New Discovery, Giza: Tomb of 5th Dynasty Top Official Hetpet Discovered Near Pyramid of Khafre on Giza Plateau

After almost 109 years of searching, the tomb of Hathor’s priestess Hetpet has been uncovered. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

“It is the first discovery to be announced in 2018,” said Minister of Antiquities Khaled El-Enany at a press conference held at the step of Hetpet’s tomb in Giza's western cemetery.

El-Enany explained that blocks of the tomb were unearthed in 1909 by a British explorer who sent them to Berlin and Frankfurt.

“The tomb has never been uncovered until October 2017 when the Egyptian mission started excavation in the Giza western cemetery,” El-Enany said.

The minister explained that the cemetery was previously excavated by several archaeological missions since 1843, and the most distinguished and important ones were made by renowned Egyptologist and former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass.

The newly discovered tomb belongs to a lady named Hetpet, a top official in the royal palace during the end of the 5th Dynasty.

Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities and the head of the mission, told Ahram Online that the tomb has the architectural style and decorative elements of the 5th Dynasty, with an entrance leading to an “L” shape shrine with a purification basin.

On its western rear end there is a rectangular arcade lined with incense and offering holders. There is also a naos with a yet missing statue of the tomb’s owner. The tomb has very distinguished wall paintings in a very good state of conservation depicting “Hetpet” standing in different hunting and fishing scenes or sitting before a large offering table receiving offerings from her children.

“Scenes of reaping fruits, melting metals and the fabrication of leather and papyri boats as well as musical and dancing performances are also shown on walls,” Waziri said. He added that among the most distinguished paintings in the tomb are those depicting two monkeys in different positions. Monkeys were domestic animals at the time.

The first scene shows a monkey reaping fruits while the second displays a monkey dancing in front of an orchestra. Similar scenes are found in other tombs. The first one is painted on the wall of a 12th Dynasty tomb of Khnoum Hetep II in Beni Hassan in Minya governorate; the second is found in the Old Kingdom tomb of Ka-Iber in Saqqara, though it displays a dancing monkey in front of a guitarist not an orchestra.

Source: Ahram Online

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News, Cairo: AUC Shares Hassan Fathy Archives to Help Restore New Gourna Village

Documents, drawings and images from the Hassan Fathy Collection held at the AUC's Rare Books and Special Collections Library have been used to plan the village restoration project. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

The American University in Cairo's (AUC) Rare Books and Special Collections Library has been assisting with a project to restore New Gourna village in Luxor, providing original drawings, documents and images from the AUC’s Hassan Fathy Collection.

Built between 1946 and 1949, New Gourna village has experienced significant deterioration in recent decades, inspiring several plans for its restoration that have not come to fruition until now.

A UNESCO-sponsored project, however, is set to succeed in preserving pioneering architect Hassan Fathy’s well-known experiment at constructing an ideal village, a plan that perfectly embodies the innovative architect’s mission and values.

With the help of the special collections library and the backing of UNESCO, the National Organization for Urban Harmony was able to concretize plans for revival of the site and restoration of its buildings, guided by the original materials from the Hassan Fathy Collection.

“We’re happy to see the Hassan Fathy Collection used for restoration purposes,” said Ola Seif, assistant director and curator for photography at the Rare Books and Special Collections Library.

“For the past 10 years, it has been a wonderful source for many researchers worldwide, and soon, AUC Press will publish a thoroughly researched book titled Hassan Fathy in His Time. So the collection is really being explored as Hassan Fathy would have liked it to be, and to serve the purposes of his architectural ideology.”

Considered one of the first architects to make “appropriate technology” a principle of designing modern buildings, Fathy constructed the New Gourna village around the unique needs of its inhabitants.

In the process, he was able to assist in relocating an entire community that had previously been living near archeological Pharaonic sites. To build a “better village,” Fathy used local materials and traditional mud bricks, thereby empowering those in need to build their own affordable housing and reflecting the community’s connection with its environment.

