EGYPT’S HERITAGE REVIEW

ISSUE 4Vol. II 2009

Issue 4

2009

In Search of the hIStorIcal GardenS of caIro

ISmaIlIa... Who rememberS?

SerabIt el Khadem - the Place, the PeoPle

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Live Colors, NicosiaPublisher

EditoriaLEditor in Chief Moguib Rouchdy

MaNagEMENtYasmine El dorghamy

Najla El HalwagyContributors Amr S. Talaat, eva dadrian,

fatma keshk, Iman R. Abdul-fattah, jill kamil, Lesley La-babidi, Lisa sabbahy, Mennat-Allah El Dorry, monica hanna, Nigel Hetherington, sara abou bakr

Translators Shereen MoussadNesma Gabr

artArt Director Faris Hassanein

Creative & Layout Designer Mohamed Hani

pHotograpHYMiriam Benyamein

Salma arafaFinancial Consultant Sabry attia Mossad

ahmed abbass

MarkEtiNgMarketing Manager Wael ElShafie

SaLES tEaMSales Executive Nancy Hassab

adMiNiStratioN & produCtioNOffice Managers Mirette philips

Magda adibAsst. Distribution Officer Wael Mostafa

Distribution Officer Mohamed EzzatDistribution al ahram, next

Prepress & Printing Sahara printing Company

goLd SpoNSor

48 Abdel Moneim Hafez Street, Midan El Sabaa’ Emarat, Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt Tel/Fax: (+202) 2290 8127 - 2415 8762 Mobile: 010 120 0808 - 010 00 2322 - 010 005 2323E-mail: editor@turath-egypt.com Website: www.turath-egypt.com© Copyright 2007 Turath is a Quarterly publication published by: LC Live Colors Nicosia, CyprusLi

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Green. A color we have almost forgotten in Cairo. Gardens, rose bushes and thousands of trees have vanished as the concrete jungle advanced over the past 50 years. Once a source of pride, Egypt’s historical gardens are now much smaller, scattered and largely forgotten.

In this issue’s cover story, Eva Dadrian remembers Cairo’s historical gardens and finds that some have now vanished, some linger in a grim state, and a few, such as Al Andalus, were found in excellent condition and gave us all a feeling of hope.

Hope, rather than mere nostalgia, is what we strive to

find. In this issue; Nigel Hetherington brings Cairo’s vast treasures of Art Deco architecture to our attention. Amr Talaat tells us the forgotten tale of Ismailia Palace, Lesley Lababidi takes us on a walk down one of Cairo’s ancient street bazaars and we visit the restoration project of the remote temple of Serabit el Khadem in Sinai.

As I sit and write this on a bench in the newly trans-

formed Azhar park that was once a monumental garbage heap, I begin to feel an inkling of optimism. I look around me, it must be all the green.

Yasmine El Dorghamy

Founder

Cover Photo: Salma ArafaThe recently renovated Andalus, a tiny fraction of Khedive Ismail’s Gezira garden that was divided and later redivivded into several allotments. Al Andalus was innagurated as a public park in the 1940’s.

A greener Dokki in the 1940’s, the Pyramids are visible in the horizon

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8 Heritage NewsWhat’s New with the Old

20 VisitTaht el Rab’a - A Short History

26 Cover Storyin search of cairo’s historical gardens

38 Going, Going… GoneHeritage at RiskThe Art Deco Heritage of Cairo.

44 I Saw, I Thought, I Wrote: Express yourself

46 Egyptian Chic - Arts & Crafts Women’s Atelier in Tulun

52 Profile - Champions of HeritageAn Ongoing Legacy - The Workmen of Guft

58 Saved - Working to Keep Our Memories AliveSerabit El Khadem - The Place and the People

62 Unraveling: Trivia, Surprises and Myth Busters

66 How it all Started: Intangible HeritageWhat’s in a Name? - Why Egypt is “Egypt” and other Derivations

68 Egyptian TalesIsmailia... Who Remembers?

74 Read

76 Featurethe cultural river runs on

80 Arabic Sectionالموضوعات المترجمة للعربية

Going, Going GoneThe Art Deco Heritage of CairoPage: 38

4

Green. A color we have almost forgotten in Cairo. Gardens, rose bushes and thousands of trees have vanished as the concrete jungle advanced over the past 50 years. Once a source of pride, Egypt’s historical gardens are now much smaller, scattered and largely forgotten.

In this issue’s cover story, Eva Dadrian remembers Cairo’s historical gardens and finds that some have now vanished, some linger in a grim state, and a few, such as Al Andalus, were found in excellent condition and gave us all a feeling of hope.

Hope, rather than mere nostalgia, is what we strive to

find. In this issue; Nigel Hetherington brings Cairo’s vast treasures of Art Deco architecture to our attention. Amr Talaat tells us the forgotten tale of Ismailia Palace, Lesley Lababidi takes us on a walk down one of Cairo’s ancient street bazaars and we visit the restoration project of the remote temple of Serabit el Khadem in Sinai.

As I sit and write this on a bench in the newly trans-

formed Azhar park that was once a monumental garbage heap, I begin to feel an inkling of optimism. I look around me, it must be all the green.

Yasmine El Dorghamy

Founder

Cover Photo: Salma ArafaThe recently renovated Andalus, a tiny fraction of Khedive Ismail’s Gezira garden that was divided and later redivivded into several allotments. Al Andalus was innagurated as a public park in the 1940’s.

A greener Dokki in the 1940’s, the Pyramids are visible in the horizon

5

8 Heritage NewsWhat’s New with the Old

20 VisitTaht el Rab’a - A Short History

26 Cover Storyin search of cairo’s historical gardens

38 Going, Going… GoneHeritage at RiskThe Art Deco Heritage of Cairo.

44 I Saw, I Thought, I Wrote: Express yourself

46 Egyptian Chic - Arts & Crafts Women’s Atelier in Tulun

52 Profile - Champions of HeritageAn Ongoing Legacy - The Workmen of Guft

58 Saved - Working to Keep Our Memories AliveSerabit El Khadem - The Place and the People

62 Unraveling: Trivia, Surprises and Myth Busters

66 How it all Started: Intangible HeritageWhat’s in a Name? - Why Egypt is “Egypt” and other Derivations

68 Egyptian TalesIsmailia... Who Remembers?

74 Read

76 Featurethe cultural river runs on

80 Arabic Sectionالموضوعات المترجمة للعربية

Going, Going GoneThe Art Deco Heritage of CairoPage: 38

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Amr S. Talaat is a historian specialized in Egypt’s mod-ern history. He has con-ducted extensive research on many significant events and personalities of that era. His approach is to always try to take a fresh look on old preconceptions. He has published many articles on the Mohamed Ali Dynasty era and frequently gives lec-tures on the topic.

Eva Dadrian is a British-Egyptian independent broadcaster and writer with extensive experience in Af-rica, the Middle East and Europe. She lives between Cairo and London. Dadrian works as a political risk ana-lyst for Arab Africa Affairs (London and Cape Town) and writes also in The Week-ly and Hebdo (Al Ahram, Cairo). As a documentary/feature reporter with BBC World Service, she covers issues ranging from arts to science and from environ-ment to religion.

Fatma Keshk has a BA in Egyptology from Cairo Uni-versity, she currently works as Archaeologist and Re-searcher in CULTNAT, she participated in the work of many Archaeological Mis-sions excavating in Saqqara, Western Delta and Assouan.

Iman R. Abdulfattah holds an MA in Islamic Art and Architecture from the Amer-ican University in Cairo (AUC). She currently works for the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) on vari-ous museum projects, most important of which is the renovation of the Museum of Islamic Art.

Jill Kamel, well-known for

her many books on Phara-onic and Coptic subjects, and the Heritage Editor of Egypt’s leading English lan-guage newspaper Al-Ahram Weekly, has lived in Egypt for most of her life. She is the author of two ground-breaking books which pro-vide an unique perspective on Egypt’s history: “Chris-tianity in the Land of the Pharaohs”, and “The Life and Legacy of Labib Habachi”.

Lesley Lababidi is the author of Cairo’s Street Stories: Ex-ploring the City’s Statues, Squares, Bridges, Gardens, and Sidewalk Cafes; Cairo The Family Guide; and Si-lent No More: Special Needs People in Egypt; revising and editing two editions of Cairo The Practical Guide. She is a travel writer and photogra-pher in Nigeria, Syria, and Egypt.

Lisa Sabbahy has a Ph.D. in Egyptian Archaeology from the University of Toronto, and is Assistant Professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo.She first came to Egypt in the sum-mer of 1973 with an urban

studies program about the history of the city of Cairo, and has been fascinated with it ever since.

Mennat-Allah El Dorry holds an M.A. in Egyptian Archaeology and is a spe-cialist in Archaeobotany. She has worked on many ar-chaeological sites through-out Egypt for the last 6 years. Her interests span from social organisation in the Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods, to food and agricultural traditions in monastic settlements to Pharaonic elements in Egyp-tian Cinema.

Monica Hanna is a PhD student at the University of Pisa, department of Archae-ology. She has proposed the project of the Documenta-tion of the Cultural Heritage of South Sinai after being in-spired by Serabit el-Khadim in 2006 while working in

CULTNAT. Currently she is the scientific coordinator of the project.

Nigel Hetherington (Heri-tage News) is a graduate from the Institute of Archaeology at University College Lon-don and is a member of the International Association of Egyptologists. He runs his own consultancy company; Past Preservers providing historical and archaeologi-cal consultancy and profes-sional support to the media industry. Nigel is also in the process of researching and writing a book on the his-tory of tourism in Luxor.

Sara Abou Bakr, a photo-journalist/ researcher; wrote for al-Ahram Weekly, The Daily News, Community Times and Cairo Times. She is currently a Graduate stu-dent at AUC, majoring in journalism and works as so-cial mapper/ researcher for CULTNAT.

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Judging by the announcements in the last few months, the old adage that only 10% of Egypt’s heritage has been uncovered from below the ground would appear to be true; it seems not a day has gone by without news of a significant discovery somewhere in the country. Fascinating and revealing excavations have become world-wide headlines only to be surpassed a few days later by the next amazing find.

We will try to provide you here with a brief summary in case you missed any of these major stories.

In addition as in previous issues we will also look at Egypt’s continuing influence around the world.

The Re-Discovery of a Lost Tomb

The tomb’s walls have been destroyed by robbers, only the ceiling remains in good shape

The archaeological mission of the University of Brussels has identified a lost tomb known as C.3 as that of Amenhotep, deputy and son-in-law to Senneferi, the overseer of seal-bearers dur-ing the reign of Tuthmosis III (1504-1452 BC). The tomb was found on the southern part of the Sheikh Abd el-Qurna hill on the west bank of Luxor.

The Minister of Culture, Farouk Hosni, an-nounced that the tomb had previously been dis-covered in 1880 by archaeologist Karl Piehl, but had become re-buried over time by sand. Ar-chaeologists searched for it several times, but had no luck rediscovering it until the Belgian mission found it last month.

Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Su-

preme Council of Antiquities (SCA), said that Amenhotep’s tomb contains a classical T-shaped chapel with a transverse hall oriented north – south, divided by a row of six pillars. The south-ern half of the transverse hall appears to have collapsed in antiquity and the space is entirely filled with debris.

Dr. Laurent Bavay, head of the Belgian mis-sion, stated that the majority of the paintings on the walls of the hall are totally destroyed. They show cutting marks indicating that the space was probably robbed long ago, possibly in the early 19th century. The paintings on the ceiling are remarkably well preserved, featuring geo-metric motifs typical of the 18th dynasty, with bands of hieroglyphic texts revealing the name, title, and genealogy of the tomb’s owner.

KV 63 Update

The re-assembled mummification bed

The Supreme Council of Antiquities has an-nounced that after weeks of restoration work, an

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assemblage of pieces of wood found inside a jar discovered in KV63 in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, have proven to be the remains of a mum-mification bed. When members of the University of Memphis archaeological mission working in the tomb found the pieces, they did not know what they were or what their function might have been. With the help of Egyptian conserva-tor Amani Nashed, the team was finally able to reassemble the pieces to form a bed of the type used in the ancient Egyptian mummification process.

The University of Memphis mission, led by Dr. Otto Schaden, discovered the tomb now known as KV63 in 2005. It contained 28 clay jars and seven coffins, along with mummification materi-als including linen and resin. KV63 is not be-lieved to have been a tomb for an individual, but a storeroom for materials and objects used in the mummification process.

More news from the Valley of the King

Dr Zahi Hawass, announced recently the Egyptian team of archaeologists, accompanied by himself, have made numerous important and exciting discoveries which are revolutionizing the understanding of one of the most mysterious and fascinating places in Egypt; the Valley of the Kings. Although the area has been widely exca-vated through the years, the resting places of Ramesses VIII, Thutmose II, and the queens and princes of the 18th Dynasty are still unknown. Many treasures are yet to be discovered.

The team is currently working in three differ-ent areas: between the tombs of Merenptah and

Ramesses II on the northern side of the central valley; in the area to the south of the tomb of Tutankhamun; and in the Western Valley, where the tombs of Amenhotep III and Ay are located. Each of these excavations has revealed impor-tant information.

The area between the tombs of Merenptah and Ramsses II revealed a man-made drainage chan-nel that probably helped prevent the flooding of the royal tombs in the vicinity during antiquity at the area in the cliffs. A small, sheltered area off to the side of the channel, where the team found a stone basin that may have held food and water, probably served as a resting place for the workmen.

The area to the south of the tomb of Tut-ankhamen uncovered the remains of some small structures made of stone. These build-ings could have been used for storage, per-haps of food and other items intended for of-ferings or, of embalm-ing material. The team also uncovered a num-ber of workmen’s huts, which were identified but never excavated by Howard Carter, and a cave cut into the rock to the south of the tomb.

Faience amulet found in the tunnel at the tomb of Seti I

The cave was probably used as a shelter by the workmen. The team has also been working in the area north and east of the tomb of Seti I

The drainage channel near the tomb of Merenptah

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where many additional discoveries were made.Finally, the team is working in the Western

Valley, known in Arabic as the “wadi el-quroud,” or “valley of the monkeys.” The tombs of Amen-hotep III and Ay are both located in this area. Queen Tiye, the mother of Akhenaten, was the wife of Amenhotep III and possibly the sister of Ay. If she was buried in the Valley of the Kings, her tomb might have been near that of her hus-band, and if Ay were in fact her brother, it would be all the more appropriate for her tomb to be near his as well. It will be interesting to see what future excavations in this area will reveal.

Anthony and CleopatraA radar survey of

the temple of Tapo-siris Magna, west of Alexandria, was com-pleted last month as part of the search for the tomb of Cleopatra and Mark Anthony. The SCA expedition excavating the temple and its surrounding area is headed by Dr Zahi Hawass and Dr. Kathleen Martinez, a scholar from the Do-minican Republic.

After three years of cooperation, the recent radar survey is the most significant step taken by the team to date. It was carried out by an Egyptian radar team, with an American expert, Dr. Roger Vickers serving as a consultant. The radar revealed 3 possible spots of interest where a tomb may be located. The expedition has re-ceived the results of the survey, and will begin excavating each of these three spots in the near future.

The most important development at Taposiris Magna to date has been the discovery of a large, previously unknown cemetery outside the temple enclosure. The expedition has found 27 tombs, 20 of them shaped like vaulted sarcophagi, part-ly underground and partly aboveground. The re-maining seven consist of staircases leading to

simple burial chambers. Inside these tombs, the team has found a total of ten mummies, two of them gilded. The discovery of this cemetery indi-cates that an elite person, likely of royal status, could be buried inside the temple. It was com-mon for officials and other high-status individu-als in Egypt to construct their tombs close to those of their rulers throughout the Pharaonic period. The style of the newly discovered tombs indicates that they were constructed during the Greco-Roman period.

General View of the Temple

Dr. Martinez stated that the expedition has ex-cavated a temple at Taposiris Magna dedicated to the goddess Isis, and discovered coins depicting the face of Alexander the Great. They have found a number of deep shafts inside the temple, three of which seem to have been used for burials. It is possible that these shafts were the tombs of important people, and the team’s leaders believe that Cleopatra and Mark Anthony could have been buried in a deep shaft similar to those al-ready discovered inside the temple.

Dr. Hawass said that the expedition has so far found a beautiful head of Cleopatra, along with 22 coins bearing her image. The statue and coins show her as a beauty, contradicting some recent theories that the queen was no beauty, however as with any image, the potential audi-ence must be considered before accepting the image as an accurate depiction. In addition, the features of the sculpted head show no sign of African ancestry, also contradicting a recently proposed theory. The team has also found many amulets, along with a beautiful headless statue

Fragment of a mask of Mark Anthony

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dating to the Ptolemaic Period. Among the most interesting finds is a unique funerary mask de-picting a man with a cleft chin. The face bears some similarity to known portraits of Mark An-thony himself.

Fayoum Tombs

A necropolis consisting of 53 rock-cut tombs dating to the Middle (ca. 2061-1786 BC) and New Kingdoms (ca. 1569-1081 BC) and the 22nd Dy-nasty (ca. 931-725 BC) has been discovered by an Egyptian archaeological mission sponsored by SCA. The necropolis lies in the southeastern part of the pyramid field of Illahun in Egypt’s Fayoum region.

The newly discovered tombs vary in their de-signs. Some have a single burial shaft, while others have a shaft leading to an upper cham-ber, from which an additional shaft leads to a second lower chamber. Excavations inside these tombs revealed wooden coffins containing lin-en-wrapped mummies covered in cartonnage. The decoration and inscriptions on the mummy wrappings are well preserved.

Dr. Hawass added that the charred remains of a number of coffins were also recovered. They were probably burned during the Coptic Period. Among these coffins, the team found 15 painted masks, along with amulets and clay pots.

Dr. Abdel-Rahman El-Ayedi, Supervisor of An-tiquities for Middle Egypt, and the head of the mission said that a Middle Kingdom funerary chapel with an offering table was also found.

Texts from the book of the dead painted on the tomb’s walls.

Preliminary studies revealed that the chapel was reused in subsequent periods, perhaps as late as the Roman era (30 BC-337 AD). Clay cof-fins and bronze and copper jewellery dating to the Roman era, as well as a collection of well-preserved faience amulets, were also recovered.

The Tomb of Djehuty at Dra Abu El-Naga, in Luxor

Texts from the book of the dead painted on the tomb’s walls.

A Spanish mission working at Dra Abu El-Na-ga on the West Bank at Luxor has discovered a second painted burial chamber in the tomb of Djehuty (TT11).

The Spanish team, led by Dr. José Galán of the National Research Center, Madrid, has been working at the site since 2002. At the end of their 2008 season, the mission came across a 3-me-ter deep shaft inside the burial chamber of Dje-huty, an overseer of the treasury and overseer of

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works during the reign of Queen Hatshepsut (ca. 1479-1458 BC). At the beginning of 2009, they discovered a second burial chamber at the bot-tom of this shaft. The chamber is decorated on two of its walls, mostly with texts from the Book of the Dead. An image of the goddess Nut adorns the ceiling. The discovery is remarkable, as only four other decorated burial chambers dating to this period are known. Although the names of Djehuty, his father, and his mother were inten-tionally erased in the upper part of the monu-ment, they are intact in the newly discovered lower burial chamber.

At the entrance to the lower chamber, the Spanish team found five gold earrings and two gold rings, which date to the early- to mid-18th Dynasty and probably belonged to Djehuty or to a member of his family. Galán added that the discovery of this decorated chamber adds to our understanding of the religious and funerary be-liefs of the mid-15th century BC, and of the elite of Queen Hatshepsut’s court.

Thirty Mummies discovered in Saqqara

Dr Zahi Hawass, Director General of the SCA, recently opened a limestone sarcophagus at Saqqara that had been sealed by the ancient Egyptians for 2600 years. This sarcophagus was found inside a burial chamber, cut eleven meters into the ground. The room contained another 30 mummies, wooden coffins, and lime-stone sarcophagi.

It took one and a half hours for the workmen to move the first part of the lid. When opened, the sarcophagus revealed a completely preserved

mummy in great con-dition, dating to the 26th Dynasty (ca. 500 BC). Also found in-side the chamber were four complete mummies, fronted by the mummy of a dog. Also found was the coffin of a small child.

Due to the fact that thirty mummies were found inside just one chamber, this discov-ery could prove that Saqqara still has a lot to tell us. This completely new cemetery and burial chamber were found next to the Old Kingdom tomb of Sennedjem. Dr. Hawass believes that the mummy found inside the limestone sarcoph-agus could be of a nobleman.

Egypt to open the ‘bent’ pyramid

The bent pyramid, will it be protected against the dangers of mass-tourism?

Photo Nigel Hetherington

Egyptians and visitors to Egypt will soon be able to explore the inner chambers of the 4,500-year-old “bent” pyramid at Dahshur, known for its oddly shaped profile, and other nearby ancient tombs. The increased access to the pyramids south of Cairo is part of a new sustainable de-velopment campaign that Egypt hopes will at-tract more visitors but also avoid some of the problems of the urban sprawl that have plagued the world famous pyramids of Giza.

The chambers of the 330-foot-pyramid outside

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the village of Dahshur, 50 miles south of Cairo, will be opened for the first time to tourists some-time in May or June 2009.

Dahshur’s bent pyramid is famous for its crooked profile. The massive tomb’s sides rise at a steep angle but then abruptly taper off at a more shallow approach to the pyramid’s apex. Archaeologists believe the pyramid-builders changed their minds while constructing it, out of fear that the whole structure might collapse because the sides were too steep. The pyramid is entered through a cramped 260-foot-long tunnel that opens into an immense vaulted chamber. From there, passageways lead to other rooms in-cluding one that has cedar wood beams believed to have been imported from ancient Lebanon.

Archaeologists believe the 4th dynasty founder Pharaoh Sneferu’s burial chamber lies undiscov-ered inside the pyramid. The inner chambers of the nearby Red pyramid, also built by Sneferu, are already accessible to visitors. Dr Hawass added that several other nearby pyramids, in-cluding one with an underground labyrinth from the Middle Kingdom, would also be opened in the coming year. Only 5 percent of tourists com-ing to Egypt visit the three pyramids of Dahshur, Hawass said.

Dr. Hawass hoped increasing access to the monuments would bring more visitors. But he also cautioned that the Western fast food restau-rants and hundreds of hawkers selling kitschy souvenirs near the Giza pyramids would not be allowed at Dahshur, which is currently sur-rounded by agricultural fields on one side and open desert on the other.

As part of an effort announced by Dr. Hawass and the United Nations, villagers near Dahshur will be given economic opportunities to increase local development including microfinance loans for small businesses. The SCA did not release specifics, but said they hoped to create a master plan for Dahshur and its surrounding villages by the end of the year.

Two Statues of Amenhotep III unveiled

The Minister of Culture, Farouk Hosni, said an Egyptian-European archeological team working

in the temple of Amenhotep III in Luxor has dis-covered two large statues belonging to the Pha-raoh King Amenhotep III.

One of the discovered statues, made of black granite

The first statute is made of granite while the other one is made of quartzite.

Russian archeologists discover golden-masked mummies in Egypt

Russian archaeologists working in Egypt’s Fay-oum Oasis have uncovered a number of mum-mies bearing golden masks, as well as other ar-tifacts of historical value, a Russian Egyptologist announced recently.

The team had been working in the Fayoum province, some 80 kms southwest of Cairo, since 2003. It has been carrying out excavations at the Deir Al-Banat necropolis for the past two years.

“It is a huge necropolis,” said Alexei Krol, dep-uty chief of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Egyptology center. “Despite the fact that the site was badly robbed in the early Christian period and the Coptic era and in the 1960’s-1970’s, we are still managing to find mummies with golden masks,” he said.

The Deir Al-Banat necropolis contains burial sites from three periods of Egyptian history - An-cient Egypt, Roman Egypt and Christian Egypt. Apart from traditional Egyptian mummies, sci-entists have also found several so-called Fay-oum mummy portraits from the Roman Egyp-tian period, realistic portraits of a deceased person made on a piece of wood and attached to a mummy.

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The scientist added that several findings made at the necropolis challenged the existing theory, based on early Christian literature, that pagans and Christians in Egypt had a long and bitter feud at the dawn of the religion.

“They could live in the same city and pray to different gods,” Krol said.

The Ancient Egyptians may have drank mulled wine

Tests on one of 700 jars buried with Scorpion I in his tomb at Abydos about 3100 B.C. con-firmed that the vessels contained wine, accord-ing to a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The tests also de-tected tree resin, which was used as a preserva-tive and for medical purposes, and other chemi-cals that make up various herbs. “There were a lot of additives in this wine, and it fits very well with the later Egyptian pharmacology texts, the medical papyri that describe similar kinds of al-coholic beverages with herbs in them,” said Pat-

rick McGovern [of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology].

Herbs from the eastern Mediterranean that fit the chemicals found in the wine are coriander, balm, mint, sage, senna, germander, savory and thyme, said McGovern. The researchers cannot positively identify herb or herb combinations found because unique biomarkers for them have not been identified. Robert K. Ritner, Professor of Egyptology at the Oriental Institute of the Uni-versity of Chicago, said herbs and spices were also added for taste as well as health. “I would not limit it specifically to medicinal uses; it cer-tainly could have that, but there’s no reason these wouldn’t be spiced for flavour, like modern mulled wine,” Ritner said.

Egypt Celebrates the Nubian Rescue Campaign

Some 150 officials and scientific experts, many of whom had participated in the 1960’s salvage campaign, gathered last month at the Nubia Mu-seum in Aswan to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Nubian Monuments Salvage Campaign.

Once the decision to build the high dam was made, a slow realization dawned of the dra-matic effect this would have on the heritage of Nubia. Following their own attempts at attract-ing a global understanding of the impending threat and the scale of the rescue operation re-quired, the governments of Egypt and the Su-dan independently applied for worldwide assis-tance through the United Nations organization, UNESCO. This was the first such request the organization had received since its inception in 1945, however, within three months, the execu-tive board of UNESCO had authorized the then Director-General, Dr. Vittorino Veronese to start preparations for the campaign.

For UNESCO the campaign was hailed as an outright success, and was to herald a new era in the organization’s history, it has been claimed as a turning point in the emerging world heri-tage movement. Significantly, the operation would influence future generations of scholars and public alike and provide the impetus for the

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formation of the world heritage organization and ultimately the world heritage list.

LINK Development in association with Microsoft Egypt, launches Luxor web

portal

A peaceful Luxor, now undergoing radical change

Photo Nigel Hetherington

The first official city portal in Egypt (www.luxor-egypt.org) was endorsed recently by the Egyptian government and offers Egyptian, Arab and inter-national visitors to Luxor an array of benefits.

Link Development states, “At a click of a but-ton, Luxor lovers will be able to read about the history of this historic Egyptian city, which sits on the banks of the River Nile. They can also explore the many official directories available which will guide them through sites, monu-ments, temples and valleys, helping them plan their trip and to experience the marvels of the world’s first and largest open air museum.”

What is more interesting for the heritage and archaeological community is that buried on the site’s investment pages (under “about Luxor”) are the long term plans for the city of Luxor, which makes sobering reading. These include-• An IMAX theatre is currently under construc-tion as well as other entertainment venues.• Currently there are 50 tourist hotels, 35 local hotels, 41 restaurants, 177 travel agencies and 180 floating hotels. 18 more hotels are under construction as well as five resorts.• Looking to the future, the ultimate goal is in-creasing the hotel capacity in Luxor such that

within twenty years from today there will be enough rooms to accommodate 4 million tour-ists a year.• A new marina is under construction that will alleviate many of the problems of the existing system for docking the floating hotels.• There are several new areas being developed around Luxor to increase the number of hotel rooms dramatically. One area is south of the Tod Plateau, this lies on 1500 feddans and will have 10,000 rooms upon completion. Another area is east of the railway station that lies on 500 feddans and will have 2000 rooms. A third area being developed is North Zinia and it is 145 feddans.• Several areas are planned for development on the West Bank, close to Hassan Fathy and Modi-ra villages.• Another area being developed close to the Av-enue of the Sphynx will house 1000 rooms, and this is a joint project between Ain Shams Uni-versity and Clemson University.

Four Temples Found in Qantara

Ramsis II, right and Geb, God of the Earth

Archaeologists have found four ancient Egyp-tian temples on an old military path in Sinai four kilometers (2.5 miles) to the east of the Suez Ca-nal. The temples, ordained with colorful draw-ings of ancient Egyptian deities date back to the 18th and 19th dynasties. Among the findings are the largest fortified mud-brick temples in Sinai, as announced by the SCA.

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Tutmoses II and the God Raa Hor Akhti

Inscriptions for kings Thutmosis II and Ramses II (1304- 1237 B.C.) also graced the walls of the temple.. The large temple was found within a fort that had 15 defensive towers. Among the discoveries was the largest mud brick temple found in the Sinai with an area of 70 by 80 me-ters and fortified with mud walls 3 meters thick. Archaeologist Mohammed Abdel-Maqsoud, chief of the excavation team, said the large brick tem-ple could potentially rewrite the historical and military significance of the Sinai for the ancient Egyptians.

Launch of a new project at the Coptic Museum

A peaceful Luxor, now undergoing radical change

In January 2009, the Coptic Museum in Old Cairo launched a long anticipated condition sur-vey and cataloguing project of several thousands of priceless manuscripts housed in the muse-um’s archive. The J. Paul Getty Foundation, Los

Angeles, approved to a proposal submitted by the Friends of the Coptic Museum to have quali-fied experts undertake this challenging task.

American conservators from Michigan, Harvard University and the Morgan Library & Museum in New York surveyed the entire manuscript collec-tion to identify its current condition and assess the archive’s environmental situation. The sur-vey was carried out in close cooperation with a local conservation team. Coptologists from Mün-ster University, Germany, made an inventory of the manuscripts, identifying their language and contents. All data was gathered in an electronic database to easily track down and facilitate fu-ture work with the manuscripts.

It is hardly known among the public that the Coptic Museum keeps a precious collection of handwritten documents dating from the 4th to the 19th Centuries. The famous Nag’ Hammadi Library forms a major part of the manuscript ar-chive and has attracted scholars from all over the world. Given the exceptional value of the man-uscript collection, it is all the more sad that it had been neglected for many decades and kept in wooden cabinets hugely infested with insects and exposed to extreme environmental conditions. The Getty condition survey and cataloguing proj-ect is a first step towards a thorough treatment of the manuscripts and a repair of the museum’s archive according to modern standards.

A Celebration in Cairo for 120 Years of Spanish Archaeology in Egypt

On Monday, April 6th, in a gala evening at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Dr Zahi Hawass was presented, during a ceremony to celebrate 120 years of Egyptian-Spanish cooperation in ar-chaeology, with the medal of the Order of Arts and Culture of Spain.

The evening included speeches celebrating the history of Spanish archaeology in Egypt, which included their role in the excavation of TT1, the tomb of Sennedjem, which was discovered in 1886, the UNESCO salvage campaign between 1961 and 1964 under the direction of Martin Almagro Basch, the study of two prehistoric de-posits, three Christian settlements, 300 groups of rock art, and twenty necropolis from different

17

eras, including a total of some 1,500 tombs.

Paintings stolen, destroyed and returned

Painting of Viceroy Abbas Hilmi I before its theft from Shurba Palace

Nine paintings were stolen from the 19th Cen-tury Shubra palace where Viceroy Mohamed Ali, who ruled Egypt from 1805 to 1848, resided. The palace overlooks the Nile in the northern Cairo suburb of Shubra Al-Kheima. Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni said the paintings were smuggled out after being removed from their frames.

The stolen paintings, which date back to the era of Mohamed Ali and his family, were on loan from the Supreme Council of Antiquities to dec-orate the palace after the completion of its reno-vation a few years ago.

The paintings were found on the corner of a street nine days after the theft. An anonymous caller (believed to be the thief) tipped off the au-thorities to the location of the canvases that were left in a deplorable condition. The paintings are now being restored, but no mention has been made as to whether security will be tightened in the museum yet. Public outcry has called for security cameras to be installed in the museum as a minimal measure. We will wait and see.

And Abroad

Diary Discovered

The 200-year-old travel diary of an Italian ad-venturer who explored Egypt and later guided the founders of Egyptology to key sites has been uncovered in the Tuscan city of Pisa. The jour-

nal, accidentally unearthed during a research into a groundbreaking historical expedition, was written by a Siena-born doctor, draughtsman and explorer named Alessandro Ricci, who set out for Egypt in 1817.

Ricci’s journal covered a five-year period un-til 1822, describing his adventures and expe-riences in detail. The document is particularly important, as Ricci was a key figure in a later Franco-Tuscan expedition, led jointly by the French philologist who deciphered hieroglyphs, Jean-Francois Champollion, and a leading Ital-ian Egyptologist Ippolito Rosellini.

Although the fact Ricci had written a diary was no secret, its whereabouts have been a mys-tery for decades. Ricci gave his journal to Cham-pollion in 1827, prior to the Franco-Tuscan ex-pedition, apparently believing the French expert would publish it. Champollion died in 1832, fol-lowed by Ricci two years later. Although Rosellini asked French authorities to return the journal in 1836, it remained in France. The diary then vanished for several decades until resurfacing in 1928, when an Italian architect working for King Fuad I of Egypt discovered the manuscript by accident in an ancient Cairo bookshop. He immediately bought it and showed it to the Ital-ian Egyptologist Angelo Sammarco, who rec-ognized its value and was keen to organize its publication. Sammarco published a synopsis of the diary in 1930 but never took the project any further. After he died in 1948, all trace of the journal vanished until it was rediscovered in Pisa University by researcher Daniele Salvoldi.

‘’Now, two centuries after it was written, our goal is to get this book published,’’ said Betro.

Betro and Salvoldi’s determination, combined with Italy’s commitment to Egyptology, with the world’s largest collection of artifacts outside Egypt stored in Turin, mean that Ricci’s dream could finally come true.

Egyptian Beauty Nefertiti Will Move to New Berlin Home

After 11 years of planning and restoration, the Neues Museum was handed over to curators on March 5 and will reopen on Oct. 16 2009, filled with Berlin’s Egyptology and prehistory collec-

18

tions, including the 14th century B.C. bust of Queen Nefertiti.

Instead of recreating the original design brick for brick, British architect David Chipperfield’s team treated the 150-year-old museum (that had been left in ruins for 70 years) like an an-cient site, carefully unearthing fragments of frescos, tiles and columns from the rubble. It’s hard to imagine a more fitting way to restore an archaeological museum or a more appropriate tribute to great German archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann, excavator of the Trojan gold treasure.

What was missing, the team didn’t rebuild: The many gaps are filled with modern materials used in a sparse, discreet style. The northwest wing, completely destroyed in the war, has been fully rebuilt, and the bombed-out stairwell at the center of the museum replaced with a sleek concrete-and-marble model. Chipperfield’s ap-proach may set new standards for such projects and prompt soul searching about historical re-productions, such as that planned for the near-by Baroque royal palace.

