Bulletin Full Issue 198 - American Research Center in Egypt

Transcription

bulletin
of the American
Research Center
in Egypt
Number 198 –
Spring 2011
Unrest and Revolution:
A View from Midan
Simon Bolivar
Kathleen Scott
February 1, 2011 Simon Bolivar Square taken from inside of the ARCE offices. Photo: Kathleen Scott with design assistance
from Gustavo Camps
The January 25th Revolution, as it is now being
called, began with what to the outside world
seemed like an innocuous enough holiday
honoring the police. Police Day was a newly
instituted public holiday meant to celebrate
the national police force. However, deeply
held anger and fear of the police in Egypt,
heightened by recently publicized cases of
police brutality and the horrific bombing of
a Coptic church in Alexandria, was further
fomented by the example of revolution in
Tunisia. That first day of protest on January 25
grew into 17 days of unrest that eventually led
to Hosni Mubarak’s removal and the Egyptian
army’s (hopefully) temporary take over of the
government.
For the record, here is a snapshot in
time - a diary I kept as a 3rd floor observer
in our apartment just above the ARCE
offices on Midan Simon Bolivar, near
Tahrir Square, for one week during the
unrest in Cairo:
10:45am No cell service now either and so
we must communicate by our land line.
Cairo, Friday January 28, 2011
1:10pm Black-helmeted, gun and shield
carrying riot police are now positioned 2-3
deep across the street leading from Midan
Simon Bolivar to Tahrir Square.
Steady light traffic continues on our
street, more foot traffic than normal, but
no real crowds are forming here.
9:30am We have awakened to no Internet,
but we still have cell phone service.
We have confirmed that the Internet is
off throughout Egypt. After Tuesday’s
protests, there have been calls for mass
demonstrations today after Friday prayers.
Clearly, the government is preparing for
something big.
1pm We have had heard no call to prayer
from Omar Makram mosque which is a
sign that something must be happening.
continued on page 3
Bulletin of the American
Research Center in Egypt
Director
Gerry D. Scott, III
from t he director
Editor
Kathleen S. Scott
Dear ARCE Members,
Design
Fatiha Bouzidi
As I am sure all ARCE Bulletin readers will know, Egypt recently
experienced an extraordinary event, a revolution. Long-time Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak was forced to resign, as were his top, key
political appointees. There was considerable change in Egypt. And,
yet, after the unsettled times of initial change, some things returned,
more or less as they had been.
What will happen next? Where is Egypt going? It is impossible
to tell, and no one knows. That’s the thing about transitions; they
evolve. And, while we can’t predict just how things will unfold in
Egypt, we can share with you some ARCE observations of the events
that surrounded Egypt’s “January Revolution.”
This issue of the Bulletin features observations on the historic
times by ARCE Bulletin editor Kathleen Scott, ARCE Academic Programs
Coordinator Djodi Deitsch, and ARCE Librarian Charles Van Siclen.
However, despite the Egyptian revolution, most of ARCE’s activities, I
Color separations and printing by
PressWorks, Columbus, Ohio
The opinions expressed herein
are those of the authors and not
necessarily those of the American
Research Center in Egypt, Inc., its
member institutions, or its sources
of support.
The Bulletin is published by the
American Research Center in Egypt
2 Midan Simón Bolívar
Garden City, Cairo,

11461 Egypt
tel: 20 2 2794 8239
fax: 20 2 2795 3052
email: [email protected]
website: www.arce.org
am happy to report, continued much as they had before, and this issue
of the Bulletin also reflects that fact. Joan Knudsen writes about an
exhibition of ancient Egyptian art and artifacts at Berkeley, supported
in part by ARCE’s Antiquities Endowment Fund (AEF). Also supported
with a grant from the AEF is the remarkable work surrounding the
possible tomb of St. Shenoute at Sohag. In addition, ARCE Fellow
Sara Nimis shares her research on mysticism and education in 18th
century Egypt.
Rounding out this issue of the Bulletin is a brief report on ARCE’s
nd
62 Annual Meeting in Chicago. It enjoyed record attendance! And,
finally, we list those ARCE Members and organizations that have
generously contributed to ARCE’s endowment campaign. If you have
not yet joined in, please take a moment to do so. Your support is
essential! Thank you.
Gerry D. Scott, III
Director
US Business Office:
ARCE
8700 Crownhill Blvd., Suite 507
San Antonio, TX 78209
tel: 210 821 7000
fax: 210 821 7007
email: [email protected]
© American Research Center in
Egypt, Inc. and the contributors.
No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or otherwise
without advance written permission of
the copyright owner.
View from the Director's window on March 10, 2011. Photo: Jane Smythe
In this issue
unrest and revolution
Unrest and Revolution: A View from Midan Simon Bolivar
Friday, February 4, 2011
More Than Interesting Times
Egypt in Transition
fellowship report
1
16
18
23
Enchained Hadith: Mysticism and Higher Education
in Eighteenth Century Egypt
40
arce annual meeting
The Windy City Hosts ARCE’s 62nd Annual Meeting
42
around arce and egypt
45
the arce endowment campaign
46
antiquities endowment fund grants
The Conservator’s Art: Preserving Egypt’s Past
24
“The Tomb of St. Shenoute? More Results from the White Monastery
(Dayr Anba Shenouda), Sohag”
31
ARCE Bulletin Number 198 – Spring 2011
unrest and revolut ion
continued from page 1
Kathleen Scott is the
Director of Publications
for ARCE and is married
to ARCE Director Gerry
Scott.
2pm I watch as one of the security men begins
passing out hospital style face masks to plain clothes
police on the street below and they have put them over
their noses and mouths.
3pm Things are heating up. Kasr al Nil bridge (the
one with the large lion sculptures) is full of people –
protesters; riot police can be seen meeting them and
teargas is being fired. Land line telephones are our
only form of communication and we call ARCE US
employees Rachel Mauldin and Kathann el Amin (who
are here visiting from San Antonio and staying in the
ARCE apartment in Maadi) to check on them. We
receive calls from various staff members checking on us.
Anna (my daughter) called from Edinburgh to
keep me updated on the news on the Internet and
to relay news reports she is reading that say the area
around US Embassy (just behind ARCE’s building) is a
no-go area and no one is being allowed to be on street
here. We don’t doubt that as we see no one but riot
police and plain clothed police on the street wearing
masks against tear gas in the air.
3:25pm (photo 2) Riot police have been deployed across
the street between Semiramis and Shepherds Hotels
facing Nile. Kasr al Nil Bridge is full of riot police who
are pushing back the crowd of protesters with tear gas
and water canons toward Zamalek. Clearly the object is
to prevent protesters from reaching Tahrir Square.
3:30pm John Shearman (ARCE’s Luxor project
director) called to say crowds are being met with
tear gas in Luxor – he can see the groups fighting by
looking down the Ave. of Sphinxes.
5pm Kasr al Nil bridge is a battle zone. I watch with
binoculars from our window. It is covered with riot
police shooting tear gas toward crowds at Zamalek
end of bridge. Large objects (metal looking things)
are being thrown off bridge by police. Armored tank
like vehicles can be seen on bridge as well as police
armored vehicles. Shots can be heard being fired
frequently.
2
5:30pm The tide has turned and the crowds can be
seen surging across the bridge now and police are in
a running retreat. Moving now toward Tahrir Square,
the crowd has completely beaten back the police.
5:40pm Crowds are now streaming onto our street
near the bridge, a few riot police are now manning a
barricade across the street by the US embassy but not
nearly enough to stop the crowd if it wants to go there.
6pm-1am (Photo 3) This has been a very chaotic
few hours. Crowds have poured onto the streets
around here. All security forces have disappeared
from our square and apparently from around the
embassy. Crowds of mostly young men with rocks,
chunks of concrete, iron bars pried out of the ground
(sign posts, etc), roamed freely and continuous
3
3
4
5
4
artillery fire from Kasr el Eini or Tahrir was heard
coming quite close at times, though, we never saw
any police on our street. Groups of mostly young men
would run up and down the street toward Kasr el
Eini throwing stones and, sometimes, crude Molotov
cocktails, flaming rags or other burning material at
police who were just out of our line of sight. Several
times the street just below us was set aflame. At
times the mob surged down the street in front of the
embassy completely unchallenged. Fires could be
seen burning (probably police vehicles) around the
large mosque (Omar Makram) and near the Mogama
(govt) building. Smoke was thick in the area. A tire
was set on fire in the middle of our midan and youths
milled around throwing rocks at street lights and
signs. An abandoned car was pushed around and the
youths appeared to be trying to siphon petrol to use
for fire starters. We were feeling very afraid at this
point as these people seemed to have no objective
but vandalism. At times some of the youth ran into
our building probably seeking a place to hide. No one
came to our door, fortunately. At times the artillery
fire (not sure what if anything was being fired – just
loud percussion noises) outside was so loud and the
sound of live fire from automatic weapons so close
that Gerry and I sat in our little entrance parlor by the
front door, as it was the farthest away from windows
and we knew we could hear if anyone came up the
stairs to try to find entry to the offices or apartments.
This has been one of the most disturbing and
unpleasant experiences of my life. (Photo 4)
1:30am About eight black clad riot police (– wearing
full riot gear and firing live ammunition we think)
finally appeared from Kasr el Eini and chased the
remaining crowd out of the square near our building.
They were clearly firing live rounds of some sort
since each time they pointed and shot at the crowd of
young men, the men would scatter and run. However,
we never saw anyone actually being wounded.
After about ½ hour these riot police were followed
by 10-15 Egyptian army soldiers with automatic
weapons who positioned themselves outside of our
building and across the two streets leading to the
embassy. No doubt the US Embassy wasn’t happy
about being abandoned by all security forces and
these soldiers have been sent to re-secure this area.
These soldiers were very much in control (although
I never observed them firing on anyone) and were
not challenged by the straggling youths who were
fleeing the still active battle apparently continuing on
Kasr el Eini and Tahrir Square. The soldiers calmly
ordered the youths to leave the street. One young
officer, probably a lieutenant, seems to be in charge
and is very reassuring to us in his efficiency. I’ve never
been so glad to see soldiers or to be so close to the US
Embassy! (Photo 5)
3am Two large and impressive army tanks appeared in
our square and fire trucks arrived in our area and then
moved toward the Mogama presumably to put out fires
we can still see burning from here.
3:15am We went to bed as the street was relatively
quiet and we were exhausted.
Cairo, Saturday January 29, 2011
8:15am The street is quiet with some foot traffic
and a few busses seen. Army soldiers still positioned
outside of the streets leading to the embassy. Some
soldiers are in front of our building digging the sand
in our little street garden to fill sandbags which
they are piling up in front of the iron barricades
and concertina wire that they placed in front of the
embassy streets. Still no internet or cell phones.
Soldiers have machine guns perched atop the sand
bags and are letting no one go down the embassy
street on the Nile side of our building.
9am Slipped quietly out of our apartment to check
that door to ARCE offices is still locked. All looks
untouched.
10:30am Cell phones came back on. Reda (ARCE’s
receptionist) called - she was very worried about us.
She is fine and we told her not to come into work
tomorrow unless we call and tell her to. Cell service to
others on different networks sporadic. No internet.
5
u n rest and re volut ion
6
7
12:45pm It is interesting watching as more and more
people emerge onto the street. Most look like sleepers
awakening from a strange dream and not sure of where
they are as they survey the trash and broken bits and
pieces of signs, concrete, etc that litter the midan. Saw
some very American looking security (Embassy) men
walking around surveying the state of things in this
immediate area around the embassy. There is a fire
burning somewhere near the Egyptian Museum and
we see a column of smoke rising in that direction.
The TV news reports it is the National Democratic
Headquarters building. (Photo 7)
8
12:20pm Still no Internet. Otherwise quiet and very
light traffic. Semiramis has boarded up its street level
windows and doors. No sign of traffic/tourist police
anywhere on our midan. A group of police in black
wearing green armbands walked toward the Nile earlier
but we don’t see them anymore. A lone male dog is
trotting around the midan in broad daylight which
is most unusual as they normally only come out in
the predawn hours when people are absent. The shop
owner below us is evacuating his inventory and loading
it onto small trucks. (Photo 6)
6
1-2pm We went down one flight of stairs to the ARCE
offices to more thoroughly check on things there. All is
untouched and while there we went out on the EAC side
balcony which overlooks the Nile side embassy road and
watched as 3 more very imposing Egyptian army tanks
arrived and positioned themselves in the entrances to
the two streets bordering the embassy. The third tank
presumably went round to secure the entrance to the
street leading to the British embassy. Several other army
all terrain vehicles, carrying about a dozen soldiers each,
arrived soon after and took up defensive positions around
the midan and on the side of the Semiramis hotel.
2pm New groups of protesters have now been spotted
crossing the Kasr al Nil Bridge headed for Tahrir. Here
we go again….I have to say after last night’s lawlessness
and vandalism, it is somewhat comforting to have a
large tank with its gun pointed away from us stationed
just outside of our apartment window. (Photo 8)
3:30pm Quiet here, but news reports on TV say up to
50,000 gathering in Tahrir and we are 30 minutes from a
new curfew (4pm to 8am) and we shall see what happens
then. There are no police anywhere and the army is the
sole control. So far they are not making any move to
hinder protesters who are moving about peacefully at this
time. People wave and cheer the army personnel.
7pm Still quiet on Midan Simon Bolivar. We are
hearing very disturbing news that in the wealthy
suburbs, criminals are breaking into homes and in one
case in Maadi, they have broken into police stations
and have stolen weapons to use against homeowners.
