completely financed by the SCA.
As to the question of replica tombs, it is one that has been raised and discarded several times in the last decade. Hawass is in favour of the idea, Leblanc is against it. Hawass gave the excellent example of the replica tomb of the Lesko cave in France, but Leblanc said that the situation was not the same here. "People come from abroad, spend lots of money and want to see the monuments ... not replicas," he said.
The overwhelming consensus at the congress was that Egypt's monuments are in danger. Views were presented, arguments proffered, interesting issues raised -- but in the end, decisions were not made. The curtain came down on the debate leaving matters to be resolved behind the scenes, hopefully in the near future.