More on Nefertiti…

Photo courtesy of Radiological Society of North America

Did Nefertiti get some “work” done? It may very well be… Researchers in Germany have used a modern medical procedure to uncover a secret within one of ancient Egypt’s most treasured artworks; the bust of Nefertiti which appears to have two faces. The differences between the fac-es, though slight (creases at the corners of the

mouth, a bump on the nose of the stone version) suggest to Dr. Alexander Huppertz, director of the Imaging Science Institute at Berlin’s Charite hospital and medical school, that someone spe-cifically ordered the adjustments between stone and stucco when royal sculptors immortalized the wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten 3,300 years ago.

Latest trend in scents: 3,400-year-old Pharaoh’s perfume

The latest thing in scents next year could be the oldest perfume in the world, made especially for an Ancient Egyptian female pharaoh, accord-ing to German scientists who are analyzing resi-due found in a 3,400-year-old perfume flacon.

The German researchers at the Bonn Universi-ty Egyptian Museum say they will use the anal-ysis to recreate the original perfume that was buried in an exquisite alabaster vessel bearing the royal insignia of Queen Hatshepsut.

The intact perfume jar has remained sealed since it was interred in the Valley of the Kings some 1,400 years before Cleopatra. On a hunch, the Bonn Egyptologists recently ran a CAT scan which revealed 3-D images of a residue at the bottom.

“No one had ever done that before,” says muse-um curator Michael Hoeveler-Mueller. “We were frankly overjoyed at the findings. And now we are conducting a chemical analysis of the resi-due in hopes of being able to recreate the exact original perfume.”

The analysis and possible recreation of the scent is expected to be finalized later this year, he said.

“We think it probable that one constituent was frankincense - the scent of the gods,” he added.

That theory is based on the fact that Hatshepsut sent an expedition to the Land of Punt, modern-day Eritrea, which returned with gold, ivory, ebo-ny and living specimens of frankincense trees.

The frankincense trees were planted in a vast, irrigated garden which spread out in front of her cliff-side mortuary temple directly across the Nile from the Karnak Temple of Amon, the god she said had been her heavenly father.

Of her monumental construction work, only two great obelisks at Karnak and the mortuary temple at Deir al-Bahari remain.

And a flacon of perfume with her name on it - as “King” of Egypt.

18

tions, including the 14th century B.C. bust of Queen Nefertiti.

Instead of recreating the original design brick for brick, British architect David Chipperfield’s team treated the 150-year-old museum (that had been left in ruins for 70 years) like an an-cient site, carefully unearthing fragments of frescos, tiles and columns from the rubble. It’s hard to imagine a more fitting way to restore an archaeological museum or a more appropriate tribute to great German archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann, excavator of the Trojan gold treasure.

What was missing, the team didn’t rebuild: The many gaps are filled with modern materials used in a sparse, discreet style. The northwest wing, completely destroyed in the war, has been fully rebuilt, and the bombed-out stairwell at the center of the museum replaced with a sleek concrete-and-marble model. Chipperfield’s ap-proach may set new standards for such projects and prompt soul searching about historical re-productions, such as that planned for the near-by Baroque royal palace.

More on Nefertiti…

Photo courtesy of Radiological Society of North America

Did Nefertiti get some “work” done? It may very well be… Researchers in Germany have used a modern medical procedure to uncover a secret within one of ancient Egypt’s most treasured artworks; the bust of Nefertiti which appears to have two faces. The differences between the fac-es, though slight (creases at the corners of the

mouth, a bump on the nose of the stone version) suggest to Dr. Alexander Huppertz, director of the Imaging Science Institute at Berlin’s Charite hospital and medical school, that someone spe-cifically ordered the adjustments between stone and stucco when royal sculptors immortalized the wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten 3,300 years ago.

Latest trend in scents: 3,400-year-old Pharaoh’s perfume

The latest thing in scents next year could be the oldest perfume in the world, made especially for an Ancient Egyptian female pharaoh, accord-ing to German scientists who are analyzing resi-due found in a 3,400-year-old perfume flacon.

The German researchers at the Bonn Universi-ty Egyptian Museum say they will use the anal-ysis to recreate the original perfume that was buried in an exquisite alabaster vessel bearing the royal insignia of Queen Hatshepsut.

The intact perfume jar has remained sealed since it was interred in the Valley of the Kings some 1,400 years before Cleopatra. On a hunch, the Bonn Egyptologists recently ran a CAT scan which revealed 3-D images of a residue at the bottom.

“No one had ever done that before,” says muse-um curator Michael Hoeveler-Mueller. “We were frankly overjoyed at the findings. And now we are conducting a chemical analysis of the resi-due in hopes of being able to recreate the exact original perfume.”

The analysis and possible recreation of the scent is expected to be finalized later this year, he said.

“We think it probable that one constituent was frankincense - the scent of the gods,” he added.

That theory is based on the fact that Hatshepsut sent an expedition to the Land of Punt, modern-day Eritrea, which returned with gold, ivory, ebo-ny and living specimens of frankincense trees.

The frankincense trees were planted in a vast, irrigated garden which spread out in front of her cliff-side mortuary temple directly across the Nile from the Karnak Temple of Amon, the god she said had been her heavenly father.

Of her monumental construction work, only two great obelisks at Karnak and the mortuary temple at Deir al-Bahari remain.

And a flacon of perfume with her name on it - as “King” of Egypt.

Taht el Rab’a A Short History

W P L L

20

On a cool April morning in the center of the metrop-olis along the southwestern wall of Bab Zuwayla in the middle of a long row of shops, stands a little

fiteer shop on Ahmed Maher Street. Its façade, only ten feet wide, does not impress itself upon the passerby. Small pots of pink geraniums arranged geometrically along the curb draw attention to the plastic chairs that are pushed against two window panes. Large white bowls filled with raisins, boiled eggs, bright red tomatoes, green and black olives and ghee glisten in the morning sun; neatly stacked canned tuna occupy the window sill. Just below the ceil-ing, a sign reads: Blessings from Allah. A handwritten religious verse sprawls across the window pane: “Let my business go well, let my tongue be fluent.” There is no door.

“Salaam Alakum, Kull sina entum tiybeen: Peace Be Upon You. May your new year be pleasant,” the old man’s voice greets us like a gentle breeze on this first day of spring – Shamm el-Nassim. Hardly have these words been spo-ken when Hagg Mahmoud pulls from beneath a pyramid of dough-shaped balls, one pastry. With quick wrist motions, he begins to flatten and flip it – twirl, stretch, fold – until the dough is paper-thin and translucent. A breeze drifts through the doorway mixing with the heat of the roaring oven. “We are open twenty-four hours a day, everyday of the year. Why should I have a door? I gave it away years ago,” said Hagg, drizzling ghee over the thin dough.

“This shop has been in my family for 120 years. My grandfather taught my fa-ther. For sixty years, I have been making fiteer.” He looks down the street and points toward the twin minarets of Bab Zuwayla. His hand waves into the air as he counts the shops– saddles, fertilizers, bird cages, barbecue grills and wire baskets, butcher blocks and stools, wooden ‘kobkab’ san-dals, herbs, shisha café, coffee bean shop, marble, alabaster and Ramadan lantern (fanous) workshops. “Down the street my brother makes kunafa. We bake kunafa pastry on a flat, iron griddle in the back of the shop. Our street has never changed ex-cept the name. It was called Taht al-Rab’a (meaning beneath the apartments).”

Today, it is the older generation that might recall the street of Taht al-Rab’a, but in official documents, it is now a name assigned to a page in history books. The street named ran southwest from Bab Zuwayla to Bab Khalq. The name change came after the 1952 coup d’etat. In honor of the Egyptian Prime Minister, Ahmad Ma-

her, who was assassinated in 1945, the new regime broke with ten century-old names: Taht al-Rab’a and Bab Khalq became Ahmad Maher Street and Ahmad Maher Square, respectively.

What exactly is a Rab’a?Rab’a is a type of Cairene apartment building that was

built above shops. During the Mamluk dynasty, one of the most prominent Mamluk sultans, al-Zaher Baybars built a religious school, madrasa, near Bab Zuwayla in 1263. The sultan established a large apartment complex, which was named after its benefactor, al-Rab’a al-Zahiri. The street beneath the apartment complex became known as Taht al-Rab’a. Bab al Khalq (formerly Bab el Karq) was one of the sixty gates of the Fatimid walled, royal city, al-Qahira. Bab al Khalq stood near the Khalij al-Misri. Though the actual gate does not exist today, it got its name from the Arabic word, kharq, which means ‘hole’, because people dug a hole through the wall to pass. From Bab al Khalq, the street of Taht al-Rab’a followed an eastern direction and ran parallel to the southern wall of al-Qahira. It joined the street of Darb al-Ahmar at Bab Zuwayla that lead to the Citadel.

Bab Zuwayla, which is the most well-known landmark of the area, extends over the main route, the qasaba, which ran north-south through the city. From Bab Zuwayla to the northern gate of Bab al-Futuh, the main thoroughfare – the qasaba (literally translated as ‘trachea’) bisected the city, which to this day, is still named after the Fatimid ruler, al-Mu’izz li-Din Al-lah. The significance of this area began in the tenth century when the Fatimids, a Shi-ite religious movement from Ifriqiya (pres-ent-day Tunisia), conquered Egypt in 969. Under the command of General Jawhar the Sicilian, plans for a new city were laid out. By the year 971, the Shiite caliph al-Mu’izz li-Din Allah entered the new capital, al-Qahira, in the month of Ramadan. The ruler’s passageway was illuminated with thousands of lanterns (fawanees), the lan-tern is still a beloved symbol of Ramadan observance today.

In 1092, an Armenian, Badr al-Din al-Gamali, completed construction of a gate in the southern wall, and it was named, Bab Zuwayla, after Fatimid soldiers of Berber

Left- Tah’t el-Rab’a (below the apartment) Street to-ward Bab Zuwayla1-Hagg Mahmoud making fiteer2- smoking his water pipe at his fiteer shop

1

2

21

Taht el Rab’a A Short History

W P L L

20

On a cool April morning in the center of the metrop-olis along the southwestern wall of Bab Zuwayla in the middle of a long row of shops, stands a little

fiteer shop on Ahmed Maher Street. Its façade, only ten feet wide, does not impress itself upon the passerby. Small pots of pink geraniums arranged geometrically along the curb draw attention to the plastic chairs that are pushed against two window panes. Large white bowls filled with raisins, boiled eggs, bright red tomatoes, green and black olives and ghee glisten in the morning sun; neatly stacked canned tuna occupy the window sill. Just below the ceil-ing, a sign reads: Blessings from Allah. A handwritten religious verse sprawls across the window pane: “Let my business go well, let my tongue be fluent.” There is no door.

“Salaam Alakum, Kull sina entum tiybeen: Peace Be Upon You. May your new year be pleasant,” the old man’s voice greets us like a gentle breeze on this first day of spring – Shamm el-Nassim. Hardly have these words been spo-ken when Hagg Mahmoud pulls from beneath a pyramid of dough-shaped balls, one pastry. With quick wrist motions, he begins to flatten and flip it – twirl, stretch, fold – until the dough is paper-thin and translucent. A breeze drifts through the doorway mixing with the heat of the roaring oven. “We are open twenty-four hours a day, everyday of the year. Why should I have a door? I gave it away years ago,” said Hagg, drizzling ghee over the thin dough.

“This shop has been in my family for 120 years. My grandfather taught my fa-ther. For sixty years, I have been making fiteer.” He looks down the street and points toward the twin minarets of Bab Zuwayla. His hand waves into the air as he counts the shops– saddles, fertilizers, bird cages, barbecue grills and wire baskets, butcher blocks and stools, wooden ‘kobkab’ san-dals, herbs, shisha café, coffee bean shop, marble, alabaster and Ramadan lantern (fanous) workshops. “Down the street my brother makes kunafa. We bake kunafa pastry on a flat, iron griddle in the back of the shop. Our street has never changed ex-cept the name. It was called Taht al-Rab’a (meaning beneath the apartments).”

Today, it is the older generation that might recall the street of Taht al-Rab’a, but in official documents, it is now a name assigned to a page in history books. The street named ran southwest from Bab Zuwayla to Bab Khalq. The name change came after the 1952 coup d’etat. In honor of the Egyptian Prime Minister, Ahmad Ma-

her, who was assassinated in 1945, the new regime broke with ten century-old names: Taht al-Rab’a and Bab Khalq became Ahmad Maher Street and Ahmad Maher Square, respectively.

What exactly is a Rab’a?Rab’a is a type of Cairene apartment building that was

built above shops. During the Mamluk dynasty, one of the most prominent Mamluk sultans, al-Zaher Baybars built a religious school, madrasa, near Bab Zuwayla in 1263. The sultan established a large apartment complex, which was named after its benefactor, al-Rab’a al-Zahiri. The street beneath the apartment complex became known as Taht al-Rab’a. Bab al Khalq (formerly Bab el Karq) was one of the sixty gates of the Fatimid walled, royal city, al-Qahira. Bab al Khalq stood near the Khalij al-Misri. Though the actual gate does not exist today, it got its name from the Arabic word, kharq, which means ‘hole’, because people dug a hole through the wall to pass. From Bab al Khalq, the street of Taht al-Rab’a followed an eastern direction and ran parallel to the southern wall of al-Qahira. It joined the street of Darb al-Ahmar at Bab Zuwayla that lead to the Citadel.

Bab Zuwayla, which is the most well-known landmark of the area, extends over the main route, the qasaba, which ran north-south through the city. From Bab Zuwayla to the northern gate of Bab al-Futuh, the main thoroughfare – the qasaba (literally translated as ‘trachea’) bisected the city, which to this day, is still named after the Fatimid ruler, al-Mu’izz li-Din Al-lah. The significance of this area began in the tenth century when the Fatimids, a Shi-ite religious movement from Ifriqiya (pres-ent-day Tunisia), conquered Egypt in 969. Under the command of General Jawhar the Sicilian, plans for a new city were laid out. By the year 971, the Shiite caliph al-Mu’izz li-Din Allah entered the new capital, al-Qahira, in the month of Ramadan. The ruler’s passageway was illuminated with thousands of lanterns (fawanees), the lan-tern is still a beloved symbol of Ramadan observance today.

In 1092, an Armenian, Badr al-Din al-Gamali, completed construction of a gate in the southern wall, and it was named, Bab Zuwayla, after Fatimid soldiers of Berber

Left- Tah’t el-Rab’a (below the apartment) Street to-ward Bab Zuwayla1-Hagg Mahmoud making fiteer2- smoking his water pipe at his fiteer shop

1

2

21

origins from the Zawila tribe quartered near the construc-tion of the new city. (Recent restoration of Bab Zuwayla revealed that the original base of the gate was three me-ters below the ground and pieces of pharaonic material had been used to construct the gate.) The Mosque of Saleh Tala’i (1160), adjacent to Bab Zuwayla, was named for the Fatimid wazir who built it. The mosque was intended as a monument for the head of Husayn, but Hussein’s head was placed in a Fatimid palace or shrine on the site of where the Hussein’s Mosque stands today. Saleh Tala’i Mosque is one of two surviving “hanging” mosques. The mosque was suspended above a row of shops. The rent paid was for the mosque and any additional construction and employment.

During the Mamluk period, Sultan al-Mu’ayyad Shaykh built two minarets on the gate’s base. Over the centuries, princes and dignitaries watched from the top of Bab Zu-wayla as coronation and victory parades stretched from the Bab al-Nasr along the qasaba. The sultan would pa-rade his guards through the city from the northern gate to Bab Zuwayla and advance along the Darb al-Ahmar to the Citadel. This platform was the place to watch the holy shrine and caravans that marked the pilgrimage to Mecca.

Bab Zuwayla was also the place for public executions, and it was here that the last Mamluk Sultan, Tuman Bey was hanged.

Just outside and opposite Bab Zuwayla is the continua-tion of al-Mu’izz li-Din Allah Street that leads to the area developed by Radwan Bey in the seventeenth century. The urban development consisted of palaces and a suuq for shoemaking. The shops along the extension of the qasa-ba were covered by a wooden ceiling, pierced for lighting, which is one of the best preserved examples of a covered market in Cairo. Today, the area is popularly known as al-Khiyamiya, the Tentmakers Street.

It was at this junction of Bab Zuwayla, Darb al-Ahmar

1-Fresh roasted coffee beans2- Herbs sold for medicinal purposes3- Workshops are tiny so work is done on the side walk. �is carpenter makes ladders. In the Description de l’Egypte, it is mentioned that wood-workers carved fragrant woods under a covered street, Taht el-Rab’a4- Marble and stone carver, oymagi, engraves plaques for advertising and tombstones with a10 centimeter nail5- Egyptian-made scale in herbal and medicinal shop6- Wooden ‘kobkab’ slippers use in the hammam

1 2

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3

5

4

6

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Al-Khiyamiya, the Tentmakers Street is an example of a well-preserved covered bazaar built by Radwan Bey in the 17th century

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Street to the east, Radwan Bey Bazaar to the south and Taht el Rab’a Street to the west, where great caravanserais were built, along the main axis to the Citadel. The Persian word, caravanserai, comes from the root “to protect.” The caravanserais in the area of Bab Zuwayla were constructed to provide security for the travelers and merchants, their goods and animals. Anyone passing through Cairo had to pass through this area.

The markets through the center of the Fatimid city and its surrounding area teemed with merchants, craftsmen and artisans. The main thoroughfare or qasaba, was the mar-ket zone that extended from Bab al-Futuh to Bab Zuwayla supplemented by various trades and specializations east to west of the main artery. In the fourteenth century, Egyptian historian, Al-Maqrizi noted that along the qasaba and be-yond Bab Zuwayla there were “58 wakalas (a micro-khan housed within a multi-storied building, a type only found in Cairo), 87 markets with more than 12,000 stalls.”

In 1176, Salah al-Din built the Citadel of Cairo, a for-tress on Muqattam ridge. From the Fatimid royal city, al-Qahira, the ruling class and their soldiers along with po-litical power transferred to the Citadel. The area around the Citadel attracted development and important mar-kets sprung up west of the Citadel. Palaces, luxurious houses and markets built up around the hippodrome, a large space reserved for military exercises, polo games, and horsemanship. For example, around a wealthy mer-chant’s house, individuals who produced and distributed goods lived nearby. Within the same vicinity were shops that sold the goods, their humble dwellings and traders providing services for the needs of the residence. A cof-fee shop, public bath, mosque with Quranic school, inn for travelers, all formed a small nucleus of the larger city. In this southern section, specialized workshops produced armor, accessories for horses and special uniforms for the Mamluk guards and soldiers. Along the narrow Taht al-Rab’a street, there were once workshops of ironmon-gers who specialized in equipment and paraphernalia to adorn themselves and their horses. Today on Ahmed Ma-her Street, the small workshops of metal works remain, al-though the goods have changed – bird cages, tools, knives, rat traps and Ramadan lanterns.

Moving along, almost a thousand years later…Taht el Rab’a is unusually quiet for this time of the morn-

ing. On any other day the street would bustle with energy, but today Egyptians ‘sniff the spring breeze’ on Shamm el-Nassim, a pharaonic tradition in which Egyptians cel-ebrate the arrival of spring by eating salty fish – fiseeskh – green onions, and boiled eggs. Another man takes over the

fiteer baking and the Hagg pulls up a chair; his daughter places his shisha (water pipe) in front of him and arranges three hot coals over a ball of wet tobacco. For some min-utes, the Hagg inhales through the long red pipe causing water to bubble loudly as he draws the smoke through the water and into the pipe. We look upon the curb-side pot-ted plants as if an expansive green lawn unfolds before us. “Soon we will be very busy. People have to eat something sweet after all that salty fish. When I was a child, we used to spend the day under trees, but now, most of the time, I am here: all holidays, Ramadan, feasts, Shamm el-Nassim, I am here.” The hagg explains that fiteer has been made in Egypt for hundreds of years with samna baladi (traditional Egyptian ghee), but recently, meat and vegetables or sweet ingredients are added to the paper-thin pastry. “It is an Egyptian tradition for the bride’s mother-in-law to buy a wedding fiteer to serve the morning after the wedding at the couple’s house; sometimes I make a twelve-layer fi-teer for rich families.” Hagg explains. “One time a poor girl came to me, and said she was getting married, and wanted the wedding fiteer, so she asked for a six-layered fiteer. I told her that since her husband’s family and her family were not rich, two-layers would be enough. I could have made a six-layered fiteer, and got paid more for it, but why should I do that?” From the shop, a dark haired girl about four years old, races under the table and sits at the Hagg’s feet. “This is my granddaughter, Habeeba, one day she will be making fiteer. ‘Habeeba means beloved.” Our street has never changed since I was small, like Habeeba, but it won’t be so for her. The government is going to tear down all those shops across the street to widen the road for park-ing.” Habeeba climbs onto her grandfather’s lap and lays her head on his chest. “But every year I go to Mecca for fifteen days, this is my vacation.”

“Purr-Purr. Purr-Purr” the water gurgles as the Hagg sucks smoke through the pipe. The white smoke drifts from the side of his mouth and around his head. Two veiled women stop to purchase several kinds of fiteer. The Hagg makes them laugh. “Sometimes foreigners come and pay much more than they should, but I only take the price of the fiteer and return the rest. I don’t like to cheat people; I want them to come back.” Two demitasse cups of dark, sweet, cardamom-laced coffee appear. “Money brings problems…lots of problems, what is most important is to love people.”

The fiteer baker rolls his next circle of dough, pats it, lifts it, stretches it and twirls it. The oven fire glows and until the government removes it, the little garden at the curb grows; and all through the day and night, seekers and dreamers, workers and wanderers walk by this little fiteer shop under the apartments, or Taht el Rab’a…

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By Eva Dadrian

In Ancient Egypt, private gardens were much cherished. Blending pleasure and utility, ancient Egyptians not only kept gardens for growing vegetables and food-stuff, but also flowers, ornamental trees and shrubs. Many of these gardens were also cultivated with special fragrant herbs, medicinal plants and plants, regarded

as sacred, that were used during rituals and offerings to the deities

26 27

By Eva Dadrian

In Ancient Egypt, private gardens were much cherished. Blending pleasure and utility, ancient Egyptians not only kept gardens for growing vegetables and food-stuff, but also flowers, ornamental trees and shrubs. Many of these gardens were also cultivated with special fragrant herbs, medicinal plants and plants, regarded

as sacred, that were used during rituals and offerings to the deities

28

Archaeologists have provided us with wide evi-dence that beautiful gardens also surrounded mortuary temples, such as the one by the temple of Ramses II in Abydos “He planted many gar-

dens, set with every kind of tree, all sweet and fragrant woods, the plants of Punt”. Furthermore, in numerous fu-nerary texts the deceased talks about “walking under the trees of his garden and drinking the water of its lake” Gar-dens were not the privilege of the high and mighty of those days and Egyptologists mention funerary gardens of small size that have been grown in the courtyard of certain The-ban private tombs, probably imitating the larger gardens of the pharaohs.

Despite centuries of invasions, wars and conquests, the tradition was never broken and Egyptians continued to nurture their love for private gardens and public parks. It is believed that in Al-Fustat, well-off people built hous-es with internal courtyards, gardens and even fountains, perpetrating the centuries-old tradition. Chronicles of that time mention the parks, gardens and promenades located outside the built-up area. They specifically talk about the profusion of rose gardens, as rose water was a popular medicinal potion then.

The trend to cultivate ornamental gardens to procure sat-isfaction and pleasure continued with Ahmed Ibn Tulun, the founder of the short-lived Tulunid dynasty (868-905 A.D.) Al Qatai, the new city built by Ibn Tulun, was mod-elled on Samaria, the eastern city where he grew up, and it did not only have magnificent buildings, but also “large parks, open spaces for horse-riding and tournaments” and gardens ornamented with “flower beds and pots of flower-ing plants in the Samarian fashion.” Encouraged by Ibn Tulun - a great patron of art and architecture - landscap-ers and gardeners excelled in embellishing these gardens by planting dwarf palm trees and aromatic plants and shrubs. Imagination as well as creativity had no limits. Gardeners pruned trees in various shapes while landscap-ers introduced different ornamental accessories, the most innovative one being the first artificial fountain trees. This was not an easy operation, as tree trunks were inserted with hidden leaden pipes from which water was thrown upward, producing a breathtaking effect.

Today, nothing remains either from Al Qatai or from its gardens. With the exception of the famous Ibn Tulun mosque that survives to this day, Al Qatai was destroyed by the Abbassid troops who were sent to re-conquer Egypt in the name of Al Khalif Al Muktafi in 905 (292 AH).

Despite assassinations and rebellions that marked their reign, the Mamluk sultans of Turco-Circassian origin who ruled Egypt from 1260 to 1517, built magnificent palac-es and gardens and by the mid fourteenth century, Cairo

29

once again regained its predominant place in the region. Much later, the centuries-old love-affair between Egyp-

tians and their gardens was revived with the advent of Khe-dive Ismail, a visionary city planner and a lover of beauty and splendour by excellence.

Known as Ismail the Magnificent, Khedive Ismail is the grandson of Mohamed Ali Pasha, the founder of Modern Egypt. As soon as he became Wali in 1863, Ismail launched vast projects to reform the country and modernize it on the same scale of his grandfather. Reforming the Egyp-tian administration was not enough for the ambitious Is-mail. During one of his many visits to France, he had fallen in love with French culture and was so impressed by the transformation of Paris by Baron Haussmann that he de-

cided to remodel Cairo on the French capital. The task was Herculean and sparing neither effort nor monies to fulfill his ambition - Ismail hired French architects, engineers, urban planners and landscapers to build the Khedivial Cairo of his dream under the supervision of his minister of public works, Ali Mubarak.

In less than fifteen years, large avenues were opened, magnificent palaces were built, and six major botanic gar-dens established: the Zohreiya, the Aquarium, the Ezbe-kiya Garden, the Zoo, the botanical garden of Orman and the Horreya garden. These gardens were to be the Khedive’s answer to the Bois de Boulogne and Les Buttes Chaumont, two magnificent botanical gardens, whose creation he had witnessed in Paris. Like Mohamed Ali his grand-father, as

Previous page: Detail showing a pharanoic garden, from a scene in the tomb of Nebamun (1350 BC), found in Karnak. © British MuseumAbove: Egypt’s finest botanical garden at the newly restored Manial PalaceOpposite: The Andalus Garden in El-Gezira

30

well as his father Ibrahim (who also had a special pen-chant for gardens) Khedive Ismail was extremely eager in promoting education, and he encouraged the introduction of numerous new plants, trees and flowers from Europe and from the Americas, thus expanding the horticultural knowledge of the Egyptians. These new arrivals were fur-ther enhanced by an influx of new plants and seeds from the Indian sub-continent and from the Far East landing on the Egyptian shores thanks to the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869.

When he returned from Paris in 1868, the Khedive had in his baggage not only his ambitious dreams of transform-ing Cairo, but also a French landscape gardener: Baril-let Dechamps who was to rebuild the Ezbekiya garden on the very style of the Parisian parks that Ismail admired so much. The Ezbekiya Lake, which was dug in the 15th cen-tury by Emir Azbak, had already been changed into a park under Mohamed Ali. Now his grandson was to transform

the park into a botanical garden with collections of plants and trees from all over the world. In The floristic compo-sition of some historical botanical gardens in the metro-politan of Cairo, Egypt, published in the African Journal of Agricultural Research Vol. 2 (11) November 2007, the au-thors give a comprehensive and detailed description of the Ezbekiya garden at the time of its reconstruction. Stretch-ing on 20 feddans (1 feddan = 1.038 acre) Ezbekiya had four gates and its landmarks included an artificial grotto with waterfalls, a small mountain cultivated with cacti, and a marble fountain decorated with botanical motifs. As for the horticultural species, the article says that the garden contained 27 families of trees, plants and shrubs and next to some thirteen species of palm trees, succu-lents, perennial herbs and climbers were also represented,

The sad remains of the Zohreiya garden Ezbekiya Garden, a far cry from its former glory

31

thus making the Ezbekiya, the first ever botanical garden in Egypt. On its northern side, the garden was bordered by the newly redesigned Sharia El Geneina,, while on its southern wing stood a theatre. Almost in the middle of the garden, water pumps were installed to irrigate the profu-sion of greenery.

Since it was established in 1868, Ezbekiya has gone through many transformations, but not all successful. Its manicured lawns, the original features and landmarks and many species of rare trees have disappeared. Today, Ezbekiya houses the Puppet theatre, Al Talia’a theatre and the ill-fated National Theatre that was recently partly destroyed by fire. Not far away from the place where the swimming pool stood, stands a dilapidated but still used building: the former Egyptian Royal Society of Fencing. The transformation is so dramatic that few Egyptians to-day would still remember that, not long ago, the Ezbekiya Garden was the jewel of all Khedivial gardens in Cairo.

The inauguration of the Suez Canal was to give the Khe-dive more opportunities to fulfil more of his ambitious and extremely expensive aspirations. Eager to show the best of his capital to his imperial and royal guests, in terms of infrastructure and splendours, he instructed Gustave Delchevalerie - the Belgian landscape architect who had collaborated with Baron Haussmann in re-designing Paris - to develop the gardens around the Gezira Palace. Situated on the island of Zamalek and Ismail’s favoured palace, the Gezira Palace was composed of three sumptuous build-ings: one especially built for receptions and big events, further away stood the magnificent Salamlek and tucked away from mortal eyes was the Haramlek, built especially for the Khedive’s harem. What remains from the palace where Empress Eugenie of France was once entertained, is the central building of what is today the Marriott Hotel.

While it is needless to mention here the splendid decora-tions, the exquisite furniture, the priceless artefacts and

Part of the marble fountain of the Andalus garden The beautifully preserved Andalus tile work

32 33

the sumptuous tapestries adorning the Gezira Palace, it should be said that the gardens of the Gezira Palace were as magnificent as its interiors. Having at his disposal, 600 acres, a huge budget and blessed with grandiose ideas as much as those of his employer whose password could be resumed to “splendour inside and more splendour out-side”, in the space of one year (1868-69) Delchevalerie transformed a dream – his as much as the Khedive’s - into reality. He oversaw “the planting of a million exotic plants in a 600 acre garden” including royal palm trees, Acacia Lebbeck from Upper Egypt, Vanilla trees from Madagascar, Latania from Reunion Island, Juniper, Tamarind and Rub-ber Fig trees from India, White Mulberry from Turkey and the legendary sycamore, the tree of the pharaohs. Flower beds of daisy-like orange gaillardia, snow-white sweet al-

yssum, dark purple pansies, red and white petunias, pink mirabilis and many other flowers rivalled with cacti, Yuc-cas and other succulents. In the middle of this vast pro-fusion of trees, plants, shrubs and flowers, Delchevalerie built a white marble fountain (which still exists), a grotto with water cascades and an artificial lake. It was also in the western part of the garden that some forty greenhous-es were built to grow orchids, pineapple, banana and other tropical fruit and flowers. But this was still not enough and more magic was needed to make the gardens a real “paradise on earth”. Redirecting water from the artificial lake to the western parts of the garden, Delchevalerie built a pond and hidden in the aquatic foliage, a small island to house rare black swans, African pelicans and wild geese and ducks. The southern parts of the garden were not ne-

Above: The Japanese gardenOpposite: The breathtaking stairs of Andalus garden

33

the sumptuous tapestries adorning the Gezira Palace, it should be said that the gardens of the Gezira Palace were as magnificent as its interiors. Having at his disposal, 600 acres, a huge budget and blessed with grandiose ideas as much as those of his employer whose password could be resumed to “splendour inside and more splendour out-side”, in the space of one year (1868-69) Delchevalerie transformed a dream – his as much as the Khedive’s - into reality. He oversaw “the planting of a million exotic plants in a 600 acre garden” including royal palm trees, Acacia Lebbeck from Upper Egypt, Vanilla trees from Madagascar, Latania from Reunion Island, Juniper, Tamarind and Rub-ber Fig trees from India, White Mulberry from Turkey and the legendary sycamore, the tree of the pharaohs. Flower beds of daisy-like orange gaillardia, snow-white sweet al-

yssum, dark purple pansies, red and white petunias, pink mirabilis and many other flowers rivalled with cacti, Yuc-cas and other succulents. In the middle of this vast pro-fusion of trees, plants, shrubs and flowers, Delchevalerie built a white marble fountain (which still exists), a grotto with water cascades and an artificial lake. It was also in the western part of the garden that some forty greenhous-es were built to grow orchids, pineapple, banana and other tropical fruit and flowers. But this was still not enough and more magic was needed to make the gardens a real “paradise on earth”. Redirecting water from the artificial lake to the western parts of the garden, Delchevalerie built a pond and hidden in the aquatic foliage, a small island to house rare black swans, African pelicans and wild geese and ducks. The southern parts of the garden were not ne-

Above: The Japanese gardenOpposite: The breathtaking stairs of Andalus garden

34

glected and Delchevalerie established a zoological garden with lions, tigers, leopards, giraffes, gazelles, ostriches and other wild and exotic animals.

Much later, after the demise of the Khedive, the Gezira Garden was divided into different allotments. Known today by its former name, Al Zohreya is home to nurseries and greenhouses, and the area where the artificial lake and grotto stood was redesigned in 1871 by two Italian special-ists: De Combaz and Dumilieu to become the Aquarium. Ac-cording to the authors of “The floristic composition of some historical botanical gardens in the metropolitan of Cairo, Egypt” a certain Captain Stanley Flower re-constructed the garden. Adding aquariums in the old grotto to house a “rare collection of African fishes and reptiles”. Ismail’s Aquarium is today our Hadiqat Al Asmak (the fish garden).

While the southern parts of the 600 acre garden under-went various transformations to become the large Al Hor-reya Gardens, a smaller area near the eastern banks of the river was transformed into the magnificent Hadiqat Al Andalous, currently undergoing its fourth renovation, thanks to an injection of 6 million Egyptian pounds from the Egyptian Fund for the Restoration of Special Gardens. At one point in time, Al Andalous was a skating rink for the younger members of the royal family, but since the mid 1940s, Al Andalous has been turned to a public park, with mosaics, artefacts and water fountains in the very style of the gardens of Alhambra in Granada. Of all the splendours of Ismail’s Al Geriza Gardens, Al Zohreya is the one that has suffered most. When Borg Al Kahira (The Cairo Tower) was built, Al Zohreya was cut in its middle to allow entry to the tower. Most of the exotic trees from India and Africa have been neglected and Al Zohreya, like an old lady, survives with the few features of her beautiful past.

The vast gardens of Shoubra Palace

35

On main land Giza, on the other side of the island of Za-malek and Al Zohreya garden, stands Hadikat Al Orman (Al Orman Garden) one more botanical legacy of the Khe-dive proving his passion for gardens and horticulture. Part of the much larger gardens of the Giza Palace, built by Said Pasha, Al Orman houses until today a variety of exotic and rare plants and trees. Struggling to survive on a very small budget, the garden has lost some of its former lush veg-etation, but it is still home to rare trees planted there at the time of the Khedive. In terms of botanical wonders, Al Orman had nothing to envy to Al Zohreya of Delchevalerie. Spreading on more than 90 acres it supplied all the Khedi-vial palaces with vegetables and fruits. Known in the past as Hadiqat Al Leymoon (The Lemon Garden) because of the 10,000 citrus cultivated there, Al Orman was reduced to 50 acres and then to 25 acres, giving half of its surface to the Zoo, next door. Despite the cropping and the re-shaping of Al Orman, many of its former landmarks still

survive to this day: the rocky garden with its 200 species of cactus and succulents, the rose garden, the water pond, the magnificent forest of bamboos and the alley of Royal Palm trees..