Many homeowners are forming security groups to try
and protect their streets. There is no sign of police or
army in these areas. We are concerned for Rachel and
Kathann who are in the Maadi apartment but so far
they report no problems, although they did hear some
gunfire in the area last night. We have suggested that
they might want to come stay with us as we feel the area
near the embassy is pretty secure, but they have decided
to remain where they are.
11pm We spent a pleasant evening after dinner sitting
out on our living room balcony. The street was deserted
save for the soldiers protecting the embassy. Without
auto traffic and industry working, it was pleasantly clear
and quiet outside. Going to bed now.
Cairo, Sunday January 30, 2011
7:30am This is the beginning of the work week but the
streets are basically deserted. Very light traffic so far
as the curfew will be lifted in ½ hour from now. The
atmosphere is amazingly clear and you can hear doves/
pigeons cooing. This is a sound one cannot normally
hear above the usual din of traffic and other city noise.
Rather eerie. Still no Internet. The ARCE offices will
remain closed and people have been notified to stay
safely at home for the time being.
8am The news is becoming increasingly worrisome as
to the lawlessness going on around us. I am listening
to Aljazeera news and citizens are calling in reporting
roving cars with men shooting at people on the street
who are just going about their daily activities. Young
men are trying to band together in many areas just to
protect their homes from violence and looting. The army
isn’t actively policing at all. Banks are closed and so ATM
machines are running out of money in many places. The
infrastructure of the country is very precarious right
now. The defense dept of Egypt made an announcement
on tv asking for young people to band together to help
them to protect against looters and violent thugs. Major
businessmen are reported to have left or are trying to
leave the country. Thousands of people are reportedly
stranded at the airport. Prison guards are apparently
abandoning their posts and so prisoners are leaving
jails all over Egypt. There are now helicopters frequently
flying over head presumably circling Tahrir Square or us
here near the two largest embassies.
9am Gerry is on the phone constantly receiving reports
and finding out the status of employees, fellows, and
expeditions. So far, everyone seems safe, but many are
deciding whether or not to continue to stay here.
10:45am Army has now blocked off the street leading
up to Tahrir Square which had previously been open. I
observed a group of tourists (probably UK or USA and
mostly elderly people) with their Egyptian tour guide
trying to get somewhere on foot – maybe one of the
embassies, but being denied access by army. They then
began walking back up toward Nile – maybe entrance
to Semiramis Hotel – and on the way stopped a local
bicycle-peddling bread seller carrying a large basket of
aeesh baladi (flat bread) on his head. They all bought
bread from him. Not a sight usually seen. I wonder if
hotel restaurants have much food left. (Photo 9)
7
Cairo, Monday January 31, 2011
8:45am Overnight more tanks arrived on our midan.
There is no vehicular traffic at all but still a steady
pedestrian presence. We were awakened by more
low-flying helicopters. Rachel and Kathann spent last
night with Djodi Deutsch (ARCE’s Academic Programs
coordinator) in another part of Maadi since there was
too much gunfire around them in the ARCE Maadi
apartment. They have called to tell us that they are
heading to the airport. Djodi has heard from a Fellow
(and source of the information was unclear) that
the US is apparently instructing Americans to go to
terminal 4 and charter flights will begin to evacuate
them. They are advised to bring food and water with
them as no one knows how long it will take to get
out. They will be flown to either Istanbul, Athens, or
Cyprus and then are on their own.
9
3pm Day uneventful (in the new norm) but steady
streams of people are passing by coming from Kasr el
Eini and being directed to walk down to overpass to
get to Tahrir where they clearly are going to join the
protests. Army still preventing anyone from turning
down the street, which leads in front of Mogama
bldg. or from going toward the US embassy. Andrew
(Bednarski) just called from Paris to say he has
received an email from the US embassy stating that
all US citizens should leave Egypt as soon as they can
safely do so. We want to stay here if we can and Gerry
must see that fellows and expeditions are gotten out if
they want to leave.
4-11pm We were treated to an impromptu air show for
a few hours. Large army helicopters and, for about an
hour, 2 Egyptian Air Force fighter jets flew menacingly
low over Tahrir Square created a horrific noise.
Reportedly this only made the crowds in the square
cheer. Evening continued otherwise peacefully with
a steady stream of pedestrians going back and forth
across our midan. (Photo 10)
8
9:30am Today, Gerry must make sure the numerous
passports sitting in Mme. Amira’s office awaiting
extended visas for expedition members are transferred
to expedition members as they make their way to Cairo
to retrieve them. He will also make calls to all these
expeditions to advise them to leave Egypt. Sadly, various
callers have reported rumors that there has been some
looting of ancient sites throughout Egypt. We have no
way of confirming that, however.
10:40am Not much to report. Supposedly, traffic
police are being redeployed around the city, but I have
yet to see anything here. I guess we wouldn’t since
no traffic is allowed this close to Tahrir. The news
continues to depress – long bread lines are being
reported in some neighborhoods. Much of the food
supply to Cairo is government run and so one assumes
nothing is getting in to restock stores or restaurants.
Resentment of foreigners is reported by Al Jazeera to
be increasing, but who knows? One thing conspicuous
by its absence is the blaring call to prayer we usually
hear from the very imposing Omar Makram mosque
a block away. It seems to have been closed down
since before Friday prayers. Apart from the military
helicopters which occasionally circle overhead, the
overall silence of Cairo is so very strange.
10
2pm (Photos 11 & 12) Today a “general strike” has
been called for, whatever that really means, since
nothing is open or working anyway. We have seen
a very steady, sometimes heavy flow of pedestrians
streaming their way past us headed for Tahrir.
Some are organized into groups with banners and
chanting slogans in Arabic, but which don’t really
need translation. They just all want Mubarak gone
and they want it today. In addition to the new tanks,
a large flatbed semi is delivering concrete barriers
to our midan. We shall see where they are placed.
The people, at the moment, seem to still feel that the
soldiers are either neutral or that they are on their
side… but today and tonight may well be the tipping
point one way or the other. For my part, I would love
to see Mr. Mubarak gone and some resolution begin
to take shape. The longer this goes on the more the
sentiment seems to be turning against the US. The
demonstrators, we are being told by networks like
CNN, are becoming convinced that the US is against
their demands and is keeping Mubarak in place. With
no Internet, people are feeding on the latest rumors
and that seems to be the latest and strongest one.
Cairo is also no longer silent. The giant helicopter
is making a tight circle low over the square and the
noise is very wearring – the intent, no doubt. There is
a much greater sense of energy with this crowd today
and the numbers keep on growing. Wow the helicopter
is so close you can hear the squeal of its rotor blades.
And still the people keep coming – these are from
all strata of society, youth, families, elderly walking
with canes, niqabed, hijabed and bareheaded women,
business suits, galabeyas, high fashion, westerners,
journalists with cameras and tri-pods, lots and lots of
people. The young men I am seeing are no longer the
complacent, tea-drinking young men who spend their
days in street cafes.
4pm Crowds have dwindled a bit on their way to the
square, although we still see the occasional chanting
group with banners and signs moving by. Some sort
of group is chanting just beyond the tanks between
the Mosque and Mogama bldg. which is the closest we
have seen the organized protests to our square. Now
we are told that tomorrow is another general strike and
10am will be the magic moment. They are calling for
a million people. The big news is coming from Gerry’s
assistant Jane Smythe who is married to an Egyptian
and is watching coverage on Egyptian state TV. It is
reported that Zahi Hawass has just been named as
Minister of Antiquities. This would mean that a whole
new Ministry has been created. Up till now the Ministry
9
sort of individual but you could watch him and sense
his tension and fatigue. Would the army be called upon
to fire on the people?
11:30pm As I watched the soldiers there was a real
transformation in their body language. Our lieutenant
seemed more relaxed, I saw one soldier actually
do a little dance step as he stood on the street. The
commanding officer was talking with a group of young
men in a very friendly and casual manner. As I made
one last check of the news on TV before bed, the head of
the army was on the air on State TV announcing that the
army was going to enforce order, but they would not fire
on their own people. This was a significant statement
and I think may account for the lightheartedness of our
soldiers on the street. The soldiers have also organized
the cleaning up of the midan. An incredible amount of
debis and trash has remained on the street since Friday
night’s riots and now it is all being cleared and neatly
piled up near one of the tanks.
11
12
of Culture oversaw the Supreme Council of Antiquities
(SCA), which Zahi headed up.
6-9pm The midan is quiet and people continue to
move about on foot going to or coming back from
Tahrir. The helicopter continues to annoy us and
everyone near downtown.
10:30pm We sat out on our balcony and I was
watching the soldiers outside of our building. I feel
like I’ve come to know a few of them after 4 days of
observing their activities and watching them interact
with the people. One young lieutenant - he was the
officer clearly in charge when they first arrived to our
great relief in the early hours of Saturday morning continues to perform his duties with a great deal of
dignity but also kindness to the people he encounters.
He has also been very determined and a no-nonsense
10
Rachel called to say she and Kathann have finally
made it to an evacuation flight at the Cairo airport.
They are being sent to Athens from where they will
be on their own to find their way back home. They
also were required to sign a form stating that they will
reimburse the US State Dept for their travel expenses,
although no figure was mentioned. They have been on
the phone with a travel agent in the US trying to get
hotel reservations in Athens since they will arrive there
sometime in the wee hours of the morning.
Cairo, Tuesday February 1, 2011
8:30am The day has begun with calls from various
people in the field discussing plans to either stay and
continue their work or prepare to make their way to the
nearest airport. Still no Internet.
Ray Johnson in Luxor called to tell Gerry that he has
been contacted by a US Embassy staff person who has
arrived in Luxor from the US Embassy in Sudan. He
is there to assist those Americans stranded in Upper
Egypt and is arranging charter flights from there,
but said he is available to answer questions from any
13
Americans in Egypt. Though only steps away from us
physically, the Cairo embassy seems mostly out of touch
with anyone as far as we can tell.
9:50–10:45am Today at 10am will be the beginning
of the “Million-strong” march across Cairo and all of
Egypt according to the TV news. Once again people
are walking past us toward Tahrir. The soldiers seem
more alert and on guard. The noises coming from
Tahrir are punctuated with loud voices, obviously using
microphones, speaking to the crowd and repeating
slogans. There is a louder general roar coming from
there and the momentum seems to be building.
Jane Smythe (Gerry’s assistant at ARCE) and her
husband Ahmed, who is a professor of botany, came by
to check on us and stayed for tea. Ahmed told us of the
really frightening evenings he has been spending with
men from his neighborhood defending their homes
–they live on the outskirts of Maadi. Last night they
were told that a police van had been stolen by escaped
prisoners and was roaming the neighborhood with
weapons. So far they have been safe but you can hear
the worry in his voice.
12:30pm The streams of people are constant and
increasing. Egyptian flags are being carried and worn.
Many, many are coming up to soldiers and shaking
hands, many are handing soldiers food, candy, and
other gifts which the soldiers were trying to refuse at
first, but now most have given up and are accepting
the tokens. Al Jazeera reports that there may well be
a million people in the area – it is packed to the very
edges of the square from what the cameras are showing.
1:45pm The people are streaming to and from the
square freely now, being allowed to come and go by way
of the street that was previously blocked by the army.
The soldiers appear to only be preventing people from
going near the embassy now. Gerry has talked with our
contact at USAID, Sylvia, and she says they are working
to reconstruct an old- fashioned telephone tree so
communication will be improved.
3-10pm Very festive atmosphere here now. You would
think families and youths were coming and going to
an amusement park or concert. They stop to have their
photos taken in front of the tanks. The roar of the
crowd covering Tahrir is constant now. (Photo 13)
11
14
Cairo, Wednesday February 2, 2011
1:20am Couldn’t sleep, so I was watching TV and the
street. Mubarak has announced he will stand down in
the September elections and not run for president again,
but he also states that “he will die on Egyptian soil”.
Pres. Obama made a statement as well encouraging Mr
Mubarak to make change happen “now”. The soldiers are
now searching each person who comes down the street
headed for Tahrir.
9am The check points are still up on anyone entering
the Midan on their way to Tahrir today. Everyone
is being asked to show IDs, open their packages or
handbags, and men are being frisked. Cars (very few)
are being completely searched.
10-11am We have had a few visitors – Jere Bacharach
and Barbara Fudge who kindly brought fresh fruit
to us and, Michael and Angela Jones who have been
walking around the area taking photos.
11:20am I have witnessed several angry encounters
between small groups of men and the soldiers. I am not
sure what the issues are, but tempers seem to be much
more on edge today.
12
12-2pm Increasing numbers of what seem to be
“Pro-Mubarak” demonstrators are coming through
the check point from Kasr al Eini. Large groups (all
men) sometimes overwhelm the soldiers who are
trying to check for ID’s and weapons. I am seeing fewer
and fewer young people and families on the street.
The men who are streaming in are serious looking
and fairly well organized. At one point I saw several
of these men chasing after a young teenage girl who
had said something to them. She was presumably an
anti-government protester. Another man came to her
assistance and there was much shouting for a few
minutes. The crowd of men gradually ceased going on
down the street in the usual manner toward Tahrir,
but stayed in our midan and formed a barrier across
the street so that anyone leaving Tahrir by way of the
street in front of Omar Makram mosque would be
stopped. This human barricade was sometimes 10 deep.
