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Al-Ahram Weekly 17 - 23 August 2000 Issue No. 495 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 17 - 23 August 2000 Issue No. 495
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Tales from a lesser tomb
By Nevine El-Aref
Tombs on the west bank of Luxor monopolise the limelight, no doubt. Pamphlets, posters, postcards and documentaries lavish endless attention on the magnificent necropolis of the Valley of the Kings and Queens, leaving scarcely a footnote for the equally remarkable tombs at Saqqara, Dahshur or Heliopolis. But a project currently under way promises to divert some of the tourist flux over to a new site, the tomb of Banehsi, the Saite ruler of Lower-Egypt during the reign of the 26th dynasty King Besmatik II.
Two months ago, a massive restoration plan was launched, which would dismantle, reconstruct and preserve the tomb, discovered 12 years ago. Moreover, it will prevent the area from ever falling victim to urban encroachment.
"It is a big salvage operation," said Abdel-Hamid Qutb, director-general of the engineering department at the pyramid area, who added that the project will also put an end to the leakage of subterranean and drainage water onto the burial chamber of the tomb.
Qutb explained that studies to restore and relocate the tomb started in 1998 and the actual restoration work started early this summer. "In 12 months, the tomb will be born again," he declared.
"Starting the restoration project of Banehsi tomb, for me, is like a dream come true," said Ahmed El-Sawi, an Egyptologist who partook in the early restoration studies carried out by the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) in 1988.
El-Sawi explained that the tomb was discovered in 1988 by an Egyptian mission, specially assigned to check the area in order to determine whether it was an archaeological site or an urban land.
The tomb is the only complete one ever found in Ain-Shams necropolis, the one-time Egyptian capital. The tomb is built of huge limestone blocks and consists of an entrance, an open courtyard and a small burial chamber with an empty limestone sarcophagus where texts of The Book of the Dead are engraved on the external surface.
Workers while restorig the tomb(top); one of the most exquistely coloured reliefs inside the tomb
The walls of the tomb are decorated with beautiful coloured reliefs depicting various ceremonies. Some of these reliefs represent religious scenes showing the deceased worshipping different deities and offering gifts to them. Other scenes feature the deceased amidst a family gathering.
El-Sawi explained that the Saite era reincarnated the Old Kingdom civilisation while keeping the lush decoration style of the New Kingdom civilisation. For example, Banehsi's tomb is decorated with verses of the pyramid texts and others The Book of the Dead as well as coloured reliefs.
The tomb was found 60 metres under ground level and was mainly suffering from the leakage of water inside its open court, hall and burial chamber. The subterranean water reached one metre high inside the tomb. The limestone blocks had tilted, cracks appeared and the salty water damaged some of the reliefs on the walls.
Qutb explained that the project is geared toward preserving the tomb and protecting it from further deterioration. The water inside the tomb has been pumped out, the blocks have been already dismantled, restored and are now kept in storage in order to be reconstructed on a concrete base in a dry area above ground level.
To protect the tomb from drainage and subsoil water, an insulating substance will cover the area between the ground and the blocks of the tomb. The tomb's reliefs will be cleansed of salt and restored.
A new lighting system will be installed both inside and outside the tomb. Other graves and uncompleted tombs of the Saite era found in the necropolis will be restored and opened to visitors.
Facilities will be installed in the area, such as toilets, ticket kiosks and a small coffee-shop to meet the needs of the modern worshipper.