Khedive Ismail may have inherited his love for innova-tions and his dreams of modernizing Egypt from his grand-father, but while Ismail surpassed by far his grand-father’s ostentatious taste, it could not be said that Mohamed Ali’s love for gardens was lesser than that of his grandson. Among the many palaces built by Al Wali for his person-al usage, Qasr Shoubra, the Shoubra Palace was the one where the Wali spent most of his time as he grew older. Ac-cording to Gustave Delchevalerie, the Belgian landscaper who worked for his grandson Ismail, the gardens of Shou-bra Palace were the most “renowned in the Middle East” .

Mosaic or pebble-paved alleys were bordered by hedges of myrtle, jasmine and narcissus and the fragrance of roses - that much loved flower of the Orient - mingled with that of

A general view of the Orman garden

36

lemon and orange blossoms and the perfume of pomegran-ates with the sweet scent of plums. At sunset, Mohamed Ali loved to sit lazily on one of the hand-carved divans by the large bay windows of one of the two richly decorated pavilions and listen to the crystalline sound of water glid-ing through the marble fountains and echoing the twitter-ing of birds in the trees. He may have walked to the baths through the colonnade of marble and white stone pillars and dipped his fingers in the rippling water of the large basin adorned with sculpted figures of crocodiles.

By reviving the old love affair between Egyptians and horticulture, the Khedive had set a trend, and even after his forced abdication, gardens continued to live and flour-ish in Egypt. The Japanese Garden which was established in 1917 by Zulfikar Pasha in Helwan, a southern suburb of Cairo, is landscaped in Japanese style and has a collec-tion of Buddha statues overlooking a pond with a wooden

Japanese style bridge crossing over the crystalline water. Here and there among the trees stand pagodas decorated with the mythical Japanese dragons. Although it was built as a present to Sultan Hussein Kamel, Ismail’s son, the garden has little to offer in terms of botanical features.

Establishing gardens and parks was not to end with Khe-dive Ismail’s abdication and Prince Mohamed-Ali Tewfick, his grandson, took over and continued the tradition. But, whereas Ismail had given carte-blanche to landscapers and gardeners and was mainly concerned with “the effect”, Prince Mohamed-Ali had a more “scientific” approach, and combining this with his passion for splendour, he oversaw every single plant, tree or shrub that went into the gardens of his Manial Palace on the island of Roda.

Ismail was dazzled by the richness and splendours of European royal and imperial courts which he wanted to surpass, but Prince Mohamed-Ali, a much travelled and

The garden of Manial Palace

37

highly educated man, was a sophisticated connoisseur of art and a refined collector. He had the eye for what was not only beautiful, but also unique. Collecting the Banyan trees, the Cedars, the Royal Palm trees and the Indian rub-ber trees, all remnants of Al Bostan Al Kebir, of his great uncle Ibrahim Pasha, Prince Mohamed-Ali, established a “garden of thousand delights.” Taking with him his head gardener, he travelled to the four corners of the globe in search of rare saplings, unique floral species, luxuriant tropical and desert plants and a matchless collection of several cacti.

With the fall of the Mohamed Ali dynasty, all the palaces and gardens became part of Egypt’s national heritage, and the various attempts made to transform Manial palace into a hotel for tourists ended up in disasters, damaging the magnificent trees and rare plants brought from far away horizons by the Prince. Actually the palace and the gar-

dens are undergoing a major face-lift that would hopefully restore some of the horticultural marvels of the past.

Today, the grandiose Al Azhar Park built by the Aga Khan Foundation in 2005, is the largest and latest addition to gardens and parks built more than 150 years ago by Khe-dive Ismail. From the first day of its inception, Al Azhar was designed as a public garden, yet it has kept with the long Egyptian tradition of horticulture and botany. With its eighty-nine varieties of trees, fifty-one of shrubs, five sorts of different grass, climbers of all sorts, ground cover-ing plants as well as twenty-six varieties of succulents, Al Azhar Park may be today’s answer to the Khedive’s horti-cultural dreams.

A rare photo, taken circa 1880 of the Shoubra Palace garden

38

Going, Going ... GoneHeritage at risk

By Nigel Hetherington

When you ask the majority of people to think of Egypt, they normally summon up imag-es of the Pyramids of Giza, the royal mum-mies laying in state in the Cairo Museum

or the fabulous treasures of Tutankhamun from his tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. Yet Egypt is so much more than this undoubtedly rich pharaonic heritage. In fact, it has been stated by many that its riches are almost impossible to count and that their breadth and scale are simply overwhelming. However, that should not stop us trying to uncover as much of Egypt’s heritage as we can.

Many of us are aware of the splendours of Islamic Cairo, the stunning corals of the Red Sea and the star lit nights that can be spent in the White Desert; but how many of us are aware that Egypt has some of the best preserved dino-saur fields in the world, a flourishing eco-tourism sector and one of the largest collections of Art-Deco buildings in the world, right in the heart of Cairo? In fact, every epoch of history is represented somewhere in Egypt if you take the time to discover it.

However, it is the rich twentieth century architectural heritage of Downtown Cairo that I wish to introduce you

to, before it is too late. Due to many factors, this almost forgotten area and its magnificent buildings are disappear-ing before our eyes. If we do not take action soon, these amazing edifices could be completely lost for future gen-erations.

First, an explanation of what is meant when one uses such terms as modern or Art-Deco to describe architecture or fashion: The phrase Art-Deco comes from a design fair named the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs industriels et Modernes held in Paris in 1925 which, many years later, was to become synonymous with the modern movement. However, the term would eventually be used to describe all things modern of that era, including architec-ture, fashion, interior design and even automobiles. Recog-nised instantly by its sleek geometric designs and shapes, the Art-Deco movement would spread across the world and derive much of its inspiration from the 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings by Howard Carter. This was to place Ancient Egyptian art and design

39

1- A defaced Art deco entrance in Heliopolis. Photo: Miral Ramzy2-Air conditioner openings hacked into this downtown Cairo building

38

Going, Going ... GoneHeritage at risk

By Nigel Hetherington

When you ask the majority of people to think of Egypt, they normally summon up imag-es of the Pyramids of Giza, the royal mum-mies laying in state in the Cairo Museum

or the fabulous treasures of Tutankhamun from his tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. Yet Egypt is so much more than this undoubtedly rich pharaonic heritage. In fact, it has been stated by many that its riches are almost impossible to count and that their breadth and scale are simply overwhelming. However, that should not stop us trying to uncover as much of Egypt’s heritage as we can.

Many of us are aware of the splendours of Islamic Cairo, the stunning corals of the Red Sea and the star lit nights that can be spent in the White Desert; but how many of us are aware that Egypt has some of the best preserved dino-saur fields in the world, a flourishing eco-tourism sector and one of the largest collections of Art-Deco buildings in the world, right in the heart of Cairo? In fact, every epoch of history is represented somewhere in Egypt if you take the time to discover it.

However, it is the rich twentieth century architectural heritage of Downtown Cairo that I wish to introduce you

to, before it is too late. Due to many factors, this almost forgotten area and its magnificent buildings are disappear-ing before our eyes. If we do not take action soon, these amazing edifices could be completely lost for future gen-erations.

First, an explanation of what is meant when one uses such terms as modern or Art-Deco to describe architecture or fashion: The phrase Art-Deco comes from a design fair named the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs industriels et Modernes held in Paris in 1925 which, many years later, was to become synonymous with the modern movement. However, the term would eventually be used to describe all things modern of that era, including architec-ture, fashion, interior design and even automobiles. Recog-nised instantly by its sleek geometric designs and shapes, the Art-Deco movement would spread across the world and derive much of its inspiration from the 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings by Howard Carter. This was to place Ancient Egyptian art and design

39

1- A defaced Art deco entrance in Heliopolis. Photo: Miral Ramzy2-Air conditioner openings hacked into this downtown Cairo building

firmly at the centre of the Art-Deco movement. The question of how much influence the discovery of

Tutankhamun’s treasures had on the modern movement has been debated for generations, however what can be definitely said is that in the 1920’s the world went Tut-ankhamun crazy, in fact it has been labelled by some as ‘Tut Mania’. Not only was the world able to read of the new tomb discoveries in their newspapers each morning but in a foreshadowing of the mass communications of to-day, footage was shot of the excavation in the Valley of the Kings and played to cinema audiences around the globe by newsreel companies. It seemed everyone wanted a piece of Tut: fashions mimicked ancient Egypt, jewelry carried ancient Egyptian motifs and cinemas and office buildings began to appear in the Art-Deco style with sphinxes adorn-ing their facades.

Many of you will have seen buildings of this style throughout the world but I would like to show you where you can find classic examples of Art-Deco in Egypt today. Just a few bustling streets away from the Cairo Museum lies an area that has been christened by many as ‘Paris on the Nile’ due to its rich architectural heritage. The district known as Downtown Cairo or in Arabic Wust al-Balad, is a relatively small quarter of Cairo that forms a triangle on the map with its three points being Tahrir Square, Bab Al-hadid and Abdeen.

The dream of a Cairo modelled on European cities re-ally began with the Viceroy Mohamed Ali, referred to by many as the founder of Modern Egypt. During Mohamed Ali’s rule from 1805-1849, Egypt flourished economically and culturally. Links with Europe were established which would eventually result in architects, planners and design-ers from England, France, Germany and Italy descending on the country. The result of this trade and contact with Europe was a booming economy and with it came a mas-sive building spree. Public works were commissioned as well as grand homes and palaces for the growing upper classes.

However, the development of Cairo’s “downtown” area would only take off from around 1863, led by of Mohamed Ali’s grandson, the Khedive Ismail who ruled Egypt from 1863-1879. It was he who would carry the vision of a Paris on the Nile through to its construction. In fact, the downtown area was known as Ismailyia until the 1950’s in recognition of the man who carried through the plan of reshaping this part of Cairo in the style of a European

1

2

3

40

“ I D, ”

city. The construction work would however take decades to complete, and even through there was a spurt of building around 1871, development would continue right through to the 1930’s.

By that time Art-Deco had become all the rage in Europe and North America and quickly caught on in Egypt too. It could be said that Art-Deco was coming home at last. Many techniques of construction and styles of architecture were imported from Europe. The Downtown area would see not just buildings in the Art-Deco style but many from the schools of Art Nouveau, Baroque and Neo-Islamic archi-tecture. Art-Deco also found its way into many other areas of Cairo including Zamalek, Maadi, Heliopolis and Shubra and in other cities in Egypt particularly Alexandria.

Ismailia became famous for its European residents and the architects they commissioned reflected this, coming from all over Europe to build elegant apartment blocks and office complexes. However, with the coming of the suburbs such as Maadi, Heliopolis and Dokki many rich Egyptians and Europeans had villas built away from the city center to escape the noise and pollution and this was, alas, the beginning of the eventual decline of the area. Nevertheless, Ismailia, until the 1950’s was an elegant commercial cen-tre only with fewer affluent families remaining. The shops were the toast of Europe and Egypt and professional ser-vices such as lawyers, accountants, dentists and doctors opened fashionable offices there.

So how do you identify an Art-Deco building in Cairo or anywhere else for that matter? First, look at the materials and the colours; Art-Deco architecture frequently makes use of aluminium to top buildings or as decorative detail. The style is also known for its use of pastel colours, par-ticularly in warmer climates.

Second, identify the lines; Art Deco design is noted for its stair-step, pyramid-style structures and use of zigzag lines, as seen in New York City’s Rockefeller Centre com-plex or Cairo’s Ades building on Emmadedin street. The design style is also identified with its use of fluid curves and arches, such as those found on Union Station in Cin-cinnati and many of the Art Deco building in Miami’s South Beach neighbourhood.

Third, notice the tell-tale design elements. Art Deco buildings often include nautical elements, such as port-hole windows, or elements from classic Egyptian and Aztec design, such as stair-step lines and medallions.

Key buildings in Cairo’s Ismailia built in the Art-Deco style include Cinema Metro, El-Sharq Insurance Co. Build-

4

41

1, 2 & 3- Shawarby building on 26th of July street. Built by Habib Ay-rout in the 1920’s, currently being repainted4- Ades building on Mohamed Bek el Alfi street. Built in the 1930’s

firmly at the centre of the Art-Deco movement. The question of how much influence the discovery of

Tutankhamun’s treasures had on the modern movement has been debated for generations, however what can be definitely said is that in the 1920’s the world went Tut-ankhamun crazy, in fact it has been labelled by some as ‘Tut Mania’. Not only was the world able to read of the new tomb discoveries in their newspapers each morning but in a foreshadowing of the mass communications of to-day, footage was shot of the excavation in the Valley of the Kings and played to cinema audiences around the globe by newsreel companies. It seemed everyone wanted a piece of Tut: fashions mimicked ancient Egypt, jewelry carried ancient Egyptian motifs and cinemas and office buildings began to appear in the Art-Deco style with sphinxes adorn-ing their facades.

Many of you will have seen buildings of this style throughout the world but I would like to show you where you can find classic examples of Art-Deco in Egypt today. Just a few bustling streets away from the Cairo Museum lies an area that has been christened by many as ‘Paris on the Nile’ due to its rich architectural heritage. The district known as Downtown Cairo or in Arabic Wust al-Balad, is a relatively small quarter of Cairo that forms a triangle on the map with its three points being Tahrir Square, Bab Al-hadid and Abdeen.

The dream of a Cairo modelled on European cities re-ally began with the Viceroy Mohamed Ali, referred to by many as the founder of Modern Egypt. During Mohamed Ali’s rule from 1805-1849, Egypt flourished economically and culturally. Links with Europe were established which would eventually result in architects, planners and design-ers from England, France, Germany and Italy descending on the country. The result of this trade and contact with Europe was a booming economy and with it came a mas-sive building spree. Public works were commissioned as well as grand homes and palaces for the growing upper classes.

However, the development of Cairo’s “downtown” area would only take off from around 1863, led by of Mohamed Ali’s grandson, the Khedive Ismail who ruled Egypt from 1863-1879. It was he who would carry the vision of a Paris on the Nile through to its construction. In fact, the downtown area was known as Ismailyia until the 1950’s in recognition of the man who carried through the plan of reshaping this part of Cairo in the style of a European

1

2

3

40

“ I D, ”

city. The construction work would however take decades to complete, and even through there was a spurt of building around 1871, development would continue right through to the 1930’s.

By that time Art-Deco had become all the rage in Europe and North America and quickly caught on in Egypt too. It could be said that Art-Deco was coming home at last. Many techniques of construction and styles of architecture were imported from Europe. The Downtown area would see not just buildings in the Art-Deco style but many from the schools of Art Nouveau, Baroque and Neo-Islamic archi-tecture. Art-Deco also found its way into many other areas of Cairo including Zamalek, Maadi, Heliopolis and Shubra and in other cities in Egypt particularly Alexandria.

Ismailia became famous for its European residents and the architects they commissioned reflected this, coming from all over Europe to build elegant apartment blocks and office complexes. However, with the coming of the suburbs such as Maadi, Heliopolis and Dokki many rich Egyptians and Europeans had villas built away from the city center to escape the noise and pollution and this was, alas, the beginning of the eventual decline of the area. Nevertheless, Ismailia, until the 1950’s was an elegant commercial cen-tre only with fewer affluent families remaining. The shops were the toast of Europe and Egypt and professional ser-vices such as lawyers, accountants, dentists and doctors opened fashionable offices there.

So how do you identify an Art-Deco building in Cairo or anywhere else for that matter? First, look at the materials and the colours; Art-Deco architecture frequently makes use of aluminium to top buildings or as decorative detail. The style is also known for its use of pastel colours, par-ticularly in warmer climates.

Second, identify the lines; Art Deco design is noted for its stair-step, pyramid-style structures and use of zigzag lines, as seen in New York City’s Rockefeller Centre com-plex or Cairo’s Ades building on Emmadedin street. The design style is also identified with its use of fluid curves and arches, such as those found on Union Station in Cin-cinnati and many of the Art Deco building in Miami’s South Beach neighbourhood.

Third, notice the tell-tale design elements. Art Deco buildings often include nautical elements, such as port-hole windows, or elements from classic Egyptian and Aztec design, such as stair-step lines and medallions.

Key buildings in Cairo’s Ismailia built in the Art-Deco style include Cinema Metro, El-Sharq Insurance Co. Build-

4

41

1, 2 & 3- Shawarby building on 26th of July street. Built by Habib Ay-rout in the 1920’s, currently being repainted4- Ades building on Mohamed Bek el Alfi street. Built in the 1930’s

ing at 15 Qasr El-Nil Street, which was Built around 1940, The Sednaoui Department Store at 17 Qasr El-Nil Street, which was built in 1925 and the building at 22 Qasr El-Nil Street, built in 1934. But there are many more examples, including apartment buildings, offices, government build-ings and shops, some are completely Art-Deco in style, some just contain elements or combine with features from the modern movement, or the belle époque and art nou-veau approaches to architecture.

So what now for this once fashionable area? Well, after a long period of apathy, many in Cairo are beginning to take an interest in the downtown area and recognise its rich architectural heritage; in fact, there are now even archi-tectural tours of the area. A developer has even suggested building a new Downtown in the desert margins of Cairo. Hopefully this is an indication that people are becoming interested again in the styles of this period. But instead of building a new Downtown, why not renovate and revitalise the existing one? Numerous groups and individuals have now called for better preservation and recognition of this period of Egypt’s modern history, such as the Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULT-NAT) which is affiliated with the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and supported by the Ministry of Communications and In-formation Technology. They are undertaking an ambitious plan to document the 19th and 20th century heritage of the Downtown area utilizing Geographical Information Sys-tems (GIS) mapping and building an extensive database of photographs and historical information about the area.

The English archaeologist William Flinders Petrie fa-mously said back in 1879 that “Egypt was a like house on fire”, when faced with such a choice, what do you save first? With Egypt’s huge legacy of cultural heritage and its rich natural heritage under threat from the demands of a growing population and increasing urbanization it might seem petty to say we should try to save the Art-Deco build-ings of Cairo. However, they are an important part of Cai-ro’s rich heritage that deserves to be recognised.

In many cities in the world, the move to the suburbs was followed a generation later by a migration back to the ur-ban centre lead by artists, writers, and creative individuals which lead to an urban renaissance in the city centres of many major cities. I myself live in a turn of the century apartment building, built in 1903 by a Belgian architect for a Cairo based match factory to house their managerial staff and I can vouch for the apartment’s grand scale and unrivalled design features, something that is sadly lacking in many modern buildings.

Let us hope that the regeneration of Downtown Cairo be-comes a reality.

1

2

42

3

4 5

43

1- Art Deco in Heliopolis- Photo: Miral Ramzy2- A Garden City Building- Photo: Miral Ramzy.3- Pharaonic motif in Cairo’s Ismailia district (off Emmadedin Street)- Photo: Miral Ramzy4- Light fixture designed to match the Garden City building5-An ecclectic style building with classic Art Deco porthole windows Art Deco motifs: Ahmed El-Bindari

ing at 15 Qasr El-Nil Street, which was Built around 1940, The Sednaoui Department Store at 17 Qasr El-Nil Street, which was built in 1925 and the building at 22 Qasr El-Nil Street, built in 1934. But there are many more examples, including apartment buildings, offices, government build-ings and shops, some are completely Art-Deco in style, some just contain elements or combine with features from the modern movement, or the belle époque and art nou-veau approaches to architecture.

So what now for this once fashionable area? Well, after a long period of apathy, many in Cairo are beginning to take an interest in the downtown area and recognise its rich architectural heritage; in fact, there are now even archi-tectural tours of the area. A developer has even suggested building a new Downtown in the desert margins of Cairo. Hopefully this is an indication that people are becoming interested again in the styles of this period. But instead of building a new Downtown, why not renovate and revitalise the existing one? Numerous groups and individuals have now called for better preservation and recognition of this period of Egypt’s modern history, such as the Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULT-NAT) which is affiliated with the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and supported by the Ministry of Communications and In-formation Technology. They are undertaking an ambitious plan to document the 19th and 20th century heritage of the Downtown area utilizing Geographical Information Sys-tems (GIS) mapping and building an extensive database of photographs and historical information about the area.

The English archaeologist William Flinders Petrie fa-mously said back in 1879 that “Egypt was a like house on fire”, when faced with such a choice, what do you save first? With Egypt’s huge legacy of cultural heritage and its rich natural heritage under threat from the demands of a growing population and increasing urbanization it might seem petty to say we should try to save the Art-Deco build-ings of Cairo. However, they are an important part of Cai-ro’s rich heritage that deserves to be recognised.

In many cities in the world, the move to the suburbs was followed a generation later by a migration back to the ur-ban centre lead by artists, writers, and creative individuals which lead to an urban renaissance in the city centres of many major cities. I myself live in a turn of the century apartment building, built in 1903 by a Belgian architect for a Cairo based match factory to house their managerial staff and I can vouch for the apartment’s grand scale and unrivalled design features, something that is sadly lacking in many modern buildings.

Let us hope that the regeneration of Downtown Cairo be-comes a reality.

1

2

42

3

4 5

43

1- Art Deco in Heliopolis- Photo: Miral Ramzy2- A Garden City Building- Photo: Miral Ramzy.3- Pharaonic motif in Cairo’s Ismailia district (off Emmadedin Street)- Photo: Miral Ramzy4- Light fixture designed to match the Garden City building5-An ecclectic style building with classic Art Deco porthole windows Art Deco motifs: Ahmed El-Bindari

44

Miral Ramzy, Interior designer

“The stairs and the elevator shaft of one of the buildings in Alexandria, on Fouad Street.”

Many of us walk through the streets of Egypt and find ourselves captivated by the most incredible sights. People from all backgrounds and professions have taken up photogra-phy either as amateurs or as professionals in order to document the many scenes of Egypt. Here, we invite you, our reader, to submit your photographs of Egyptian heritage and your thoughts. Tell us what you want to say with your photograph, tell us of the story behind the shot: simply express yourself. Get in touch with us by emailing: editor@turath-egypt.com

45

Ragai Karas, Painter and Photographer“This shot was taken from the inside of El-Azhar Mosque. I

liked the repetition of the columns and arches. I also wanted to include human figures to add some life to the shot.”

“This shot was taken from the Azhar park, depicting Mo-hamed Ali’s Citadel, I wanted to include the high rise build-ing in my shot for contrast between the beauty of the old building and the ugliness of a new structure.”

Mohamed Hussein, Interior designer“A camera can’t record the moment’s feelings,

but it leaves a memory to remember them by. I took these photos during sunrise as I heard that this time is the closest atmosphere to heaven.”

B I R. AP B M B

46

Women’s Atelier in

Tulun47

In the recent past, the historic center of Cairo was synonymous with the produc-tion of quality handicrafts. However, it can be quite frustrating finding such unique

and beautiful products today, especially in the wave of cheaper imitations that flood the market from China. Unfortunately, this increasing void is a reflection of current tastes and demands. What I have hoped to achieve with the “Egyptian Chic” column is to report on Egyptians who have turned their backs on recent trends with the aim of preserving Cairo’s own craft industry, partic-ularly workshops and guilds that have chosen not to abandon the old city.

In this issue, I would like to introduce you to the Women’s Atelier in Tulun, which was created approximately a year and a half ago by Suzanne el-Masry, the well-known contemporary jewelry designer and partner in the craft revival shop Al Khatoun, located behind the Mosque of al-Azhar. I learned about the Atelier several months back when I was admiring a silk shawl for sale at Al Khatoun and inquired about the maker. To my pleasant surprise, I was told the shawl, and many other beautifully embellished textiles, were made right there in Historic Cairo, in the Khalifa area near the ninth century mosque of Ahmad ibn Tulun. So, in pursuit of a new find, I took myself to the Mosque of ibn Tulun in search of the workshop.

The Women’s Atelier in Tulun started out as a pilot training project at the end of 2007. It was financed by an Italian fund for a five-month pe-riod. Suzanne had previously worked with the Italian donors on a jewelry project; and, when she was approached last year to suggest a sec-ond project, she proposed the idea of establish-ing a textile training program and workshop. She also stipulated that each trainee receive her own sewing machine, so that they could contin-ue working from home after the course ended. According to Suzanne, the Khalifa area was cho-sen for one main reason: she wanted to work out of a popular neighborhood with women who had less employment opportunities; the Khalifa area fits the criteria but is distinguished from other neighborhoods due to its rich history and im-portant monuments. The project began with 15 women being trained in basic sewing skills.

After the course ended, Suzanne chose to keep

B I R. AP B M B

46

Women’s Atelier in

Tulun47

In the recent past, the historic center of Cairo was synonymous with the produc-tion of quality handicrafts. However, it can be quite frustrating finding such unique

and beautiful products today, especially in the wave of cheaper imitations that flood the market from China. Unfortunately, this increasing void is a reflection of current tastes and demands. What I have hoped to achieve with the “Egyptian Chic” column is to report on Egyptians who have turned their backs on recent trends with the aim of preserving Cairo’s own craft industry, partic-ularly workshops and guilds that have chosen not to abandon the old city.

In this issue, I would like to introduce you to the Women’s Atelier in Tulun, which was created approximately a year and a half ago by Suzanne el-Masry, the well-known contemporary jewelry designer and partner in the craft revival shop Al Khatoun, located behind the Mosque of al-Azhar. I learned about the Atelier several months back when I was admiring a silk shawl for sale at Al Khatoun and inquired about the maker. To my pleasant surprise, I was told the shawl, and many other beautifully embellished textiles, were made right there in Historic Cairo, in the Khalifa area near the ninth century mosque of Ahmad ibn Tulun. So, in pursuit of a new find, I took myself to the Mosque of ibn Tulun in search of the workshop.

The Women’s Atelier in Tulun started out as a pilot training project at the end of 2007. It was financed by an Italian fund for a five-month pe-riod. Suzanne had previously worked with the Italian donors on a jewelry project; and, when she was approached last year to suggest a sec-ond project, she proposed the idea of establish-ing a textile training program and workshop. She also stipulated that each trainee receive her own sewing machine, so that they could contin-ue working from home after the course ended. According to Suzanne, the Khalifa area was cho-sen for one main reason: she wanted to work out of a popular neighborhood with women who had less employment opportunities; the Khalifa area fits the criteria but is distinguished from other neighborhoods due to its rich history and im-portant monuments. The project began with 15 women being trained in basic sewing skills.

After the course ended, Suzanne chose to keep

48 49

48 49

50

the Atelier open at the request of the women. Her instinct and experience with Al Khatoun cautioned her to start small, so she selected the five most suitable women and continued the workshop. The goal was for these five women to develop into well-trained artisans that are then able to train and teach others, starting a domino effect and a gradual expansion of the concept.

The modest, yet attractive, Atelier is located at the end of a small alley off Khalifa Street. When I arrived early one afternoon, I found Suzanne and four young women busily running around the workshop adding the finishing touches to colorful bed covers, curtains and bags. In their early 20’s, this is the first time any of these women have worked, and none of them had ever handled textiles before, prior to the training. Al-though Suzanne trains them, they work togeth-er to come up with elaborate designs by using a framework from which further developments can be made.

There are several techniques that the women have learned, including the Aghabani-style of embroidery (using the chain-stitch), painting on fabric, appliqué, printing, stamping and finally, heat transferring images directly onto fabrics. All of these techniques, with the exception of heat transference, have been known and used in the Middle East and Central Asia for some time. Since other similar workshops tend to specialize in one technique for mass production, the women at the Atelier distinguish themselves from others on the market by creating a signature style that combines at least two of these methods. What is especially uncommon is the inclusion of painted and heat transferred images in a combined ef-fect. Ultimately, the women improvise within a design and idea, but combine the different ideas and techniques to create something new and unique.

Although the women are able to handle all tech-niques perfectly, they currently each specialize in two to ensure the quality of the product, as well as develop their own skills and artistic abili-ties. I sat down with the women and asked them how they benefited from the initial training and what they like most about their work at the Ate-lier. Hoda Mustafa, who hails from the Sayyida Zaynab area, specializes in painting on fabric and finishing. She joined the training because

Suzanne el-Masry brainstorming with her staff

51

All products can be purchased directly from the Atelier or from Al Khatoun, their primary distributor.

she wanted to learn how to sew, and particu-larly enjoys painting because the process allows her to be imaginative. Shayma Mustafa, Hoda’s sister, specializes in embroidery and has learned how to embroider her own clothes, turning a simple dress into something unique and beauti-ful. Hind Muhammad is from Dar al-Salam; she especially likes to embroider, but can also paint and sew quite well. Samar Alaa’ mainly does the appliqué designs but embroiders too. Of the five, she lives in the immediate vicinity on Khalifa Street. Iman Hamdy is from Giza and works out of the Atelier for half of the week, mainly assist-ing Suzanne in the training. All of them shared similar sentiments when I asked them what they have learned and enjoy most about their work. Unanimously, they all feel they have acquired skills that are useful on both a professional and personal level. Whereas before they used to sole-ly buy their clothes, now they can sew, alter and embroider for themselves, as well as their family and friends. They also like the idea of exercis-ing their creative side to make something that is special and personal, so it comes as no surprise that a source of inspiration is beautiful architec-ture that forms their surroundings.

Their main goal, Suzanne emphasized, is to improve the quality of the items, so they can sell more; and like all entrepreneurs, their dream is to come up with a constant stream of new de-signs. For example, when they first began to work independently last year, the curtains had simple, embroidered designs on a cream back-ground – now they use textiles in other colors and add more elaborate embroidery. The prin-ciple that they abide by is simple: they have a basic idea that they always try to develop and improve upon.

A social by-product of the Atelier is the so-cial skills that they have learned. In addition to the creative aspect and honing useful skills, they have learned how to be team players and learn from each other. There is a true sense of camaraderie. And what they tend to do before they market one of their new designs is to first test their ideas, like the beautiful wine-colored clutch bag I saw during my visit with printed and embroidered designs. I have already placed my order for one!

In addition to embroidered curtains, painted

and embroidered bed covers and bags, the women of the Atelier also make painted tapestries that are inspired by manuscripts, dress-es and galabiyas, tablecloths, cushion covers, lampshades, frames with heat transferred images of classical Egyptian film stars, as well as countless other items that can be specially ordered. Everything is made using local cotton and linen, with wool, cotton and gilded thread that is sold in the Muski, Khiyamiya and Azhar areas.

Women’s Atelier TulunOpen from Saturday – �ursday from 8:00 AM – 4:00 PMAt the intersection of Khalifa and Saliba Streets, continue south onto Khalifa Street walk-ing away from the Sabil of Umm Abbas. Take the second left off Khalifa Street onto a small alley. �e Atelier is located at the very end of this small alley.For further information, please contact Al Khatoun at 2514-7164

50

the Atelier open at the request of the women. Her instinct and experience with Al Khatoun cautioned her to start small, so she selected the five most suitable women and continued the workshop. The goal was for these five women to develop into well-trained artisans that are then able to train and teach others, starting a domino effect and a gradual expansion of the concept.

The modest, yet attractive, Atelier is located at the end of a small alley off Khalifa Street. When I arrived early one afternoon, I found Suzanne and four young women busily running around the workshop adding the finishing touches to colorful bed covers, curtains and bags. In their early 20’s, this is the first time any of these women have worked, and none of them had ever handled textiles before, prior to the training. Al-though Suzanne trains them, they work togeth-er to come up with elaborate designs by using a framework from which further developments can be made.

There are several techniques that the women have learned, including the Aghabani-style of embroidery (using the chain-stitch), painting on fabric, appliqué, printing, stamping and finally, heat transferring images directly onto fabrics. All of these techniques, with the exception of heat transference, have been known and used in the Middle East and Central Asia for some time. Since other similar workshops tend to specialize in one technique for mass production, the women at the Atelier distinguish themselves from others on the market by creating a signature style that combines at least two of these methods. What is especially uncommon is the inclusion of painted and heat transferred images in a combined ef-fect. Ultimately, the women improvise within a design and idea, but combine the different ideas and techniques to create something new and unique.

Although the women are able to handle all tech-niques perfectly, they currently each specialize in two to ensure the quality of the product, as well as develop their own skills and artistic abili-ties. I sat down with the women and asked them how they benefited from the initial training and what they like most about their work at the Ate-lier. Hoda Mustafa, who hails from the Sayyida Zaynab area, specializes in painting on fabric and finishing. She joined the training because

Suzanne el-Masry brainstorming with her staff

51

All products can be purchased directly from the Atelier or from Al Khatoun, their primary distributor.

she wanted to learn how to sew, and particu-larly enjoys painting because the process allows her to be imaginative. Shayma Mustafa, Hoda’s sister, specializes in embroidery and has learned how to embroider her own clothes, turning a simple dress into something unique and beauti-ful. Hind Muhammad is from Dar al-Salam; she especially likes to embroider, but can also paint and sew quite well. Samar Alaa’ mainly does the appliqué designs but embroiders too. Of the five, she lives in the immediate vicinity on Khalifa Street. Iman Hamdy is from Giza and works out of the Atelier for half of the week, mainly assist-ing Suzanne in the training. All of them shared similar sentiments when I asked them what they have learned and enjoy most about their work. Unanimously, they all feel they have acquired skills that are useful on both a professional and personal level. Whereas before they used to sole-ly buy their clothes, now they can sew, alter and embroider for themselves, as well as their family and friends. They also like the idea of exercis-ing their creative side to make something that is special and personal, so it comes as no surprise that a source of inspiration is beautiful architec-ture that forms their surroundings.

Their main goal, Suzanne emphasized, is to improve the quality of the items, so they can sell more; and like all entrepreneurs, their dream is to come up with a constant stream of new de-signs. For example, when they first began to work independently last year, the curtains had simple, embroidered designs on a cream back-ground – now they use textiles in other colors and add more elaborate embroidery. The prin-ciple that they abide by is simple: they have a basic idea that they always try to develop and improve upon.

A social by-product of the Atelier is the so-cial skills that they have learned. In addition to the creative aspect and honing useful skills, they have learned how to be team players and learn from each other. There is a true sense of camaraderie. And what they tend to do before they market one of their new designs is to first test their ideas, like the beautiful wine-colored clutch bag I saw during my visit with printed and embroidered designs. I have already placed my order for one!

In addition to embroidered curtains, painted

and embroidered bed covers and bags, the women of the Atelier also make painted tapestries that are inspired by manuscripts, dress-es and galabiyas, tablecloths, cushion covers, lampshades, frames with heat transferred images of classical Egyptian film stars, as well as countless other items that can be specially ordered. Everything is made using local cotton and linen, with wool, cotton and gilded thread that is sold in the Muski, Khiyamiya and Azhar areas.