I suspect these are pro-government “thugs” trying to
intimidate protesters. (Photo 14)
3-5pm A group of protesters returning from Tahrir
by way of the bridge end of the street confronted the
men in our midan and the two groups were shouting
and shoving. At this point the tanks turned on their
smoke making engines and filled the midan with smoke
15
to disperse the crowd. The soldiers seemed to regain
control but the men still standing across the street did
not leave and they appear more and more to be plain
clothes police or other recruited “thugs”. They have
totally enveloped the soldiers who were standing across
the street leading to Tahrir and I think the soldiers are
feeling threatened. (Photo 15)
6-8pm The young lieutenant has placed his soldiers
away from the crowd of men, facing them on our side of
the midan in a picket formation with one soldier on the
ground manning a machine gun aimed at the men. This
told us what he felt about the men, but unfortunately,
the men now number about 400 and could overwhelm
the soldiers. Shots rang out very nearby from
somewhere down the street. Chuck Van Siclen, ARCE’s
librarian, who had just arrived at ARCE from Luxor, was
visiting us and we all retreated to our safe room near
the front door and away from the windows. We turned
out all lights as well and just sat quietly with flashlights.
I feel very uneasy about this turn of events. (Photo 16)
8:15pm As Gerry looked out a window he saw a
general or some high ranking soldier and others come
through the midan and they must have ordered our
lieutenant to dismantle his troop formation because
shortly thereafter the machine gun moved back to
the sandbagged entrance to the embassy road and the
soldiers scattered around the midan. We were sorry
to see this. Gunfire can be heard quite frequently,
though, not as close as earlier. The news reports that
the pro-Mubarak forces are fighting the remaining
anti- government demonstrators in fierce battles near
the Cairo Museum. The pro-Mubarak forces seem fairly
well supplied with guns and Molotov cocktails from
what we can hear and see on TV. They are also on top
of buildings throwing objects onto the protesters below.
9-10pm Gradually, the numbers of men in our midan
began to decrease to about 200 and things quieted a
bit. In cover of darkness, we sat out on our balcony to
observe the men briefly, but we didn’t want to attract
attention to ourselves in any way. This has been a very
difficult day and the ominous looking crowd of all men
was a huge change from the optimistic mix of protesters
who had been coming and going through our midan
over the last two days. I feel very sad for the people of
Egypt today. Gerry and I discuss getting out of Egypt. It
seems the best thing to do now.
Cairo, Thursday February 3, 2011
5am Couldn’t sleep and so got up to watch Al Jazeera
news. The street is now deserted; I cannot even see
the soldiers who I assume are behind the barricades
leading to the embassy. The news is grim. The fighting
has continued all night and there are a number of
dead protesters and many, many injured. The army
13
16
has remained neutral in the fighting it seems. There
is still a small but determined group of protesters on
Tahrir Square and the predictions are that more will
soon be coming to reinforce the two sides. We had
our daughter Anna call American Airlines to rebook
us on a flight to London. We really hadn’t made up
our minds to actually get on the flight out of here
until last night in light of the grim realities of the
escalating violence.
8am I am packing a small suitcase and computer bag
and preparing the apartment for our departure. We
have decided to take a hotel room near the airport.
We are very grateful to Mary Sakek (ARCE’s Public
Programs Coordinator) for working out our hotel
reservations. She is most concerned for our safety and
wants us out of the downtown as soon as possible. I
must leave my two cats and this is tearing at my heart,
not knowing how long until someone will be able to
come to check on them. Normally, we have several
people who visit them and feed them when we are
not in Egypt and they have assured me that they will
come as soon as the area is safe – perhaps 3 or 4 days.
I have placed out clean litter along with several full
bowls of food and have filled large cooking pots of
water for the cats.
14
Outside the midan is quiet with only a few pedestrians.
The soldiers are checking everyone who walks by. The
atmosphere is very tense.
10:30am Our driver, Aboud, has called to say
he is waiting for us at the checkpoint just off the
Cornishe on the street that leads to the US and British
Embassies behind our building. Chuck Van Siclen is
also leaving with us and we make our way down to
the garage with our suitcases. The building’s boab
(doorman) takes our suitcases for us up the driveway
ramp onto the street and we follow him past the US
Embassy. The soldiers don’t stop us or really even
look at us. There are what appear to be several forlorn
looking Americans and a few Egyptians waiting
outside the Embassy hoping for assistance or visas I
would suspect. We find the car and it is so good to see
Aboud and know we will soon be out of downtown
and away from the fighting.
11am Our trip starts out with us moving up the Cornishe
against the one-way flow of traffic making our way to
the Kasr al Nil Bridge. We try to turn right but we are
turned back and must cross the bridge. There are many
burned out cars along our way and the traffic is even
more chaotic than normal. (Photo 17) Across the bridge,
17
18
we travel through Zamalik (the island neighborhood of
Cairo) and then end up on the 6th of October Bridge –
the very place where most of the fighting was centered the
night before on the side near the Museum. Aboud locks
our car doors, the first time he has ever done this in our 8
years of driving with him. We proceed slowly over the Nile
and then past the burned out National Democratic Party
building (Photo 18) and the Cairo Museum. Many men
are lined up along the bridge watching as cars pass by and
I suspect they are the pro-Mubarak troops. Fortunately we
are not stopped and we slowly make our way out of the
downtown. There is evidence of other building fires and
destroyed cars along the way.
12noon We have arrived in the airport vicinity and find
our hotel for the night and after a thorough search of our
car trunk we are allowed to enter the gates of the hotel.
We are so very grateful to Aboud for his driving skills
in getting us out of the dangerous area of town and we
bid a sad good-bye to him and wish him well. We check
in and get settled in our room. The Internet appears to
have been restored now and I am finally able to get some
emails out. It is a relief to be away from the center of
town and we settle in for a relatively quiet evening.
Cairo, February 4, 2011
7am We take the hotel shuttle bus to the airport. The
airport is crowded but not as bad as we feared. British Air
personnel are clearly trying to assist foreigners and we
are able to check in within about an hour of our arrival at
the airport. Our flight departs at 11am and as we take off
for London, I feel so sad that we must leave under these
circumstances and worry for our friends and colleagues
who are staying behind. We fly to the US on Feb. 5.
Addendum: On February 23, Gerry left the US to
return to Cairo where things had settled into a relative
calm again.
15
Friday, February 4, 2011
Djodi Deutsch
Ms. Deustch is the
Academic Programs
Coordinator for ARCE in
Cairo.
16
My husband Adly went to pray at Al Azhar mosque
this morning but did not reach it and stopped to
pray at another smaller mosque in the area. He said
you could see how tense the situation was. People
were not talking to each other a lot in the mosque
because they are still afraid of the government's
secret police. Despite the fact that the police security
presence is absolutely minimum, there is still a lack
of trust between the people, security and the police.
In fact, check points around Khan el Khalili all the
way to Tahrir were controlled by the neighborhood
committees. Suspicion is focused on taxis and small
trucks and mini buses because that is where the
majority of the pro-Mubarak thugs came in from to
make all the violence earlier in the week.
On the street the word was that not only were the
thugs police officers in plain clothes and uniforms but
mentally challenged people were used to throw rocks
too. Also, some companies told their people they had
to go out to demonstrate for Mubarak if they wanted
to collect their salaries the next day. Other companies
had contracted people temporarily and said that if
they got rid of the protesters in Tahrir they would have
their contracts converted into permanent contracts. It
was said that this included some national utilities, who
coerced some of their employees who went to collect
their salaries at the end of January and were told “you
take your salary and go to Ramses Square and you
support the government because you are government
employees.” They gave them banners. They were called
pro-regime but in fact they were forced to go there.
He walked to Tahrir and stopping to talk to a
Lieutenant Colonel in the police and asked him, “What
kind of orders do you have?” He responded he “was
ordered to keep in certain positions, we are not numerous
and should not engage in any hostility”. He also said, “no
one knows what to expect or how it will end, except that
the police force will need 6-9 months to rebuild and go
back to their stations once they are renovated (so many
were destroyed).” Adly asked, “Why did you leave the
streets after Jan 28?” He replied that “no one knows and
most of us, the lower ranking officers, found that our
superiors were not answering their calls, and it seemed
like those in charge deserted their positions. The lines
at the Central Police were jammed so those of us at the
street level just went into hiding.”
“What about the equipment and guns that were
stolen?” Adly asked. “We think we have collected half
of it with the help of the population, but the rest went
to Upper Egypt and it will not come back. We all know
that Upper Egypt is always armed from Giza to Aswan,
and that is where the weapons went. The focus for the
underground arms market is Minya, Assiut, and Qena.”
He also said, “the injustice within the police was huge
between a general who might collect a million LE
($250,000) and a captain who can't even make LE1500
month ($300). So you can not ask the lower ranking
police to have loyalty to those people - the higher
ranking officers.”
Adly also met with people who said everyone is
ready to rebuild the country including the police
stations and contributing what ever they can in money
and time to rebuild, but as for rebuilding the human
resources for the police, we need a police for the people
and not against the people. At the checkpoints into
Tahrir, all ID cards were being checked but there was
no “baksheesh” to be paid - a bribe. Normally when
police stop you, you have to pay a bribe.
Small businesses were open. Shops for juice, bread,
etc. were open and mechanics and spare parts shops
were open. He did not see any organized food supply,
people were leaving Tahrir going and buying their food
and drinks and then returning to the center. Lots of
koushary was being eaten.
Tahrir was self-organized, peaceful. The
loudspeakers were being manned by artists, musicians,
Tahrir Square during
protests
Photo: Djodi Deutsch
and very few religious figures can be heard. Adly did
not see any one group dominant. There were poor
people, like the women who sell small tissue packets on
the street. One said for the past 10 years she had been
selling these and she is hoping for a better life. Another
poor woman said, [Mubarak] had enough for 10-15
years, why didn't Mubarak go earlier while people could
still appreciate what he did?
Going through the barricades was like entering a
festival. Continuous movement in and out. Passive
army, a few tanks around. The anti-Mubarak people
were really checking the ID, picture, profession, the
bags people carried not to let in anything that looked
like a weapon. Then suddenly someone screamed,
and made room for the internal security (the young
people) to come quickly and discovered that someone
with a stone - a thug- he had hit someone on the head
and wounded him - he had infiltrated the group. The
guy who was hit was an organizer, and it seems like
there are some infiltrators who can pinpoint some of
the leaders of the group.
The pro-democracy people were calling now for
the capture of the heads of the Mubarak regime and
all their cronies who occupied higher offices from
ministries to governors and asking for them to be
judged for their crimes including corruption and
embezzlement and enriching their own coffers for the
last 30 years. People want to know what has happened
to Egypt's wealth. So the call is for Mubarak to go and
to bring his henchmen to court. Everyone wants an orderly judgment using the rule
of law with our judiciary system and they want them
to play their role. He did not witness anyone in there
calling for any sort of extremism at all. None. People
regretted that their call for reform was late, because
they wanted to be a part of the Lotus Revolution and
wanted a peaceful operation.
Also in the square he saw people using a human
chain to bring the medical supplies to the make-shift
medical centers.
He felt the people were determined to continue until
Mubarak was gone and a series of reforms are instated.
Also a guarantee from the international community
and the new regime that they will not be harmed and
they will have the right to go and express themselves
peacefully. n
17
More Than Interesting Times
Charles Van Siclen
Charles Van Siclen is ARCE
Librarian
18
I returned to Cairo on 1 January 2011 after having
spent the Christmas holidays with my family in
Texas. While this period is normally a fairly cheerful
time of year in Egypt, the New Year’s Eve massacre of
Christians in Alexandria had a sobering effect on the
country as a whole. I spent a week in Cairo arranging
affairs at the American Research Center in Egypt
(ARCE) Library where I work and live. The ARCE
premises and my residence in Cairo are located about a
block southwest of Tahrir Square which I can see from
my bedroom window. On 8 January I headed upriver
to Luxor for the start of my planned study season at
Karnak Temple. This part of the season was to last
four weeks and I would be returning to Cairo each
weekend to check on the library and take an injection
for my arthritis. At first the Karnak season and trips
to Cairo went on normally, and the weather in Luxor
was mild, low 40s during the night and 60s or better
during the day. I saw friends and colleagues there and
my work went along well. With mobile phone, Internet
connections and satellite TV in my hotel room, I noted
the protests in Tunisia but all this seemed far removed
from Egypt and especially from Luxor.
Tuesday, 25 January. Police Day had become an
Egyptian national holiday in 2010. I recall in earlier
years that there had been festivities celebrating the
police and fire services on this date, but this official
holiday was something new (as far as I know). Over
recent years, the presence of the Egyptian police in all
their forms had become increasingly evident even to a
foreigner like me, and the police were not liked by the
local populace. Not being an Egyptian, however, I was
generally left alone. For me in Luxor, 25 January 2011
was a normal working day. In Cairo, the ARCE offices
were closed and the “fun” was about to begin.
Wednesday, 26 January. This was still another
working day for me at Karnak. My boss Gerry Scott
and his wife Kathleen had arrived in Cairo the previous
weekend, and they lived in the same building wherein
were the ARCE offices and my digs. They would
keep me informed about local developments around
ARCE. The overnight events in Tahrir Square prompted
the closing of the ARCE office for this day—many staff
just couldn’t get to the office—and the situation was
uncertain. I was kept abreast of events by telephone
and I was told that ARCE was to reopen the next day.