The library was also central in curating an exhibition for the project’s launch event that was recently held at the Cairo Citadel. Through photographic archives, the exhibition traced the original construction of the village and Fathy’s architectural style, paying homage to his vision for New Gourna.

The final segment of the photographic gallery presented digital images that offered a peek into plans for reconstruction of some of the New Gourna buildings. Tarek Waly, CEO of the Tarek Waly Center and consultant for the restoration project, also introduced the main strategies for restoration. Additionally, Ghaith Fariz, director of UNESCO Regional Bureau for Sciences in the Arab States, spoke to the significance of Fathy’s architecture and ideology.

The first stage of the project will tackle the village khan and mosque. Later stages will move on to rehabilitating the theatre, marketplace, Fathy’s residence, the village hall and main square, with plans to also increase the efficiency of the roads approaching the site. 

The project involves plans to reuse the buildings according to the needs of the villagers, with the possibility of converting some areas into artist studios, a cultural centre, a centre for youth and, potentially, a training centre to continue communicating Fathy’s mission and methods.

Source: Ahram Online

New Discovery, Dakhla Oasis: Fossil of School Bus-Sized Dinosaur Dug Up in Egyptian Desert.

Scientists have unearthed in a Sahara Desert oasis in Egypt fossils of a long-necked, four-legged, school bus-sized dinosaur that lived roughly 80 million years ago, a discovery that sheds light on a mysterious time period in the history of dinosaurs in Africa.

Researchers said on Monday the plant-eating Cretaceous Period dinosaur, named Mansourasaurus shahinae, was nearly 33 feet (10 metres) long and weighed 5.5 tons (5,000 kg) and was a member of a group called titanosaurs that included Earth’s largest-ever land animals. Like many titanosaurs, Mansourasaurus boasted bony plates called osteoderms embedded in its skin.

Mansourasaurus, which lived near the shore of the ancient ocean that preceded the Mediterranean Sea, is one of the very few dinosaurs known from the last 15 million years of the Mesozoic Era, or age of dinosaurs, on mainland Africa. Madagascar had a separate geologic history.

Its remains, found at the Dakhla Oasis in central Egypt, are the most complete of any mainland African land vertebrate during an even larger time span, the roughly 30 million years before the dinosaur mass extinction 66 million years ago, said paleontologist Hesham Sallam of Egypt’s Mansoura University, who led the study published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution. The scientists recovered parts of its skull, lower jaw, neck and back vertebrae, ribs, shoulder and forelimb, back foot and osteoderms.

A lot of Africa is covered in grasslands, savannas and rain forests that obscure underlying rock where fossils may be found, said postdoctoral researcher Eric Gorscak of the Field Museum in Chicago, who was formerly at Ohio University.

While as massive as a bull African elephant, Mansourasaurus was modestly sized next to titanosaur cousins such as South America’s Argentinosaurus, Dreadnoughtus and Patagotitan and Africa’s Paralititan, some exceeding 100 feet (30 metres) long.

“Mansourasaurus, though a big animal by today’s standards, was a pipsqueak compared to some other titanosaurs,” said paleontologist Matt Lamanna of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh.

The researchers determined Mansourasaurus was more closely related to European and Asian titanosaurs than to those from elsewhere in Africa and other Southern Hemisphere land masses including South America formerly joined in a super-continent called Gondwana.

“This, in turn, demonstrates for the first time that at least some dinosaurs could move between North Africa and southern Europe at the end of the Mesozoic, and runs counter to long-standing hypotheses that have argued that Africa’s dinosaur faunas were isolated from others during this time,” Lamanna said.

Source: Ahram Online

News, Luxor: Egypt's Archaeological Sites to Be Made More Accessible to People With Disbilities

Luxor and Karnak Temples are among the first ancient sites to see improvements, with wooden ramps and paths for wheelchairs, along with information boards accessible to those with impaired sight and hearing. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

Egypt's antiquities ministry has launched a project to make archaeological sites and museums more accessible to people with disabilities, starting with improvements to Luxor Museum and the temples of Karnak and Luxor.