Women’s Atelier TulunOpen from Saturday – �ursday from 8:00 AM – 4:00 PMAt the intersection of Khalifa and Saliba Streets, continue south onto Khalifa Street walk-ing away from the Sabil of Umm Abbas. Take the second left off Khalifa Street onto a small alley. �e Atelier is located at the very end of this small alley.For further information, please contact Al Khatoun at 2514-7164

52

An Ongoing LegacyThe Workmen of Guft

The practice of passing down a profession, or a skill, from one generation to the next is becoming a dying tradition in our modern world. Today’s youth are rarely obligated to follow in the footsteps of their parents, a positive sign of more people finding their own place in life. Sadly, this is also a cause for countless traditional skills to die out, worldwide. However, one skill that has thankfully survived from one generation to the next in Egypt, is archaeology. This may sound surprising, but is true. For over 100 years, the men of Guft (Quft, Koptos) have stood the test of time, playing a vital role in some of the most prominent archaeological projects in Egypt such as the pre-high dam excavations in Nubia.

By Mennat-Allah El Dorry

53

Men at work: The Raiis standing on top of a debris mound, overseeing the workers on the Island of Elephantine in Aswan (Courtesy of and copyrighted to Heiner Thaler)

52

An Ongoing LegacyThe Workmen of Guft

The practice of passing down a profession, or a skill, from one generation to the next is becoming a dying tradition in our modern world. Today’s youth are rarely obligated to follow in the footsteps of their parents, a positive sign of more people finding their own place in life. Sadly, this is also a cause for countless traditional skills to die out, worldwide. However, one skill that has thankfully survived from one generation to the next in Egypt, is archaeology. This may sound surprising, but is true. For over 100 years, the men of Guft (Quft, Koptos) have stood the test of time, playing a vital role in some of the most prominent archaeological projects in Egypt such as the pre-high dam excavations in Nubia.

By Mennat-Allah El Dorry

53

Men at work: The Raiis standing on top of a debris mound, overseeing the workers on the Island of Elephantine in Aswan (Courtesy of and copyrighted to Heiner Thaler)

54

Guftis were first introduced to fieldwork and excavations in 1893 by the godfather of

Egyptology, the British W. M. Flinders Petrie. While recording and excavat-ing temple remains in this small town north of Luxor, Petrie handpicked his workmen, training them well in the most advanced archaeological methods of his time. They were paid relatively well, and rewarded for each find they made based on a set pricing system for different categories of finds. Petrie took his men as overseers on his other exca-vations in Egypt, and soon the reputa-tion of the locals of Guft spread around the country as the best diggers. They started being hired on different sites under different directors, such as in Saqqara under Egyptian Egyptologist Selim Hassan. With each new site they gained new knowledge and experience which they transferred onto their sons, nephews and successors. Guftis also trained many outside their native city of Guft, such as the men of Gurna, on the West Bank of Luxor.

Guftis have a very strict hierarchy. There is the Raiis meaning the chief of the work-men, as well as the technicians, and labour-ers. The Raiis is responsible for all the work, choosing the workmen who come with him from Guft, assigning the tasks on the field, organising labour, dealing with logistics of accommodation and health, and of course keeping track of attendance so his men can get paid. The Raiis usually comes from a long line of chief workmen which means he does not work as a heavy labourer, but still starts at the bottom of the hierarchy. Raiis Amir Kamel Seddiq who heads the workmen of the German and Swiss missions in Aswan

started out as a 12 year old working in pre-high dam Nubia as a guard for the tents used by the team. Over time he trained in digging and was prepared to fill his father’s position as chief. After a long and fruitful life, his fa-ther Raiis Kamel Seddiq passed on to him the title, and responsibility of being a Raiis. Ide-ally, Raiises do not do much manual labour themselves, as they have to oversee and su-pervise many different aspects of the work. Yet, so many Raiises itch to get down into the trenches of sand and dust. One often finds them digging away as they show the younger generation what to do. Since ancient times, overseers were depicted on Egyptian tomb walls leaning on a long stick, and till now a Raiis is often seen holding a stick, a mark of status more than a practical tool.

After the Raiis comes the technicians: the archaeologists and specialists, and these most often function in small groups, with one technician supervising the younger la-bourers. This technician is usually an older and well respected individual who is often referred to as Raiis as well. When needed, several technicians can join their peers and work under them if the work demands. Gufti archaeologists can be specialised in digging in mud and urban contents, or in the desert and sandy dunes. Specialists can be ceramic-Guftis who identify and sort potsherds, and glue matching pieces when possible. Some are trained in conservation, surveying or core drilling….however what is most impor-tant is Guftis usually have had a hand at do-ing several archaeological tasks before they settle into one, or more specialties. The way people settle into a speciality is often based on the demand at any time. While work re-lated injuries and poor health have caused some of the men to move to the less physi-cally demanding parts of the work, most will

55

tell you they were doing one thing, when one day the Raiiss or the foreign head of the mis-sion sent them to do a certain task that they showed an interest in and continued with the job. Often a father will take his son along into whatever he is specialised in, and the son will carry on. Despite this, nepotism seems un-heard of, and Guftis always stress they ALL start their archaeological work in the dust and no one starts higher, except of course the Raiis’ direct blood line, who start at the bot-tom, but not too far down.

Finally down the end of the hierarchy come the labourers, those who carry the baskets of dust and sieve them to retrieve the tiniest archaeological material. On their same level are the pot-washers, who wash the sherds to be sorted by the ceramic-Guftis and analysed by members of the archaeological mission. Rookies with little or no previous archaeo-logical experience first join the Gufti archae-ological workforce as pot-washers, basket carriers or sievers. Some archaeological mis-sions have rules regarding how young boys can be when they join as labourers, therefore most Guftis will only join after having fin-ished their schooling in their late teens. After several years of observing and training when there is an opportunity, some of the labour-ers move up the hierarchy and become fully-fledge diggers or specialists. Every two to four labourers are supervised closely by one of the superior technicians who would be re-sponsible for teaching them and closely look-ing for those who show promise. With this hierarchy, the men still have a very strong camaraderie. They are always encouraging each other saying “Allah Yinawwar” (may God shed light upon you) and “Allah yi3a-feek” (may God give you strength). They often discuss how to do things together, benefiting from each other’s experience on

the field.Some 500 workmen are mobilised ev-

ery year when the excavation season starts around autumn. On one site there can be as many as 50 Guftis working during the peak season, and this number can decrease to 15 during the end of the excavation season. Out of several thousand inhabitants in Guft and its villages, only this small amount is involved with archaeology.

The older men are a mine of knowledge; their memories are like a sponge absorbing all their experiences without being covered with the fine dusts of time and of archaeol-ogy. Abdel Aziz Abd Allah, one of the older technicians who has been working with the German Archaeological Institute’s missions

in Egypt since 1967, recalls his days of work-ing in Nubia before the building of the high dam, and nonchalantly recounts his memo-ries and experiences working in areas later flooded by Lake Nasser. In March, several

Opposite - Top to bottom: Raiis Amir, Ab-del Aziz Abd Allah, Fawzy Ali, Ahmed Ali, Eid Abdul Hamid, Attiyya Daba, Salman Mohamed Ali, the late Hajj AwadAllah Abouzeid, Desouqi Abbas, Saied Fikri - Pho-tos 1-4 courtesy of and copyrighted to Heiner ThalerAbove - L-R Mohmed AwadAllah, Saber el-Khom, and Ayman Gamal exacavting a burial in Gharb Aswan (photo copyright to the Aswan-Kom Ombo Project)

54

Guftis were first introduced to fieldwork and excavations in 1893 by the godfather of

Egyptology, the British W. M. Flinders Petrie. While recording and excavat-ing temple remains in this small town north of Luxor, Petrie handpicked his workmen, training them well in the most advanced archaeological methods of his time. They were paid relatively well, and rewarded for each find they made based on a set pricing system for different categories of finds. Petrie took his men as overseers on his other exca-vations in Egypt, and soon the reputa-tion of the locals of Guft spread around the country as the best diggers. They started being hired on different sites under different directors, such as in Saqqara under Egyptian Egyptologist Selim Hassan. With each new site they gained new knowledge and experience which they transferred onto their sons, nephews and successors. Guftis also trained many outside their native city of Guft, such as the men of Gurna, on the West Bank of Luxor.

Guftis have a very strict hierarchy. There is the Raiis meaning the chief of the work-men, as well as the technicians, and labour-ers. The Raiis is responsible for all the work, choosing the workmen who come with him from Guft, assigning the tasks on the field, organising labour, dealing with logistics of accommodation and health, and of course keeping track of attendance so his men can get paid. The Raiis usually comes from a long line of chief workmen which means he does not work as a heavy labourer, but still starts at the bottom of the hierarchy. Raiis Amir Kamel Seddiq who heads the workmen of the German and Swiss missions in Aswan

started out as a 12 year old working in pre-high dam Nubia as a guard for the tents used by the team. Over time he trained in digging and was prepared to fill his father’s position as chief. After a long and fruitful life, his fa-ther Raiis Kamel Seddiq passed on to him the title, and responsibility of being a Raiis. Ide-ally, Raiises do not do much manual labour themselves, as they have to oversee and su-pervise many different aspects of the work. Yet, so many Raiises itch to get down into the trenches of sand and dust. One often finds them digging away as they show the younger generation what to do. Since ancient times, overseers were depicted on Egyptian tomb walls leaning on a long stick, and till now a Raiis is often seen holding a stick, a mark of status more than a practical tool.

After the Raiis comes the technicians: the archaeologists and specialists, and these most often function in small groups, with one technician supervising the younger la-bourers. This technician is usually an older and well respected individual who is often referred to as Raiis as well. When needed, several technicians can join their peers and work under them if the work demands. Gufti archaeologists can be specialised in digging in mud and urban contents, or in the desert and sandy dunes. Specialists can be ceramic-Guftis who identify and sort potsherds, and glue matching pieces when possible. Some are trained in conservation, surveying or core drilling….however what is most impor-tant is Guftis usually have had a hand at do-ing several archaeological tasks before they settle into one, or more specialties. The way people settle into a speciality is often based on the demand at any time. While work re-lated injuries and poor health have caused some of the men to move to the less physi-cally demanding parts of the work, most will

55

tell you they were doing one thing, when one day the Raiiss or the foreign head of the mis-sion sent them to do a certain task that they showed an interest in and continued with the job. Often a father will take his son along into whatever he is specialised in, and the son will carry on. Despite this, nepotism seems un-heard of, and Guftis always stress they ALL start their archaeological work in the dust and no one starts higher, except of course the Raiis’ direct blood line, who start at the bot-tom, but not too far down.

Finally down the end of the hierarchy come the labourers, those who carry the baskets of dust and sieve them to retrieve the tiniest archaeological material. On their same level are the pot-washers, who wash the sherds to be sorted by the ceramic-Guftis and analysed by members of the archaeological mission. Rookies with little or no previous archaeo-logical experience first join the Gufti archae-ological workforce as pot-washers, basket carriers or sievers. Some archaeological mis-sions have rules regarding how young boys can be when they join as labourers, therefore most Guftis will only join after having fin-ished their schooling in their late teens. After several years of observing and training when there is an opportunity, some of the labour-ers move up the hierarchy and become fully-fledge diggers or specialists. Every two to four labourers are supervised closely by one of the superior technicians who would be re-sponsible for teaching them and closely look-ing for those who show promise. With this hierarchy, the men still have a very strong camaraderie. They are always encouraging each other saying “Allah Yinawwar” (may God shed light upon you) and “Allah yi3a-feek” (may God give you strength). They often discuss how to do things together, benefiting from each other’s experience on

the field.Some 500 workmen are mobilised ev-

ery year when the excavation season starts around autumn. On one site there can be as many as 50 Guftis working during the peak season, and this number can decrease to 15 during the end of the excavation season. Out of several thousand inhabitants in Guft and its villages, only this small amount is involved with archaeology.

The older men are a mine of knowledge; their memories are like a sponge absorbing all their experiences without being covered with the fine dusts of time and of archaeol-ogy. Abdel Aziz Abd Allah, one of the older technicians who has been working with the German Archaeological Institute’s missions

in Egypt since 1967, recalls his days of work-ing in Nubia before the building of the high dam, and nonchalantly recounts his memo-ries and experiences working in areas later flooded by Lake Nasser. In March, several

Opposite - Top to bottom: Raiis Amir, Ab-del Aziz Abd Allah, Fawzy Ali, Ahmed Ali, Eid Abdul Hamid, Attiyya Daba, Salman Mohamed Ali, the late Hajj AwadAllah Abouzeid, Desouqi Abbas, Saied Fikri - Pho-tos 1-4 courtesy of and copyrighted to Heiner ThalerAbove - L-R Mohmed AwadAllah, Saber el-Khom, and Ayman Gamal exacavting a burial in Gharb Aswan (photo copyright to the Aswan-Kom Ombo Project)

56

Guftis were honoured at the 50th Anniversary of the appeal launched by Egypt and Sudan to UNESCO for an international campaign to save the monuments of Nubia held at the Nubia Museum in Aswan, including Abdel Aziz and Raiis Amir.

�e history of the work is not the only item Guftis have engraved in their minds, but the history of Egyptology. Guftis work-ing for the German Archaeological Institute remember all the Institute’s directors and

project leaders whom have come to position in their lifetimes. �e older men will also remember some of today’s great archaeolo-gists when they were still young students, many of which were trained by the Guftis themselves.

When I first started working with Guftis, we had to remove some blocks. As on other excavations I have been on, I started thinking of how to clear a passageway for the men car-rying the blocks to move. �e mission direc-

tor stopped me, and

told me to never interfere with La Methode Guftwoise. After a century of work, the

men have mastered their methods, and are completely autonomous. Guftis are admired and respected by whoever works with them, and their opinions are always held in high re-gard. After all, they do come from a long line of archaeologists, and digging runs in their blood.

�anks are due to Caroline Vormelker for providing the photographs of Heiner �ale

56

Guftis were honoured at the 50th Anniversary of the appeal launched by Egypt and Sudan to UNESCO for an international campaign to save the monuments of Nubia held at the Nubia Museum in Aswan, including Abdel Aziz and Raiis Amir.

�e history of the work is not the only item Guftis have engraved in their minds, but the history of Egyptology. Guftis work-ing for the German Archaeological Institute remember all the Institute’s directors and

project leaders whom have come to position in their lifetimes. �e older men will also remember some of today’s great archaeolo-gists when they were still young students, many of which were trained by the Guftis themselves.

When I first started working with Guftis, we had to remove some blocks. As on other excavations I have been on, I started thinking of how to clear a passageway for the men car-rying the blocks to move. �e mission direc-

tor stopped me, and

told me to never interfere with La Methode Guftwoise. After a century of work, the

men have mastered their methods, and are completely autonomous. Guftis are admired and respected by whoever works with them, and their opinions are always held in high re-gard. After all, they do come from a long line of archaeologists, and digging runs in their blood.

�anks are due to Caroline Vormelker for providing the photographs of Heiner �ale

58

“It is my home, the place where I grew up and where my children are growing up,” said Ismail Barakat de-scribing Serabit el-Khadim, the area surrounding the well-hidden ancient Egyptian temple in South Sinai.

“Serabit” lies 45 minutes off Abu Ze-neima Port and about 100 km south of Ras Sedr. The area can only be reached via rough terrain cutting through the Sinai Desert, which ex-plains why this area remains relative-ly unknown to the lay tourist.

The journey to reach Serabit el-Khadim has to be experienced twice; once in daylight and the other at night. As commonly known by desert travelers, the desert’s topography var-ies widely from day to night, however this still does not explain the enchant-ing experience of first seeing Serabit. In daylight, one is first struck by the magnificent valley preceeding the area. Beautiful multicolored stones merge with the sandy background provid-ing a sort of serenity concealing the treacherous nature of the desert. At night, one is in awe by the silent dark-ness, which rather than stifling the soul, provides a cool, welcome feeling to weary travelers.

The origin of the name of Serabit el-Khadim remains a disputed topic among archeologists; a common belief is that “Serabit” is the Arabic plural of the word “Sarbout” which is a local Bedouin expression referring to the stelae scattered all over the archaeo-logical area. The history of the site started in the Middle Kingdom Period (ca. 2055-1759 BC) where archaeo-logical evidence shows the first mining expeditions dating to the reign of Se-nuseret I. Such Egyptian expeditions in South Sinai had exploited other mining spots like Wadi Maghara and Wadi Kharig, since the Old Kingdom Period (ca.2687-2181 BC).

As was common among the ancient Egyptians, religion remained a high

B F K, M H S A B

Serabit el-Khadim, the place and the people

59

priority leading to the construction of the Temple of Hathor on a moun-tain peak of altitude 800 m. Reach-ing the temple is a climb not for the faint of heart; the main route consists of a series of hundreds of steps which will surely test the endurance of one’s knees. However, a good place for rest-ing is offered by the site of Rod el-‘Air where ancient Egyptians carved graf-fiti, mostly during the Middle King-dom Period, illustrating the miners, animals, and more commonly, boats and axes. The boats likely referred to the transportation used to cross the Red Sea to reach the ancient port of el-Merkha, then further into the val-ley to the mining area. The axes, on the other hand, are examples of the common tools they used to mine. Rod el-‘Air was used as a resting point by the weary miners. This represents an insight into their lives, with the graf-fiti telling us the stories of their ex-peditions. As for the back route to climb to the temple, the path is short-er, much steeper, and requires a firm footing. The Egyptians had to cut this hard route in order to get the copper and the blue-green turquoise, to which the region of South Sinai owes the an-cient Egyptian name “the terraces of turquoise” (Khetyou Mefkat).

Reaching the upper plateau, is reaching the domain of “Hathor”, the main goddess of the temple. Hathor, whose name means “the shelter of Horus”, is one of the most important figures of the ancient Egyptian deities, with a presence traced to the Pre-dy-nastic Period. Hathor was the goddess of beauty and motherhood, love and music, while also being the goddess of foreign lands and their wealth.

In Southern Sinai, she became synonymous with turquoise and has also been known as “the Lady of Tur-quoise”. This association led to the creation of the temple of Hathor where ancient Egyptians paid homage to a

goddess who has blessed them with the fine wealth of the mines of Serabit. These mines appear today as caves where traces of blue veins show the remnants of the old mining activities. There are numerous mines around the temple with inscriptions reporting all the details of the expedition’s work such as the date (according to the year of reign of the king who sent the expe-dition), the number of the miners, the duration of work, and the results of the work (the opening of a new mining gallery for example). All were usually written by the chief of the expedition. In Serabit el-Khadim, the Egyptian Miners left hundreds of texts com-memorating their work either on rock inscriptions near the mines, on free-standing stelae, or around the temple of Hathor, where we can frequently read sentences such as:

“Gallery (mine) named “Admiring the Beauty of Hathor”, which was opened by the chief, director of Lower Egypt, Sanofret,….”. Part of rock inscription no.56 at Serabit el-Khadim.

The temple itself is unique in many

ways, not only for being the largest ancient Egyptian temple in Sinai. The structure also represents the largest temple of a worshipped deity through-out Egypt left by a group of miners; and is additionally exceptional for be-ing the oldest Egyptian partially rock-cut temple.

Today’s visitor to the Hathor temple at Serabit el-Khadim follows a series of small rooms forming the temple; from the entrance at the very beginning, to the chapel of Hathor at the end where the shrine of offerings lies. These rooms bear a huge number of stelae as well as many different monuments: parts of statues, offering tables, and some blocks of the original decoration of the temple added during the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2055-1759 BC) and the New Kingdom (c.1569-1081 BC) Peri-ods.

Opposite - One of the inscriptions carved nearby the mines by the expeditions’ membersAbove: A head of Hathor on top of an architectural element of the temple

58

“It is my home, the place where I grew up and where my children are growing up,” said Ismail Barakat de-scribing Serabit el-Khadim, the area surrounding the well-hidden ancient Egyptian temple in South Sinai.

“Serabit” lies 45 minutes off Abu Ze-neima Port and about 100 km south of Ras Sedr. The area can only be reached via rough terrain cutting through the Sinai Desert, which ex-plains why this area remains relative-ly unknown to the lay tourist.

The journey to reach Serabit el-Khadim has to be experienced twice; once in daylight and the other at night. As commonly known by desert travelers, the desert’s topography var-ies widely from day to night, however this still does not explain the enchant-ing experience of first seeing Serabit. In daylight, one is first struck by the magnificent valley preceeding the area. Beautiful multicolored stones merge with the sandy background provid-ing a sort of serenity concealing the treacherous nature of the desert. At night, one is in awe by the silent dark-ness, which rather than stifling the soul, provides a cool, welcome feeling to weary travelers.

The origin of the name of Serabit el-Khadim remains a disputed topic among archeologists; a common belief is that “Serabit” is the Arabic plural of the word “Sarbout” which is a local Bedouin expression referring to the stelae scattered all over the archaeo-logical area. The history of the site started in the Middle Kingdom Period (ca. 2055-1759 BC) where archaeo-logical evidence shows the first mining expeditions dating to the reign of Se-nuseret I. Such Egyptian expeditions in South Sinai had exploited other mining spots like Wadi Maghara and Wadi Kharig, since the Old Kingdom Period (ca.2687-2181 BC).

As was common among the ancient Egyptians, religion remained a high

B F K, M H S A B

Serabit el-Khadim, the place and the people

59

priority leading to the construction of the Temple of Hathor on a moun-tain peak of altitude 800 m. Reach-ing the temple is a climb not for the faint of heart; the main route consists of a series of hundreds of steps which will surely test the endurance of one’s knees. However, a good place for rest-ing is offered by the site of Rod el-‘Air where ancient Egyptians carved graf-fiti, mostly during the Middle King-dom Period, illustrating the miners, animals, and more commonly, boats and axes. The boats likely referred to the transportation used to cross the Red Sea to reach the ancient port of el-Merkha, then further into the val-ley to the mining area. The axes, on the other hand, are examples of the common tools they used to mine. Rod el-‘Air was used as a resting point by the weary miners. This represents an insight into their lives, with the graf-fiti telling us the stories of their ex-peditions. As for the back route to climb to the temple, the path is short-er, much steeper, and requires a firm footing. The Egyptians had to cut this hard route in order to get the copper and the blue-green turquoise, to which the region of South Sinai owes the an-cient Egyptian name “the terraces of turquoise” (Khetyou Mefkat).

Reaching the upper plateau, is reaching the domain of “Hathor”, the main goddess of the temple. Hathor, whose name means “the shelter of Horus”, is one of the most important figures of the ancient Egyptian deities, with a presence traced to the Pre-dy-nastic Period. Hathor was the goddess of beauty and motherhood, love and music, while also being the goddess of foreign lands and their wealth.

In Southern Sinai, she became synonymous with turquoise and has also been known as “the Lady of Tur-quoise”. This association led to the creation of the temple of Hathor where ancient Egyptians paid homage to a

goddess who has blessed them with the fine wealth of the mines of Serabit. These mines appear today as caves where traces of blue veins show the remnants of the old mining activities. There are numerous mines around the temple with inscriptions reporting all the details of the expedition’s work such as the date (according to the year of reign of the king who sent the expe-dition), the number of the miners, the duration of work, and the results of the work (the opening of a new mining gallery for example). All were usually written by the chief of the expedition. In Serabit el-Khadim, the Egyptian Miners left hundreds of texts com-memorating their work either on rock inscriptions near the mines, on free-standing stelae, or around the temple of Hathor, where we can frequently read sentences such as:

“Gallery (mine) named “Admiring the Beauty of Hathor”, which was opened by the chief, director of Lower Egypt, Sanofret,….”. Part of rock inscription no.56 at Serabit el-Khadim.

The temple itself is unique in many

ways, not only for being the largest ancient Egyptian temple in Sinai. The structure also represents the largest temple of a worshipped deity through-out Egypt left by a group of miners; and is additionally exceptional for be-ing the oldest Egyptian partially rock-cut temple.

Today’s visitor to the Hathor temple at Serabit el-Khadim follows a series of small rooms forming the temple; from the entrance at the very beginning, to the chapel of Hathor at the end where the shrine of offerings lies. These rooms bear a huge number of stelae as well as many different monuments: parts of statues, offering tables, and some blocks of the original decoration of the temple added during the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2055-1759 BC) and the New Kingdom (c.1569-1081 BC) Peri-ods.

Opposite - One of the inscriptions carved nearby the mines by the expeditions’ membersAbove: A head of Hathor on top of an architectural element of the temple

60

�e People of today’s Serabit el-Khadim

Leading the visitors throughout the climb and the tour is usually a Bedou-in guide, a descendant of the nomadic tribes who roamed the place hun-dreds of years ago and who belonged to either the Ulaygat or the Muzzeina clans.

The Bedouins of Serabit el-Khadim are believed to have migrated from the Arabian Gulf; some claim from Saudi Arabia, while others speculate their origins to be Yemen. Whether one or the other, the Bedouins still proudly bear the resemblance of their ances-tors with the dark tanned leathery skin, the wiry build, the jet-black hair, and their amazing adaptability to the desert and hard living conditions, es-pecially the lack of water. “The near-est water rig is almost 20 kilometers away”, explains Ahmed Barakat. “We need trucks to bring loads of water and that costs us a lot. Ironically enough, there is water underneath the un-yielding desert, but of course no funds to drill it.” The scarcity of rain over the past decade adds to the enormous water problem the nearly 300 inhabit-ants of the area have to face.

The Barakats are the leading fam-

ily in the area; they are of the Ulaygat clan and are well-known in South Si-nai. Barakat camp, is the only work-ing visitors lodge in the area and is strategically built on the bed of the surrounding mountains, ten minutes away from the temple, to provide pic-turesque scenery making the hand itch for a camera. Simple and basic, the camp is run by young Bedouin men who tend to the needs of the visi-tors. The Bedouin women are respon-sible for the baking which they do in their homes; they do not come to the camp or mingle with the tourists. Only young girls are allowed to roam free in the area, some selling the traditional

Sinai embroidery and beadwork made by their mothers and aunts.

Female tourists are sometimes al-lowed into the houses of the Bedouin women where they swap stories and buy weaves and beads. However, the Bedouin women’s lives have witnessed a drastic change in the last two de-cades; with the presence of a school, many women are becoming a part of the traditional educational system, with a tiny group of them continuing into higher education. Sa’eydya Ba-rakat, however, may not have been granted the gift of schooling, but she is well known in the area for being the only female tour guide, “I used to guide the tourists up the mountains when I was still a girl,” she explains proudly, “my father never minded”. One look at Sa’eydya shows the raw strength of Bedouin women, unlike their usual meek stereotypical repre-sentation. Still, the Bedouins have re-

1- Engraving (graffito) of a boat from Rod el’Air. Such boats were the transportation used by Egyptians to reach Serabit el’Khadim2- A general view of the temple of Hathor3- Bedouin children attending a session of the training organized by the CULTNAT team at Serabit el-Khadim4- �e Stele of the chief “Horroure” (ca. 1840 B.C. )

2

1

61

tained many of their traditions, wom-en are still covered from head to toe in mixed company, for instance. While polygamy has decreased significant-ly, the practice still does exist; and while girls still marry quite young, at the ages of 17 and 18, they are rarely forced into a marriage. “This is why divorce is easier nowadays,” explains Um Ismail. The changes in Bedouin community life can be seen especial-ly when compared to descriptions of their lives in old journals and books. In spite of their seclusion, Bedouins are being pitted against the different means of modernization; they have been entertaining tourists well since the 1960’s and nowadays satellite dishes can be seen strewn over the relatively small brick houses.

In spite of their gradual transition into a new, more sedentary lifestyle, the Bedouins of Serabit el Khadem have a firm hold over their traditions, which led to the imminent question; Is it possible to help develop the area (socio-economically), while respecting and protecting the intangible heri-tage?

Answering this question provides development professionals with a con-stant challenge. While one cannot help the external effects of modernization on a relatively secluded group, devel-

opment projects, on the other hand, should be designed to respect local customs and traditions; said groups must always be consulted with, dur-ing planning and implementation, always holding the keys to their own development in their hands. Thus, develop-ment of the area should depend on empowering the Bedouins through methods found in their own environment. The project of “Documenta-tion of the Cultural Heri-tage of South Sinai” was initiated by CULTNAT to study and document the region’s tangible and intangible features which have not been adequately researched in the past. This has in-spired the theme of the project, which began in August 2008, focus-ing on the area of Sera-bit el-Khadim as a pilot study. The studies are carried out in a multi-disciplinary approach where community par-ticipation is taken into account through all ac-

tivities. The project has four main tar-gets: a thorough documentation of the archaeology of the area, a social pro-file for the Bedouins, making the site tourist-friendly, and building the ca-pacity of the Bedouins, enabling them to handle the tourism hoped to devel-op in the area. The project is a two-way learning experience for the CULT-NAT team, as well as for the Bedouins, where both groups in a community-based development approach make every decision together.

“…The Mountains produce that which is in them, they bring to light the hidden things in them; the moun-tains and the deserts bring their offer-ings” Sebek-khereb Inscription “from the mines inscriptions at Serabit el-Khadim”(lines 10-11).

Photographs by Monica Hanna

3

4

62

Lady Liberty... A Fellaha?By Yasmine El Dorghamy

As Frederic Bartholdi toured Egypt’s ancient sites on his vacation in 1856, the French sculptor became utterly awed by the colossal sizes of the temples and monuments that surrounded him. He had never seen anything so massive, so grand, and the effect of these man-made, larger-than-life monuments possessed him for the rest of his life.

Failing to make his co-lossal dreams a reality upon returning to his native France, the young sculptor saw potential in the original country of his inspiration: Egypt. Consumed with the idea of grandiose sculptures, Bartholdi began to translate his pharaonic inspiration into his own artistic vision, a sketch, and then a clay mod-el of a statue of a tall woman standing proud, representing Egypt. Seizing the opportu-nity to make his dream a re-ality, Bartholdi approached Khedive Ismail of Egypt who was visiting Paris to attend the Universal Exposition in 1867. The artist proposed erecting a statue twice the size of the Sphinx at the entrance of the Suez Canal, which was due to be inaugurated in two years. The statue would be of a fellaha (a peasant woman) holding a torch towards the sky, symbolizing the country’s progress. The statue was to be called “Egypt Carrying the Light into Asia. ”

Did Bartholdi’s fellaha inspire Mahmoud Mokhtar’s “Egypt’s Awakening” sixty years later? Maybe, but we’ll save that speculation for another article.

Back to our original story: Now, most contemporary

accounts agree that the Khedive encouraged Barthol-di to continue developing his project over the next two years. It is even said that the artist submitted various designs of the statue to which the Khedive added his own touch, suggesting that the light not be carried in

the torch, but atop the head, native style. The stat-ue was to serve mainly as a lighthouse (inspired by the pharaonic lighthouse in Alexandria). Over the course of these two years, Bartholdi visited Egypt to study pharaonic monuments,

and met with Ferdinand De Lesseps who was responsible for the construc-tion of the Suez Canal. The man

who was later to become his lifelong friend warned him that the Khedive

might not be able to finance the statue once the project was ready, judging by

the extravagant ruler’s spend-ing habits.

And this was exactly what happened. In 1869 Bartholdi got his final answer from the

Khedive, and it wasn’t the one he was hoping for. Egypt was soon to be drowning in debts and grand oeuvres were no more an option.

Disappointed, but not bro-ken, he went back to France, and headed straight for Plan B: Not many years before, while attending a dinner party, Bar-tholdi discussed an interesting

idea with Edouard de Labou-laye, a leading figure among the circles of French liberals.

An admirer of American re-publicanism, Laboulaye sug-gested that the French people

present a monument to the Americans to commemo-rate the centennial of their nation’s independence in 1876. Bartholdi was interested from the very begin-ning, but it was after his hopes in Egypt had been dashed that he returned to Laboulaye to “talk busi-

Bartholdi’s original Egyptian clay model and a miniature of the Statue of Liberty. Both can be found at the Bartholdi Museum in

Colmar, France

63

Street Stories

ness” and bring the old idea back into light.

Bartholdi went back to his stu-dio, dusted off the old clay mod-el of “Egypt,” switched the arm carrying the torch, changed the robes, added a headdress, made some minor alterations, and pre-sented a model of “Lady Liberty” to Laboulaye. Luckily for him, cir-cumstances were kinder this time around. Laboulaye soon became Chairman of the Union Franco-Americaine, which launched a fundraising campaign to finance the design and building of the statue. The campaign raised some $400,000 from French cit-ies, private citizens and French corporations doing business with the United States. Alexan-dre Gustave Eiffel, the designer

of the Eiffel Tower, engineered the internal structure. Bartholdi had also been awarded a design patent in 1879 for the Statue of Liberty covering the sale of small copies of the largely anticipated statue. Proceeds from these sales, along with the other fundraising efforts, helped raise money and eventually the funds needed for the full statue were collected. The sculptor’s grand opus was built in France and shipped to the United States for assembly. It was finally unveiled to the public on October 28th, 1886 in its final location on Ellis Island.

And that was how “Liberty,” which was originally modeled af-ter the goddess Isis, changed from a dream the east could not afford, to a beacon of the west.

1- Kasr El Nil St. (Nile Palace): Gets its name from the palace originally built by Mohamed Ali Pacha for his daughter Nazli. The Palace was rebuilt in 1854 during the reign of Viceroy Saiid Pacha. It was later turned into Barracks for the occupying British army and eventually replaced with the Nile Hilton and Arab league buildings in the 1950’s.

2- Kasr El-Aini St.: Gets its name from the palace built by El-Mokerr el Shehabi Ahmed Ibn El-Aini, a powerful man during the reign of Sultan Khoshqdain in 15th century Egypt. The school of medicine, origi-nally situated in Abu Zaabal, moved to Kasr el Aini out of need for expansion, in 1837.

Kasr el Nil Palace- Illustration circa 1858 (courtesy of www.egyptedantan.com)

Military hospital of Kasr el Aini, organized in 1837 after the evacuation of the hospital of Abu Zaabal

A sketch of “Egypt Carrying the Light into Asia.”

64

3- El Ataba El Khadra sq. (Green Porch Square): Was originally named Ataba el Zarqaa (blue porch square), referring to Ahmed Taher Pacha’s palace with a blue porch (Taher was a wealthy noble who governed up-per Egypt during the reign of Mohamed Ali). Khedive Ismail later bought the palace and the Ezbekkeyyeh gardens were planted in the surrounding area, giving it its new nickname, El Ataba el Khadra.

An undated photo of the Ataba el Khadra square. The Tiring and Stein department stores had not been built yet, which implies that the photo is most probably pre 1900

A bus passing through Ataba el Khadra square. The building behind the bus still exists today

A donkey looks straight at the camera in front of the Railway station at Bab el Hadid circa 1911

Mahmoud Mokhtar’s Nahdet Masr in front of the Railway station circa 1940

4- Boulaq el Dakrour (originally “el Takrour”): Although the origin of the name “Takrour” is still quite vague, several sources have documented that a colony of Sudanese, or Takrouri students (Takrour being the ancient name of the area where Sudan lies today) studied at the Azhar University and settled in Boulaq dur-ing the Fatimid era, eventually giving their name to their new home. This story debunks an old myth that the name Boulaq is derived from the French “Beau Lac”. It is quite unlikely that a French nickname was bestowed on the area before the Fatimid era. Is it an Egyptian word, then? Boulaq still remains a mystery.