Thursday, 27 January. As scheduled, I flew down to
Cairo for the weekend. The plane was on time and my
driver Aboud was waiting for me. On my way in from
the airport to downtown, I stopped off in the Zamalek
neighborhood (on an island across from downtown)
to order books for the library at a French bookstore
and to pay some bills there. I also stopped at my local
supermarket (to buy groceries for my more extended
stay in Cairo planned for early February), and I picked
up some fast food at Hardee’s for lunch. Everything
was routine. Once in my office, I took care of any
pressing business and worked using the Internet. Since
I was to return to Luxor the next evening, there was
some discussion as to when I should leave. Larger
demonstrations were planned for the next day after
Friday noon prayers. I had intended to leave the office at
about 4:30 in the afternoon for my evening flight at 7pm,
but everyone thought I should leave earlier. I arranged
for Aboud to pick me up the next day at about 11 am,
before the noon prayers
Friday, 28 January. The morning call to prayer from
a nearby mosque went off at about 5:15 am, but I was
already up, being on dig time. I dressed, had breakfast,
packed, and then went over to my office only to find
that the Internet had been blocked, and not much later
in the day mobile phones in Cairo stopped working as
well. Land telephone lines still worked, but that was
about it. I went back to my room and watched events
in the neighboring square on satellite TV. Around 11:15
Aboud drove me to a restaurant in the suburb of Maadi
(home to many foreigners) where I had a leisurely
meal, and after the noon prayer and having looked
Chuck Van Siclen at his
excavation in Karnak Temple.
Photo: Kathleen Scott
unsuccessfully for a special camera battery, I drove out
to the airport via the ring road. Whatever may have
been happening downtown, away from there Cairo was
quiet. I got to the airport at 2pm but I couldn’t actually
check in for another hour and a half. I was really early
for my 7pm flight. (Without a cell phone, I could not
change my pick-up time in Luxor and thus it made no
sense to try to get an earlier flight out of Cairo.) The
business class lounge at the airport wasn’t very full,
and the TV had on the al-Jazeera TV network’s Arabic
service showing the unfolding events in downtown
Cairo. I heard some mention of events in Luxor as well,
but I didn’t understand enough Arabic to know what
had happened there. The lounge attendant told the
various foreigners going to Luxor that everything was
okay. On schedule, my plane loaded and I flew to Luxor
where my taxi driver Saady was waiting to take me into
town. Curiously, the mobile phones were working here
and I even could call to land lines in Cairo.
The first part of the 5 mile ride from Luxor airport
into town seemed normal enough, but as we got to the
bridge over the railroad tracks leading into the town
proper, Saady told me that it had just been reopened,
and there was visible evidence of a riot having
occurred. Stones lay scattered on the road, broken
windows could be seen in the Luxor Heritage Center
and Mubarak library, street lights were out, and a goodly
number of riot police with helmets, shields and sticks
were visible dozing against the fences on either side of
the road. Saady told me that the house of the muchdisliked governor of Luxor had been attacked. The roads
were now quiet, most shops were shuttered, and some
lines of police could be seen near the Luxor city hall. I
arrived at my hotel and got to my room without incident.
Saturday, 29 January. I have been working in Luxor
for many years, so in general I feel pretty safe there. (I
was there during both Gulf Wars and after the massacre
of tourists in the 1990s.) Since I had TV in my room,
I knew about unfolding events in Cairo and mobile
phones continued to work in Luxor so I could call
to land lines in Cairo and get updates from my boss
Gerry. Having checked with some colleagues about
working conditions in Luxor on this day, I decided not
to go to work at Karnak. Later, while walking around
the south part of town near my hotel, I ran into some
other colleagues and we spent a couple hours chatting
19
about Egyptology. At this point, the first traces of the
Egyptian army started to appear in Luxor. A three-day
Egyptological conference had been planned for Luxor
starting this evening, but it was called off, apparently to
the chagrin of some of the participants!
In circumstances of civil unrest, there is always a
question of what to do. I had an airplane ticket to go
to Cairo on 2 February and another for travel to the US
departing Cairo early on 7 February. At this point I was
reluctant to change my plans.
Sunday, 30 January. While early morning TV was
showing chaos in Cairo the previous day, the first hint
I got of possible trouble in Luxor was when I went
to the hotel dining room and I noticed a fire hose
extending from the kitchen area out through the dining
room to the lobby. I naively thought that perhaps
they were using it to clean the front steps. Saady
arrived at 7:30 am as usual and I went to Karnak. The
only strange thing was that there were NO POLICE
at all. Three Egyptian army soldiers stood guard in
front of the Winter Palace Hotel. For me, it was a
regular workday looking at pottery. On the return
to my hotel, I noticed some stores and restaurants
open and a big sign in Arabic and English: Welcome
to Luxor—Safe. In general, the tourists still in place
were finishing their holidays and getting out but new
tourists were not arriving—an economic disaster
for Luxor. Egyptological expeditions, especially with
students, were trying to figure out what to do: stay or
go. If the latter, should one leave directly from Luxor to
some other country or go via Cairo—and it wasn’t clear
if there even were planes to Cairo.
Monday, 31 January. At my hotel, I noticed that
potted plants to discourage looters now mostly blocked
the front steps, and the good furniture in the lobby was
being put away. Again, I treated this day as a regular
workday, except that I kept calling Cairo to find out
what might be happening there. It was reported to me
that during the night, four or five men tried to break
into Karnak but they had been stopped by locals and
the antiquities guards. I also started to see people with
heavy staves in hand to use to defend their property
against looters. The regular Egyptian army was
now more in evidence with soldiers at Karnak and a
couple of tanks around town. That night, I had dinner
20
with a colleague and members of her dig team at a
neighboring hotel. While the banks (since the previous
Friday) were closed and one could not change dollars
into Egyptian pounds, some ATMs were still working
and you could charge a fine Japanese meal on a credit
card. At this point I had been offered a ticket on an
Easyjet flight direct from Luxor to Gatwick outside
London, but I did not have to make a final decision
until the next morning. Since the next day was to
be my last in Luxor for a while, my main concern
was finding enough Egyptian money to pay off my
workmen and other expenses.
Tuesday 1 February. At the hotel, the large screen
TV on the wall had shrunk to an old table model. This
was the last day of work, and I again started to see a few
policemen visible in Luxor and at Karnak, along with
the army. One of my workmen told me that he and
his neighbors had slept in shifts so as to guard against
looters during the previous night. The close down of
this part of the study season was routine, except that
payday for the men included both Egyptian pounds
and dollars (which they could convert later when banks
reopened). After getting some confirmation that there
still were Egyptair flights from Luxor to Cairo, I decided
to go north and not to leave the country directly from
Luxor. Gerry and Kathleen had remained in the building
that housed ARCE, and that building and the square on
which it stood were now guarded by army troops and
five tanks. (The building itself shares a city block with
the US Embassy, and it seemed to me unlikely that it
would come under attack.) While I usually traveled with
passport and money on my person, I never thought to
bring my house and car keys with me—they were in
Cairo along with my medicine. Thus it made sense to go
to Cairo and leave Egypt from there as scheduled.
That evening I discovered that my boss and his wife
were possibly leaving on 4 February, depending on how
things continued in Cairo. At the same time I got a call
from Cairo from my nephew Karam Saleem, my niece
Sarah’s Egyptian-American husband, who advised that
I should go back to the US; Karam was leaving Cairo on
3 February. Since I did not really want to be left alone
in downtown Cairo—okay, I’m a bit of a coward—with
the assistance of Sarah I changed my departure date to
4 February as well. Now all I had to do was collect a fax
confirming my new flight and get to Cairo. That last
evening in Luxor was a little unnerving, since I heard
unsettling loud noises on the main street in front of my
hotel after Mubarak said he would not step down, and
gun shots off in the distance.
Wednesday, 2 February. At 7:30 Saady arrived to take
me to the airport. On the way, I stopped at the Winter
Palace Hotel and collected the fax confirming my new
flight out of Egypt and I dropped off a suitcase with
expedition equipment at ARCE’s Luxor office. I arrived
at Luxor International Airport at about 8am and joined
the queue to go through the first security check after
which one has access to the check-in counters. It was
a long three and a half hours before the line started to
move, but a nice young Egyptian lady gave up her seat for
me (I walk with a cane and standing is difficult). Once
through first security, I went to the check-in counter
to get a boarding pass, only to be told “No plane! No
plane!” Ultimately, thanks to the assistance of a young
couple I met while in the security line, I did get on
the first plane out, around 2 pm. The flight itself was
uneventful and Aboud was waiting with the car at the
Cairo airport to take me downtown to ARCE.
Although it was a regular working day, I had
noticed from the airplane that the streets of Cairo were
practically empty, and so it seemed likely that Aboud
and I would get downtown well before the 4pm curfew
(which was often not observed in any case). The
drive into town at first went smoothly. We passed the
presidential palace without incident, and there was only
a very small pro-Mubarak demonstration near the fair
grounds, but we were able to dive around it. The elevated
road into downtown was pretty empty, but as we neared
Ramses Square near the train station, another small
demonstration (using a car this time) had blocked our
passage onward, and we were forced to exit onto surface
roads. We basically continued on these streets under the
elevated highway. I could just see the Ramses Hilton off
in the distance at the north end of the demonstration
area by the Nile, when we saw a large group of
demonstrators coming toward us. Aboud turned the car
left and left again, but now we were heading away from
the Nile on a street with other protestors going in the
same direction we needed to go. We had no choice but to
slowly edge past them but we were not bothered.
Having passed this demonstration, Aboud turned the
car right onto another road which should have taken us
south of the city center. I noted that we passed the site
of the old Shepheard’s Hotel which had been destroyed
during the anti-foreign riots in Cairo in 1952. Our passage
came to a halt at a one-way street and so we went to
the right again, only to come upon another group of
demonstrators heading our way. Taking some small
streets, we completed a small rectangle and ended up
back at the one-way street. Since it was empty, we took it
the wrong way. Most of the downtown streets were fairly
empty, and we ended up in smaller neighborhoods south
of downtown that were now guarded by local vigilante
committees. We slowly worked our way back towards
the Nile and south of Tahrir Square. I finally recognized
where we were, as we drove past the Egyptian parliament
building. From this landmark, Aboud and I were only
about three blocks from ARCE, but the normal, direct
path was blocked. We were told where we could park the
car—near the southeast corner of the US Embassy—and
from there we would have to walk. The area by the
Embassy was protected by the Egyptian army, using tanks
and barbed wire, and armed soldiers. After examining
our documents, we were let through and got to the square
in front of ARCE’s building. Gerry came down to meet
me, and Aboud headed back to the car and home.
During this day, cell phone service and the Internet
had resumed, more or less, and the satellite TV in my
room still worked; I was once again connected. Later
that evening, I went up for drinks and a chat with Gerry
and Kathleen; after hearing increasing gunfire, we got
away from the windows and kept the lights low. Since
we all had flights to Europe on Friday morning, we
agreed that it would be sensible to leave ARCE the next
morning for a hotel near the airport.
Thursday, 3 February. The early morning call to
prayer in the nearby mosque didn’t happen. I was
up early and looked out my window to see tanks and
Egyptian army in place, but few people. Not knowing
exactly what my plane schedule was to be, I packed
carry-on only. I called Aboud and arrange for him to
pick us all up around 10am that morning; he was to call
when he had parked, since he could not drive all the
way to our building. Our departure from ARCE was
easy, since we could exit through the basement garage
21
and walk through the security zone around the US
Embassy. As we passed the Embassy entrance, there
were a few people lined up: citizens at one door, people
who wanted to come to the US at the other door. I had
no idea whether the Embassy was actually operating.
Aboud was waiting for us near the road next to
the Nile. While I assumed we would head south and
take the long way to the airport via the ring road,
Aboud headed north and we got into the traffic jam at
the end of the bridge which anti-Mubarak protestors
were crossing to enter into Tahrir Square. The car
finally crossed over the Nile to the island opposite
downtown and we headed north again to link up with
the elevated road to the airport. As we went past a
large (and probably empty) hotel, a delivery truck was
unloading bottled water and soft drinks, as if nothing
was happening on the other side of the Nile. The
car headed east again and our route took us past the
area with pro-Mubarak demonstrators. Some cars
were turning back, but it was evident that traffic was
squeezing through, and that is what we did. In general,
the demonstrations were much quieter in the morning
when we left. Once on the elevated road, we traveled
without incident to the airport and our hotel. Except
View of ARCE offices
on February 2
Photo: Michael Jones
22
for the tanks near the presidential palace and the lack
of traffic, all was normal. We checked into our rooms at
the hotel, had lunch, and prepared for our departure the
next day. Unless one was watching TV, all was routine.
Friday. 4 February. The hotel shuttle bus took us on
the five-minute ride over to our departure terminal. At
the airport, there are always people around who want
to help you (for tips). A young man first tried to get us
through the security leading to the check-in counters,
but we were so early, the regular security lines had
not yet opened. He ultimately got us through a (now
un-necessary) group security entrance and we had
access to the check-in lines, although they were not yet
open. I was the first person in my line, and after about
20 minutes, the line opened and I got my boarding
pass to Paris. Despite the press reports, the commercial
airline departure terminal was quite normal, even
quiet. Curiously, the Air France flight was not full, and
the front of the plane was less than half full. I made
my connections in Paris and Atlanta and was in San
Antonio by 1am on 5 February, welcomed by extremely
cold weather and broken (but now fixed) water pipes.
On 11 February 2011, the Mubarak regime fell.
n
Egypt in Transition
Djodi Deutsch
Ms. Deustch is the
Academic Programs
Coordinator for ARCE in
Cairo.
ARCE employees in Cairo
show off pink stained
fingers indicating that
they had voted.
Photo: Jane Smythe
Following just five weeks after the January 25
Revolution and the resignation of President Mubarak
on February 11, Egyptians went to the polls to vote on
a referendum for constitutional change. Polling stations
around Cairo and the country were crowded with first
time voters of all ages - from 18 to 80 - the majority
were voting for the very first time. Everyone knew
exactly what they were there to do. It was instinctive
without the need for foreign observers. It was orderly,
calm and exciting at the same time as young and
old, Muslim and Copt stood together sharing their
enthusiasm and hopes for a better Egypt. Whatever the
outcome it was a clear sign that an inclusive political
process had taken root in Egypt.