Sherif Abdel Moneim, supervisor of the ministry's Development of Archaeological Sites department, told Ahram Online that the project will bring improved mobility for those in wheelchairs, as well as making information more accessible to those with impaired sight and hearing.

Special paths will be constructed at Karnak and Luxor to facilitate the movement of wheelchairs, while information boards will be put up that are accessible to those with disabilities. A documentary film on display at the visitor center will have sign-language incorporated.

The toilets, meanwhile, will be renovated and equipped to suit special-needs visitors, according to international standards.

Mustafa Al-Saghir, director-general of Karnak Antiquities, explained a few of the improvements planned for the Karnak Temple site. The podium area and the area between the Teharaka column and the open-air museum will feature ramps measuring 1.5 metres in width, he explained, while a wooden slope will be installed from the start of the Avenue of Sphinxes.

The ministry is conducting the project in partnership with an Egyptian NGO called Helm (which translates into English as "Dream") that specialises in promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in all aspects of life, including access to public premises.

Eman Zidan, supervisor of the ministry's Financial Resources Development Department, said that the project to improve accessibility at archaeological sites highlights the role of NGOs in serving the community.

Source: Ahram Online

News, Giza: Japanese Development Agency Official Inspects Restoration Work on Khufu’s Second Solar Boat

JICA's Miyahara Chie paid a visit to the Grand Egyptian Museum's conservation laboratories and got an update on restoration work partly funded by the Japanese government. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

JICA's Miyahara Chie observes restoration work conducted 

on King Khufu’s second solar boat

A senior official from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) took a tour of conservation facilities at the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) on Sunday afternoon, observing restoration work being conducted on King Khufu’s second solar boat.

Miyahara Chie, the deputy director-general of JICA's Middle East and Europe Department, visited the GEM's conservation laboratories and was updated on work to restore the ancient wooden boat, a project that is partly funded by the Japanese government.

Eissa Zidan, supervisor-general of boat restoration work, told Ahram Online that Chie was very enthusiastic about the restoration project and hopes to see the craft reassembled and put on display at the GEM soon.

Two boats belonging to Pharaoh Khufu were discovered inside two pits in 1954 as Egyptian archaeologists Kamal El-Mallakh and Zaki Nour were carrying out routine cleaning on the southern side of the Great Pyramid of Giza.

After its initial discovery, the first boat was removed piece by piece under the supervision of restoration expert Ahmed Youssef, who spent more than 20 years restoring and reassembling it. The boat is now on display at Khufu’s Solar Boat Museum on the Giza Plateau.

The second boat remained sealed in the neighbouring pit until 1987 when it was examined by the American National Geographic Society in association with the Egyptian Office for Historical Monuments.

In 2009, a Japanese scientific and archaeological team from Waseda University headed by Sakuji Yoshimura offered to remove the boat from the pit, restore and reassemble it, and put it on show to the public. The launch of the project involved a $10 million grant from the Japanese government.

Source: Ahram Online

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News, Giza: Colossal Ramses II Statue Arrives at New Display at The Grand Egyptian Museum

The colossal statue of the pharaoh arrived at its new resting place to the sounds of the national anthem. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

The 3,200-year-old colossal statue of King Ramses II is seen during its transfer
to the main entrance of the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo's twin city Giza
on January 25, 2018.

The colossus of Ramses II arrived safely at its new display area in the atrium of the Grand Egyptian Museum on Thursday, in preparation for the museum’s soft opening later this year. The statue had been being stored in another part of the GEM, and the 400-metre journey to its permanent resting place was marked with ceremony. Senior officials were in attendance, and the statue was preceded on its jourey by 11 Egyptian horsemen in ceremonial military dress. As it reached its final location, the national anthem was played.