5- The Ever-Changing Square: : Bab el Bahr (Gate of the Sea) became Bab el Hadid (the Iron Gate), Bab el Hadid became Abbas then el Malika (the Queen), fol-lowed by ElNahda (the Awakening) and finally settling on Midan Ramsis in 1954. Now that the colossal statue is gone, a new name is being sought for this vital spot of Cairo. Perhaps we can go back to Bab el Hadid? It is the original historical name and the area that is still commonly referred to as Bab el Hadid. This would be a logical street name change (for once).

Why was it called Bab el Hadid? It wasn’t the train station… Find out in our next issue of Turath.

64

3- El Ataba El Khadra sq. (Green Porch Square): Was originally named Ataba el Zarqaa (blue porch square), referring to Ahmed Taher Pacha’s palace with a blue porch (Taher was a wealthy noble who governed up-per Egypt during the reign of Mohamed Ali). Khedive Ismail later bought the palace and the Ezbekkeyyeh gardens were planted in the surrounding area, giving it its new nickname, El Ataba el Khadra.

An undated photo of the Ataba el Khadra square. The Tiring and Stein department stores had not been built yet, which implies that the photo is most probably pre 1900

A bus passing through Ataba el Khadra square. The building behind the bus still exists today

A donkey looks straight at the camera in front of the Railway station at Bab el Hadid circa 1911

Mahmoud Mokhtar’s Nahdet Masr in front of the Railway station circa 1940

4- Boulaq el Dakrour (originally “el Takrour”): Although the origin of the name “Takrour” is still quite vague, several sources have documented that a colony of Sudanese, or Takrouri students (Takrour being the ancient name of the area where Sudan lies today) studied at the Azhar University and settled in Boulaq dur-ing the Fatimid era, eventually giving their name to their new home. This story debunks an old myth that the name Boulaq is derived from the French “Beau Lac”. It is quite unlikely that a French nickname was bestowed on the area before the Fatimid era. Is it an Egyptian word, then? Boulaq still remains a mystery.

5- The Ever-Changing Square: : Bab el Bahr (Gate of the Sea) became Bab el Hadid (the Iron Gate), Bab el Hadid became Abbas then el Malika (the Queen), fol-lowed by ElNahda (the Awakening) and finally settling on Midan Ramsis in 1954. Now that the colossal statue is gone, a new name is being sought for this vital spot of Cairo. Perhaps we can go back to Bab el Hadid? It is the original historical name and the area that is still commonly referred to as Bab el Hadid. This would be a logical street name change (for once).

Why was it called Bab el Hadid? It wasn’t the train station… Find out in our next issue of Turath.

66

Throughout the entire histo-ry of pharaonic Egypt, and even into the Ptolemaic, or Greek Period, the city of

Memphis was the capital and admin-istrative center of the country, as well as where the king lived. Memphis had been founded at the very beginning of the First Dynasty of ancient Egypt, about 3100 B.C. The city’s name in ancient Egyptian was “Inbw Hedj”, which means “The White Walls”, and referred to the beautiful white lime-stone walls that surrounded the king’s palace. The ancient city covered an extensive area, and its center was roughly where the

modern vil-lage of Mit Rahineh is located today.

The god of Memphis was Ptah, the patron of craftsmen, who seemed to have been a local god at the time of the founding of Memphis, and so became the god of the city. By the time of the New Kingdom, from about 1500-1100 B.C., an enormous temple complex for Ptah lay south of the king’s palace. It is said to have been as large, or larger,

than the Karnak Temple complex in Luxor. The name of the temple was “Hw(t)-ka-Ptah”, the “Temple of the Soul of the God Ptah”.

The “Hw-ka-Ptah” (final t’s were not pronounced in later pharaonic times) was obviously a very large and impor-tant part of the city. At the beginning of 332 B.C., when Alexander the Great took Egypt from the Persian Empire, large numbers of Greeks came to Egypt, not only as tourists, but to set-tle and live there as well. The name the Egyptians used for Ptah’s temple, became the name the Greeks used for the city, and with a Greek pronuncia-tion became “Aigyptus”, in English,

“Egypt”. It is thought that the Arabic short-

ening of the name Aigyptus to “Gypt” is the origin of the word, “Copt”.

Now, where did the word Mem-phis come from, if

the ancient name of the city was Inbw-Hedj? King

Pepy I of the Sixth Dynasty (about 2300 B.C.) built his pyramid and pyramid town in Southern Sakkara, just to the southwest of Memphis. The name of his pyramid was “The Pyramid of Pepy I, Established and Beautiful”. Later, the pyramid town itself became a suburb of Memphis, and its name, a shortened version of the pyramid’s name, “Estab-lished and Beautiful”, or “Men-nefer”.

roughly where the

modern vil-lage of Mit Rahineh

tion became “Aigyptus”, in English, “Egypt”. It is thought

that the Arabic short-

the ancient name of the city was Inbw-Hedj? King

Why Egypt is “Egypt” and other Derivations

What’s in a Name?B D. L S

67

The Greeks apparently heard this name, and to them became ‘Memphis”.

Another very odd origin for a name, is why the two colossal statues of Amenhotep III who ruled in the Eigh-teenth Dynasty, roughly around the year of 1375 B.C., are called The Co-lossi of Memnon? These two statues are of King Amenhotep III, and they flanked the entrance into his mortu-ary temple on the West Bank of Lux-or. The temple was badly damaged, with most of its stone blocks removed and reused in ancient times. In 27 B.C., apparently an earthquake dam-aged and cracked the northern colos-sus. From that time on, early in the morning, a strange wailing kind of sound came from the colossus. Greek and Roman tourists were fascinated by this, and would stay on the East Bank, crossing over to the West right at dawn to hear the noise. In Greek myth and legend, the mother of the hero Memnon, who was killed at the Battle of Troy, was Aurora, the god-dess of dawn. These tourists equated the sound coming from the Colossus at dawn as the crying of Aurora over her dead son. Thus the statues of an ancient Egyptian king became the Co-lossi of Memnon.

Sometimes the noise occurred at dawn, and sometimes it didn’t. The Roman Emperor Hadrian, and his wife the Empress Sabina, visited the colossi the mornings of November 20 and 21 in 130 A.D. before they finally

heard the sound on the second morn-ing. The Roman Emperor Septimus Severus later visited Luxor in 199 A.D. and ordered the cracks in the northern colossus repaired. Aurora has never wailed again since then. It is thought that moisture gathered in the cracks, and when the sun heated the statues, it caused this sound. The bottom of the northern colossus is covered with graffiti from these tour-ists, given their name and whether or not they heard the crying of Aurora; some of the graffiti take the form of poems about the goddess.

An important word that entered the modern vocabulary from ancient Egypt is “pharaoh”. It comes from the ancient Egyptian phrase “per a’a”, or “Great House” which was the name of the king’s palace. By the time of the New Kingdom, which began around 1500 B.C., “per a’a” became used to refer to the king himself, much the way that the Kremlin or the White House is used to refer to the president not the place. Pharaoh was used in the Bible, and from that passed into more mod-ern vocabulary.

Another word we use which may be connected to the word for pharaoh, is the word papyrus. During the Ptole-maic times in the third century B.C., there was a royal monopoly on pa-pyrus, and papyrus may have been referred to as “pa per a’a”, “that of the pharaoh”. This, however, is not certain.

Left - Graffiti left by ancient tourists, most of them writing their name and whether or not they heard the crying of Aurora1-By the time of Ramses II, the king could be referred to by the ancient Egyptian phrase mean-ing “The Great House”, which is what the word pharaoh comes from2- The two colossal statues of Amenhotep III who ruled in the Eighteenth Dynasty, popularly known as The Colossi of Memnon3- The water-damaged sphinx of an Egyptian pharaoh, probably Hatshepsut, gazes over the remains of ancient Memphis

1

3

2

66

Throughout the entire histo-ry of pharaonic Egypt, and even into the Ptolemaic, or Greek Period, the city of

Memphis was the capital and admin-istrative center of the country, as well as where the king lived. Memphis had been founded at the very beginning of the First Dynasty of ancient Egypt, about 3100 B.C. The city’s name in ancient Egyptian was “Inbw Hedj”, which means “The White Walls”, and referred to the beautiful white lime-stone walls that surrounded the king’s palace. The ancient city covered an extensive area, and its center was roughly where the

modern vil-lage of Mit Rahineh is located today.

The god of Memphis was Ptah, the patron of craftsmen, who seemed to have been a local god at the time of the founding of Memphis, and so became the god of the city. By the time of the New Kingdom, from about 1500-1100 B.C., an enormous temple complex for Ptah lay south of the king’s palace. It is said to have been as large, or larger,

than the Karnak Temple complex in Luxor. The name of the temple was “Hw(t)-ka-Ptah”, the “Temple of the Soul of the God Ptah”.

The “Hw-ka-Ptah” (final t’s were not pronounced in later pharaonic times) was obviously a very large and impor-tant part of the city. At the beginning of 332 B.C., when Alexander the Great took Egypt from the Persian Empire, large numbers of Greeks came to Egypt, not only as tourists, but to set-tle and live there as well. The name the Egyptians used for Ptah’s temple, became the name the Greeks used for the city, and with a Greek pronuncia-tion became “Aigyptus”, in English,

“Egypt”. It is thought that the Arabic short-

ening of the name Aigyptus to “Gypt” is the origin of the word, “Copt”.

Now, where did the word Mem-phis come from, if

the ancient name of the city was Inbw-Hedj? King

Pepy I of the Sixth Dynasty (about 2300 B.C.) built his pyramid and pyramid town in Southern Sakkara, just to the southwest of Memphis. The name of his pyramid was “The Pyramid of Pepy I, Established and Beautiful”. Later, the pyramid town itself became a suburb of Memphis, and its name, a shortened version of the pyramid’s name, “Estab-lished and Beautiful”, or “Men-nefer”.

roughly where the

modern vil-lage of Mit Rahineh

tion became “Aigyptus”, in English, “Egypt”. It is thought

that the Arabic short-

the ancient name of the city was Inbw-Hedj? King

Why Egypt is “Egypt” and other Derivations

What’s in a Name?B D. L S

67

The Greeks apparently heard this name, and to them became ‘Memphis”.

Another very odd origin for a name, is why the two colossal statues of Amenhotep III who ruled in the Eigh-teenth Dynasty, roughly around the year of 1375 B.C., are called The Co-lossi of Memnon? These two statues are of King Amenhotep III, and they flanked the entrance into his mortu-ary temple on the West Bank of Lux-or. The temple was badly damaged, with most of its stone blocks removed and reused in ancient times. In 27 B.C., apparently an earthquake dam-aged and cracked the northern colos-sus. From that time on, early in the morning, a strange wailing kind of sound came from the colossus. Greek and Roman tourists were fascinated by this, and would stay on the East Bank, crossing over to the West right at dawn to hear the noise. In Greek myth and legend, the mother of the hero Memnon, who was killed at the Battle of Troy, was Aurora, the god-dess of dawn. These tourists equated the sound coming from the Colossus at dawn as the crying of Aurora over her dead son. Thus the statues of an ancient Egyptian king became the Co-lossi of Memnon.

Sometimes the noise occurred at dawn, and sometimes it didn’t. The Roman Emperor Hadrian, and his wife the Empress Sabina, visited the colossi the mornings of November 20 and 21 in 130 A.D. before they finally

heard the sound on the second morn-ing. The Roman Emperor Septimus Severus later visited Luxor in 199 A.D. and ordered the cracks in the northern colossus repaired. Aurora has never wailed again since then. It is thought that moisture gathered in the cracks, and when the sun heated the statues, it caused this sound. The bottom of the northern colossus is covered with graffiti from these tour-ists, given their name and whether or not they heard the crying of Aurora; some of the graffiti take the form of poems about the goddess.

An important word that entered the modern vocabulary from ancient Egypt is “pharaoh”. It comes from the ancient Egyptian phrase “per a’a”, or “Great House” which was the name of the king’s palace. By the time of the New Kingdom, which began around 1500 B.C., “per a’a” became used to refer to the king himself, much the way that the Kremlin or the White House is used to refer to the president not the place. Pharaoh was used in the Bible, and from that passed into more mod-ern vocabulary.

Another word we use which may be connected to the word for pharaoh, is the word papyrus. During the Ptole-maic times in the third century B.C., there was a royal monopoly on pa-pyrus, and papyrus may have been referred to as “pa per a’a”, “that of the pharaoh”. This, however, is not certain.

Left - Graffiti left by ancient tourists, most of them writing their name and whether or not they heard the crying of Aurora1-By the time of Ramses II, the king could be referred to by the ancient Egyptian phrase mean-ing “The Great House”, which is what the word pharaoh comes from2- The two colossal statues of Amenhotep III who ruled in the Eighteenth Dynasty, popularly known as The Colossi of Memnon3- The water-damaged sphinx of an Egyptian pharaoh, probably Hatshepsut, gazes over the remains of ancient Memphis

1

3

2

68

Ismailia...

Mothballs, matches, stockings, light bulbs (mostly burnt) and many more extraordinary things block your path, as you try to make your way through the obstacle course of

broken pavements, crowds of people, enthusiastic vendors and shoe-shiners. In the end, you find yourself in a mingy, dimly lit hall, searching for a staircase that has seen better years and definitely not had a sweep for decades.

“There used to be a palace in place of this building”, I told my companion, who answered me with a bland smile, which spoke for itself, “Is this really the time for reminisc-ing”! He gave my arm a violent tug to save me from col-liding with a tea tray, laden with glasses of blackish tea, swaying in the hands of a barely 10 year-old boy.

And so it was, that we entered the oversized, gloomy building, whose distorted proportions and ugly design, weigh upon my heart, whenever I happen to pass by. The building, known to the frustrated dwellers of Cairo as “Mogama’ Al Tahrir”.

Badr’s MotherIn 1901 a grand banquet was held, the guests did not

have a clue as to the occasion of the party beforehand – but they still showed up in all their finery, the light from the diamonds glittering off the ladies, clashing with the light from the brilliant chandeliers, and shining on the medals worn by the men. After a sumptuous feast, the host pro-posed a toast, and it was then that the bomb fell on the guests: he proposed a toast to his son! It was well known to the elite society at the time, that Alghazy Ahmed Mokhtar Pacha, the most faithful of husbands, did not have a son to his name. His wife Zahra Hanem suffered from ill health, but it seems that after exercising his patience to its limits, he had taken a beautiful blue-eyed concubine as wife, to bear him a son. Not wishing to hurt his good wife’s feel-

ings, the news remained a secret, until she died, sick and blind and ignorant to her calamity, four years later.

The drama of the ScepterA son inheriting his father’s wealth and power after his

death is a natural occurrence, and history has told many stories of Ismail Pacha in particular planning and plotting to ensure that his sons inherited his full fortune, exclud-ing all other members of the family and how he schemed to convince the Sultan towards granting him hereditary rule over Egypt.

But I often wonder what it would feel like for a father to be forcefully stripped of his power, to be given to his son during his lifetime. Would he feel oppression and sorrow for his loss? Would he feel envy at hearing his son congrat-ulated and applauded? Would he feel satisfaction that his plan had worked and his son had inherited the authority and fortune? Or would he feel a mixed concoction of con-tradictory emotions?

On the morning of June 26th 1879, a telegram arrived at Abdeen Palace addressed to the “Former Khedive”, and another arrived at Ismailia addressed to the “Khedive of Egypt”. Sherif Pacha, the Prime Minister, made his way from Abdeen to Ismailia to escort Mohamed Tawfik Pacha to meet Ismail Pacha, and go to the Citadel to take the oath and meet the crowds of well-wishers. On the evening of the same day, the former Khedive, keeping his emotions to himself, went to congratulate the new Khedive, his son. From the marble staircase of the palace, the son descends to meet his father in the garden. In a dramatic scene, two hands are gripped, from one the scepter was forcefully tak-en to be coincidentally put in the other!

Battle in the PalaceOn the morning of September 27th 1886, passers-by (al-

though few at the time) witnessed a strange event. Mon-sieur Lavison (a Jewish Russian by birth, his family con-verted to Christianity and lived in Egypt till the mid 20th century, the family is best known for Countess Lavison) a

By Amr S. Talaat Translated By Shereen Mosaad

Opposite - Khedive Tawfik and his family who used the palace as their private residence

Who Remembers?

68

Ismailia...

Mothballs, matches, stockings, light bulbs (mostly burnt) and many more extraordinary things block your path, as you try to make your way through the obstacle course of

broken pavements, crowds of people, enthusiastic vendors and shoe-shiners. In the end, you find yourself in a mingy, dimly lit hall, searching for a staircase that has seen better years and definitely not had a sweep for decades.

“There used to be a palace in place of this building”, I told my companion, who answered me with a bland smile, which spoke for itself, “Is this really the time for reminisc-ing”! He gave my arm a violent tug to save me from col-liding with a tea tray, laden with glasses of blackish tea, swaying in the hands of a barely 10 year-old boy.

And so it was, that we entered the oversized, gloomy building, whose distorted proportions and ugly design, weigh upon my heart, whenever I happen to pass by. The building, known to the frustrated dwellers of Cairo as “Mogama’ Al Tahrir”.

Badr’s MotherIn 1901 a grand banquet was held, the guests did not

have a clue as to the occasion of the party beforehand – but they still showed up in all their finery, the light from the diamonds glittering off the ladies, clashing with the light from the brilliant chandeliers, and shining on the medals worn by the men. After a sumptuous feast, the host pro-posed a toast, and it was then that the bomb fell on the guests: he proposed a toast to his son! It was well known to the elite society at the time, that Alghazy Ahmed Mokhtar Pacha, the most faithful of husbands, did not have a son to his name. His wife Zahra Hanem suffered from ill health, but it seems that after exercising his patience to its limits, he had taken a beautiful blue-eyed concubine as wife, to bear him a son. Not wishing to hurt his good wife’s feel-

ings, the news remained a secret, until she died, sick and blind and ignorant to her calamity, four years later.

The drama of the ScepterA son inheriting his father’s wealth and power after his

death is a natural occurrence, and history has told many stories of Ismail Pacha in particular planning and plotting to ensure that his sons inherited his full fortune, exclud-ing all other members of the family and how he schemed to convince the Sultan towards granting him hereditary rule over Egypt.

But I often wonder what it would feel like for a father to be forcefully stripped of his power, to be given to his son during his lifetime. Would he feel oppression and sorrow for his loss? Would he feel envy at hearing his son congrat-ulated and applauded? Would he feel satisfaction that his plan had worked and his son had inherited the authority and fortune? Or would he feel a mixed concoction of con-tradictory emotions?

On the morning of June 26th 1879, a telegram arrived at Abdeen Palace addressed to the “Former Khedive”, and another arrived at Ismailia addressed to the “Khedive of Egypt”. Sherif Pacha, the Prime Minister, made his way from Abdeen to Ismailia to escort Mohamed Tawfik Pacha to meet Ismail Pacha, and go to the Citadel to take the oath and meet the crowds of well-wishers. On the evening of the same day, the former Khedive, keeping his emotions to himself, went to congratulate the new Khedive, his son. From the marble staircase of the palace, the son descends to meet his father in the garden. In a dramatic scene, two hands are gripped, from one the scepter was forcefully tak-en to be coincidentally put in the other!

Battle in the PalaceOn the morning of September 27th 1886, passers-by (al-

though few at the time) witnessed a strange event. Mon-sieur Lavison (a Jewish Russian by birth, his family con-verted to Christianity and lived in Egypt till the mid 20th century, the family is best known for Countess Lavison) a

By Amr S. Talaat Translated By Shereen Mosaad

Opposite - Khedive Tawfik and his family who used the palace as their private residence

Who Remembers?

69

faithful follower of Khedive Ismail, even after his dethrone-ment, had put together a force of Albanian armed soldiers and laid siege to Ismailia Palace and later stormed it.

The issue was complex; the palace was considered to be the residence of the representative of the Ottoman Sul-tan, and laying siege to it, in the heart of Cairo, a stone’s throw away from the British Embassy was no easy mat-ter. Khedive Tawfik was in an embarrassing situation; the siege was instigated by his father, who wanted to arrest the attention of the government and highlight his claim to the palace. Maybe this is why he did not appear on the scene, the matter was handled by the British Ambassador Sir Henry Drummond, who hastened back to Cairo to solve the problem.

Ismailia palace is shrouded in mystery, the scenes above are some of the drama that it witnessed, but very little in-formation is available to researchers on its history, or who built it, or its owners, and I was unable to find a single picture of the palace.

When and where?Khedive Ismail returned to Paris in 1867 after an ab-

sence of nearly 20 years, the grandeur of the city, and how it had progressed and developed duly impressed him. He was adamant about creating a replica in Cairo, and from here the idea of the Ismailia District was born, the area that modern Cairiennes call “Downtown”. He also decided to build a palace in the area carrying his name and from hence came Ismailia Palace.

I have with me a document dated August 8th 1869 from Khedive Ismail to Riad Pacha ordering the building of a palace to be named” Ismailia”. It seems that the process was hindered for a couple of years, because another formal decree in August 1871 states that the land on which the palace is “to be built” was to be granted to the Khedive’s third wife Jeshm Affat. This document is of great impor-tance. First, it describes in detail the size and location of the palace (in modern-day Cairo from Kasr Al Ainy Street to the Nile, and from Kasr Al Nil Bridge to the Shepards

3

70

Hotel). Second, it documents the Khedive’s decision to ac-tually build the palace, and third, it shows his wish at the time (although later changed) to bequeath the palace to his wife.

There are letters dated 1873 from the Khedive to his Head of Works, in which he thanks him for the progress made on the palaces of Ismailia and Abdeen. From various documents we conclude that construction on the palace began in 1871 and finished in 1874. There was no men-tion of the palace during the celebration of the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, or during the famous weddings held in 1873, so we conclude that it was not yet built at that time. It is however mentioned as one of the buildings decorated in celebration of the coronation of Sultan Abdel

Hamid in 1876, and so we understand that by then the palace existed.

The two Sister PalacesAugusto Cezare was a 29 year-old Italian engineer who

came to Cairo in 1873, to build his fortune in one of the most active and progressive cities of the time. Before two months had passed, the young man had made his name, and was given the duty of renovating the Palace of Mo-hamed Ali Pacha in Shoubra. After that he was given the task of designing Al Giza Palace, the Court-House in Alex-andria, Bulak Museum and last but not least the building and designing of the “Small Ismailia Palace”.

It was known as the “Small Ismailia Palace” because the Khedive had the intention of building at a later stage the “Grand Ismailia Palace”. The walls of the palace alone cost 38,820 Egyptian Pounds, but Egypt fell under the con-straints of economic depression and all construction was ceased, and not destined to resume. The small palace be-came known as” Ismailia Palace”, until it also was demol-ished, so the square became known as “Ismailia Square” for a time, until it was changed to “Tahrir Square”, and the name of Ismail was forever lost to his beloved Cairo!

The Silly Sheikh!The palace lies at 42 Misr Al Attika Street. This was the

palace where Tawfik received his summons as the Khedive of Egypt. Its walls encompassed a garden famous for its palm trees and banana trees, as well as a mosque in its south west corner known as the “Sheikh Al Abit” mosque and mausoleum (Al Abit meaning “Silly” in Arabic). After the palace was knocked down, the mosque remained for a time until it was replaced by the current Omar Makram mosque. We learn from Ali Pacha Mubarak that the mosque was funded by the palace, but no information on whose mosque it was, or how this person was paradoxically both Al Abit and Al Sheikh!

The palace only had one building – the Haramlek, and was small in comparison to buildings of its time (maybe because its owner intended originally on building a larger one to replace it). It had a large marble staircase leading to a terrace and onto the garden, and was furnished in Euro-pean style, the most prominent of its features being a large dining room with a round dining table.

The main eye witness to this palace is Amina Hanem Tu-gay, the grand-daughter of Khedive Ismail, who draws a very warm picture with her memories of life at the palace in the late 19th and early 20th century, where she used to spend a week a year on a visit to her grandfather. She claims that the Small Palace was a gift to Nashaa’ del (her grandmother), while the Grand Palace was taken by the government. There is no documentation to support this

Above- Ahmed Mukhtar ell Ghazi Pacha, Ismailia Palace’s longest residentOpposite- Zahra Hanem who died without knowing her husband took on another wife

71

information, since all records show that the Grand Palace was not actually built.

Egypt’s First Telephone CallMaybe Ismail had every intention of granting the palace

to his concubine, or of living in it himself, but there is no evidence of his ever having lived there. All documents sup-port that the resident of the palace was Tawfik, even while Ismail was still in power. We might not know how Ismailia Palace was given to Tawfik, but we definitely know that he was there when he received the telegram announcing his rise to Khedive in June 1879.

June 16th 1880 was an important date in the contempo-rary history of the royal palaces; on that day Khedive Taw-fik issued a decree making all royal palaces the property of the government, the most important of which were The Grand Palace, Gezira, Abdeen, Ismailia and Giza. He ran his official duties out of Abdeen Palace, and chose Ismailia Palace as his personal residence. March 3rd 1883, Al Ah-ram newspaper wrote that Khedive Ismail was resting at Ismailia Palace due to having a cold, and that he would conduct his Friday prayers at the Palace mosque (probably at Sheikh Al Abit mosque). A few days later the paper wrote that the Khedive would not be leaving the palace due to the bad weather, dust and storms, which all leads us to believe that it was his personal residence.

In October 1882, the first telephone in line in Egypt was installed between Abdeen Palace and Ismailia Palace. The first call was from the Khedive to his wife Princess Amina Elhamy, it leaves us wondering what they talked about!

A Sad CelebrationAlthough Khedive Ismail built the palace in his name,

it only became famous in the reign of Tawfik. The first of the interesting events at the palace was the visit of Taw-fik’s two brothers who had accompanied their father on his exile. On their return to Egypt, he gave them a warm welcome and ordered two cows to be slain in their honor.

In 1881, the wedding procession of the Khedive’s sis-ter, Princess Gamila, went from Ismailia Palace to Gezira Palace, along brightly adorned roads. Ismailia Palace wit-nessed many such happy events, such as the official relo-cation of the Khedive and his government every summer to Alexandria; the roads from the palace to the train station would be decorated, and the public would gather to see the Khedive passing by.

The documents of the time show Khedive Tawfik’s strong inclination towards the palace at Ismailia. Once after at-tending a banquet at Abdeen, which finished past mid-night, he insisted on leaving and returning to Ismailia Pal-ace. He also had suitable buildings erected along its walls for some of his formal and official meetings. It was there

in February 1882 that he had the historical meeting with members of the Egyptian Shoura Assembly demanding the resignation of the government of Sherif Pacha during the well known budget assessment crisis. It was also at Ismail-ia that the Khedive received Sherif Pacha in January 1884, when he wanted to resign in protest of Egypt withdrawing from Sudan – which he considered was more vital to Egypt than Alexandria.

The British army quells the Oraby rebellion and the Khe-dive returns to Cairo on September 25th 1882 in a proces-sion armed on both sides by British guards. He went on to Al Guzeira Palace, while his family went straight to Ismailia Palace. Shafik Pacha tells us that the next day; the Khedive left Gezira Palace to go back to Ismailia “with a sorrowful face at reclaiming his capital with British arms”!

The Ottoman EnvoyIn 1885, after three years of British occupation, relations

between Britain and Russia were severely strained, to the extent that war seemed imminent. Britain wanting to ap-pease the Ottoman Empire (and the French), and smooth the creases caused by its occupation of Egypt, came to an agree-ment with Istanbul on a speedy evacuation of Egypt. A high ranking officer was sent to Egypt to supervise the process of the British evacuation; Alghazy Ahmed Mokhtar Pacha.

The Egyptian government nominated many great houses and palaces to be the residence of Alghazy Pacha, but in November 1885 Khedive Tawfik surprised everyone by de-creeing that Ismailia Palace would be given to the honor-able officer, who entered it for the first time on December 27th 1885. The splendor and grandeur of the palace was

72

greatly enhanced, the fountain alone took 5 months to renovate.

The palace garden reached the Nile; in 1898 a portion was taken for the building of the palace of Princess Ni’mat Allah the daughter of Khedive Tawfik (which was later oc-cupied by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs). After the war, Ismailia Road was opened which runs between the two palaces.

We all know that Alghazy Pasha’s task had dismal re-sults; the British did not leave Egypt for another 70 years! However his role changed to that of the official representa-tive of the Sultan in Egypt and he stayed till 1906. Inspite of his return to Istanbul, Alghazy remained in his position for two more years. In 1908 he became head of the Otto-man Parliament and was later appointed as prime minister (Al Sadr al Aazam in 1912). The important point is that he lived at Ismailia Palace for 21 years, the longest period that any one person used it as a residence. During his time it was even known as the Ottoman Empire Agency!

The Bawwab that was laid offHistory is a fickle mistress, there is not a single photo-

graph of the palace to whet our imagination, we do howev-er know the name of the “bawwab” (porter), it seems Abdel Karim Fadl Allah wrote a letter in 1899 asking to be rein-stated in his position – we do not know why he was fired in the first place!

Alghazy Pacha left in 1906, but documents show that up to 1908 there was still interest in the palace and its upkeep. In 1909, Khedive Abbass granted the palace to the Ministry of Finance, which remained there for three months, but left due to its derelict condition. In Novem-ber 1909 the palace furnishings were auctioned (the most valuable pieces moved to Abdeen) and in 1910 the palace was demolished. Although there are contradicting docu-ments that tell us that the Ottoman and British High Com-missioners were to be hosted there in 1909.

Writing about the final days in the life of these extinct pal-aces always saddens me, like writing the obituary of an old familiar friend who has departed. By 1913, the palace was gone, only the offices around the palace walls remained, and the wall itself with its great gates. The ministers of Interior and Finance ordered more offices to be built in the large open space to be used for government purposes. The Office of Publication Censorship moved there in 1917, to what was now called “Old Ismailia Palace” – Only the Glory of God Remains!!

In March 1924 the Traffic department moved to the pal-ace where it remained till 1936 when it moved to Darrasa. Ahmed Shafik Pacha writes that the palace was knocked down in 1934 with only the wall left standing, in 1936 it was ordered that the wall be knocked down as well as all the office buildings, but a quarrel between two government bodies prevented this for a few years. In 1938, the walls and gates were knocked down, the buildings remained and were used by the British during the war. The Egyptian gov-ernment used the offices again until 1949, and it is from there that the idea of the Mogama’ probably arose. At the time a part of the garden was used to extend the square, when King Farouk decided to build a statue of his grand-father. The granite edifice was built and remained until the late 1980’s.

Ismail Pacha was unlucky in this regard, his statue did not remain (not even the platform) his palace was knocked down, even the sign bearing his name on the square dis-appeared, and no-one knows that Downtown Cairo was called Ismailia……

As for the current residents of Cairo, our luck is epit-omized in the derelict cement structure covered in dust, where moth-balls are sold.Above- Princess Gamila who was the first to wed in the palace

72

greatly enhanced, the fountain alone took 5 months to renovate.

The palace garden reached the Nile; in 1898 a portion was taken for the building of the palace of Princess Ni’mat Allah the daughter of Khedive Tawfik (which was later oc-cupied by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs). After the war, Ismailia Road was opened which runs between the two palaces.

We all know that Alghazy Pasha’s task had dismal re-sults; the British did not leave Egypt for another 70 years! However his role changed to that of the official representa-tive of the Sultan in Egypt and he stayed till 1906. Inspite of his return to Istanbul, Alghazy remained in his position for two more years. In 1908 he became head of the Otto-man Parliament and was later appointed as prime minister (Al Sadr al Aazam in 1912). The important point is that he lived at Ismailia Palace for 21 years, the longest period that any one person used it as a residence. During his time it was even known as the Ottoman Empire Agency!

The Bawwab that was laid offHistory is a fickle mistress, there is not a single photo-

graph of the palace to whet our imagination, we do howev-er know the name of the “bawwab” (porter), it seems Abdel Karim Fadl Allah wrote a letter in 1899 asking to be rein-stated in his position – we do not know why he was fired in the first place!

Alghazy Pacha left in 1906, but documents show that up to 1908 there was still interest in the palace and its upkeep. In 1909, Khedive Abbass granted the palace to the Ministry of Finance, which remained there for three months, but left due to its derelict condition. In Novem-ber 1909 the palace furnishings were auctioned (the most valuable pieces moved to Abdeen) and in 1910 the palace was demolished. Although there are contradicting docu-ments that tell us that the Ottoman and British High Com-missioners were to be hosted there in 1909.

Writing about the final days in the life of these extinct pal-aces always saddens me, like writing the obituary of an old familiar friend who has departed. By 1913, the palace was gone, only the offices around the palace walls remained, and the wall itself with its great gates. The ministers of Interior and Finance ordered more offices to be built in the large open space to be used for government purposes. The Office of Publication Censorship moved there in 1917, to what was now called “Old Ismailia Palace” – Only the Glory of God Remains!!

In March 1924 the Traffic department moved to the pal-ace where it remained till 1936 when it moved to Darrasa. Ahmed Shafik Pacha writes that the palace was knocked down in 1934 with only the wall left standing, in 1936 it was ordered that the wall be knocked down as well as all the office buildings, but a quarrel between two government bodies prevented this for a few years. In 1938, the walls and gates were knocked down, the buildings remained and were used by the British during the war. The Egyptian gov-ernment used the offices again until 1949, and it is from there that the idea of the Mogama’ probably arose. At the time a part of the garden was used to extend the square, when King Farouk decided to build a statue of his grand-father. The granite edifice was built and remained until the late 1980’s.

Ismail Pacha was unlucky in this regard, his statue did not remain (not even the platform) his palace was knocked down, even the sign bearing his name on the square dis-appeared, and no-one knows that Downtown Cairo was called Ismailia……

As for the current residents of Cairo, our luck is epit-omized in the derelict cement structure covered in dust, where moth-balls are sold.Above- Princess Gamila who was the first to wed in the palace

74

J K

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I have lived in Egypt for more than half a century, and I have felt my-self part of the stream of culture flowing from ancient times to the

present. We can see the most obvi-ous cultural details around us every day; for instance amulets such as the Horus eye for protection, most often on a taxi or a horse-drawn cart; or a blue bead to safeguard a child against the evil eye. Religious traditions also survive, the forty days of mourning for a dead relative corresponds to the time for mummification before burial in ancient times; the placing of new-born infants in a sieve to shake out evil spirits, still practised today, is recorded on the wall of the Temple of Hatchepsut which pictured events in the life of the great queen.

Crafts such as weaving, calligraphy and book binding have changed little since the time of the pharaohs. Take mud-brick technology, for example. In ancient times this was a favoured me-dium for domestic housing and was frequently used in funerary architec-ture because mud-brick was particu-larly suitable for the construction of domes and vaults, which have a long

history in the Nile valley. When Brit-ish archaeologist Flinders Petrie was excavating in the Saqqara necropo-lis at the end of the nineteenth cen-tury, he found long sloping corridors with an arch of bricks leading to the

tomb chambers of an Old Kingdom nobleman. He observed they were the oldest brick vaults known, dating to between 2686 and 2181 BC. More re-cently, in 1997, another brick dome was found by Egyptologist Zahi Ha-wass during excavations of the work-men’s community at Giza. We must, therefore, amend the still-prevailing idea of only in mediaeval times was the dome introduced as an architec-tural feature. Coptic churches have undergone change over the millennia; however the characteristic dome re-mains a distinctive feature.