It has been reported that some 41% of the
population turned out to vote. The electoral
commission reported 77.2 percent of the voters cast
yes votes in favor of the constitutional amendments.
But more importantly than the result was the act
of voting itself and the realization that change has
come to Egypt. It was the first time in the memory
of the electorate that the outcome was not a
forgone conclusion. There was a tangible element of
anticipation.
Many voters said they wanted to take part in
shaping their country’s future and they were convinced
their votes would now make a difference. And that
is why the ARCE employees in the photo above are
proudly showing off their “pink” fingers: a sign that
they were there, at the polls, voting and moving the
country along on its path toward democracy, fulfilling
their duties as citizens in the new Egypt where their
voices and opinions are heard. n
23
an t iqui t ies endowment fund grants
The Conservator’s Art: Preserving Egypt’s Past
Joan Knudsen and Carol Redmount
Joan Knudsen is Registrar
at the Phoebe Hearst
Museum of Anthropology
at the University of
California, Berkeley
Carol Redmount is
Associate Professor and
Chair, Near Eastern
Studies Department
and Curator of Egyptian
Archaeology, Phoebe
Hearst Museum of
Anthropology University
of California, Berkeley
1. Gallery view of exhibit
in 2010.
1
The Hearst-Reisner collection of the Phoebe Apperson
Hearst Museum at the University of California, Berkeley
incorporates almost 19,000 ancient Egyptian objects.
The vast majority of these were either excavated by
George Reisner between 1899 and 1905 or purchased
by him at the same time with funds supplied by Mrs.
Hearst. (photo 2) Fifty-nine key pieces from the
collection, along with three papyri borrowed from
the Center for the Tebtunis Papyri of UC Berkeley’s
Bancroft Library, are currently on display at the Hearst
Museum in the exhibit The Conservator’s Art: Preserving
Egypt’s Past.
This exhibit, which opened in conjunction with the
2010 Annual ARCE meeting in Oakland, spotlights
the critical responsibilities that conservators have in
the preservation of cultural heritage items housed in
museums. The exhibition also highlights, through the
lenses of conservation and the Hearst-Reisner Egyptian
Collection, the important role museums play as stewards
of and educators for the world’s cultural heritage. The
24
goal of the exhibit is to inform the general public,
cultural heritage professionals (academics, curators,
archaeologists, etc.), and students (university through
primary school) about what conservators do and why
and how they do it, as well as about selected aspects of
the Hearst Museum’s Egyptian collection.
The Conservator’s Art: Preserving Egypt’s Past also
serves as memorial and tribute to long-time ARCE
member, UC Berkeley Egyptology Professor and Hearst
Museum Curator of Egyptian Art and Epigraphy
Cathleen Keller, who passed away suddenly of
pancreatic cancer in 2008. Candy participated actively
in the initial planning of the exhibit, and it was she
who selected the major pieces for conservation around
which the exhibit evolved. These pieces were among her
favorites in the collection.
Objects for the exhibit were chosen with
combinations of the following in mind:
They represented conserved materials highlighting
specific techniques or issues in conservation;
They badly needed conservation;
They had not been on display often if at all
previously and would be of interest, inter alia, to the
broader Egyptological community;
They were objects of particular interest to Candy
Keller (because of 2 and 3);
They worked together to help make the exhibit
coherent on as many levels as possible.
Support from ARCE’s Antiquities Endowment
Fund* permitted the Hearst Museum to conserve
nine objects for the exhibit under the supervision
of Head Conservator Madeleine Fang and
Associate Conservator Jane Williams. It also
enabled the museum to secure a Kress Foundation
conservation training grant for a conservation
fellow devoted full-time to the exhibit. This Samuel
H. Kress Conservation Fellow, Alison Lewis,
helped expand the public side of the exhibition.
She currently works in the gallery on Egyptian
objects and explains conservation methods
and techniques to and answers questions from
visitors. Alison also blogs about the conservation
work (http://conservationblog.hearstmuseum.
dreamhosters.com/). Five of the nine items
conserved especially for the Conservator’s Art
exhibit are discussed in more detail below.
2
2. Phoebe Hearst is shown
here second from right in the
back row.
3. False door before
mouning.
4. False door after
mounting.
3
False Door of Ahkh-haf
Limestone; likely from Giza, Western Cemetery,
Tomb G1234; Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5 or 6
c. 2498-2184 BCE). Excavated by George
Reisner with funds from Phoebe A. Hearst.
6-14077
The broken but complete false door from the
tomb of Ankh-haf, “King’s nobleman and overseer of
the place of tenants of the great house,” was excavated
by George Reisner between 1903 and 1905 and arrived
at the museum in ten pieces. Originally attributed to the
site of Naga ed-Deir (“N.158” was written in black ink on
several pieces), research by UC Berkeley graduate student
Elizabeth Minor has demonstrated that, based on the
inscribed text and the style of the figures, the false door
likely came from Giza mastaba G.1234.
4
25
5. Conservator Tom Fuller
works on cleaning door
lintel.
6. Examining fragments in
ultra-violet light.
Conservation treatment of Ankh-haf’s false door
began with surface cleaning, localized consolidation
of powdery surfaces, and the attachment of smaller
fragments to larger ones. Fabrication of a steel
support made it possible to display the false door
vertically, as a unified whole, for the first time since it
was excavated. Concerns about future handling and
storage of this large, heavy and fragile object directly
impacted its treatment and public presentation.
Because the museum lacks the storage space or lifting
equipment to handle a unified sculpture weighing
upwards of 1000 pounds, practical considerations
dictated that the false door be mounted as four
separate sections.
Lintel and Right Door Jamb from the Tomb of Sennedjem
Limestone, pigment: Thebes, Deir el Medina, Tomb
TT1; New Kingdom, Dynasty 19 (c. 1291-1212 BCE).
Purchased by George Reisner with funding from
Phoebe Hearst. 6-19871
Sen-nedjem was a “servant in the place of
truth” and craftsman who worked on the royal
tombs in the Valley of the Kings. The painted
limestone door lintel and jamb pieces are from
the burial chamber entrance of his Theban tomb.
To preserve the painted wooden tomb door, the
late nineteenth century excavators broke the
door lintel and jambs to gain access to the burial.
Reisner purchased the broken pieces now on
display for Mrs. Hearst in 1899.
Since arriving at the museum in the early
1900s, Sen-nedjem’s door lintel and jamb pieces
have awaited conservation and reconstruction.
Contract conservator Tom Fuller focused on
surface cleaning, removing or reducing unsightly,
undocumented nineteenth-century restorations and
repairs (intended to make the lintel look complete),
and correctly aligning the architectural fragments.
Surface examination in visible and ultraviolet light,
combined with analysis of paint and ground layers,
enabled the identification of modern adhesives, paint
and plaster that had been smeared onto the original
decorated surfaces. As the surviving original paint was
26
5
6
well secured to the stone, it was possible to clean the
surfaces without damaging the original decoration.
Cleaning with the use of a brush and vinyl eraser
revealed the bright colors of the original paint. Study
of the fragments during reconstruction established
that the lintel had consisted of two blocks, and that
the horizontal line of damage across the lintel’s center
was the result of chiseling along a mortar join when
the lintel was removed from the tomb. Dr. Deanna
Kiser-Go determined that two different artists worked
on the lintel’s decoration.
ant iquit ies endowment fund grants
Chair
Acacia wood, linen; Naga ed Deir, Cemetery 3500, Tomb
246; New Kingdom, Dynasty 18
(c. 1570- 1293 BCE). Excavated by George Reisner,
with funds from Phoebe A. Hearst.
6-2062.
When discovered by George Reisner in a tomb at
Naga ed Deir, the wooden chair was in more than ten
pieces and missing structural parts including the left
rear leg and the right seat-back brace. Reisner briefly
reassembled the chair after excavation for photographing.
It subsequently remained in pieces until the 1960s,
when it was reconstructed at the museum with wire
ties and roughly-carved wooden replacement parts and
the surviving fragment of woven seat glued to nylon
net and floated in position. These repairs were not only
esthetically dubious but also ineffective for preservation,
as the wood replacement parts held the chair in a warped
position, the wires rubbed against the wood and began
to rust, and the seat fibers were unsupported, not well
aligned or protected and continued to deteriorate.
Conservator Tom Fuller’s examination revealed
that the chair mostly remains in the condition in
which it was excavated. With the exception of the
inner seat back, which was glued together at some
7. George Reisner’s photo of
chair excavated from Naga
ed Deir Cemetery .
8. Surviving fragments of
woven seat.
9. Creating the final mount.
10. Chair as displayed in
exhibit.
7
9
8
10
27
point, none of the original joints were compromised
by use of modern adhesives. These joints preserve
important evidence about the original construction
of and repairs to the chair. Tom’s study of historic
photographs and the physical evidence of fit and
wear revealed that individual pieces of the chair
had been incorrectly positioned in both the postexcavation and 1960s restorations. After removing
the earlier restorations, the chair was reassembled
using an external support rather than adhesives and
other repairs. This approach preserves the evidence of
original construction techniques.
Conservator Madeleine Fang focused on the woven
seat. Using a microscope with polarized light, she
identified the seat fibers as linen. Since the fibers
were degraded, brittle, and actively shedding, she
carefully removed as much of the old adhesive repair
as possible and then realigned individual cords, if not
too brittle, and reinforced broken cords with threads
and weak cellulose-based adhesive. To protect the seat
remnant and keep it visible from all sides, Madeleine
encapsulated it with silk crepeline and acrylic sheet.
Debate continued during treatment about whether
or not wood replacement parts or a replica woven seat
11. Allison Lewis takes a
wax sample from Ka statue.
11
28
were necessary to convey the essence of the original
chair. In the end it was decided that the most honest
approach was to present the surviving parts in their
fragmentary condition. A photographic or actual
replica of the chair could be used to evoke the original
construction if desired.
Ka Statue
Wood, Lime Plaster, Pigment; Naga ed Deir,
Cemetery 3500, Tomb 3777; Late Old KingdomEarly First Intermediate Period, Dynasties 6-8
(c. 2345-2040 BCE). Excavated by George Reisner,
with funds from Phoebe A. Hearst. 6-22886
The large wooden ka statue was discovered by
Reisner’s expedition lying on its side in the rock-cut
chapel of an anonymous Naga ed-Deir tomb, facing a
niche containing a limestone scribe statue. Originally
the ka statue had been placed on a limestone shelf
next to the niche.
Typical for early twentieth century practice, after
excavation a heavy coat of paraffin wax had been applied
to the statue in an attempt to preserve and consolidate
the paint and wood. The wax, burial accretions and
12
13
surface dirt obscured what turned out to be the largely
intact original painted surface.
Conservator Tom Fuller focused on improving the
statue’s appearance and providing it with a padded
brass mount so that it can safely remain upright for
storage, study and display. Tom carefully reduced
the wax coating with heat and gentle scraping and
removed patches of dirt. The remaining thin coat of
wax was smoothed with heat, brushed and blotted
to produce a matte finish. Little further structural or
surface consolidation was required. Examination
during treatment confirmed that that the
sculpture had not been repainted in modern
times; reduction of the dull grey wax coating and
dirt particles brought out the statue’s original
paint colors. Blue, black, yellow and white bands
can now be seen to alternate on the collar and the
waistband of the kilt. The base was painted black.
Paint samples are being analyzed to identify
the blue and black pigments and to determine
whether the yellow areas were colored by pigment
or a varnish.
Examination of the figure also confirmed
construction details. The arms were carved as
separate pieces and the legs have integral tenons
that fit into slots in the base. The statue and base
wood has now been identified as sycamore fig.
Additionally we discovered that the eyes were
originally inlaid; the inlays were likely stolen by
tomb robbers. The scribe statue from the same
tomb was similarly missing its eye inlays.
12. Ka statue after
conservation.
13. The conservation
team prepares to scan the
crocodile mummy.
Crocodile Mummy with Solar Disc
Crocodile Remains, Plant Fibers, Palm Stem, Linen,
Mummy Balm, Calcite, Pigment.
Provenience Unknown; Early Roman Period (1st -3rd
Centuries CE). Purchased by George Reisner, with funds
from Phoebe Hearst. 6-20100
The crocodile mummy, in storage since 1960 and
one of two on display, has a plastered linen mask and
elaborate linen wrappings. The unusual solar disk
was found detached from the mummy and has been
remounted over the head in what is believed to be its
original position. Of the nine items conserved specifically
for the exhibit, this crocodile mummy was the most
29
14. CT scan of crocodile
mummy.
Photos courtesy of the P.A.
Hearst Museum archives.
14
fragile and actively deteriorating. It was powdering and
shedding plant fibers, heavily soiled, and all of the plant
fibers and textile strips binding it crosswise had been
broken. Structural integrity was returned to the mummy
by stabilizing its fragile linen bandages, brittle and
crumbling plant fiber wrappings, and cracked and flakey
face mask. Conservators Tom Fuller and Beth Szuhay
combined repair of damaged linen strips and plant fibers
with the creation of a surrounding textile overlay that
supports the mummy and holds the repaired plant fibers
and bandages in place.