Thursday’s trip was the fourth time that the colossus of the great king, who ruled from 1279–1213 BC, has been moved.  The first trip took place 3,000 years ago; the statue was carved in an Aswan quarry and then taken to Mit Rahina archaeological site in the Memphis necropolis, to be displayed as part of the façade of Ptah’s temple. In 1955, president Gamal Abdel-Nasser decided to move the statue to Bab Al-Hadid (now Ramses Square) in Cairo, as part of an initiative launched by the minister of governmental affairs, Abdel-Latif El-Boghdadi, to beautify the streets and squares of Cairo. The third relocation was in 2006 when former minister of culture, Farouk Hosni, decided to move the statue from Ramses Square to the headquarters of the GEM to protect it from pollution. 

The relocation process was carried out in collaboration with the Engineering Authority of the Armed Forces and the Arab Contractors Company, which was responsible for the previous move in 2006.  Antiquities Minister Khaled El-Enany said that over the past three months the statue has been intensively studied to assess its condition before transportation. Safeguarding procedures have been put in place, and the foam rubber covering the statue has been replaced with stronger material and weak points consolidated.

Statue of Ramses II uncovered in Memphis by Joseph Hekekyan, 1852-1854

El-Enany added that the whole process has cost about EGP 13.6 million, including packing and unpacking the statue and preparing the road. Mohsen Salah, chairman of the Arab Contractors Company, told Ahram Online before the move that the statue would be transported in at iron cage, wherein it would be hung like a pendulum to allow it to move freely during the 400-metre journey. Tarek Tawfik, supervisor general of the Grand Egyptian Museum, said that the museum is expected to be fully open totally in 2022, but its soft opening will be at the end of this year.

The museum, located on the Giza Plateau, will feature an atrium, a grand staircase, and the Tutankhamun hall. The golden king’s whole collection will by put on show for the first time; it includes 5,200 artifacts. The partially broken colossus of Ramses II was discovered at Mit Rahina archaeological site in 1820 by the Italian adventurer Giovanni Caviglia, along with another similar one that remains on site. Caviglia tried to move it to Italy but he was unable to because of its 83-tonne weight. Mohamed Ali decided to offer the statue to the British Museum in London but the offer failed for the same reason. The statue stood in its place at Mit Rahina until it was eventually transferred to Ramses Square.

Source: Ahram Online

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News, Luxor: Searching for The Tomb of Tutankhamun's Wife Ankhesenamun

A team of archaeologists led by Zahi Hawass may be closing in on the resting place of the boy king's wife. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.

An Egyptian archaeological mission led by renowned Egyptologist Zahi Hawass began excavation work in the Valley of the Monkeys, a section of the Valley of the Kings on Luxor’s west bank, to search for an 18th Dynasty tomb “probably” of the wife of the boy king Tutankhamun, Ankhesenamun.

Mostafa Wazir, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities told Ahram Online that the team is working in the area near the tomb of king Ay, the successor of king Tutankhamun, in search of a yet unidentified 18th Dynasty tomb. He pointed out that in 2010 the team uncovered in this area four foundation deposits which suggest the existence of a tomb. According to ancient Egyptian traditions, he asserted, such deposits have to be dug after the completion of any tomb but digging deposits before the construction of any temple.

Renowned Egyptologist Zahi Hawass told Ahram Online that in 2010 the team has unearthed inside these deposits a collection of knives and clay pots from the reign of king Amenhotep III, the father of the monotheistic king Akhenatun and the grandfather of the golden king Tutankhamun. “This suggests that the tomb could belong to one of Tutankhamun’s family members, probably his wife Ankhesenamun,” Hawass told Ahram Online. He added that radar survey carried out earlier has detected the existence of an anomaly five meters below the ground level. Some suggest that it could be the entrance of a tomb.

"Until excavations were conducted, archaeologists couldn't be certain of the tomb's existence. And if so we do not know for sure to whom it belongs," Hawass said, adding that "it could be anything, until we excavate." Ankhesenamun was the wife of Tutankhamun but married Ay not long after Tutankhamun’s death. Due to the location of the evidence, Hawass and his team think that any undiscovered tomb may belong to her. The Valley of the Monkeys, also known as the Western Valley, earned its name from local inhabitants because of the walls paintings which king Ay’s tomb, which depict 12 monkeys.

Source: Ahram Online

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