The skills of construction workers, artists and craftsmen have passed un-broken from generation to generation up to the present day. Carpenters have shown remarkable taste and skill in the production of their work as well as a high degree of refinement. Posts and beams for buildings in ancient times came from indigenous species such as sycamore (ficus), acacia, date, and doum palms. For more refined work, carpenters used cedarwood imported from Lebanon, pine and walnut from Europe and western Asia, and teak and ebony from Africa. The mashrabiya

�eCultural

River Runs onB J K

77

(wooden lattice work) windows in the old wing of the Coptic Museum are some of the oldest. Made of finely-carved seg-ments of contrasting wood fixed together without the use of nails or glue, while allowing room between each piece for expansion or constriction of the wood, they are usually associated with Islamic architecture. In fact, mashrabiya was a feature of domestic architecture well before Is-lamic times.

The inlaid wood on sanctuary screens in numerous Coptic church-es, especially those in Old Cairo, in the Hanging Church, for example, are made from segments of cedar-wood and ivory carved and set into exquisite designs. Even in modest churches, such as the one built in the Delta city of Saha in commemo-ration of the visit of the Holy Family, local craftsmen set ivory crosses into the carved woodwork.

There has always been a great demand for weavers. Spinning and weaving skills have been major in-dustries since predynastic times. The earliest evidence of textile work-shops is an inscription on a Fifth-Dynasty mummy found at Abu Sir, which identifies the deceased as “as-sistant, superintendent of the weav-ing shop”. The textile makers were extremely versatile and had a wide range of motifs and decorations from which to draw. They let their creative imagination have full sway, and the freshness and vigour of their expres-sion gives the fabrics a peculiar and distinctive attraction. The integration of contrasting configurations, classi-cal, Egyptian, Greek-Egyptian, and Persian pagan motifs, as well as Byz-antine and Syrian influences, led to a trend in Coptic art which is difficult to define because tracing a unity of style is not possible. What are now known as Coptic textiles reveal a diversity of classical and local themes: lively cupids, dancing girls riding marine monsters, birds, wild and domestic animals, frogs, fish and ducks, often combined with vines and tendrils. It

seems, however, like woodwork, sophisticated textiles were produced by highly-talented weavers at the same time as other pieces which were simple and unsophisticated, yet equally forceful.

Every monastery and every church once stored manu-scripts, including prayers, sermons, poetry and biblical literature, just as every ancient temple had a library of sacred texts. The Coptic Museum pos-sesses a wide range of literature from biographies and teachings of the early Church fathers to magical formulae. Some are written in both Coptic and Arabic. Many are vividly adorned in the margins with figures of birds and animals. There are valuable libraries in the monasteries of Egypt, including those of Wadi Natrun and the Monas-tery of Saint Catherine in Sinai, the church known as Deir al-Sankoria at Beni Mazar, is also known to store many literary treasures.

Christianity was just one religion among a host of religions practiced in Egypt during the first three centuries of the Christian era. Indeed, ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Semitic gods were worshipped side by side, some-times in the same temple or in neigh-bouring temples. Consequently, it is not surprising to find shared symbols, or ancient artistic techniques and practices being carried forward from age to age. Take the fragile Fayoum portraits, for instance, so named be-cause a large number survived at Ha-wara in the Fayoum. These portraits of men, women and children, young and old, are frequently painted on wood of the sycamore fig tree, which was venerated in ancient times and was the medium on which the major-ity of art work including sarcophagi and mummy masks were painted. Furthermore, analysis of early Chris-

Opposite: Portrait of a bearded man found in the Fayoum. ©Trustees of the British Mu-seum) 1- Isis nursing Horus2- Icon of Mary nursing baby Jesus

1

2

78

tian paintings in various monasteries and museums clear-ly indicates painters used the same media, tempera and encaustic, as well as pigments known since the earliest times in Egypt .

In the sixth century before the birth of Christ, the classical scholar Diodorus wrote a lucid account of what traditionally took place after the body of the deceased was returned to relatives after embalming. He wrote: “Egyp-tians keep the bodies of their ancestors in costly chambers and gaze face to face upon those who died many generations before their own birth so that, as they look upon the stature and proportions and the features of the countenance of each, experience a strange enjoyment, as though they had lives with those on whom they gaze. Those who have private sepulchres lay the body in a vault reserved for it, but those who possess none construct a new cham-ber in their own home, and stand the coffin upright against the firmest wall”. A sound argument can surely be presented for a link between por-trait-mummies and Christian icons.

A relief in the temple of Hibis in Kharga Oasis shows the king, wear-ing the Double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt, plunging a spear into body of a mighty serpent. A simi-lar relief in the outer corridor of the temple of Horus at Edfu has the king, as Horus, spearing a hippopotamus. Anyone who has visited the Louvre must surely have seen the famous stone relief of the hawk-headed god Horus represented as a mounted soldier with his horse tramping a crocodile transfixed with a lance. Can there be any doubt these phara-onic representations were a prelude to the dragon-slaying soldier saints as depicted on icons in churches all over Egypt? Among such saints are St George (Mar Guirgis), St Mercu-rius (Abu Seifein), St Theodore (Mar Tadros), and St Victor (Mar Boktar), to mention a few.

The persistence of ancient sym-

bolism in early Christian art cannot be dismissed because so much falls within the Egyptian tradition, and nowhere more so than the biblical story of the flight of Mary, Jesus and Joseph into Egypt. In this regard, the popular ancient Egyptian myth of Osiris, Isis, and Horus can be taken as an allegory of the Holy family, with Isis easily equating to Mary. The similarities between Isis caring for the infant Horus and taking him to a place of safety, and the Chris-tian motif of mother and child, were obvious to Egyptians.

There are twenty-two places in Egypt associated with the biblical flight into Egypt, and at both archaeological sites, newly restored churches, and monasteries annual festivals are held in remembrance of the visit.

Muslim and Christian alike relate the Holy Family was warmly received at Belbeis, and the inhabitants kept company with the Virgin, played with the child, and talked to Joseph. the carpenter. However, Christians and Muslims are not always in agreement on the route taken by the Holy Fam-ily, or on the duration of their stay. Copts believe that it was for a little over three and a half years, while Muslims who refer to “the family of Amran” in their Holy Qur’an, and hold it was a seven-year sojourn, during which time Jesus went to school in Upper Egypt.

There is a character and identity to Egypt which cannot be rendered in historical sequence because it tran-scends history. This is transmitted from ancient times to the present in a stream of living culture, from Phar-aonic through medieval to modern times, in rural as well as urban so-ciety. The character and identity are strong and enduring.

1- A dragon-slaying soldier saint in the Church of Saint Mercurius 2- Horus (dressed as a Roman soldier) on horseback slaying the crocodile that symbol-ized the God Setekh, 4th century AD. © Mu-sée du Louvre/C. Larrieu

1

2

78

tian paintings in various monasteries and museums clear-ly indicates painters used the same media, tempera and encaustic, as well as pigments known since the earliest times in Egypt .

In the sixth century before the birth of Christ, the classical scholar Diodorus wrote a lucid account of what traditionally took place after the body of the deceased was returned to relatives after embalming. He wrote: “Egyp-tians keep the bodies of their ancestors in costly chambers and gaze face to face upon those who died many generations before their own birth so that, as they look upon the stature and proportions and the features of the countenance of each, experience a strange enjoyment, as though they had lives with those on whom they gaze. Those who have private sepulchres lay the body in a vault reserved for it, but those who possess none construct a new cham-ber in their own home, and stand the coffin upright against the firmest wall”. A sound argument can surely be presented for a link between por-trait-mummies and Christian icons.

A relief in the temple of Hibis in Kharga Oasis shows the king, wear-ing the Double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt, plunging a spear into body of a mighty serpent. A simi-lar relief in the outer corridor of the temple of Horus at Edfu has the king, as Horus, spearing a hippopotamus. Anyone who has visited the Louvre must surely have seen the famous stone relief of the hawk-headed god Horus represented as a mounted soldier with his horse tramping a crocodile transfixed with a lance. Can there be any doubt these phara-onic representations were a prelude to the dragon-slaying soldier saints as depicted on icons in churches all over Egypt? Among such saints are St George (Mar Guirgis), St Mercu-rius (Abu Seifein), St Theodore (Mar Tadros), and St Victor (Mar Boktar), to mention a few.

The persistence of ancient sym-

bolism in early Christian art cannot be dismissed because so much falls within the Egyptian tradition, and nowhere more so than the biblical story of the flight of Mary, Jesus and Joseph into Egypt. In this regard, the popular ancient Egyptian myth of Osiris, Isis, and Horus can be taken as an allegory of the Holy family, with Isis easily equating to Mary. The similarities between Isis caring for the infant Horus and taking him to a place of safety, and the Chris-tian motif of mother and child, were obvious to Egyptians.

There are twenty-two places in Egypt associated with the biblical flight into Egypt, and at both archaeological sites, newly restored churches, and monasteries annual festivals are held in remembrance of the visit.

Muslim and Christian alike relate the Holy Family was warmly received at Belbeis, and the inhabitants kept company with the Virgin, played with the child, and talked to Joseph. the carpenter. However, Christians and Muslims are not always in agreement on the route taken by the Holy Fam-ily, or on the duration of their stay. Copts believe that it was for a little over three and a half years, while Muslims who refer to “the family of Amran” in their Holy Qur’an, and hold it was a seven-year sojourn, during which time Jesus went to school in Upper Egypt.

There is a character and identity to Egypt which cannot be rendered in historical sequence because it tran-scends history. This is transmitted from ancient times to the present in a stream of living culture, from Phar-aonic through medieval to modern times, in rural as well as urban so-ciety. The character and identity are strong and enduring.

1- A dragon-slaying soldier saint in the Church of Saint Mercurius 2- Horus (dressed as a Roman soldier) on horseback slaying the crocodile that symbol-ized the God Setekh, 4th century AD. © Mu-sée du Louvre/C. Larrieu

1

2

نظرا الليمون بحديقة وعرفت الطازجة والفاكهة لوجود 10 اآلف شجرة ليمون بها. حديقة األورمان مت تخفيض مساحتها فيما بعد الي 50 فدان، ثم الي 25 فدان عندما ضم نصفها اآلخر الي حديقة احليوان وإعادة تقسيمها من الرغم وعلي لها. املالصقة تشكيلها إال أن معظم مالمحها القدمية مازالت باقية نوعا التي تضم 200 الصخرية احلديقة اليوم؛ حتى مختلفا من الصبار واألشجار العصارية، حديقة الورد،

بركة املياة، غابة البامبوالرائعة وممر النخل امللكي.

قد يكون اخلديوي إسماعيل قد ورث حبه للتطوير وأحالمه لتحديث مصر من جده محمد على الكبير، غير أن إسماعيل قد فاق جده كثيرا في حب الفخامة والتفاخر، ولكن ال ميكن ان نقول أن شغف محمد بني فمن حفيده، من اقل كان باحلدائق باشا علي به قضى الذي شبرا قصر إلقامته بناها التي القصور كانت والذي شيخوخته مرحلة في الوقت معظم احلدائق مصمم ديشيفالري جلوستاف طبقا حدائقة أشهر هي إسماعيل حلفيده عمل الذي البلجيكي

حدئق الشرق األوسط.

نبات بشجيرات واملوزايكومحاطة الزلط يكسوها التي ممراتها وكانت املعشوقة الزهرة – تلك الورود وأريج والنرجس والياسمني العطري اآلسي والرمان والبرتقال الليمون أزهار رائحة هذا بكل يختلط – الشرق في الغروب عند واالسترخاء اجللوس يعشق باشا علي محمد كان والبرقوق. بجوار احدى النوافذ الكبيرة املميزة جلناحي قصره الرائع ليستمع الي صوت مصاحبا صداه يتردد والذي الرخامية النافورات من املتدفقة املياة خرير بتغريد الطيور فوق أشجار احلديقة. وقد يكون محمد علي باشا قد أحب أيضا السير الي حمام القصر عبر ردهة األعمدة املصنوعة من الرخام واحلجر بنحت املزين الكبير احلوض متأل التي الكريستالية باملياة والعبث األبيض

علي شكل متاسيح.

قد إسماعيل اخلديوي كان واحلدائق املصريني بني القدمي العشق بإحياءه أرسي القاعدة وحدد اإلجتاة، فقد إستمرت احلدئق حتيا وتزدهر في مصر حتي

بعد نفيه اإلجباري عنها.

مت وقد حلوان، في اليابانية احلديقة باشا ذوالفقار أنشأ 1٩1٧ عام في تصميمها علي الطراز الياباني وبها مجموعة من متاثيل بوذا تطل علي بركة الباجودا مباني فيها وينتشر الطراز، ياباني خشبي كوبري يعلوها للمياة اليابانية املزينة بحيوان التنني االسطوري. ولكن على الرغم من إنها أنشئت من فقيرة إنها كانت – إال إسماعيل – إبن للسلطان حسني كامل كهدية

ناحية التنوع النباتي والشجري.

بنفي اخلديوي إسماعيل فقد إستكمل إنشاء احلدائق واملتنزهات ينته لم إسماعيل أعطي بينما ولكن املسيرة، توفيق علي محمد األمير حفيده محمد األمير كان املتخصصني احلدائق ملصممي العمل في كامال تفويضا علي مهتما باجلانب العلمي الي جانب حبه للجمال واألبهه فقد كان يراقب

ويشرف علي كل نبتة في حدائق قصره باملنيل في جزيرة الروضة.كان إسماعيل مبهورا بفخامة وأبهة البالط امللكي واإلمبراطوري في أوروبا

وكان يريد أن يتخطاهم ويتفوق عليهم بينما كان األمير محمد علي، الذي بالفنون وهاويا جلمع كان غزير العلم والثقافة، كثير السفر والترحال، خبيرا املقتنيات الثمينة والنادرة، كان ميتلك عينا خبيرة ليس مبا هوجميل فحسب

وإمنا مبا هوجميل وفريد في نفس الوقت.واملطاط امللكي والنخل والصنوبر املوز أشجار علي محمد األمير جمع الهندي وكل ما تبقي من )البستان الكبير( الذي كان ميتلكه جده إبراهيم باشا وأسس ما ميكن أن يطلق عليه »حديقة األلف بهجة«. كان يصطحب هونادر ما كل عن بحثا األرض أنحاء جلميع لديه العاملني البستانية كبير قصره حديقة أصبحت حتي والصبار واألزهار األشجار عالم في وغريب

باملنيل عامرة بأنواع وفصائل من النبات ال مثيل لها.

بإنتهاء حكم األسرة العلوية، اصبحت جميع القصور واحلدائق تراثا قوميا إنتهت لفندق سياحي باالس منيل لتحويل قصر العديدة واحملاوالت ملصر، جميعها بنتائج كارثية أتلفت األشجار الرائعة والنباتات النادرة التي أتي بها

األمير من أقاصي األرض.

ان قصر املنيل وحدائقة يخضعون حاليا لعملية ترميم وجتديد نأمل تنجح في أن تعيد للمكان بعض روعته ومجده القدمي.

بنتها مؤسسة أغا خان عام 2005 هي أحدي التي اليوم، حديقة األزهر تاريخها يرجع التي التاريخية مصر حدائق الي أضيفت التي احلدائق أكبر الي أكثر من 150 عاما مضى.وحديقة األزهر صممت منذ إنشائها لتكون حديقة عامة غير أنها مع هذا إستمرت في التقليد املصري القدمي الذي يعشق بالفعل تضم 8٩ نوعا مختلفا من االشجار النباتي والشجري، وهي التنوع النجيل ونباتات متسلقة من جميع أنواع من الشجيرات و5 و51 نوعا من

األنواع إضافة الي 6 أنواع مختلفة من األشجار العصارية.

ورمبا حديقة األزهر هي محاكاه عصرنا احلديث ألحالم اخلديوي إسماعيل.

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شالالت املياه وتل صغير مزروع بأنواع الصبار املختلفة، ونافورة رخامية حتمل األشجار من مختلفة فصيلة 27 احلديقة وتضم وزهور. لنباتات نقوشات والشجيرات والنباتات و13 فصيلة من النخيل واألشجار املعمرة والعصارية مما جعلها أول حديقة نباتات تعرفها مصر. واحلديقة كان يحدها من الشمال شارع اجلنينة الذي كان املصريون قد إنتهوا لتوهم آنذاك من عملية توسيعه أما في وسط احلديقة تقريبا وإعادة تخطيطه ويحدها من اجلنوب مسرح،

فقد دقت مضخات لتوفير مياة الري الالزمة لها.

منذ إنشائها عام 1868، مرت حديقة األزبكية بتحوالت عديدة لم تكن بها أشتهرت التي األصلية ومعاملها بعناية املقصوص فنجيلها ناجحة كلها موقع يحتل واليوم إختفت، قد فيها النادرة األشجار أنواع من والعديد القومي واملسرح الطليعة ومسرح العرائس مسرح من كل األزبكية حديقة املسكني الذي أتي حريق كبير علي معظمه منذ شهور قليلة. وليس بعيدا عن ذلك املكان الذي كانت حتتله يوما ما بركة سباحة يقف مبني متهدم - إال أنه ما زال مستخدما – كان في السابق اجلمعية امللكية املصرية للمبارزة.إن عملية التحول تلك كانت من الدرامية بحيث أن القليل فقط من املصريني هم الذين مازالوا يتذكرون أنه منذ عهد قريب كانت حدائق األزبكية مبثابة

درة احلدائق اخلديوية في القاهرة.

للخديوي أتاحت عظيمة فرصة للمالحة السويس قناة إفتتاح كان إسماعيل حتقيق املزيد من طموحاته وتطلعاته املكلفة للغاية، وألنه كان تواقا إلستعراض أروع ما في عاصمته أمام ضيوفه من األباطرة وامللوك واألمراء فقد أوكل الي البلجيكي جوستاف دلشيفالري )املعماري ومنسق احلدائق الذي ساهم مع البارون أوسمان في إعادة تخطيط العاصمة الفرنسية( مهمة تطوير وتنسيق احلدائق احمليطة بقصر اجلزيرة الواقع علي جزيرة الزمالك املقر املفضل إلسماعيل. كان قصر اجلزيرة مكونا من ثالثة مباني ضخمة، أحدها مخصص حلفالت اإلستقبال واملناسبات الكبيرة واآلخر هوالسالملك ويقع علي مقربة من األول، أما املبني األخير فهواحلرملك وكان بعيدا عنها وعن عيون الدخالء واملتطفلني وكان مبنيا خصيصا حلرمي اخلديوي. ما تبقي اليوم من قصر اجلزيرة املبني هوفقط أوجيني الفرنسية باالمبراطورة اإلحتفاء ما يوما شهد الذي

الرئيسي لفندق ماريوت.

وبينما ال حاجة لنا هنا أن نذكر الديكورات الرائعة وقطع األثاث املصنوعة بفن وإتقان واملختارة بعناية واملفروشات الفخمة الراقية التي كانت متأل وتزين جنبات قصر اجلزيرة، يجب أن نذكر أن حدائق قصر اجلزيرة لم تكن تقل أبدا عن روعة القصر نفسه ومحتوياته، فحدائقة التي إمتدت علي مساحة حوالي 600 فدان كان مخصصا لها ميزانية كبيرة لإلنفاق علي األفكار والطلبات املبالغة لصاحب القصر والتي كانت تتلخص في جملة واحدة »روعة بالداخل

وروعة أكثر باخلارج«.

– احللم دلشفالري حول )1869 – 1868( واحد عام في وبالفعل – الي حقيقة، حيث متت زراعة احلديقة حلمه وحلم اخلديوي إسماعيل ذات ال 600 فدان بأكثر من مليون شتلة جديدة ونادرة من جميع أنحاء من الفانيليا وشتالت مصر جنوب من واألكاسيا امللكي النخل الدنيا. من والتني واملطاط والتمرهندي الريونيون جزيرة من والالتانيا مدغشقر املعروف األسطوري اجلميز وشجر تركيا من األبيض التوت وشجر الهند بشجرة الفراعنة وغيرها، وكانت زهور الغيردية البرتقالية اللون واأللوسية البيضاء والبنفسج وأنواع كثيرة أخرى من الزهور تتنافس مع الصبار واليوكا

العصارية. واالشجار

وفي وسط تلك الوفرة والغزارة من األشجار والنباتات والشجيرات والزهور وكهف اآلن( الي موجودة )مازالت بيضاء رخامية نافورة دلشفالري بني صخري مزود بشالالت مياة وبحيرة صناعية، وفي اجلزء الغربي من احلديقة مت بناء 40 صوبة مشتل لزراعة األوركيد واألناناس واملوز وبعض الفواكه والزهور اإلستوائية األخرى. وكل هذا لم يكن كافيا لدلشيفالري الذي شعر بأنه مازال بحاجة الي مزيد من السحر جلعل تلك احلديقة قطعة من اجلنه فعال، فقرر أن يحول جزء من مياه البحيرة الصناعية الي اجلزء الغربي من احلديقة حيث بني بركة صغيرة مت فيها تربية األوز العراقي األسود النادر والبجع األفريقي واألوز للحيوان به حديقة فأنشأ لم ينسي اجلزء اجلنوبي أنه والبط، كما الوحشي احليوانات من أخرى وأنواع ونعام وزرافات وغزالن وفهود ومنور أسود بها

املختلفة.

وبعد سنوات من عزل اخلديوي إسماعيل ونفيه.. مت تقسيم قصر اجلزيرة الي عدة حصص وأصبحت حديقة الزهرية مشتال وصوبا للنباتات.. واملنطقة التي كان بها البحيرة الصناعية والكهف الصخري قام اإليطليان دي كومباز ودي ميليوبإعادة تصميمها عام 1871 لتصبح حديقة األسماك، وكما جاء في مقال »حدائق القاهرة التاريخية« السابق اإلشارة اليه قامت زهرة تدعى بإعادة تشكيل تلك احلديقة، كما مت أيضا تذويد Captain Stanleyالكهف الصخري بأحواض تضم مجموعات نادرة من األسماك والزواحف. أما اجلزء اجلنوبي من حديقة ال 600 فدان فقد مر بتحوالت عدة ليصبح في بينما حتولت مساحة أصغر تقع علي مقربة الشاسعة، النهاية حدائق احلرية من الشاطيء الشرقي للنيل الي حديقة األندلس الرائعة اجلمال والتي تخضع كميزانية جنيه مصري مليون 6 بفضل ضخ الرابعة التجديد لعملية حاليا

لهذا الغرض من الصندوق املصري لتجديد احلدائق املميزة.

في وقت ما من تاريخها كانت حديقة األندلس حلقة تزلج خاصة بشباب العائلة املالكة املصرية ولكن منذ منتصف األربعينات حتولت الي حديقة عامة يزينها املوزايكوامللون والقطع الفنية ونافورات املياه علي نفس طراز احلدائق

االندلسية في مدينة احلمراء بغرناطة.

من بني كل تلك احلدائق الرائعة التي ضمتها يوما ما حدائق قصر اجلزيرة، مت القاهرة برج إنشاء مت فعندما حظا.. األتعس هي الزهرية حديقة كانت قطعها من املنتصف لعمل مدخل للبرج، كما إن معظم أشجارها النادرة التي مت جلبها من الهند وأفريقيا قد مت إهمالها متاما. وكأمرأة عجوز تعيش اليوم

حديقة الزهرية علي بعض تلك املعالم التي حتمل مالمح جمالها القدمي...

اجليزة في – الزهرية وحدائق الزمالك جزيرة من اآلخر اجلانب وعلي حدائق أحدي األخرى هي تعد التي األورمان حديقة تقع – بالتحديد والنباتات باحلدائق إسماعيل اخلديوي ولع تؤكد التي األسطورية النباتات الغريبة والنادرة، وكانت في األصل مجرد جزء من حدائق أكبر هي حدائق اليوم بناه اخلديوي سعيد. مازالت حديقة األورمان حتي الذي قصر اجليزة تضم مجموعة متنوعة من النباتات واألشجار النادرة، إال إنها – نظرا مليزانية بعض بالفعل وفقدت البقاء، أجل من تصارع مازالت – الضئيلة صيانتها نباتاتها الوافرة رغم إحتفاظها بعدد من األشجار املعمرة النادرة التي زرعت

في زمن اخلديوي.

حديقة تقل ال وندرتها، النباتات عجائب ناحية من أنه القول، وميكن األورمان عن حديقة الزهرية التي أنشأها دلشيفالري. وحديقة األورمان التي إمتدت علي مساحة 90 فدان كانت تزود جميع القصور اخلديوية باخلضروات

20

الذي وقع في غرام الثقافة الفرنسية في أحدي زياراته املتعددة لفرنسا، والذي إنبهر بعملية التحول التي أجراها البارون )أوسمان( علي العاصمة باريس، فقرر أن يعاد تخطيط القاهرة لتصبح نسخة من باريس، كانت املهمة شاقة جدا ومكلفة جدا ولكن اخلديوي إسماعيل لم يدخر ماال وال جهدا لتحقيق حلمه، فإستقدم من فرنسا املعماريني واملهندسني ومخططى املدن ومنسقى وزير من ومراقبة إشراف بها حتت التي حلم اخلديوية القاهرة لبناء احلدائق

األشغال العامة حينذاك علي باشا مبارك.

وفي خالل ما يقل عن خمسة عشر عاما كانت الطرق الواسعة قد شقت والقصور الفخمة قد شيدت وست حدائق نباتات عامة كبرى قد تأسست، – احلرية وحدائق – األورمان – األزبكية – األسماك الزهرية وهي حدائق إسماعيل حلدائق اخلديوي إال محاكاه ماهي احلدائق تلك احليوان. وكانت Les Bois de Boulogne , Les Buttes Chaumont وحديقتي النباتات بباريس وكان قد شهد تأسيسهم جميعا بنفسه أثناء إحدي زياراته

هناك.

– الذي كان لديه ولعا باشا إبراهيم باشا ووالده ومثل جده محمد علي علي شجع فقد بالتعليم كبيرا إهتماما إسماعيل إهتم – باحلدائق خاصا النباتات واألشجار واألزهار من نادرة وجديدة من إستقدام شتالت عديدة

بأنواع مختلفة بعلوم تطعيمها لتوسيع معارف املصريني أوروبا واألمريكتني وإعداد وفيرة من البذور والنباتات املستقدمة من شبه اجلزيرة الهندية والشرق األقصى والتي وصلت من هناك علي منت سفن رست مباشرة علي شواطيء

مصر بفضل قناة السويس التي كانت قد إفتتحت عام 1869م.

عندما عاد اخلديوي إسماعيل من باريس لم يحمل معه فقط تلك األحالم ملدينة القاهرة، وإمنا كان بصحبته أيضا مصمم احلدائق الفرنسي بارليه ديشان الذي عهد إليه مبهمة إعادة تنسيق حديقة األزبكية لتصبح مطابقة للحدائق

الباريسية التي أعجب بها إسماعيل كل األعجاب.

كانت بحيرة األزبكية التي مت حفرها في القرن 15م بأمر من األمير أزبك قد حتولت الي حديقة عامة في عهد محمد علي الكبير قبل أن يأتي حفيده األشجار من نادرة مجموعات تضم نباتات حديقة الي ليحولها إسماعيل

والنباتات أتي بها من جميع بقاع األرض.

التاريخية في النباتات الزهري لبعض حدائق وفي مقال عنوانه »التركيب تفصيليا وصفا النبات أبحاث دورية في واملنشور مصر« – القاهرة مدينة شامال حلديقة األزبكية وقت إنشاءها : »حديقة األزبكية مقامة علي مساحة 20 فدان، لها أربعة أبواب ومن أشهر معاملها كهف صخري تتدفق من فوقه

19

الذي وقع في غرام الثقافة الفرنسية في أحدي زياراته املتعددة لفرنسا، والذي إنبهر بعملية التحول التي أجراها البارون )أوسمان( علي العاصمة باريس، فقرر أن يعاد تخطيط القاهرة لتصبح نسخة من باريس، كانت املهمة شاقة جدا ومكلفة جدا ولكن اخلديوي إسماعيل لم يدخر ماال وال جهدا لتحقيق حلمه، فإستقدم من فرنسا املعماريني واملهندسني ومخططى املدن ومنسقى وزير من ومراقبة إشراف بها حتت التي حلم اخلديوية القاهرة لبناء احلدائق

األشغال العامة حينذاك علي باشا مبارك.

وفي خالل ما يقل عن خمسة عشر عاما كانت الطرق الواسعة قد شقت والقصور الفخمة قد شيدت وست حدائق نباتات عامة كبرى قد تأسست، – احلرية وحدائق – األورمان – األزبكية – األسماك الزهرية وهي حدائق إسماعيل حلدائق اخلديوي إال محاكاه ماهي احلدائق تلك احليوان. وكانت Les Bois de Boulogne , Les Buttes Chaumont وحديقتي النباتات بباريس وكان قد شهد تأسيسهم جميعا بنفسه أثناء إحدي زياراته

هناك.

– الذي كان لديه ولعا باشا إبراهيم باشا ووالده ومثل جده محمد علي علي شجع فقد بالتعليم كبيرا إهتماما إسماعيل إهتم – باحلدائق خاصا النباتات واألشجار واألزهار من نادرة وجديدة من إستقدام شتالت عديدة

بأنواع مختلفة بعلوم تطعيمها لتوسيع معارف املصريني أوروبا واألمريكتني وإعداد وفيرة من البذور والنباتات املستقدمة من شبه اجلزيرة الهندية والشرق األقصى والتي وصلت من هناك علي منت سفن رست مباشرة علي شواطيء

مصر بفضل قناة السويس التي كانت قد إفتتحت عام 1869م.

عندما عاد اخلديوي إسماعيل من باريس لم يحمل معه فقط تلك األحالم ملدينة القاهرة، وإمنا كان بصحبته أيضا مصمم احلدائق الفرنسي بارليه ديشان الذي عهد إليه مبهمة إعادة تنسيق حديقة األزبكية لتصبح مطابقة للحدائق

الباريسية التي أعجب بها إسماعيل كل األعجاب.

كانت بحيرة األزبكية التي مت حفرها في القرن 15م بأمر من األمير أزبك قد حتولت الي حديقة عامة في عهد محمد علي الكبير قبل أن يأتي حفيده األشجار من نادرة مجموعات تضم نباتات حديقة الي ليحولها إسماعيل

والنباتات أتي بها من جميع بقاع األرض.

التاريخية في النباتات الزهري لبعض حدائق وفي مقال عنوانه »التركيب تفصيليا وصفا النبات أبحاث دورية في واملنشور مصر« – القاهرة مدينة شامال حلديقة األزبكية وقت إنشاءها : »حديقة األزبكية مقامة علي مساحة 20 فدان، لها أربعة أبواب ومن أشهر معاملها كهف صخري تتدفق من فوقه

19

الفرعونية حتظى مبكانة هامة وعزيزة علي كانت احلدائق اخلاصة في مصر املتعة واملنفعة فكانوا يزرعون في فيها بني القدماء القلوب. جمع املصريون الغذائية واملواد اخلضروات من إحتياجاتهم جانب الي اخلاصة حدائقهم أشجارا للزينة وورودا وزهورا مختلفة، وكان العديد من تلك احلدائق يضم يعتبرونها كانوا أخري ونباتات ودوائية عطرية أعشابا هذا كل جانب الي مقدسة ألنها كانت تستخدم في الطقوس الدينية أوتقدم قرابينا لآللهة. وقد قدم لنا املعماريون دالئل كثيرة تؤكد أن املعابد اجلنائزية أيضا كانت محاطة في الثاني رمسيس معبد علي النقوش تؤكده ذلك ومثال غناء، بحدائق أبيدوس والتي تقول »لقد زرع حدائق كثيرة، فيها من كل األشجار، أخشابها

جميلة وعطرة، أشجار ونباتات بونت.«

هذا الي جانب النصوص اجلنائزية العديدة التي تتحدث عن املتوفى » يسير حتت أشجار حديقته ويشرب من مياة بحيرته«. ولم تكن تلك احلدائق حكرا علي عظماء ووجهاء تلك األيام فقد ذكر علماء املصريات أن حدائق جنائزية صغيرة كانت تزرع في ساحات بعض املقابر اخلاصة في طيبة، تقليدا للحدائق

الكبيرة التي ميتلكها الفراعنة والطبقة احلاكمة.وعلي الرغم من مرور قرون طويلة وقعت فيها مصر حتت وطأة الغزوواحلرب وإالحتالل إال أن ذلك التقليد لم يتوقف أبدا وظل املصريون محتفظون بحبهم

للطبيعة وإعتزازهم بحدائقهم اخلاصة وباحلدائق العامة أيضا.

. يعتقد أن أثرياء الفسطاط كانوا يبنون بيوتا تضم افنية داخلية وحدائق كما هوالتقليد املصري منذ اآلف السنني، بل ونافورات أيضا.. فمؤرخوذلك واملتنزهات كانت والبساتني العامة احلدائق أن الزمان يذكرون في كتاباتهم تقع خارج املناطق السكنية، ويذكرون أيضا وفرة وغزارة حدائق الورد حيث

كان ماء الورد في ذلك الزمن ترياقا طبيامعروفا.

إستمر اإلجتاة الي إنشاء حدائق زينة بغرض املتعة والراحة في عهد أحمد بن طولون، وجاءت املدينة اجلديدة التي أنشأها – مدينة القطائع – محاكية ملدينة السامرة في فلسطني حيث نشـــأ والتي كانت تشتهر باملباني العظيمة واملسابقات. اخليل لركوب املخصصة الرحبة والساحات الواسعة واحلدائق

والشجيرات الزهور بأحواض مليئة واسعة اجلديدة املدينة حدائق فجاءت املزهرة منسقة علي الطريقة السامرية. وبتشجيع من إبن طولون – الذي كان راعيا كبيرا للفن والعمارة – برع البستانية ومنسقي احلدائق في تزين احلدائق حدودا هناك يكن ولم العطرية والنباتات والشجيرات الزينة بنخل العامة للخيال أولإلبتكار. كان البستانية يقلمون األشجار بأشكال مختلفة ومتنوعة بينما كان منسقواحلدائق يقدمون دائما كل جديد من كماليات الزينة لتلك احلدائق، وكان أكثر تلك الكماليات إبتكارا في تلك األيام ما يعرف بالشجرة الهني فقد كانوا بالشيء يعرف ألول مرة، ولم يكن إبتكارا النافورة وكان يغرسون مواسير املياة ببراعة داخل جذوع األشجار لتتدفق منها املياة الي أعلى

علي شكل نافورة مما يعطي أثرا مبهرا يخلب األلباب.

اليوم لم يتبق شيئا من مدينة القطائع أومن حدائقها.. لم يتبق منها سوي مسجد إبن طولون الشهير، أما مدينة القطائع فقد دمرتها جيوش العباسيني

الذين جاءوا الستعادة حكم مصر بإسم اخلليفة املكتفي عام 905م.