Conservation involves examination and investigation as
well as preservation and sometimes restoration. To better
understand the crocodile mummy, scientific examinations
were undertaken. Dr. Richard Evershed of Bristol, England
analyzed the black mummy balm in the wrappings and
determined that it was composed of fat and/or oil and
coniferous resin. Scientists at the Los Angeles County
Museum of Art ascertained that the surfaces of both the
crocodile’s mask and disc headdress contained arsenic
and calcite. Professor Richard Dodd of UC Berkeley
identified plant fibers in the mummy as bundles of
papyrus stems. Biologists from UC Berkeley’s Museum
of Vertebrate Zoology examined the mummy and, based
on its size and shape, questioned whether the wrappings
contained a single adult crocodile. A subsequent CT-scan,
performed at the Stanford University School of Medicine,
revealed that the mummy package contained an intact
crocodile skull beneath the mask, a second skull behind
the first, and, in the midsection, a disorganized mass of
bone and bone fragments with three reinforcing plant
stalks running the length of the midsection.
30
Funding for the exhibit was generously supplied
by ARCE, The Hearst Foundations, The Samuel H.
Kress Foundation, U.C. Berkeley Archaeological
Research Facility and Ms. Sheila Wishek. Professional
expertise was contributed by Professor Richard P.
Evershed, University of Bristol; Rebecca Fahrig Ph.D,
Stanford University; James H. Frantz, Metropolitan
Museum of Art; Thomas Fuller, North West Object
Conservation, Inc.; Beth Szuhay, Textile Conservation
Department, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; and
Professor Robert Yohe II, California State University,
Bakersfield. Services and materials were donated by
Cultural Heritage Imaging, San Francisco; eHuman,
Inc., Cupertino; Elemental LED, Emeryville; Fovia,
Inc., Palo Alto; Mark’s Paint, Oakland; Pacific Panels,
Inc., Oakland; Quest Imaging Medical Associates,
Bakersfield; Stanford University, Palo Alto; Tap Plastics,
El Cerrito. UC Berkeley graduate and undergraduate
students participated in museum seminar classes
focused around the exhibit, and assisted especially with
researching and writing the exhibit labels. n
*ARCE’s Antiquities Endowment Fund was made
possible by funding through the United States Agency
for International Development (USAID).
“The Tomb of St. Shenoute?
More Results from the White Monastery
(Dayr Anba Shenouda), Sohag”
The third phase of work at the White Monastery
(Dayr Anba Shenouda, Sohag) funded by an
Antiquities Endowment Fund grant from the
American Research Center in Egypt has, in some
ways, been even more exciting than the previous
two. Wall painting conservation, archaeological
investigation, art historical, and historical study
have continued at the site of a small Triconch
Funerary Chapel (TFC), located at the west edge
of the ancient monastery, close to a modern
cemetery. It was discovered in 2002 by Mr. Saad
Mohammed of the Egyptian Supreme Council of
Antiquities. It includes the remains of a triconch
chapel with an adjacent complex of rooms to the
south, and a well preserved, painted underground
tomb consisting of a small antechamber and a
barrel-vaulted burial chamber (fig. 1). A Heritage
Management plan has been developed with
proposals for the preservation of this delicate
monument. All work is being undertaken in
collaboration with the Supreme Council of
Antiquities, and with the support and hospitality
of Bishop Yohannes and the monks of the White
Monastery, for which we are very grateful. This
article continues reports published in 2007 and
2009 on this AEF funded project.1
Phases One and Two, 2006 – 2008:
The first phase of work focused on two parts of the
site, the TFC and the monumental White Monastery
church. We studied remains of Late Antique mortar
and painted plaster in the church, and excavated at
the TFC and outside of the northern nave wall of
the main church. We undertook examination of the
in situ and fallen painted plaster, conservation and
documentation at the TFC. The large church is well
known to art historians for its Late Antique sculpture
and Medieval wall paintings. The remarkable results
of our first campaign made it possible to demonstrate
that substantial evidence has survived of Late Antique
wall painting in both the church and at the TFC. These
early images comprise decorative and figural subjects
that have ties to the much better preserved paintings
at the Red Monastery church, and to others from the
monasteries at Bawit and Saqqara.
The second period of conservation and excavation,
in 2008, focused exclusively on the TFC. Archaeological
work consisted of the exploration and documentation
of the original chapel complex and adjacent areas,
during which we discovered substantial traces of
domestic reuse of the complex, likely dating to the
Medieval period. In the underground tomb chambers,
the removal of obscuring dust and varnish revealed
high quality wall paintings in an excellent state of
preservation. Three areas of the decorated wall surfaces
were selected for conservation (more than twenty
percent of the total), which enabled us to discern a
considerable amount of evidence for the working
practice of the original artists. Stylistic analysis
determined that the decoration comprises the earliest
surviving underground Christian tomb paintings in
Egypt, and the only Late Antique examples from a
monastic context.2 Interestingly, the architecture
of the tomb and the iconographic program of
the paintings belong to a large body of funerary
monuments spanning the late Roman world in the
fourth and fifth centuries c.e.. This demonstrates
that the White Monastery participated fully in
Mediterranean culture in Late Antiquity, a fact
also shown very clearly by the painted architecture
of the Red Monastery church.
Elizabeth S. Bolman,
Stephen J. Davis, Luigi De
Cesaris, Father Maximous
El-Anthony, Gillian Pyke,
Emiliano Ricchi, Alberto
Sucato, and Nicholas
Warner,
with contributions by:
Mohammed Abdel Rahim,
Louise Blanke, Wendy
Dolling, Mohammed Khalifa,
Saad Mohammed, and Anna
Stevens
31
a considerable amount of very interesting new
evidence. After conservation, new details in the
tomb have become visible. In particular, it is
now clear that one section of the paintings in
the barrel-vaulted chamber depicts a male saint,
standing frontally between two other figures.
An inscription over his head identifies him as
Shenoute (fig. 2). With the study of historical and
art historical sources, as will be discussed in more
detail below, it has become possible to tie the tomb
much more closely to the saint. The evidence
now suggests that the tomb was prepared for St.
Shenoute.
Archaeology
Excavations in the TFC, directed by Gillian Pyke,
focused on areas N5-N9 (fig. 3). 3 N6-N9 were
targeted for micro-excavation, in order to answer
questions raised during the 2008 campaign. A
larger area, N5, was opened to investigate the
location of the southern extent of the complex.
Highlights of the results of our exploration of the
new area are presented here.
1
Figure 1: Reconstruction of
the Underground Chambers
of the TFC at the White
Monastery.
Drawing: Nicholas Warner,
after a survey by Peter
Grossmann
Square N5
Figure 2: St. Shenoute
flanked by a pair (?) of
angels. North wall, west
half, Burial chamber, TFC.
Post conservation.
Photo: Emiliano Ricchi..
2
Phase Three: 2009
After the first two phases of analysis and
conservation from 2006 to 2008, it was thought
that the significance of the TFC for history and art
history had been determined, and that there were
no more surprises in store for the investigators.
This has turned out not to be the case. The most
recent phase of our work at the TFC has revealed
32
The remains of a large structure to the south of the
so-called South Hall of the TFC was selected for excavation
in November and December of 2009 (fig. 4). The aim
of this excavation was to determine the southern extent
of the building, including its southwest corner, and to
investigate the nature of its local setting. An 11 x 8 m.
trench was aligned to architecture exposed through
excavation by the SCA that included several brick walls
and a section of stone paving at the limit of the South Hall.
Throughout the progress of the excavations, it
became clear that the area has been heavily pitted over
a long period of time, resulting in severe damage to the
architectural remains. However, a number of distinct
features could be identified: a substantial mud brick
wall running northwest to southeast through the west
side of the excavated area; a possible exterior area in
the southwest corner; a room with a pair of dipinti
(painted inscriptions) on its west wall; an expanse of
red-plastered floor with the remains of mastabas set
around two sides of its perimeter; and a poorly defined
3
4
space including an opus signinum (hard plaster
with pebbles) floor with a rectangular tank in the
southeast corner.
Immediately to the east of the large wall are two
rooms. The walls on the west (i.e. the opposite side
of the large wall) and north of the south room are
both of mud brick. Their east and south faces are
covered by the same layer of whitewash, indicating
their temporal association. Traces of a complex
construction sequence could be seen in the north
room, the floor of which was initially of grey
opus signinum on a diagonally-laid brick foundation.
This floor probably originally abutted the north wall,
which seems to be one of the earliest in the area, but
underlies the west wall of the room, indicating that it
was added sometime later. The lower extent of the west
wall is of fired brick with reddish plaster, the upper of
mud brick with a whitewash that overlaps the lower
plaster. All three walls are abutted by a red plaster
floor that replaced the grey opus signinum, using the
same brick foundation. An emplacement with a
rectangular ceramic basin is set into the west wall.
The northern border of the red-floored area is
a wall built over the southern end of the limestone
pavement of the South Hall, indicating that the
original extent of this part of the TFC was much
larger than previously imagined. The complex
sequence of alterations of this wall, especially at the
east end, was difficult to decipher, but it would seem
that the limestone blocks at each end are part of the
original construction of the South Hall. These were
later linked by a fired brick wall, the plaster of which
has more in common with the architecture to the
south than the South Hall and TFC to the north.
The few visible traces of the limestone floor of
the South Hall that remain suggest that it continued
south to abut the early east-west mud brick wall.
This wall was later rebuilt to form the south wall
of the northwest room. A mastaba erected over the
limestone floor at this point, perhaps during the
same construction event, preserved a section of
the plaster coating the earlier wall. The fine dense
upper coat of this two-layer plaster is comparable
to the types used in the South Hall, TFC and tomb,
suggesting an association, at least in wall treatment.
Abutting this south mastaba, and the one against
the adjacent east wall, is a later floor consisting of
red plaster on a brick foundation. This floor has
subsided in places, and it is possible that these
areas represent locations in which the underlying
limestone pavers had been robbed out, necessitating
the laying of the plaster floor.
Very little dating evidence for any of the
construction, alteration, and destruction phases
was found. Apart from fragments associated with a
few possible floor deposits, the pottery is extremely
Figure 3: Areas of work
conducted in the TFC in the
2008-9 seasons.
Figure 4: Excavated area
of Square N5 looking west.
Photo: Wendy Dolling.
33
Figure 5: Burial chamber,
looking west into the
vestibule, post conservation.
A cross flanked by eagles
is visible on the left (south)
wall, and St. Shenoute
between two standing
figures is apparent on the
right (north) wall. TFC.
Photo: Emiliano Ricchi.
5
mixed, reflecting the traumas suffered by the
stratigraphy due to the extensive pitting. A range of
ceramic material dating from the Byzantine period
to relatively recent times was found throughout
the area. The floor deposits have yet to be analyzed
fully, but components such as micaeous silt
everyday wares and Ballas transport vessels suggest
a date somewhere in the Medieval period.
Wall Painting Conservation
Luigi De Cesaris, Alberto Sucato, and Emiliano
Ricchi directed a substantial season of conservation
in the underground chambers of the TFC (a total of
ninety days, with De Cesaris and Sucato providing
periodic supervision)(fig. 5).4 The findings of this
campaign, from a technical perspective, bear out
those ascertained during the last period of work.
It was possible to confirm that the entirety of the
tomb was built and decorated in a single episode.
The materials used for the floor and entrance are
limestone and marble. The walls and vault are
made of fired brick, as is apparent from an area of
loss in the mortar. Conservation work included the
34
repair of exposed mortar. This was treated with a
light patina, to avoid distracting the viewer’s eye
from the paintings. An additional sixty percent of
the work was completed this season, bringing the
total to about eighty percent.
Cleaning and conservation took place in both the
shallow domed vestibule and the barrel vaulted tomb
chamber. The technique used by the Late Antique
artists in these rooms consisted of the application
of pigments onto a damp surface comprised of
limestone powder and slaked lime. Although this
technique is somewhat different from real fresco
painting, it is nevertheless very unusual because
it is clearly distinct from the standard practice in
Egypt of painting on dry plaster. The subjects on
the walls were first created in a preparatory drawing
using yellow-ocher paint. Typically, a black line
was then applied over the sketch. Both opaque and
semi-transparent white pigment further refined the
paintings. The palette also included brown, pink,
pale green and blue (fig. 6).
The work of this campaign brought several
interesting features to light. Delicate rosettes
became clearly visible, scattered across the lower
parts of the walls by the entrance to the vestibule
and within this outer room. These areas of wall
are otherwise painted to simulate marble. In late
antiquity, in both pagan and Christian contexts,
rosettes signified springtime and rebirth. The
paintings in the inner tomb chamber are divided
into a lower and an upper zone, with the lower
being imitation marble, and most of the higher
register comprising crosses flanked by birds and
animals. This upper zone includes the vault,
which is divided into four sections with bands of
decorative motifs. The most surprising find of this
campaign, however, relates to the painting of St.
Shenoute, on the north side of the tomb chamber,
on the western half of the wall. This is the only
portion of the walls in this room to feature human
figures, although this area is framed identically to
the other quadrants. The painting consists of three
standing figures, facing frontally. St. Shenoute, in
the center, is reasonably well preserved, although
the two figures on either side survive only
partially. Shenoute’s square halo seems to have
originally been a brownish red, much of which has
flaked away to reveal an ocher color underneath.
After cleaning, it became possible to discern very
clearly parts of a wing associated with the figure
to the viewer’s left of Shenoute. The art historical
implications of this find will be discussed below.
From the point of view of technique, while the
pigments and framing are identical with those
elsewhere in the tomb, the method of application
of the white paint is different. It is multi-layered.
The character of the lines used to depict Shenoute
differs also from the fluid and calligraphic
brush strokes employed in the creation of the
animals elsewhere in the barrel vaulted room.
