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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 16 - 22 November 2000 Issue No.508 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 16 - 22 November 2000 Issue No.508
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Revamping Nubian monuments
By Nevine El-Aref
By the time the High Dam was completed in 1971 and the whole of Nubia was flooded by Lake Nasser, the great temples of the area had been saved. Some had even been transported, piece by piece, to countries like the United States and Sudan. The magnificent temples of Abu Simbel, Kalabsha, Philae, El-Sebua, Amada, Beit El-Wali, and the Kiosk of Kertassi have since become world famous, and the Lake Nasser cruises that visit them as popular as the more traditional Nile cruise.
Despite the architectural magnificence and historical importance of the temples, they all remain somewhat lost in the parched landscape of their new locations. They stand isolated, as would a piece of bohemian decoration in the centre of an unfurnished but newly painted lounge. However, this is about to change. The United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organisation (UNESCO) Executive Committee for Nubia Monuments visited Egypt last week to follow up progress of work being carried out by the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA). They discovered that the ministries of culture and tourism had successfully promoted the Nubian monuments along Lake Nasser as a tourist destination, that cruises on luxury vessels were popular, that some excursions included desert tours, and that some progress had been achieved in revamping the areas around the monuments.
The process of upgrading the Nubian sites by providing better facilities for tourists is now in full swing. A development project was started a year ago by the Ministry of Culture and the SCA, in collaboration with UNESCO. Last week, a high-ranking delegation, which included Culture Minister Farouk Hosni, Secretary-General of the SCA Gaballa Ali Gaballa, Cultural Representative of UNESCO Mounir Bouchenaki and members of UNESCO's Executive Committee for Nubia, along with Egyptian and foreign archaeologists, embarked on a tour of Nubia to look into progress being made there.
ABU SIMBEL: Ramses II's famous temple at Abu Simbel was completely buried in sand when discovered by Swiss explorer Burchardt in 1813. It is positioned so that the rays of the rising sun cast light through to the sanctuary twice a year, now said to be on his birthday and the anniversary of his coronation. The second temple at Abu Simbel was built by Ramses for his favourite and most beautiful wife, Nefertari
They inspected Nubia's heritage, from the Nubia Museum in Aswan to the temple of Abu Simbel, including the famed monuments of Philae and the reconstructed temples of Kalabsha. Two days after their official trip, the dignitaries held a press conference in Cairo to evaluate work done and make their recommendations. Bouchenaki was obviously impressed by what he had seen, especially work carried out at Abu Simbel.
"Abu Simbel was very lucky. It has a better chance in the development project than its neighbouring temples," said Gaballa. "A small visitor's centre has been built at the foot of this lofty monument which is an obligatory stop on any visitor's itinerary. It has a lecture hall, a cinema where documentary films narrating the salvage operation of the temple is screened, as well as a film covering the relocation of Nubians to their new homes in Egypt and the Sudan."
As at all visitors' centres, there is a small bookshop and a counter selling souvenirs. In order to control the movement of tourists and to protect the temple reliefs, plans have been set in motion for tour guides to lecture their groups outside the temple in front of a three-dimensional plan of the different corridors and halls and the sanctuary, and show them photographs of the most noteworthy scenes on the temple walls.
"If this system of limiting the length of time spent in the temple proves successful, it will be implemented at every archaeological site in Egypt," announced Aymen Abdel-Moneim, an archaeologist responsible for the restoration.
The important project to develop the Nubia Museum into a regional cultural centre for museum conservation and museology for Arab Countries and Africa, was also discussed at length. Some $500,000 was allocated to further the plan. Hosni explained that a laboratory to restore and conserve exhibited items along with newly excavated objects from archaeological sites in and around Aswan is being planed. "There will be a training centre to develop the execution skills of the staff and to enhance Nubian handicraft skills in the education section of the museum," he added. "It will also have a comprehensive library with books related to Nubian culture and civilisation."
Anxious to keep abreast of modern technology, students will be encouraged to improve their skills through the use of the museum facilities, including archives and Internet resources.
"In order to preserve the garden area surrounding the Nubia Museum, and ensure that there will be no infringements, the UNESCO committee allocated a $15,000 grant," Hosni said.
"Upgrading the Nubian sites and making them both more attractive and more accessible to tourists is a dream come true," commented Gaballa, who added that within two months the temples of Abu Simbel, Philae and Kalabsha will be officially inaugurated following their collective upgrading.
The floors of the Holy of Holies in the three temples have been covered with wooden boards to protect them from the dust created by visitors. Moneim announced that there was a path to guide visitors to each temple and to facilitate their circulation during the tour. Other facilities, such as toilets, a cafeteria and a parking area have been provided, and all the sites now have new docks which can accommodate more vessels.
PHILAE: The original island of Philae now lies beneath Lake Nasser. The famous temples, including the great temple of Isis, however, were totally dismantled and re-erected on a neighbouring island of Agilkai, which now bears the name of 'Philae'. This is a magnificent Graeco-Roman temple complex built over a period of some 800 years by Ptolemaic and Roman rulers who sought to identify themselves with the Osirian myth and the cult of Isis. It harmonises with its setting, with sculpted pillars and pylons breaking the skyline. Boat travellers will be able to discern the original Island of Philae as a shadowy presence beneath the water.
KALABSHA: The Kalabsha temple was dismantled from its original site 50kms south of Aswan and relocated near the High Dam. It is the largest free-standing temple in Nubia -- which is to say it is not partly hewn out of rock, and during the salvage operation it was cut into 13,000 blocks. What is known as the Kiosk of Kertassi and a small rock-temple built by Ramses II were also saved and erected here.
photos: Khaled El-Fiqi and Amr Gamal
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