وعلي الرغم من اإلغتياالت والثورات التي ميزت فترة حكم املماليك ملصر )1260م – 1517م( إال أن سالطينهم ذوواألصول التركية والشركسية قاموا الرابع عشر امليالدي القرن أنه بحلول ببناء قصور فخمة وحدائق غناء حتي

كانت القاهرة قد إستعادت مجدها ومكانتها الفريدة في املنطقة.

وفيما بعد، مت إحياء العشق القدمي بني املصريني وحدائقهم مرة أخري في الرؤية وصاحب واجلمال، والفن الفخامة عاشق إسماعيل، اخلديوي عهد

املميزة النشاء مدينة عصرية باهرة.

علي وهوحفيد محمد املعظم بإسماعيل ويعرف – إسماعيل واخلديوي باشا مؤسس مصر احلديثة – مبجرد أن أصبح واليا علي مصر عام 1862 بدأ عددا كبيرا من املشروعات الصالح الدولة وحتديثها علي نفس النهج الذي

سلكة جده محمد علي الكبير.

كان حتديث اجلهاز االداري املصري وحده ليس كافيا إلسماعيل الطموح

بقلم إيفا دادريان

موضوع الغالف

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رحلة البحث عن حدائق مصر التاريخية

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في إمتدت التي واألسواق العمار جتذب بالقلعة احمليطة املنطقة وبدأت غرب القلعة ، كما أنشئت القصور والبيوت الفخمة واألسواق حول املضمار

وهومنطقة فسيحة لتدريب الفرسان واجلنود علي القتال وركوب اخليل.

كان بيت تاجر ثري علي سبيل املثال – يحيط به منتجون وموزعون لبضائع مختلفة ودكاكني لبيع تلك البضائع وكانت الدور والورش والدكاكني البسيطة التجار لبيوت املختلفة واخلدمات اإلحتياجات تقدم املنطقة في املنتشرة والسبيل والكتاب واملسجد والقهوة الشعبي احلمام هناك فكان األثرياء،

واخلان للمسافرين، وكانت كلها معا تشكل نواة صغيرة ملدينة أكبر.

واألسلحة السيوف صناعة ورش إنتشرت للقلعة اجلنوبي اإلجتاة وفي وسروج اخليول والزي اخلاص باملماليك واجلنود، بينما شارع حتت الربع الضيق الالزمة واألدوات املعدات صناعة في املتخصصة احلدادة ورش به أنتشرت لزينتهم وزينة خيولهم ، أما اليوم فشارع أحمد ماهر مازالت به بالفعل ورش لتصبح أقفاص طيور وسكاكني وعدد حدادة إال أن منتجاتها تغيرت كثيرا

ومصائد فئران وفوانيس رمضان.

وبعد ألف عــام ....

الربيعي الصباح ذلك في معتاد غير بشكل هادئا الربع حتت شارع كان والضجيج باحلركة صاخبا الشارع هذا يكون آخر يوم أي في ، اجلميل النسيم وهو إحتفال سنوي ميتد تاريخه الي اليوم هوشم واحليوية ، ولكن مصر الفرعونية وينشغل فيه املصريون باإلحتفاء بقدوم الربيع بأكل السمك

اململح )الفسيخ(.

كرسي علي ليستريح ويجلس ملساعده الفطير صنع محمد احلاج يترك أمام شيشة أعدتها له إبنته التي أخذت تضع له بضع قطع من الفحم املشتعل فوق كرة من الدخان املعسل. أخذ احلاج محمد يجذب أنفاسا من الشيشة مستمتعا وقال »قريبا ينهال علينا الزبائن .. فالناس متيل الي أكل احللوبعد الفسيخ.. عندما كنت صغيرا كنت أقضي شم النسيم في احلدائق أما اآلن فأنا أقضيه هنا في الدكان فأنا أعمل في جميع العطالت ورمضان واألعياد

أيضا...«

ويشرح لي احلاج محمد أن الفطير كان يصنع في مصر منذ مئات السنني بالسمن البلدي فقط . أما اآلن فقد أضيفت اليه حشوات مختلفة كاللحم

أواخلضروات أوالكرمية والقشدة ...

فطيرة بشراء العروس تقوم حماة أن التقاليد من ضمن كان املاضي »في الزفاف وكنت أحيانا أصنع فطيرة ليلة الصباحية الهدائها للعروسني صباح تطلب فقيرة فتاة جائتني املرات أحد وفي الثرية، للعائالت طبقة 12 من فطيرة من 6 طبقات ولكني أقنعتها باالكتفاء بطبقتني فقط لعلمي بظروف لها فطيرة من 6 طبقات أن أصنع املتواضعة. كان ميكنني زوجها وعائلتها

ألربح أكثر ولكني لن أفعل ذلك أبدا .«

وهنا دخلت طفلة صغيرة في حوالي الرابعة من عمرها أخذت تتقافز حول املائدة وحتتها وأخيرا جلست عند قدمي احلاج محمد الذي قال : »هذه حفيدتي حبيبة . غدا ستكبر وتصنع الفطير.. إن شارعنا لم يتغير منذ أن كنت في مثل عمرها، أما بالنسبة لها سيكون األمر مختلفا ، فاحلكومة تنوي هدم كل هذه الدكاكني لتوسيع الشارع وتوفير مكان إلنتظار السيارات علي اجلانبني.« وتقفز

حبيبة لتجلس علي ركبتي جدها وتلقي برأسها الصغير علي صدره.ألداء أسبوعني ملدة مكة الي عام كل أسافر أنني لكي أذكر أن »نسيت

العمرة وتلك هي أجازتي.«

كررر كررر كرر. تندفع فقاقيع املياة في زجاجة الشيشة عندما أخذ احلاج فمه جانب من ذلك بعد أخرجه الذي الدخان من أنفاسا يسحب محمد من مختلفة أصناف لشراء ودخلت سيدتان محجبتان كله. برأسه ليحيط لشراء يأتون األجانب أن يخبرني عندما احلاج محمد الفطير، ويضحكني الفطير ويدفعون مبلغا أكبر من ثمنه إال أنه يرفض أن يأخذ أكثر من الثمن العادي ويرد لهم الباقي. »أنا ال أحب أن أغش الناس ... فأنا أريد أن يعودوا باحلبهان احملوجة القهوة من قدحني عليها صينية وتأتينا مني.« للشراء يرتشف من أحداها رشفة ليكمل« املال يأتي باملشاكل.. مشاكل كثيرة..

واألهم هوحب الناس.«

يطوي صانع الفطير قطعة أخري من العجني ثم يفردها ويرققها ثم يرفعها ليطيرها في الهواء لتصبح أكثر رقة ثم يلصق أطرافها علي الطاولة الرخامية

ويبدأ في وضع احلشوة املطلوبة ثم يطويها ويلقي بها في الفرن املشتعلة.

إن الزهور علي حافة النافذة في الدكان ستستمر في النمووالتفتح يوما بعد يوم، الي أن يجيئ اليوم الذي تأتي فيه احلكومة لتزيل الفرن وتهدم الدكان.. والى أن يجيئ ذلك اليوم سيظل الزبائن والعمال والزائرون ميرون من أمام ذلك

الدكان الصغير في حتت الربع... دكان احلاج محمد الفطاطري .

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اخللق كان الشارع املسمي حاليا طلعت حرب يتخذ مسارا نحوالشرق موازيا لسور القاهرة القدمية ليلتقي مع شارع الدرب األحمر عند باب زويلة ويؤدي من هناك الي القلعة. أما باب زويلة نفسه وهوأهم معالم املنطقة فيقع علي الطريق الرئيسي )القصبة( الذي كان يربط شمال املدينة بجنوبها . فمن باب زويلة الي الباب الشمالي )باب الفتوح( كان طريق القصبة يقسم املدينة – التي مازالت حتمل إسم احلاكم الفاطمي الذي بناها املعز لدين اهلل – طوليا .

امليالدي عندما العاشر القرن الي املعز بقاهرة املنطقة تلك وترجع تسمية املعروفة بتونس حاليا – وهم طائفة شيعية من )أفريقية( الفاطميون أحتل

– مصر.

وفي عام 969م أشرف القائد جوهرالصقلي على وضع اخلطط لبناء مدينة جديدة تكون عاصمة لدولتهم. وبحلول عام 971م دخل اخلليفة الفاطمي املعز لدين اهلل العاصمة اجلديدة )القاهرة( في شهر رمضان ، ومت إنارة الطرق الفوانيس، فال عجب أن يظل اليوم باآلف من بها احلاكم في ذلك التي مر

الفانوس الي يومنا هذا رمزا محببا لشهر رمضان املبارك في مصر.

في عام 1092م أكمل األرميني بدر الدين اجلمالي إنشاء باب في الناحية اجلنوبية من سور القاهرة مت تسميته حينذاك »باب زويلة« نسبة الي اجلنود

عسكروا الذين زويلة قبيلة من املنحدرة البربرية األصول ذوي الفاطميني التي الترميم أعمال املدينة اجلديدة. وقد كشفت إنشاء بالقرب من موقع جرت منذ وقت قريب في باب زويلة عن أن القاعدة االصلية للباب كانت اخلامات بعض إستخدام مت قد وأنه االرض أمتار حتت ثالثة عمق الي متتد

الفرعونية لبنائه.

أما مسجد الصالح طالئع املبني عام 1160م والقريب من باب زويلة فقد حمل إسم الوزير الفاطمي الذي قام ببناءه، وقد بني هذا املسجد فى األساس ليكون مقاما لرأس احلسني رضي اهلل عنه، وهوما لم يحدث، حيث مت وضع الذي املوقع نفس يحتل وكان الفاطمية القصور أحد في الشريف الرأس

يشغله اليوم مسجد اإلمام احلسني.

ويعد مسجد الصالح طالئع أحد املسجدين املعلقني الباقيني في مصر وكان املسجد لعمارة مخصصا إيجارها كان التي التجارية احملال من يعلوصف

وصيانته والقائمني عليه.فوق مئذنتني ببناء شيخ املؤيد السلطان قام اململوكية احلقبة وفي خالل فوق من يشاهدون القوم وكبار األمراء القرون كان مر وعلي الباب. قاعدة باب زويلة مواكب التتويج التي كانت متتد علي طول طريق القصبة من باب الفتوح وحتي باب زويلة، وكان السلطان يستعرض حرسه في املدينة بدءا من الباب الشمالي الي باب زويلة ثم يتقدم الي الدرب األحمر وصوال الي القلعة، وكان هذا الطريق نفسه هو املكان الذي يشاهد منه الناس موكب احململ قبل سفره الي مكة في موسم احلج من كل عام، كما كان باب زويلة أيضا مكانا

لتنفيذ اإلعدام العلني وهناك شنق آخر سالطني املماليك طومان باي.

اهلل لدين املعز شارع إمتداد يقع مباشرة، مقابله وفي زويلة، باب خارج الرجل الذي قام بتعمير الي الذي كان يؤدي الي عمائر رضوان بك )نسبة تلك املنطقة في القرن ال 17 امليالدي(. وكانت تضم مجموعة من القصور طريق إمتداد علي تقع كانت التي الدكاكني أما األحذية، لصناعة وسوق أشعة بنفاذ تسمح صغيرة بفتحات يتميز خشبي بسقف واملغطاة القصبة القليلة النماذج اليوم وهي تعد واحدة من الشمس فمازالت موجودة حتي

الباقية لألسواق املغطاة في القاهرة وتعرف بسوق اخليامية.

كان هذا املوقع بالتحديد - تقاطع باب زويلة والدرب االحمر من الشرق الغرب - هواملكان الربع من اجلنوب وشارع حتت مع سوق رضوان بك من الذي أنشئ به عدة نزل وخانات علي طول الطريق وحتي القلعة. كلمة خان الفارسية تعني احلماية، وكانت اخلانات في منطقة باب زويلة تبني حلماية املسافرين والتجار وبضائعهم ودوابهم، حيث كانت األسواق في وسط القاهرة الفاطمية واملنطقة احمليطة بها صاخبة بالتجار والصناع واحلرفيني، وكان طريق بأنواع مليئة زويلة باب الي الفتوح باب من ممتدة عبارة عن سوق القصبة

وتخصصات مختلفة من التجارة واحلرف علي جانبي الطريق.

الـ 14 أشار املقريزي في كتاباته الي أن طريق القصبة بعد باب القرن في زويلة كان يضم 58 وكالة )الوكالة خان صغير داخل مبني متعدد الطوابق وهومنوذج ال يوجد سوي في القاهرة( و87 سوق به أكثر من 12 ألف نصبة

لعرض املنتجات املختلفة.

القلعة وحتصيناتها علي هضبة األيوبي الدين بني صالح في عام 1176 املقطم بالقاهرة لينتقل اليها مقر احلكم والطبقة احلاكمة واجلنود، بعد أن كان

مقر احلكم أثناء حكم الفاطميني هومدينتهم امللكية القاهرة .

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صباح أحد أيام فصل الربيع املنعشة ، وأثناء سيري مبحاذاة سور باب زويلة في شارع أحمد ماهر بوسط العاصمة وبني صف طويل من احملال التجارية ، وقع نظري علي دكان صغير كتب عليه )فطاطري(. واجهته التي ال تتعدي من الصغيرة األصص تلك لوال بها املارين لتجذب تكن لم الثالثة األمتار الزهور املرصوصة أمام الدكان لتلفت النظر الي الكراسي البالستيك املوضوعة املسلوق والبيض بالزبيب اململؤة العميقة البيضاء األواني . النافذة بجوار والطماطم الطازجة والزيتون االسود واألخضر والسمن تلمع في ضوء الشمس ، وعلب التونة املرصوصة بعناية حتتل عتبة النافذة ، علي احلائط لوحة كتب عليها »احلمد هلل« وفوق النافذة اآلية القرآنية »رب أشرح لي صدري ويسرلي

أمري« ولكن أين الباب ؟ الدكان ليس له باب…

ويستقبلنا احلاج محمد صاحب الدكان - وهورجل مسن بشوش الوجة- أخذ العجني من مكورة قطعة بيده جاذبا طيبني« وأنتم سنة »كل مرحبا الهواء مبهارة شديدة حتي أصبحت بيديه في يفردها ويطويها ثم يطوحها

رقيقة وشفافة كالورقة ..

تنساب نسمة رقيقة عبر مدخل الدكان لتختلط باحلرارة املنبعثة من الفرن .

» الدكان مفتوح 24 ساعة جميع أيام السنة ، ملاذا إذن أحتاج الي باب ؟ لقد تخلصت منه منذ سنوات « . هكذا أخبرني احلاج محمد وهويقوم برش الدكان ملك عائلتي منذ مائة الرقيقة . »هذا العجينة قطرات السمن علي وعشرين عاما، لقد علم جدي الصنعة لوالدي ووالدي علمني الصنعة ، فأنا أصنع الفطير منذ ستني عاما« . وينظر احلاج محمد الي الشارع ويشير الى مئذنتي باب زويلة ثم يبدأ في عد احملال املوجودة : »سروجي، سماد، أقفاص طيور، شوايات، أقفاص معدن، أورمة جزار، ورش لصناعة فوانيس رمضان .. وهناك في آخر الشارع دكان أخى الذى يبيع الكنافة ، وعجينة الكنافة نخبزها هنا في خلفية الدكان علي صينية حديد مسطحة .. أن شارعنا لم يتغير فيه شيء أبدا فيما عدا إسمه .. زمان كان يسمي حتت الربع، اليوم اجليل األكبر سنا هو وحده الذي مازال يطلق على الشارع إسم حتت الربع ولكن من الناحية الرسمية هذا اإلسم مكانه فقط صفحة من صفحات كتب التاريخ.« الشارع املسمي حتت الربع والذي كان ميتد من جنوب غرب باب زويلة وحتي باب اخللق تغير إسمه بعد ثورة يوليو1952 الي شارع أحمد ماهر تخليدا لذكري املصري النظام غير عام 1945، وهكذا أغتيل الذي املصري الوزراء رئيس اجلديد إسمي شارعيني عمرهما أكثر من خمسمائة عام ليصبح شارع حتت

الربع وشارع باب اخللق : شارع وميدان أحمد ماهر.

وماذا تعني كلمة »ربع« ؟

أن الربع هوذلك النموذج من مساكن القاهرة القدمية التي كانت تبني فوق محال جتارية .

وفي عام 1923م خالل احلقبة اململوكية ، قام أحد أهم سالطني املماليك )الظاهر بيبرس( ببناء مدرسة بالقرب من الربع الزهيري )نسبة الي إسم املتبرع : السكني املجمع ذلك به الواقع الشارع تسمية هنا جاءت ومن ببناءه(،

شارع حتت الربع .

امللكية املدينة ألسوار الستني األبواب من واحدا كان سابقا اخللق وباب الرغم من – وكان يقع بجوار اخلليج املصري ، وعلي – القاهرة للفاطميني أن الباب نفسه ال وجود له اليوم إال أنه قد أستمد إسمه من الكلمة العربية )خرق( ألن الناس قد أحدثوا بجواره فتحة بالسور ليمروا منها .. ومن باب

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صباح أحد أيام فصل الربيع املنعشة ، وأثناء سيري مبحاذاة سور باب زويلة في شارع أحمد ماهر بوسط العاصمة وبني صف طويل من احملال التجارية ، وقع نظري علي دكان صغير كتب عليه )فطاطري(. واجهته التي ال تتعدي من الصغيرة األصص تلك لوال بها املارين لتجذب تكن لم الثالثة األمتار الزهور املرصوصة أمام الدكان لتلفت النظر الي الكراسي البالستيك املوضوعة املسلوق والبيض بالزبيب اململؤة العميقة البيضاء األواني . النافذة بجوار والطماطم الطازجة والزيتون االسود واألخضر والسمن تلمع في ضوء الشمس ، وعلب التونة املرصوصة بعناية حتتل عتبة النافذة ، علي احلائط لوحة كتب عليها »احلمد هلل« وفوق النافذة اآلية القرآنية »رب أشرح لي صدري ويسرلي

أمري« ولكن أين الباب ؟ الدكان ليس له باب…

ويستقبلنا احلاج محمد صاحب الدكان - وهورجل مسن بشوش الوجة- أخذ العجني من مكورة قطعة بيده جاذبا طيبني« وأنتم سنة »كل مرحبا الهواء مبهارة شديدة حتي أصبحت بيديه في يفردها ويطويها ثم يطوحها

رقيقة وشفافة كالورقة ..

تنساب نسمة رقيقة عبر مدخل الدكان لتختلط باحلرارة املنبعثة من الفرن .

» الدكان مفتوح 24 ساعة جميع أيام السنة ، ملاذا إذن أحتاج الي باب ؟ لقد تخلصت منه منذ سنوات « . هكذا أخبرني احلاج محمد وهويقوم برش الدكان ملك عائلتي منذ مائة الرقيقة . »هذا العجينة قطرات السمن علي وعشرين عاما، لقد علم جدي الصنعة لوالدي ووالدي علمني الصنعة ، فأنا أصنع الفطير منذ ستني عاما« . وينظر احلاج محمد الي الشارع ويشير الى مئذنتي باب زويلة ثم يبدأ في عد احملال املوجودة : »سروجي، سماد، أقفاص طيور، شوايات، أقفاص معدن، أورمة جزار، ورش لصناعة فوانيس رمضان .. وهناك في آخر الشارع دكان أخى الذى يبيع الكنافة ، وعجينة الكنافة نخبزها هنا في خلفية الدكان علي صينية حديد مسطحة .. أن شارعنا لم يتغير فيه شيء أبدا فيما عدا إسمه .. زمان كان يسمي حتت الربع، اليوم اجليل األكبر سنا هو وحده الذي مازال يطلق على الشارع إسم حتت الربع ولكن من الناحية الرسمية هذا اإلسم مكانه فقط صفحة من صفحات كتب التاريخ.« الشارع املسمي حتت الربع والذي كان ميتد من جنوب غرب باب زويلة وحتي باب اخللق تغير إسمه بعد ثورة يوليو1952 الي شارع أحمد ماهر تخليدا لذكري املصري النظام غير عام 1945، وهكذا أغتيل الذي املصري الوزراء رئيس اجلديد إسمي شارعيني عمرهما أكثر من خمسمائة عام ليصبح شارع حتت

الربع وشارع باب اخللق : شارع وميدان أحمد ماهر.

وماذا تعني كلمة »ربع« ؟

أن الربع هوذلك النموذج من مساكن القاهرة القدمية التي كانت تبني فوق محال جتارية .

وفي عام 1923م خالل احلقبة اململوكية ، قام أحد أهم سالطني املماليك )الظاهر بيبرس( ببناء مدرسة بالقرب من الربع الزهيري )نسبة الي إسم املتبرع : السكني املجمع ذلك به الواقع الشارع تسمية هنا جاءت ومن ببناءه(،

شارع حتت الربع .

امللكية املدينة ألسوار الستني األبواب من واحدا كان سابقا اخللق وباب الرغم من – وكان يقع بجوار اخلليج املصري ، وعلي – القاهرة للفاطميني أن الباب نفسه ال وجود له اليوم إال أنه قد أستمد إسمه من الكلمة العربية )خرق( ألن الناس قد أحدثوا بجواره فتحة بالسور ليمروا منها .. ومن باب

14

بقلم ليسلي لبابيدي

حكاية شارع

بقلم ليسلي لبابيدي

حكاية شارع

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في فصل اخلريف ليكون على كل موقع أثري من املواقع التي يعمل عليها القفاطوة حوالي خمسون فنيا وعامال. وهذا العدد يقل بأواخر موسم احلفائر

بالربيع ليصل إلى عشرة عمال وفنيني ببعض املواقع.

يجب وخبراتهم فذكرياتهم العلم من منجما يعتبروا القدامى القفاطوة س لتكون مرجعا لكل من يريد ان يتعلم عن اآلثار املصرية. أن تدرس وتدرفمثال يتذكر عم عبدالعزيز عبداهللا حينما كان يعمل عام ١٩٦٧ ببالد النوبة قبل غرقها ويروي قصصه عن عمله هناك ولذلك مت تكرمي عم عبدالعزيز هو لعملهم تقديرا محروس حسني بخيت و على أحمد عم مع أمير والريس بالنوبة وذلك ضمن فعاليات إحتفالية الذكرى اخلمسني لطلب مصروالسودان

املساعدة من اليونسكو إلنقاذ اآلثار املهددة بالغرق في منطقة النوبة. يتذكرون إمنا و القفاطوة، يتذكره الذي اآلثار واحلفائر تاريخ وليس فقط

مديري البعثات وكبار علماء اآلثار واألكثر شهرة، حينما كانوا مبتدئني في مجال احلفائر يتعلمون على أيدي القفاطوة الكبار.

عندما بدأت العمل مع القفاطوة ألول مرة كنت مكلفة بتنظيم مجموعة به ليمروا بالتفكير كيف ميكن عمل طريق فبدأت املعابد أحد أحجار من أتدخل اال لي وقال األملاني البعثة مدير فأوقفني الضخمة األحجار حاملني مبا سماه «woise�La Methode Gu» أو الطريقة القفطية وأكمل قائال أن القفاطوة على دراية تامة بكيف يعملون فيجب أن أتركهم ليؤدوا عملهم بالطريقة التي يروها مناسبة فقد إكتسبوا خبرات واسعة بكل مجاالت اآلثار، وهذا العمل ليس مجرد وظيفة ولكن علم احلفائر بدمائهم وخبراته

تسكنهم.

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وبعد عدة سنوات من العمل كعامل يحمل الزمبيل ويغربل التربة أو يغسل املتميز واملوهوب العامل ليترقى كافيا الفخار يكون قد تدرب وتعلم قدرا إلى مستوى الفني ، فيقوم بدوره بتعليم من هم أصغر منه لتستمر دورة هذا اجليش اآلثاري. ويعمل كل فني مشرفا على ما بني إثنني وأربعة من العمال ليعلمهم ويدربهم. وبالرغم من هذا التدرج الوظيفي الصارم تكون العالقة التشجيع فدائما جند كلمات معا احلفائر تربطهم حياة أخوية بينهم عالقة

فيما بينهم قائلني »اهلل ينور يا رجالة« أو »اهلل يعافيكم« ويتناقشون دائما عن أفضل الطرق للعمل، مشاركني مع بعضهم ومع أعضاء البعثة من األجانب

خبرتهم التي إكتسبوها عبر أكثر من قرن مضى.

يسكن مبركز »قفط« ونواحيه عدة آالف مواطن وحوالي خمسمائة منهم يعملون باحلفائر، يتركوا بيوتهم وعائالتهم كل عام في بداية موسم احلفائر

اعلى - محمد عوض اهلل، صابر اخلم، أمين جمال عاملني بدفنات بعري أسوان )صورة من مشروع حفائر أسوان-كوم أمبو( الصفحة املقابلة من األعلى: الريس أمير، عبدالعزيز عبداهلل، فوزي علي، أحمد علي، عيد أبواحلمد، عطية ضبع، سلمان محمد، املرحوم احلج عوض اهلل أبو

زيد، دسوقي عباس، سعيد فكري )تصوير هاينر تالر ومنة اهلل الدري(.

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واملهن التقليدية احلرف فيه تندثر عالم في نعيش املتوارثة، وهذا يرجع لرفض األبناء إتباع خطى آبائهم. وتشهد مصر، لألسف، حاليا إندثارا للعديد من املهن تورث. التزال اآلثاري احلفار مهنة أن إال املتوارثة، فمنذ أكثر من مائة عام إشتهر أهل مدينة »قفط« التي ما كل في مبهارتهم مصر بصعيد األقصر شمال تقع مصر أنحاء بجميع عملوا فقد األثرية باحلفائر يتعلق وعلى أهم املشاريع اآلثارية مثل مشروع إنقاذ آثار بالد

النوبة قبل غرقها عند بناء السد العالي.

تعلم القفاطوة »أو القفطيون« علم احلفائر من عالم املصريات فلندرز بتري الذي يعتبر األب الروحي لعلم العمل مبدينة »قفط« بتري بدأ املصرية. حفائراآلثار أثرية. معابد بقايا عدة عام 1883 حيث عمل على الطرق بنفسه ودربهم على أحدث بتري عماله إختار كل على وكافأهم آنذاك للحفائر والعملية العلمية قائمة أسعار محددة حتى بناء على إكتشاف وجدوه إلى مرافقته عماله بعض من بتري طلب يشجعهم. بتدريب ليقوموا مصر أنحاء بجميع املتعددة مواقعه اآلخرين واإلشراف عليهم وعلى األعمال اآلثارية. ومن هنا بدأ القفاطوة رحلة كشف األلغاز واألسرار، وعرفوا احلفائر مجال في أحد يضارعهم ال الفنيني كأحسن

والتنقيب عن اآلثار الدفينة.

إلى جانب بتري، عمل القفاطوة مع العديد من أشهر حسن سليم الدكتور املصري األثري مثل اآلثاريني القفاطوة تعلم جديد موقع كل ومع الهرم، مبنطقة طرق جديدة للحفر وإكتسبوا خبرات لم يبخلوا بها على أوالدهم وأقاربهم وبالتالي أصبح لهم خبرة واسعة بهذا املجال لدرجة أنهم دربوا أهل »القرنة« بالبرالغربي

باألقصر على أعمال احلفائر.

يعتبر عمل احلفائر بصفة عامة عمال شاقا ومرهقا، فريق أعضاء من عضو فكل التخصص على يعتمد إال غيره بعمل يتدخل وال عمله يعرف القفاطوة عمال وفريق منه. طلب إذا الرأي إبداء أو للتشجيع احلفائر من القفاطوة لديهم تسلسل وظيفي صارم يلتزم اجلميع به فينقسم هذا اجليش إلى كتيبتني يترأسها ريس الريس وحفيد األسبق الريس إبن يكون وهو العمال على يقع هوالكبير الريس املهنة؛ هذه تورث وهكذا كتفيه أعباء كثيرة، فهو مسئول عن إختيار من يرافقه عن و العمال، أو الفنيني من كانوا سواء »قفط« من تلقي املهام من مدير البعثة ثم يقوم بتوزيع املهام على املوقع، وهو مسئول عن تسكني فى والفنيني العمال القيام بتسجيل رجاله وجتهيز أماكن إعاشتهم، وطبعا

حضور العمال حتي يستلم العمال والفنيون أجورهم من البعثة اآلثارية.

يبدأ اجلميع العمل من أسفل التدرج الوظيفي، فالريس »أمير كامل صديق« وهو ريس العمال والفنيني العاملني بأسوان ضمن بعثات املعهدين األملاني والسويسري، بدأ العمل في الثانية عشرة من عمره حارسا على خيام أحد البعثات اآلثارية بالنوبة القدمية قبل بناء السد العالي وغرق النوبة ، ومن هنا تعلم مهنة احلفر ، ثم أعده والده الريس

األسبق كامل صديق رحمه اهلل ليقوم بأعمال الريس.

مشاغله بسبب بنفسه باحلفر الريس اليقوم غالبا ومسؤلياته الكثيرة ولكن بعشق احلفر في دمائهم احيانا ليعلم عامال راكعا احلفائر منطقة داخل الريس ترى األجيال اجلديدة كيفية وأصول العمل . بعد الريس يأتي متخصص فالفني اجليش، هذا قادة حقا وهم الفنييون برمال دفنات في احلفر كان سواء كان، أيا مجاله في مدينة وسط سكنية طبقات في أو الذهبية الصحراء يفصل ان باحلفائر املتخصص الفني فيستطيع صاخبة الطبقة سمك كان لو حتى التربة من وطبقة طبقة بني سنتيمترا واحدا. أما متخصصو ترميم الفخار ذوو الصبر وتصنيف تنظيف وجتميع على فيعملون املالحظة وقوة شقف الفخار األثري. ويتعامل من تدرب على املساحة مع أجهزة معقدة بسرعة ودقة، اما من تعلم على عمل برمية يعمل جاهدا ليخترق طبقات الزمن اجليولوجية ليكشف للعامل منطقة. ميكن التاريخي ألي التسلسل عن لنا أن يختار التخصص الذي يرغبه ، ولكن غالبا ال يكون القيام مبهمة معينة له الريس يسند بيده ، ألن االختيار إهتماما إذا أظهر التخصص وخاصة بهذا فيظل مستمرا بهذا التخصص أو أظهر موهبة به . أما من ال يقدر على األعمال الشاقة املرهقة سواء بسبب إصابة عمل أو بسبب حالة صحية ضعيفة، فيكلفه الريس بالعمل في مجال ال

يستدعي ارهاقا جسديا .

األثرية للمواقع بأبنائهم الكبار الفنيون يأتي غالبا إجبار، دون ولكن ليتوارثوها آبائهم من املهنة ليأخذوا بدء اجلميع على ولكن ، إختياره في حر إنسان فكل على يعمل من وهو كعامل، التدرج أسفل من العمل بالرمال الفنييون ميألها التي القفة« »أو الزمبيل حمل العمال ويعمل األرض من يستخرجوها التي واألتربة أيضا على غربلة هذه التربة أو الرمال ليجدوا فيها أصغر غسل فريق يكون العمال ضمن من اآلثارية. البقايا الفنيون وجتميعه بفرزه يقوم الذي الفخاري الشقف البعثة. أعضاء بدراسته ويقوم بالفخار املتخصصون يأتي الشباب للعمل اول مرة بعد إنتهائهم من دراستهم

11

وبعد عدة سنوات من العمل كعامل يحمل الزمبيل ويغربل التربة أو يغسل املتميز واملوهوب العامل ليترقى كافيا الفخار يكون قد تدرب وتعلم قدرا إلى مستوى الفني ، فيقوم بدوره بتعليم من هم أصغر منه لتستمر دورة هذا اجليش اآلثاري. ويعمل كل فني مشرفا على ما بني إثنني وأربعة من العمال ليعلمهم ويدربهم. وبالرغم من هذا التدرج الوظيفي الصارم تكون العالقة التشجيع فدائما جند كلمات معا احلفائر تربطهم حياة أخوية بينهم عالقة

فيما بينهم قائلني »اهلل ينور يا رجالة« أو »اهلل يعافيكم« ويتناقشون دائما عن أفضل الطرق للعمل، مشاركني مع بعضهم ومع أعضاء البعثة من األجانب

خبرتهم التي إكتسبوها عبر أكثر من قرن مضى.

يسكن مبركز »قفط« ونواحيه عدة آالف مواطن وحوالي خمسمائة منهم يعملون باحلفائر، يتركوا بيوتهم وعائالتهم كل عام في بداية موسم احلفائر

اعلى - محمد عوض اهلل، صابر اخلم، أمين جمال عاملني بدفنات بعري أسوان )صورة من مشروع حفائر أسوان-كوم أمبو( الصفحة املقابلة من األعلى: الريس أمير، عبدالعزيز عبداهلل، فوزي علي، أحمد علي، عيد أبواحلمد، عطية ضبع، سلمان محمد، املرحوم احلج عوض اهلل أبو

زيد، دسوقي عباس، سعيد فكري )تصوير هاينر تالر ومنة اهلل الدري(.

10

واملهن التقليدية احلرف فيه تندثر عالم في نعيش املتوارثة، وهذا يرجع لرفض األبناء إتباع خطى آبائهم. وتشهد مصر، لألسف، حاليا إندثارا للعديد من املهن تورث. التزال اآلثاري احلفار مهنة أن إال املتوارثة، فمنذ أكثر من مائة عام إشتهر أهل مدينة »قفط« التي ما كل في مبهارتهم مصر بصعيد األقصر شمال تقع مصر أنحاء بجميع عملوا فقد األثرية باحلفائر يتعلق وعلى أهم املشاريع اآلثارية مثل مشروع إنقاذ آثار بالد

النوبة قبل غرقها عند بناء السد العالي.

تعلم القفاطوة »أو القفطيون« علم احلفائر من عالم املصريات فلندرز بتري الذي يعتبر األب الروحي لعلم العمل مبدينة »قفط« بتري بدأ املصرية. حفائراآلثار أثرية. معابد بقايا عدة عام 1883 حيث عمل على الطرق بنفسه ودربهم على أحدث بتري عماله إختار كل على وكافأهم آنذاك للحفائر والعملية العلمية قائمة أسعار محددة حتى بناء على إكتشاف وجدوه إلى مرافقته عماله بعض من بتري طلب يشجعهم. بتدريب ليقوموا مصر أنحاء بجميع املتعددة مواقعه اآلخرين واإلشراف عليهم وعلى األعمال اآلثارية. ومن هنا بدأ القفاطوة رحلة كشف األلغاز واألسرار، وعرفوا احلفائر مجال في أحد يضارعهم ال الفنيني كأحسن

والتنقيب عن اآلثار الدفينة.

إلى جانب بتري، عمل القفاطوة مع العديد من أشهر حسن سليم الدكتور املصري األثري مثل اآلثاريني القفاطوة تعلم جديد موقع كل ومع الهرم، مبنطقة طرق جديدة للحفر وإكتسبوا خبرات لم يبخلوا بها على أوالدهم وأقاربهم وبالتالي أصبح لهم خبرة واسعة بهذا املجال لدرجة أنهم دربوا أهل »القرنة« بالبرالغربي

باألقصر على أعمال احلفائر.