The contemporaneity of the paintings with the
rest of the program is certain, due to the features
discussed in an earlier BARCE article, and also
because the artists used guide lines of red pigment
created using the battitura di filo (plucked string)
method. The grid created with this method to
assist the artist in the layout of the images not
only included the space for the three standing
6
figures, but is now visible in some places, perhaps
due to the degradation of the upper surface of the
pigments.
Figure 6: Gazelle, partially
cleaned and conserved, south
wall, burial chamber, TFC.
The Dipinto (painted inscription):
Stephen J. Davis has studied the inscription above
the painting of Shenoute, after conservation. With
a lacuna (missing area) at the beginning, it reads
“[.......] of Abba Shenoute the Archimandrite” ([.......]
OS A[BB]A SINOUTHIOU ARCHIMAND[R]
ITOU). Shenoute’s name, preserved in the genitive
case, follows a lacuna that ends with the nominative
masculine singular ending –OS. There are various
possibilities for reconstructing the original wording,
but one Greek noun stands out as the most likely
candidate for filling this lacuna: HO TOPOS (“the
place/monastery/shrine/tomb”), which is commonly
attested among the Greco-Egyptian epigraphic corpus
as a designation for the burial place or pilgrimage
shrine of a saint, sometimes accompanied by the
adjective HAGIOS (“holy”). As reconstructed along
these lines, the dipinto would serve to identify this
architectural space as “[The (holy) tom]b of Abba
Shenoute the Archimandrite”), or “[The (holy) shrin]e
of Abba Shenoute the Archimandrite.” 5
Art Historical Significance:
Bolman’s art historical work helps confirm the
implications of the inscription. The three figures stand
35
7
Figure 7: Angel and St.
Shenoute, showing red grid
lines, the denser build-up
of white paint, and the
angel’s wing and shoe,
post conservation. Tomb
chamber, TFC.
36
facing the viewer. Shenoute, the most intact of the three,
looks directly at us, raising both arms in the position
of prayer. He holds a circular object, probably a crown
or wreath, in his left hand, and wears a mantle over a
belted tunic. The distinctive Pachomian and Shenoutian
leather apron, looking like a purse or bag with a
shoulder strap across his chest, hangs on his right side.
A long, narrow scarf falls from his left shoulder, marked
with two pairs of small crosses. He is barefoot. One of
the most remarkable aspects of the depiction is the
square halo behind Shenoute’s head. Circular nimbi
predate Christianity, radiating out from behind the
heads of deities, personifications, and important people.
By the fifth century, Christian artists commonly showed
Christ, angels, and the Virgin Mary with round halos.6
Square haloes appear much less frequently in Late
Antique art, and seem to have indicated either
that the person was living, or that they were on a
hierarchically lower level than other figures with
circular nimbi, or both at the same time.
Father Maximous El-Anthony first observed the
significance of the wing and the sock-like shoes or
low boots belonging to the figure at the viewer’s
left of Shenoute. These identify him as an angel.7
The figure on the viewer’s right is the least well
preserved, but the surviving section of his robe
indicates that he does not wear the distinctive
monastic apron. Although no feathers are visible,
this figure may well also have been an angel.
The painting of Shenoute disrupts the
otherwise rigorously systematic iconographic
organization of the paintings. Technical aspects
of execution and examination while under
conservation show that the entire tomb was
painted at one time, although the white pigment
is here applied in a more opaque manner than
elsewhere in the tomb. Oddly, the painting of
Shenoute is not as confident or as anatomically
plausible as that of the deer, gazelles, and
peacocks. Perhaps two artists were at work,
accounting for these variations.
The orans pose and full-length view have a
suggestive parallel in funerary contexts, evidence
that complements the epigraphic analysis of
Davis. The deceased in early Christian Roman
catacombs were conventionally presented
eternally at prayer, with their arms raised,
facing the viewer. Theodosia, from her tomb at
Antinoë, accompanied by Saints Kolluthos and
Mary, provides a somewhat later, although still
Late Antique, Egyptian example. The subject
of mortuary parallels requires a considerable
amount of additional work, but the visual evidence
gathered to date suggests the very real possibility
that the tomb was intended for Shenoute. The
square halo may have indicated a transitional phase
between identifying him as a particularly holy
person, and giving him the clear appellation and
full-fledged attributes of a saint.
If this painting was made at the time of
Shenoute’s death in 465 c.e., it marks a particularly
early moment for the creation of the cult of a
monastic saint, in comparison with the somewhat
later epigraphical record for such a practice.
Aritta Papaconstantinou has charted the interest
expressed by both civic-ecclesiastical parties,
on the one hand, and monastic entities, on the
other, in the cult of the saints.8 In a process which
she has memorably called “the monasticization
of the cult of the saints,” greater control of who
Figure 8: Inscription above
the head of St. Shenoute,
post conservation. Burial
chamber, TFC.
8
was determined a saint shifted from the cities to
monasteries beginning in the middle of the sixth
century.9 The painting of Shenoute with a square
halo, then, might have functioned as an early
index of and agent in the creation of such a cult.
With its dating to circa 465 c.e., this painting
stands well before textual attestations for devotion
to Shenoute, although it does fit a pattern that
Papaconstantinou has discerned, whereby
monks devoted their earliest cult activity to local
monastic saints.10
Heritage Management:
The White Monastery as it exists today includes
many cultural remains, as well as new structures, and
functions as a heritage site, a living monastery, and
a pilgrimage destination.11 The current enclosure
wall around the principal monastic buildings,
both ancient and modern, encompasses an area
of approximately twelve hectares. Excavations
carried out to date within this boundary, beginning
with Flinders Petrie and more recently from 1986
to the present, have revealed a great variety of
structures with different functions, usually built
of fired or mud bricks with some stone elements.
Of particular interest are the many buildings that
relate to the economic and industrial components
of the ancient monastic complex. Alongside these
archaeological remains stand modern cemeteries
and contemporary buildings erected by the
monastery. The new constructions are concentrated
on the southern and western sides of the site.
In 2009-10, a site management and development
report was drawn up by the architect Nicholas
Warner following discussions with the local
inspectorate of the Supreme Council of
Antiquities, representatives of the monastic
community, and archaeologists and specialists
working at the site. This report outlines the
roles of the major stakeholders in the site and
the principal conservation problems facing the
archaeological remains. It also suggests a number
of possibilities for the development of additional
visitor facilities for pilgrims and tourists. The most
complex problem that the report identifies and
seeks to address is the current tension between
purely physical ‘bricks and mortar’ conservation
issues and the spiritual dimensions of the site,
which annually plays host to upwards of 50,000
pilgrims during the festival of St. Shenoute in July.
The recent identification of the saint’s tomb, under
the remains of the TFC, is expected to highlight
this conflict between the need to protect the
archaeological resources and the current religious
needs of the faithful. The recommendations of
the report, available in both Arabic and English
formats, are intended to provide a focus for further
constructive dialogue between interested parties
about the future of this remarkable cultural asset.
Conclusion
The 2009 season at the White Monastery has been
extremely successful in all aspects, and has yielded
the very interesting probability that the tomb below
the TFC belonged to Shenoute. The topographical
survey of areas excavated by both the Supreme
Council of Antiquities and by our team continues to
add to our understanding of the physical layout of
the Late Antique and Medieval monastery. The new
excavations at the TFC have discovered its southern
extent, and have identified substantial remains attesting
to its domestic reuse, probably Medieval in date.
Conservation in the underground tomb has increased
the amount of consolidated and cleaned surface to
about eighty percent of the space. Cleaning has made
it possible to read more of the inscription above the
figure of Shenoute, and to identify at least one, and
probably both, of the flanking figures as angels. This
37
combination of elements strongly suggests that the
tomb was made for the saint himself, circa 465 c.e., the
year he died. This discovery provides a fixed date
for the creation of an artistic program, something
that is astonishingly rare in the corpus of surviving
Late Antique Egyptian painting. It adds to our
knowledge about the genesis and development
of the cult of the saints in Late Antique Egypt,
particularly at monastic sites. It also raises very
serious questions of modern access to the tomb
and the need to protect the very delicate and
absolutely unique paintings. One possible way
forward, that would permit visitors and pilgrims
to obtain a good idea of the tomb without actually
entering it, is the creation of a replica of the
chambers. The Heritage Management plan will
certainly foster dialogue, and help the numerous
stakeholders at this very important site work
towards a successful resolution to the challenges
faced by the interests of large numbers of people in
the fragile monument. n
director of archaeological field work. The larger project has received funds from several sources, in addition to the AEF of ARCE. These are the Yale Egyptological Fund,
the National Endowment for the Humanities, Temple University, Dumbarton Oaks,
and Wittenberg University.
2 While a considerable body of Late Antique paintings from monasteries survive in
Egypt, none so far discovered, aside from this example, derive from an underground
tomb.
3 Excavations were conducted by Blanke, Dolling, and Mohammed Khalifa.
4 Assistant conservators Luigi De Prezzo and Federico Ratti worked on the project.
5 Alongside selected epigraphic and papyrological examples, Liddell and Scott (A
Greek-English Lexicon, rev. ed., with supplement (Oxford: Clarendon, 1968),
1806b, and Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (Oxford: Clarendon, 1961), 1397a, cite
several ancient literary sources where the word to/poj was used to refer specifically
to a “burial place.” On documentary evidence for the use of the word to/poj in
the Egyptian cult of the saints, see Arietta Papaconstantinou, Le culte des saints
en Égypte des Byzantins aux Abbassides: L’apport des inscriptions et des papyrus
grecs et coptes (Paris: CNRS Éditions, 2001), 268–70. In her corpus of evidence,
Papaconstantinou notes that all but one of the surviving Greco-Egyptian examples
come from Upper Egyptian locations south of Hermopolis, and that the adjective
a(/gioj qualifies the noun to/poj only when that same adjective is not employed
as a title for the identified saint. The absence of such a title for Shenoute in our
dipinto— along with the available wall space occupied by the lacuna—therefore
notes
leaves open the possibility for this reconstruction. A similar use of the phrase
1 Thanks to Kathleen Scott for permission to publish part of this report elsewhere:
ὁ ἃγιος τόπος is found in a sixth-century monastic papyrus from Aphroditō
E. Bolman, Stephen J. Davis and Gillian Pyke, “Shenoute and a Newly Discovered
that makes reference to “the holy tomb/shrine of Apa Hōrouōnchios the martyr”:
Tomb Chapel at the White Monastery,” (contributions by Mohammed Abdel Rahim,
PCairoMasp 1.67094, line 18 (553 CE); ed. J. Maspero, Papyrus grecs d’époque
Louise Blanke, Darlene Brooks Hedstrom, Wendy Dolling, Father Maximous al-
byzantine, Catalogue général des antiquités égyptiennes du Musée du Caire, vol. 1
Anthony, Dawn McCormack, Mohammed Khalifa, Saad Mohammed, Peter Sheehan,
(Cairo: L’Institut français d’archéologie orientale, 1911), 135.
Anna Stevens, and Nicholas Warner. Journal of Early Christian Studies, 18.3 (2010)
6 Marthe Collinet-Guérin, Histoire du nimbe des origines aux temps modernes (Paris:
453-462. E. Bolman, Louise Blanke, Darlene Brooks Hedstrom, Mohammed Khalifa,
Nouvelles Éditions Latines, 1961), 283–9; Elisabeth Jastrzebowska, “Encore
Cédric Meurice, Saad Mohammed, Gillian Pyke, and Peter Sheehan. “Late Antique
sur la quadrature du nimbe,” in: Historiam Pictura Refert: Miscellanea in onore di
and Medieval Painted Decoration at the White Monastery (Dayr al-Abiad), Sohag,”
Padre Alejandro Recio Veganzones O.F.M. (Città del Vaticano: Pontifico Istituto di
Bulletin of the American Research Center in Egypt, no. 192, Fall-Winter (2007):
5-11. Bolman, Luigi De Cesaris, Pyke, Emiliano Ricchi, and Alberto Sucato, with
contributions by: Mohammed Abdel Rahim, Blanke, Stephen Davis, Wendy Dolling,
shoes or boots, although red, and not white as here. When angels wear them, how-
Father Maximous El-Anthony, Mohammed Khalifa, Saad Mohammed, Peter Sheehan,
ever, the accompanying dress is usually imperial, so this combination is a variant.
Anna Stevens and Nicholas Warner, “A Late Antique Funerary Chapel at the White
Monastery (Dayr Anba Shenouda), Sohag,” Bulletin of the American Research Center
in Egypt. no. 195 (Summer 2009): 12 – 18. The activities at the TFC are unfold-
8 Papaconstantinou, “The cult of the saints: A haven of continuity in a changing world?” in Roger Bagnall, ed., Egypt in the Byzantine World 300 – 700
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007), 352.
ing within the context of a much larger scope of work at the White Monastery. From
9 Papaconstantinou, “The cult of the saints,” 356.
2000 to the summer of 2008, Bolman was the Director of the White Monastery
10 Papaconstantinou, “The cult of the saints,” 353, 356-358.
Project. Beginning in the middle of 2008, Bolman became the Associate Director of
11 These two paragraphs were drawn from a report by Nicholas Warner.
the larger project, and remains in charge of wall painting conservation and publication. Stephen J. Davis, of Yale University, has replaced Bolman as Executive Director
of the White Monastery Project. Gillian Pyke replaced Darlene Brooks Hedstrom as
38
Archeologia Cristiana, 1994), 347–9.