يعتبر عمل احلفائر بصفة عامة عمال شاقا ومرهقا، فريق أعضاء من عضو فكل التخصص على يعتمد إال غيره بعمل يتدخل وال عمله يعرف القفاطوة عمال وفريق منه. طلب إذا الرأي إبداء أو للتشجيع احلفائر من القفاطوة لديهم تسلسل وظيفي صارم يلتزم اجلميع به فينقسم هذا اجليش إلى كتيبتني يترأسها ريس الريس وحفيد األسبق الريس إبن يكون وهو العمال على يقع هوالكبير الريس املهنة؛ هذه تورث وهكذا كتفيه أعباء كثيرة، فهو مسئول عن إختيار من يرافقه عن و العمال، أو الفنيني من كانوا سواء »قفط« من تلقي املهام من مدير البعثة ثم يقوم بتوزيع املهام على املوقع، وهو مسئول عن تسكني فى والفنيني العمال القيام بتسجيل رجاله وجتهيز أماكن إعاشتهم، وطبعا

حضور العمال حتي يستلم العمال والفنيون أجورهم من البعثة اآلثارية.

يبدأ اجلميع العمل من أسفل التدرج الوظيفي، فالريس »أمير كامل صديق« وهو ريس العمال والفنيني العاملني بأسوان ضمن بعثات املعهدين األملاني والسويسري، بدأ العمل في الثانية عشرة من عمره حارسا على خيام أحد البعثات اآلثارية بالنوبة القدمية قبل بناء السد العالي وغرق النوبة ، ومن هنا تعلم مهنة احلفر ، ثم أعده والده الريس

األسبق كامل صديق رحمه اهلل ليقوم بأعمال الريس.

مشاغله بسبب بنفسه باحلفر الريس اليقوم غالبا ومسؤلياته الكثيرة ولكن بعشق احلفر في دمائهم احيانا ليعلم عامال راكعا احلفائر منطقة داخل الريس ترى األجيال اجلديدة كيفية وأصول العمل . بعد الريس يأتي متخصص فالفني اجليش، هذا قادة حقا وهم الفنييون برمال دفنات في احلفر كان سواء كان، أيا مجاله في مدينة وسط سكنية طبقات في أو الذهبية الصحراء يفصل ان باحلفائر املتخصص الفني فيستطيع صاخبة الطبقة سمك كان لو حتى التربة من وطبقة طبقة بني سنتيمترا واحدا. أما متخصصو ترميم الفخار ذوو الصبر وتصنيف تنظيف وجتميع على فيعملون املالحظة وقوة شقف الفخار األثري. ويتعامل من تدرب على املساحة مع أجهزة معقدة بسرعة ودقة، اما من تعلم على عمل برمية يعمل جاهدا ليخترق طبقات الزمن اجليولوجية ليكشف للعامل منطقة. ميكن التاريخي ألي التسلسل عن لنا أن يختار التخصص الذي يرغبه ، ولكن غالبا ال يكون القيام مبهمة معينة له الريس يسند بيده ، ألن االختيار إهتماما إذا أظهر التخصص وخاصة بهذا فيظل مستمرا بهذا التخصص أو أظهر موهبة به . أما من ال يقدر على األعمال الشاقة املرهقة سواء بسبب إصابة عمل أو بسبب حالة صحية ضعيفة، فيكلفه الريس بالعمل في مجال ال

يستدعي ارهاقا جسديا .

األثرية للمواقع بأبنائهم الكبار الفنيون يأتي غالبا إجبار، دون ولكن ليتوارثوها آبائهم من املهنة ليأخذوا بدء اجلميع على ولكن ، إختياره في حر إنسان فكل على يعمل من وهو كعامل، التدرج أسفل من العمل بالرمال الفنييون ميألها التي القفة« »أو الزمبيل حمل العمال ويعمل األرض من يستخرجوها التي واألتربة أيضا على غربلة هذه التربة أو الرمال ليجدوا فيها أصغر غسل فريق يكون العمال ضمن من اآلثارية. البقايا الفنيون وجتميعه بفرزه يقوم الذي الفخاري الشقف البعثة. أعضاء بدراسته ويقوم بالفخار املتخصصون يأتي الشباب للعمل اول مرة بعد إنتهائهم من دراستهم

9

الرجال أثناء العمل: الريس أمير يقف على كوم من ردمي احلفائر مشرفا على حفائر جزيرة إلفنتني بأسوان )تصوير هاينر تالر(.

8

بقلم منة اللة الدري

جيش الحفائر ... رجال قفط

9

الرجال أثناء العمل: الريس أمير يقف على كوم من ردمي احلفائر مشرفا على حفائر جزيرة إلفنتني بأسوان )تصوير هاينر تالر(.

8

بقلم منة اللة الدري

جيش الحفائر ... رجال قفط

7

عم فضل اهللا البواب!من بدا وإن خاليا القصر وبقى ١٩٠٦ سنة اإلسماعيلية عن مختار الغازى رحل األوراق أن احلكومة مهتمة برونقه وفخامته فتجد خطابا بشأن اختيار رئيس جناينية سراى

اإلسماعيلية فى ٢١ يونيو ١٩٠٨.

فى هذه احلقبة تتضارب الوثائق واملعلومات التى بني يدينا، فمن ناحية نقرأ فى مجلة بروجرية إيجيبسيان أن اخلديو عباس أعطاه لوزارة املالية فى فبراير ١٩٠٩ وذهبت مكاتب املالية إليه حيث مكثت ثالثة شهور تركته بعدها لتدهور حاله وقد رفض حسني رشدى باشا وزير املالية االستمرار به. وفى مارس ١٩٠٩ قرر اخلديو بيع أثاثه فى مزاد علنى بعد أن استبقى الثمني فى عابدين وأخلى القصر بالفعل وفى نوفمبر ١٩٠٩ أقيم املزاد وفى أوائل ١٩١٠ بدأ الهدم. من ناحية أخرى تنبئنا وثائق مجلس النظار أن القصر كاد أن يستضيف املندوب السامى البريطانى كما استضاف نظيره العثمانى فى نفس الوقت؛ إذ جتد فى وثائق مجلس النظار طلب إلعداد قصر اإلسماعيلية ليقيم به املندوب السامى البريطانى فى ١٠

سبتمبر ١٩٠٩.

تخيله على تساعدنا اإلسماعيلية لقصر صورة أبدا جند ال رمبا التأريخ، أمر غريب واستحضار تاريخه فى أذهاننا، وال نعرف حتديدا متى بنى وال كيف هدم، ولكن عريضة مقدمة لديوان اخلديو تنبئنا باسم البواب! ففى ١٤ مارس ١٨٩٩ يقدم عبد الكرمي فضل اهللا الذى كان بواب سراى اإلسماعيلية عريضة يطلب العفو عنه وتعيينه فى أى وظيفة،

ترى ملا فصل؟!

دائما يحزننى فى تأريخ القصور املندثرة مرحلة النهاية، فأشعر كأنى أكتب عن موت صديق عاشرته وقضيت معه وقتا ثم اختفى. لم تأت سنة ١٩١٣ إال والقصر قد دك واندثر عهد فى الديوان ملوظفى مقرا تستخدم كانت التى للسور املتاخمة املكاتب عدا فيما اخلديو فبقيت على حالها كما بقى السور نفسه ببوابته الكبيرة، وقد أمرا وزيرا الداخلية واملالية ببناء املزيد من املكاتب فى الفناء الستخدامها كمصالح حكومية، فانتقل مكتب «سراى املراسالت فى يسمى صار وقد ١٩١٧م سنة إليه احلكومة مطبوعات مراقبة

اإلسماعيلية القدمية»، سبحان اهللا من له الدوام!فى ٢٢ مارس ١٩٢٤ نقلت إليه مقر إدارة املرور وظلت بها حتى ٤ نوفمبر ١٩٣٦ حني نقلت إلى مقرها احلالى بالدراسة، ويكتب أحمد شفيق باشا سنة ١٩٣٤ أن القصر هدم التى بداخله واملبانى السور السور اخلارجى. وفى سنة ١٩٣٦ بدأ هدم إال يبق منه ولم التنظيم نشب فتوقف الهدم عدة سنوات، ولكن خالف بني مصلحة الدومني ومصلحة الكبير للقصر والسور وإن بقيت املكاتب ثم قامت احلرب الباب وفى سنة ١٩٣٨ هدم الثانية فاستولى اإلجنليز على ساحة القصر لقربه من قشالق قصر النيل حتى ١٩٤٦. وبعد احلرب عادت املصالح احلكومية إلى املكاتب املوجودة بالساحة حتى سنة ١٩٤٩ ورمبا من ذلك نشأت فكرة املجمع، وفى ذلك الوقت اقتطع جزء من احلديقة لتوسيع امليدان حني قرر امللك فاروق إقامة متثال جلده ونصبت لذلك املنصة اجلرانيتية البديعة التى اختفت فى

أواخر الثمانينيات من القرن العشرين.

كان إسماعيل باشا عاثر احلظ فى هذا املقام، لم يقم متثاله أبدا واملنصة نفسها تالشت ومن قبلها اندثر القصر الذى حمل اسمه وسقطت الالفتة التى تنسب امليدان إليه ولم يعد أحد يعرف أن وسط القاهرة اسمه اإلسماعيلية... أما حظنا نحن سكان قاهرة اليوم فكلما حاولت توصيفه يرد فى خاطرى أن من كل الذى كان، لم يبق لنا إال كيان أسمنتى مترهل،

عليه تراب وأمامه نفتالني!

٣

١-زهرة هامن، توفيت دون أن تعلم أن لها ضرة٢- األميرة جميلة بنت اخلديو إسماعيل، أول من زفت من قصر اإلسماعيلية

٣- الغازى أحمد مختار باشا، أطول من سكن القصر

مذكرات أمينة توجاى ص٢٨-٢٩. تقومي النيل ج٣ م٣ ص١٥٧٣.

.١٨٨٦ NewYork Times وقد ص٩٤٠، ج٣ م٢ باشا سامى أمني النيل. تقومي ورد التاريخ بالتقومي الهجرى ٦ جمادى اآلخر ١٢٨٨ هـ واستعنا بكتاب التوفيقات اإللهامية ص٦٤٤ لتحويله إلى

التقومي امليالدى.www.nationalarchives.gov.eg

تقومي النيل م٣ ج٣ ص١٣٨٥. على مبارك ج١ ص٢١٣.

شارع قصر العينى على مبارك ج٥ ص١١٣.

أمينة توجاى ص ١٣١. مذكرات أمينة توجاى ص١٣٠.

إلياس األيوبى ج٢ ص٥١٥. ديوان األهرام ج٢ ص١٢٤-١٢٥. ديوان األهرام ج٢ ص١٢٤-١٢٥.

سبتمبر ٢٨ عدد Egyptian Gazette pp٣ .١٨٨٦

ديوان األهرام ج٢ ص١٢٩.

تاريخ الوزارات – يونان لبيب ص٩٧. ديوان األهرام ج٢ ص٤٥.

e Graphic pp٣٧٩� عدد ١٤ أكتوبر ١٨٨٢. أحمد شفيق ج١ ص٢١٤-٢١٥.

األهرام ج٢ ص١٥١-١٥٣.www.nationalarchives.gov.eg

كتاب الشياكwww.nationalarchives.gov

مارس ٥ عدد Les Progress Egyptienne .١٩٠٩

فبراير ٢٠ عدد Les Progress Egyptienne ١٩١٠ ص٤

http://www.nationalarchives.gov http://www.nationalarchives.gov.

/egالدولة ملؤسسات التاريخية األصول احلديدى: فتحى

ص١٢٠. مذكرات أحمد شفيق ج١ ص٢٢.

املصور ١١ ديسمبر ١٩٣٦

املراجع:

6

وترسم أمينة توجاى صورة إنسانية رائعة للحياة فى سراى اإلسماعيلية فى أواخر القرن التاسع عشر وأوائل القرن العشرين حني كانت تقضى به أسبوعا كل عام حني تأتى إلى مصر فتزور جدها الذى سكن القصر كما سنروى، وحتكى كيف كانت وأشقائها يلعبون فى

احلديقة اجلميلة مع مربياتهم ويتجمعون فى املساء فى الصالون الكبير بالدور األرضى.

أول مكاملة!رمبا كان إسماعيل ينتوى إهداء اإلسماعيلية إلى مستولدته أو يستخدمها بنفسه، بيد أننا لم جند ما يشير إلى أنه حتى أقام بها منذ بنيت، بل جند كل الوثائق تشير إلى أنها كانت منذ نشأتها فى حوزة توفيق وهو ال يزال وليا للعهد. ورغم أننا لم جند فيما طالعنا ما يلقى الضوء على كيفية انتقال اإلسماعيلية إليه، إال أن الثابت فى كل املراجع أن توفيق رته باعتالء باشا كان يقطن اإلسماعيلية فى ٢٦ يونيو ١٨٧٩ حني استقبل البرقية التى بش

العرش.

فقد املعاصر، تاريخنا فى امللكية السرايات تاريخ فى فارقة عالمة يونيو ١٨٨٠ ١٦أصدر اخلديو توفيق فرمان بضمها جميعا إلى أمالك الدولة وأهمها عابدين واإلسماعيلية عابدين باشا توفيق اختار السرايات هذه كل بني ومن واجليزة، واجلزيرة العالى والقصر اخلاصة. إلقامته اإلسماعيلية اختار بينما السنية» و»املقابالت احلكم مهام فيه ليمارس وتقرأ فى صحف ذلك الوقت ما يفيد هذا، فقد نشرت «األهرام» فى ٣ مارس ١٨٨٣ أن اخلديو اعتكف فى سراى اإلسماعيلية إلصابته بزكام حاد وقد أدى صالة اجلمعة فيها، ولعل املقصود أنه أداها فى جامع الشيخ العبيط الذى ذكرناه، وبعد أيام ذكرت «األهرام»

أنه لم يبارح اإلسماعيلية بسبب العواصف والغبار مما يشير إلى كونها محل إقامته.

عابدين سرايتى بني مصر فى تليفونى خط أول تركيب مت ١٨٨٢ سنة أكتوبر وفى واإلسماعيلية وحتدث اخلديو من عابدين مع زوجته األميرة أمينة إلهامى فى اإلسماعيلية

أول مكاملة هاتفية، ترى فيما حتدثا!

احتفال حزين!بنى اخلديو إسماعيل القصر ونسبه إليه، لكن صيته قد عال وبزغ ضوءه فى عهد ابنه اخلديو توفيق، ولنبدأ باملناسبات العائلية، جتد وصفا طريفا فى «األهرام» الستقبال توفيق إلى سراى باشا ألخويه اللذين كانا قد صحبا أباهما ملنفاه ثم عادا إلى مصر «وسارا توا

اإلسماعيلية فاستقبلهما اجلناب العالى وأمر أن يذبح أمام القصر فحالن من اجلاموس»!

ومن بوابة قصر اإلسماعيلية الكبيرة خرج فى مطلع سنة ١٨٨١ موكب زفاف أخت اخلديو األميرة جميلة فاضلة إلى سراى اجلزيرة وقد زينت السرايتان وأضيئ الطريق بينهما بألوان بديعة، وقد استمر اإلسماعيلية يشهد العديد من هذه املناسبات، وكانت العادة قد جرت على االحتفال بانتقال اخلديو واحلكومة رسميا إلى مقرها الصيفى باإلسكندرية، فيزدان الطريق من سراى اإلسماعيلية إلى محطة القطار ويصطف املصريون ملشاهدة املوكب

أو «التيمن بالطالع التوفيقى» على وصف األهرام!

وتستشف من أوراق ذلك العهد أن اخلديو توفيق كان شديد امليل اإلسماعيلية فتصف إلى الليل عاد اخلديو بعدها انتهى بعد منتصف أقامه فى عابدين الصحف حفال كبيرا للتشريفات مكاتب إقامة إلى به حدا قد آنذاك بها باإلقامة شغفه ولعل اإلسماعيلية، بعض فى بالقصر واملسئولني الوزراء مقابلة له ليتسنى احلديقة لسور متاخمة والياوران األحيان. من ذلك مقابلته التاريخية ألعضاء مجلس شورى النواب يوم ٢ فبراير ١٨٨٢ حني توجهوا إليه مطالبني باستقالة وزارة شريف باشا فى سياق ما يعرف فى التاريخ بأزمة حق النظر فى امليزانية. وفى ٩ يناير ١٨٨٤ استقبل اخلديو فى القصر شريف باشا ليقدم استقالته املشهورة احتجاجا على االنسحاب من السودان، الذى وصفه آنذاك بأنه ألزم ملصر

من اإلسكندرية!

٢٥ يوم العاصمة إلى توفيق اخلديو ويعود العرابية الثورة اإلجنليزى اجليش ويخمد سبتمبر ١٨٨٢ فيسير فى موكب حافل يحرسه فرسان جيش االحتالل من باب احلديد إلى سراى اجلزيرة، بينما توجهت أسرته إلى اإلسماعيلية مباشرة، واألغلب أن اخلديو عاد بعد انتهاء هذا االحتفال الكئيب بقدوم االحتالل إلى اإلسماعيلية؛ إذ يروى شفيق باشا إلى سراى اجلزيرة ولم يفته أن يذكر أن «األلم التالى متوجها اليوم أنه ركب موكبا فى كان باديا على وجه سموه رغم كل هاته احلفاوة من رجوعه عاصمة ملكه فى ظل الرماح

البريطانية»!

الوكالة اإلمبراطورية!األفق بدا فى فى سنة ١٨٨٥، بعد ثالث سنوات من احتالل اإلجنليز ملصر، وحتديدا البريطانى، فقد توترت العالقات بني إجنلترا وروسيا توترا بارقة أمل فى انسحاب اجليش شديدا أمسى ينذر بنشوب حرب بينهما فأرادت لندن حتسني عالقاتها مع الباب العالى التى كانت تعانى من ضربة قاصمة لها بسبب احتالل مصر، كذلك رأت لندن ضرورة إزالة التوتر القائم لنفس السبب مع حكومة فرنسا، وبالفعل بدأ اتصال بني لندن واسطنبول أسفر عن إيفاد األخيرة مبعوثا رفيع املستوى لتنظيم «اجنالء اإلجنليز» عن مصر فاختارت

لهذه املهمة ضابط ذو رتبة رفيعة فى اجليش العثمانى اسمه الغازى أحمد مختار باشا.

أن متوقعا كان التى باشا الغازى إقامة مقر عن البحث فى املصرية احلكومة وبدأت تستمر عدة أشهر، ورشحت عدة بيوت وقصور حتى فاجأ اخلديو توفيق اجلميع فى نوفمبر ١٨٨٥ بإصدار أمر بإعداد مقر إقامته الشخصى نزال للغازى باشا. ومنذ ذلك التاريخ انتقل ويزداد .١٨٨٥ ديسمبر ٢٧ فى مرة ألول دخله الذى باشا الغازى حلوزة اإلسماعيلية بهاء القصر ورونقه مع ساكنه اجلديد وتقرأ أوراق عن ترميم فسقية احلديقة مبعرفة نظارة

األشغال العمومية طوال خمسة أشهر من سنة ١٨٨٦م.

كانت حديقة القصر تصل إلى النيل حني بنى وفى سنة ١٨٩٨ اقتطع اجلزء الغربى منها حيث بنت األميرة نعمت اهللا بنت اخلديو توفيق قصرها اجلميل الذى صار فيما بعد مقرا

لوزارة اخلارجية وبعد احلرب فتح شارع اإلسماعيلية الذى كان يفصل بني القصرين.باشا فشلت فشال ذريعا؛ ولم يجل اإلجنليز عن مصر الغازى ونعلم جميعا أن مهمة وامتدت مصر فى السلطان مندوب إلى حتول الغازى دور ولكن آخرين! عاما لسبعني إلى اسطنبول فقد استمر فى وظيفته حتى إقامته بها حتى سنة ١٩٠٦، ورغم عودته أصبح رئيس البرملان العثمانى سنة ١٩٠٨ ثم صدر أعظم سنة ١٩١٢. املهم هنا أنه قطن اإلسماعيلية إحدى وعشرين سنة متصلة وبذا يكون أطول من استخدمها وقد صار اسمها

فى عهده الوكالة اإلمبراطورية العثمانية!

١٢

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بسحب رجاله وإخالء القصر فى الوقت الذى هرع فيه السفير البريطانى سير هنرى دراموند عائدا إلى القاهرة ليقف على األمر ويحتويه!

تلك لقطات سريعة من أهم ما شهد قصر اإلسماعيلية من أحداث وأكثرها إثارة فى وكشف لها التأريخ حيث من احلقبة تلك قصور أصعب من واحد القصير، تاريخه لم اليقني. الترجيح واستحالة له بني صعوبة تتأرجح وأنت تؤرخ أسرارها. قصر غامض أعثر له على صورة واحدة على كثرة ما قرأت وبحثت، بل لم أجد حتى ما يقطع بتاريخ

بنائه ناهيك عن مالكه وسكانه!

متى؟!حني عاد اخلديو إسماعيل إلى باريس سنة 1867 بعد غياب قرابة العشرين عاما بهره ما حققته املدينة من تقدم وازدهار، ورآها قد أضحت أنيقة منمقة بارعة التنظيم، فصمم على أن ينقل إلى القاهرة بعضا مما جذبه وأبهره. هكذا ولد حى اإلسماعيلية، أو ما يطلق عليه القاهريون اآلن وسط البلد. وعلى مشارف احلى الذى بناه قرر اخلديو أن يشيد قصرا

جديدا ينتسب إليه فكان قصر اإلسماعيلية!

أمامى وثيقة حتمل أمرا من اخلديو إسماعيل إلى رياض باشا فى 8 أغسطس 1869 ببناء قصر باسم »اإلسماعيلية«، ويبدو أن أمورا قد أعاقت تنفيذه سنوات، إذ جند أمرا خديويا آخر بكتابة األرض التى سيبنى عليها القصر باسم أوجنجى قادين أو زوجته الثالثة جشم القصر أبعاد حتدد ألنها أوال كبيرة أهمية لها والوثيقة أغسطس 1871، 23 فى آفت وموقعه بدقة؛ حده البحرى »طريق كوبرى قصر النيل والقبلى حديقة أخينا املرحوم أحمد باشا والشرقى طريق الشيخ يوسف والغربى البحر األعظم«. ولنطبق هذا على واقع القاهرة اليوم – بحلوها القليل ومرها الكثير- يكون القصر من شارع القصر العينى إلى حافة النيل ومن الشارع املؤدى إلى كوبرى قصر النيل حتى فندق شبرد ووزارة الصناعة. النقطة الثانية أنها تؤرخ ولو بشكل تقريبى قرار اخلديو بناء قصر اإلسماعيلية، ثالثا تروى لنا الوثيقة أن

خديوينا كان ينوى إهداء القصر إلى زوجته الثالثة وسنرى أن نيته قد تغيرت فيما بعد.

حتفظ 1873 ويوليو مايو بني وفيما إلى اخلديو من مكاتبات الوثائق لنا إجنازه مت مبا امتنانه يبلغه اجلهادية ناظر اإلسماعيلية قصرى فى أعمال من وعابدين، ومن جملة هذه الوثائق يسوغ اإلسماعيلية قصر بناء أن استنتاج لنا بدأ سنة 1871 وانتهى حوالى 1874، ويعزز هذا االعتقاد أن القصر لم يأت له السويس قناة افتتاح احتفاالت فى ذكر أفراح فى وال 1869 سنة األسطورية الوقائع أن على ،1873 سنة األجنال بتاريخ الصادر املصرية تروى فى عددها ازدان قد القصر أن 1876 سبتمبر 3مبناسبة اخلديوية السرايات من غيره مع العرش، مما السلطان عبد احلميد اعتالء موجودا كان اإلسماعيلية بأن يقطع

ومسكونا فى ذلك التاريخ.

الشقيقتان Augusto جاء أوجوستو شيزارىCezare إلى مصر فى ديسمبر 1873 اإليطالية Ancona أنكونا بلدة من

مسقط رأسه، مهندس شاب له تسعة وعشرين عاما من العمر ليبنى مستقبال مهنيا ناجحا فى واحدة من أكثر بالد العالم منوا ونشاطا فى ذلك الوقت، ولم ميض غير شهرين حتى الكبير فى شبرا. باشا إليه ترميم وإصالح قصر محمد على كان اسمه قد عرف وأسند مهام اخلديوية الدائرة مهندسى كبير باشا روسو إليه فأسند وبرع الرجل الصيت وذاع التصميمات اجلديدة لقصر اجليزة واحملكمة املختلطة باإلسكندرية ومتحف بوالق وأخيرا

تصميم وبناء قصر اإلسماعيلية الصغير.

فالصغير، أو »سراى اإلسماعيلية الصغرى« كما أسموها؛ جاء ألن إسماعيل باشا كان ينوى بناء سراى أخرى كان سيطلق عليها »سراى اإلسماعيلية الكبرى«، يخبرنا على باشا مبارك أن ما أنفق على جدرانها فقط كان 38820 جنيه قبل أن تداهم مصر وخديويها التى اضطرته إلى إيقاف العمل بها ولم يقدر لها أن تتم أبدا حتى هدمت املالية األزمة اآلخرى هى هدمت حتى اإلسماعيلية باسم »الصغرى« صاحبتنا واستأثرت جدرانها التحرير وتالشى ذكر إسماعيل إلى ميدان بامليدان بضع سنني حتى تغير فتشبث االسم

من قلب قاهرته!

أشيخ وعبيط؟!بنائه وقت حدوده عرفنا وقد اإلسماعيلية، قصر عنوان هو العتيقة مصر شارع 42وكانت بوابته الرئيسية تطل على شارع قصر العينى، وعلى هذه البوابة لقى شريف باشا اخلديو توفيق خارجا فى عجالة حني وصلته برقية توليه كما روينا فتوجها معا إلى عابدين. كانت تلك البوابة تتوسط سور كبير مستدير يصل حتى امليدان احلالى ومالصق للسور من الداخل مكاتب إدارية تستخدم للمقابالت وأعمال موظفى الديوان اخلديوى، أما احلديقة فقد اشتهرت بالنخل وأشجار املوز وقد ضمت فى ركنها اجلنوبى الغربى جامع العبيط وبه ضريح الشيخ العبيط وقد بقى زمنا بعد هدم القصر حتى حل محله اآلن جامع الشيخ عمر مكرم، وقد أخبرنا على باشا مبارك أن شعائر اجلامع كانت مقامة من وقف القصر وإن لم املتناقضة؛ السمات امتزجت فى شخصيته تلك يذكر من هو صاحب اجلامع وال كيف

فجمع بني عالمات وقار ومهابة أكسبته لقب شيخ وأخرى جعلت منه عبيطا!

هو فقط واحد مبنى كان القصر مبقياس كبير مبنى يكن ولم احلرملك ينوى كان صاحبه ألن رمبا عصره، على سلم إليه تصعد أكبر، بأخ إحلاقه له الفاخر األبيض بالرخام كسى فخم حتى منتصفه فى يندمجان مطلعان الرخام تراس كبير من نفس إلى يفضى يشرف على احلديقة. وقد تأثث القصر به كان ما وأهم األوروبى الطراز على منضدة تتوسطها كبيرة طعام غرفة

مستديرة.

هذا لقصرنا الرئيسى العيان وشاهد اخلديو حفيدة توجاى هامن أمينة هو نعمت األميرة كرميته من إسماعيل املمتعة مذكراتها فى تروى التى مختار كانت الصغرى اإلسماعيلية سراى أن نشئه مستولدته إلى اخلديو من هدية دل جدة أمينة هامن، بينما ضمت الدولة أن بيد أمالكها. إلى الكبرى السراى الوثائق ال تعزز هذا، فالثابت أن السراى

الكبرى لم تكتمل أبدا. اخلديو توفيق اتخذ من اإلسماعيلية مقرا للسكنى له وألسرته

4

وأكثر ذلك من وأعجب محروقة( )غالبا ملبات حرميى، شرابات كبريت، نفتالني، تنوعا تتعثر فيها وأنت حتاول اجتيازها متحسسا طريق وعر بني نقر الرصيف وزحام املارة فقير بهو إلى تدخل النهاية فى األحذية. ماسحى ومطاردات اجلائلني الباعة وصيحات اإلضاءة واملساحة معا لتبحث عن سلم تقعرت درجاته املتهالكة التى لم تالمسها مكنسة

منذ عقود.

قلت ملرافقى »تعرف إن مكان املبنى ده كان فى قصر«، رد بابتسامة باهتة معناها »وده وقت ذكريات«، وجذبنى من ذراعى بشدة حتى أتفادى صداما داميا مع صينية مزدحمة بأكواب الشاى األسود يتمايل بها عابثا صبى جتاوز العاشرة بالكاد، ثم أردف متجاهال ما

قلت »نطلع بسرعة أحسن املوظف يزوغ ويبقى مشوارنا على الفاضى«.

قفزت صاعدا ألحلق صاحبى فوجدت بابني متالصقني يؤديان لنفس الردهة كتب على أحدهما »دخول« واآلخر »خروج« وقد أوقفوا عسكرى على باب اخلروج ليمنع الداخلني على واستمر باشا«. يا التانى »الباب للسيدات متكرر حتى آلى بشكل يرددها بعبارة هذا النسق حتى جاء رجل ضخم اجلثة شديد التجهم ودخل منه زاجرا العسكرى الغلبان

بالعبارة السحرية »شرطة«!

هكذا دخلنا ذلك املبنى الكئيب املتضخم الذى كلما مررت بجانبه جثم على صدرى قبح تصميمه وتراخى أبعاده وغبار جوانبه؛ ذلك الذى نسميه »مجمع التحرير«، نحن

سكان مدينة أصبح يروق لى أن أسميها »قاهرة املستفز«!

أم بدرالكريستال الثريات من املنبعث ضوء وتكسر النادر األملاس تألق النساء صدور على املائدة حول جميعا التفوا وقد أقرانهن صدور على الرفيعة النياشني ملعان فزاد الفخمة الفخمة التى أعدها صاحب القصر فى إحدى ليالى سنة 1901 ملناسبة لم يشأ أن يعلن وقف الشهية املتعددة بأصنافه الفاخر بالعشاء املدعوون استمتع أن وبعد مسبقا. عنها

مضيفهم ورفع كأسه معلنا »سيداتى سادتى، أدعوكم لشرب نخب ابنى«!

يكن فلم قنبلة؛ القاعة فى ألقى الذى وكأن األلسنة وجتمدت األنفاس احتبست املجتمع يعرف أن الغازى أحمد مختار باشا قد قرر أن يتخذ له محظية غير زوجته زهرة هامن، ولكن الزوج الذى قضى حياته مخلصا فى زمن كان تعدد الزوجات فيه أمرا اعتياديا قد تاقت نفسه لولد فاتخذ من جارية شركسية جميلة لها شعر ذهبى وعينان زرقاوتان مستولدة أجنبت له »بدر الدين«. ولم يشأ الزوج وال أحد من أهل القصر أن يجرح زهرة بأربع بعدها رحلت حتى النبأ عنها فكتموا بصرها، وذهب وقد شحبت صحتها هامن

سنوات دون أن تعرف ما لم تكن لتسر به!

دراما الصوجلان

كلما قرأت عن وقائع الفترة ما بني 26 و29 يونيو من سنة 1879 سرح خاطرى فيما

شهدته من أحداث درامية وما حوته من مشاعر متضاربة وأحاسيس متباينة. أن يرث ابن أباه فأمر طبيعى جترى به سنة احلياة، والتاريخ روى قصصا كثيرة عن خطط إسماعيل باشا بالذات وما بذل من جهد ومال حلصر إرث العرش فى ذريته دون باقى أفراد األسرة وكيف

حمل السلطان على إصدار فرمان بذلك ليظفر ابنه األكبر توفيق بالعرش.

ولكن أن يأتى اإلرث واألب حيا وأن يكون قسرا وجبرا يرغم األب عليه فيقصى بقوة السالح عن عرش استمات فى االحتفاظ به لذريته فأمر يفجر زخم من الدراما املثيرة. ترى مباذا شعر وما الذى جال بخاطره وحمله وجدانه وهو يرى عرشه وجاهه ينزع عنه ثم يوضع على صدر ابنه ؛ حزن وغم وقهر على ما ذهب عنه من سلطة وسلطان، غيرة وحسد أحرقاه وقد حملت له الرياح أصوات مدافع البشرى من القلعة إلى عابدين، فرح وبشر أن خطته

فى توريث ابنه قد أفلحت... أم لعلها كانت مزيجا من كل هذا!

الباب من برقية عابدين فى األب إلى وصلت 1879 يونيو 26 اخلميس يوم صباح »خديو إلى موجهة برقية اإلسماعيلية فى االبن وإلى السابق« »اخلديو معنونة العالى إلى اإلسماعيلية ليصحب الوزراء آنذاك من عابدين مصر«، ويتوجه شريف باشا رئيس واستقبال اليمني القلعة ألداء إلى يتوجهان ثم باشا إسماعيل ليلقى باشا توفيق محمد

وفود املهنئني.

وفى مشهد مؤثر يتوجه اخلديو الراحل فى منتصف اخلامسة من عصر يوم اجلمعة طاويا صدره على أحاسيسه، على فيضها وتناقضها، لتهنئة اخلديو اجلديد بعرش أتاه دون سعى أو اجتهاد. وفوق رخام سلم فخم له مطلعان يهبط االبن ليستقبل أباه فى حديقة القصر.

وتتصافح يدان، من واحدة انتزع الصوجلان عنوة ليودع فى راحة األخرى صدفة!

معركة فى قصرتسمر املارة وال ريب - على قلتهم فى شوارع قاهرة القرن التاسع عشر - حني رأوا هذا املشهد الغريب صباح االثنني 27 سبتمبر 1886. مسيو الفيسون Lavison كان روسى اجلنسية ينتمى إلى عائلة يهودية استوطنت مصر ثم حتولت إلى املسيحية وظلت بها حتى منتصف القرن العشرين، رمبا كان آخر من عرف منها آنئذ الكونتيسة الفيسون. مسيو العرش أن أقصى عن بعد له حتى املخلصني الفيسون كان أحد رجال اخلديو إسماعيل وذهب عنه السلطان. وفى ذلك الصباح املثير، قام الرجل على رأس قوة من الرجال األلبان املسلحني وساروا فى شوارع القاهرة على هيئة جيش صغير حتى بلغوا قصر اإلسماعيلية

فحاصروه احتلوه!

لم يكن األمر بسيطا، فالقصر كما ستعرف كان مقر ممثل السلطان العثمانى ومحاصرته بواسطة رجال مسلحني فى قلب القاهرة وعلى مرمى حجر من السفارة البريطانية ليست مسألة هينة. والبد أن اخلديو توفيق قد شعر بحرج، فاملسألة من تدبير أبيه الذى كان يريد احلرج هذا كان ورمبا ابنه. الذى صادره القصر مبلكية دعواه على سماع احملكمة إرغام السبب وراء غياب اخلديو عن اخلبر، فالذى تدخل كان القنصل الروسى الذى أمر الفيسون

بحث للمهندس / عمرو سميح طلعت