7 Members of the imperial family, angels, and the Virgin Mary typically wear similar
39
f ellowship repor ts
Enchained Hadith: Mysticism and Higher
Education in Eighteenth Century Egypt
Sara Nimis
Sara Nimis is a
Department of State ECA
fellow, 2009-2010. PhD
candidate, Georgetown
University, Department
of Arabic and Islamic
Studies. Research topic:
Mystical Authority and
Higher Education in the
Making of Modern Egypt
40
What kind of religious authority was granted through
religious institutions in eighteenth century Egypt?
While a mastery of the texts and traditions historically
used to derive Islamic shari’ from the Qur’ān and
ḥadīth continued in this period to define the higher
education of an ‘ālim or scholar, historians have
demonstrated the importance of mysticism in their
intellectual life and socioeconomic situation. The same
scholars who taught and studied the legal sciences
in institutions such as Al-Azhar in Cairo were also
members of the Sufi brotherhoods and managed
endowments related to them. It was also typical for
scholars of the legal sciences to simultaneously teach
and study mystical texts.1 Still, activities of the Sufi
brotherhoods that served the spiritual needs of a
largely illiterate population, especially those related to
the cult of saints, are viewed as fundamentally distinct,
if not in outright contradiction to, the textual tradition
of legalist Islam. During the ARCE fellowship period
2009-10, various sources were collected, that give
insight into the development of religious authority
in Egypt during the push toward modernization, and
specifically the relationship between the legal sciences
and these popular practices during this period.
One such source is the ijāza, or certificate of
transmission. This heading refers to a variety of
categories of documents found in the manuscripts
collections of Al-Azhar University library, and the
Egyptian National Library.2 This discussion focuses on
the fihris or mu‘jam ijāza3 in which the scholar lists,
in the form of a book, as many as hundreds of works
studied in a variety of disciplines. Texts studied are
listed, along with the isnād or chains of transmission,
by which the student’s teacher for a particular work
is listed, along with his teacher and so forth, tracing
generations of scholars back to the source of the work.
Most are in the sciences of ḥadīth, tafsīr, fiqh and
rhetoric and grammar. All of these can be categorized
as legal sciences, as opposed to mystical sciences, in
that they comprise the tools by which scriptures of the
faith can be verified, understood and extrapolated into
normative rulings regarding proper conduct.
Interspersed among these credentials in the
legal sciences are “enchained” ḥadīth, or al-aḥadīth
al-musalsala. These are chains of transmission
characterized by the “common adherence [of each
transmitter in the chain] one after another, to a single
state or condition.”4 That is, the situation or action of
the transmitter is repeated by each individual in the
chain. In the following example, the act transmitted
is the dressing of the student in the robes of the Sufi
brotherhood:
As for the hadīth of wearing the khirqah [robes of
the brotherhood], I was dressed in them by my master
‘Abdullah al-Baḥrī, and he was dressed in them by the
esteemed M. b. Sulaymān al-Maghrabī. He was dressed
in them by [the authority of] his shaykh Abi ‘Uthmān
al-Jarā’īri … And he by [the authority of] the Imām
Hassan al-Baṣrī, and he by the hand of the only Imām
‘Alī b. Abī ḥālib, may God bless his face and be pleased
with him, and he wore it from the hand of the chosen
one, peace and blessings be upon him.5
Other enchained ḥadīth record the student’s
presence in the company of the master during private
moments of grooming, as with cutting the nails,6
or solitary prayer, as with the rosary. Some give the
chain of transmission for a simple act of friendship
and affection, such as holding hands, an embrace or a
smile. Every catalogue ijāza in this sample contains a
particular enchained ḥadīth called al-silsila bil-awliyya
fellowship repor ts
A “chain of firsts” from
“Ijazat al-Bahi lil-Shibasi”
(Azhar Manuscripts,
Mustalah 817 / 5306, dated
1247/1831):9-10, digitized
by Al-Azhar Library.
meaning “the chain of firsts.”7 In it, each link in the
chain mentions that the ḥadīth was the first one taught
to a given student by a given teacher. This suggests
a close relationship between teacher and student. In
contrast to public lectures, in which a given student’s
attendance may or may not be noted, the teacher who
is conferring the “chain of firsts” selects a particular
ḥadīth to transmit in honor of the beginning of his
period of study with that particular student.8
Such mundane acts have little apparent legal
significance, yet they are ubiquitous in the mu’jam
genre of certificates of academic achievement produced
in Egypt in the eighteenth century. Furthermore,
where chains of transmission for most aḥadīth are
recorded back to the author of one of the sound
collections, enchained ḥadīth, are distinguished by
isnād that stretch all the way back to the Prophet. Why
such painstaking record of the transmission of these
mundane acts? That is, what kind of authority are these
intended to transmit? Enchained ḥadīth attest to the
transmission of a relationship of discipleship, or subḥa
through generations of teachers that has historically
been the basis for Islamic education, originating with
personal relationships of loyalty between the Prophet
and his followers. This may have had a very practical
pedagogical function, providing the framework for
academic excellence and prolific scholarly production
in the absence of overarching academic institutions.9
Suhrawardī views this close personal relationship as
not only the context for theoretical study, but a kind of
content of its own. The disciple learns from observing
and emulating the daily behavior of his shaykh,
including his personal hygiene, the performance of
rituals, dress and poverty.10 The enchained ḥadīth
record the transmission of the praxis of the shaykh,
which was an embodiment of his spiritual knowledge.
In this sense, the enchained ḥadīth serve a similar
purpose to being dressed in the khirqa: they are marks
of a type of knowledge which could be acquired only
through proximity.
In a treatise, Zabīdī explains that he includes a chain
of firsts “for the purpose of taking blessing (tabarruk)
from it.”11 Similarly, an Iranian ijāza of this period states
that isnād are not necessary to verify most reports, but
are collected for “good fortune and blessing” (baraka)12.
It is for access to this baraka that Egyptians of all walks
of life flocked to the tombs of deceased saints, and the
dwellings of living ones. 13 The relationship between the
chains of transmission and baraka is most visible in the
discourse regarding ulu’ al-sanad, in which value was
placed on the “elevation” of the chain of transmission
of a ḥadīth or collection of ḥadīth, meaning it has been
transmitted through the least number of people.14 Just
as physical proximity to the relics in the tombs of saints
brought people in close contact with their sacred power,
elevated chains of transmission brought scholars closer
to the sacred power of the Prophet.15
Evidence from the ijāzāt suggest that the type of
religious authority generally associated with “popular”
practices and concepts, which met the spiritual needs
of the illiterate majority of Egyptians, were actually at
the core of educational practices in the legal sciences,
especially in the field of ḥadīth. The relationship of
ṣubḥa and the embodied praxis that it purveyed are
41
arce annual me e t ing
enshrined in the enchained ḥadīth. Similarly, the high
isnād transmitted a baraka of proximity, similar in
conception to what common people sought at the
tombs of saints.
Notes
1 J. Heyworth-Dunne. An Introduction to the History of Education in Modern Egypt
(London, Cass, 1968): 11
2 See Ahmed b. ‘Ali al-Qalqashandi. Subh al-a’sha fi sina‘at al-insha’ vol.14, pp.32235 for examples of different types of ijazat.
3 Jonathan Berkey. The Transmission of Knowledge in Medieval Cairo (Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1992) :33.
4 Ibn al-Salah al-Shahrazuri, ‘Uthman ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman, An Introduction to the
Science of the Hadith, Eerik Dickinson, trans. (Reading, UK : Garnet, 2005): 197
1
5 “Ijizat al-shaykh al-Iskandrani al-Sabagh” (Azhar, Majami‘ 1444/3606): 14. The
ellipsis indicates twenty-five names excluded for brevity.
6 A transmission entitled, “the enchained hadith of cutting the nails on Friday” from
“Ijazat al-Malawi al-Kabir lil- shaykh al-Barawi” (Cairo : Azhar Manuscripts, Mustalah
398/14482): 9
7 John O. Voll “‘Abdallah ibn Salim al-Basri and 18th Century Hadith Scholarship”
(Die Welt des Islams, New Series, Vol. 42, Issue 3, Arabic Literature and Islamic
Scholarship in the 17th/18th Century: Topics and Biographies, 2002)
8 The images are of a silsila bilawaliyya from “Ijazat al-Bahi lil-Shibasi” (Azhar
Manuscripts, Mustalah 817 / 5306, dated 1247/1831):9-10
2
9 As is argued by George Makdisi in “Subha et riyasa Dans l’Enseignement Medieval”
(Recherches D’Islamologie Bibliotech): 208.
10 Abu al-Najib al-Suhrawardi, (d. 563/1168) in his Kitab Adab al-Muridin (see the
translation by Menahem Milson entitled A Sufi Rule for Novices, Cambridge: Harvard
University Press, 1975) outlines the process and philosophy of learning through
companionship.
11 Stefan Reichmuth. The World of Murtada al-Zabidi (1732-91): Life, Networks and
Writings (E.J.W. Gibb Memorial Trust, 2009): 94.
12 Sabine Schmidtke. “Forms and Functions of ‘Licenses to Transmit’ (ijazas) in
18th-Century-Iran: ‘Abd Allah al-Musawi al-Jaza’iri al-Tustari’s (1112-73/1701-59)
3
Ijaza Kabira” in Schultze, Reinhard, ed. Speaking for Islam : religious authorities in
Muslim societies (Leiden : Boston : Brill, 2006): 104
13 A phenomenon best described by Valerie J. Hoffman in Sufism and Saints in
Modern Egypt (Columbia, S.C. : University of South Carolina Press, 1995)
14 John Voll. “’Abdallah ibn Salim al-Basri and 18th century Hadith Scholarship”
(Die Welt des Islams, New Series, vol.42, issue 3, Arabic literature and Islamic
Scholarship in the 17th/18th Century: Topics and Biographies, 2002): 359.
15 Eerick Dickinson. “Ibn Salah al-Shahrazuri and the Isnad” (Journal of the American
Oriental Society, Vol. 122, No. 3, Jul. – Sep., 2002): 484; see also Muhammad
Ghazili. al-Janib al-‘atifi min al-Islam : bahth fi al-khalq wa-al-suluk wa-al-tahawwuf
(Cairo : Dar al-Kutub al-hadithah, 1977).
42
4
arce annual meet ing
The Windy City Hosts ARCE’s 62nd
Annual Meeting
Kathleen Scott
Close to 450 attendees enjoyed Chicago’s Magnificent
Mile while sharing the latest in scholarship and news
on Egypt at ARCE’s 62nd Annual Meeting April 1-3.
This year’s 120 papers were delivered in concurrent
sessions over a three-day span in the convivial setting
of the Chicago Marriott Hotel. While most papers were
Egyptological in subject matter, many also examined
Coptic and Islamic themes. For a closer look at the
papers given, you may download a pdf of the Abstract
Booklet here.
The recent unrest and political upheavals in Egypt
provided a provocative backdrop to the scholarly debate
and professional networking taking place at the annual
meeting. Director Gerry Scott and Assistant to the
Director Jane Smythe fielded questions at a special
meeting of expedition leaders that was held to discuss
the latest news about conditions in Egypt and the nearterm outlook for working in the coming season.
On Friday evening, the Oriental Institute of the
University of Chicago hosted a gallery reception for ARCE
members. On view was the special exhibition “Before the
Pyramids” curated by Dr. Emily Teeter (ARCE’s Board of
Governor President) and funded in part by a grant from
ARCE’s Antiquities Endowment Fund.
The ARCE Members Recption was held in the
Marriott’s Chicago Ballroom on Saturday evening and
guests were treated to a buffet dinner during which the
awards for Best Student Papers were announced. Mark
Janzen, of the University of Memphis, was chosen as 2nd
place winner for his paper entitled “The Iconography
of Humiliation: An Introduction to the Depiction and
Treatment of Foreign Captives”. This year’s 1st place
winner was Emily Cole of UCLA for her paper “The
Narmouthis Ostraca: Bilingual Texts from the Fayum”
Thanks go to the Oriental Institute of University
of Chicago and the ARCE Chicago Chapter for their
support and kind assistance in making this year’s
Annual Meeting a resounding success. Mark your
calendars for next year’s meeting in Providence, RI
April 27-29, 2012.
1. Chicago skyline as seen from conference hotel
2. Expedition leaders met with ARCE Director Gerry Scott to discuss current conditions in Egypt.
3. Bill McCluskey, Betsy Bryan, Richard Jasnow, Carol Redmount, and Dennis O’Connor visit at the President and Director’s Reception.
4. John Gutzler, Sarah Harte, and Rachel Mauldin enjoy the President and Director’s Reception
Continued on page 44
5. Abd el-Ghaffar Wagdy, from the Ministry of Antiquities, is welcomed by ARCE Vice-President Samah Iskander and President Emily Teeter.
6. Director Gerry Scott delivers his report to the Members.
7. The registration desk was masterfully run by Membership Coordinator Jeff Novak.
8. Staff and Volunteers were an invaluable resource at the registration tables. Pictured: From left, Dina Saad, Djodi Deutsch, Barbara Behrens, Rose Campbell, Ginni Reckard, and Lindsay Vosburg.
9. Emil Homerin delivers a paper during a special session on Mamluk Studies.
10. David O’Connor attracted a standing room only crowd for his paper on the Narmar Palette.
11. Best Student Paper winner Emily Cole of UCLA poses with Chapter Council President Robin Young (left) and ARCE President Emily Teeter (right).
12. The membership reception was held in the Chicago Ballroom.
Photos: Kathleen Scott
43
arce annual me e t ing
44
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6
10
7
11
8
12
around arce and egypt
1. During the early days of
the Revolution, the men of
Luxor stood guard at Karnak
Temple to prevent looting.
Photo: John Shearman
2. After the revolution,
young people were seen
spontaneously sweeping the
street outside ARCE next to
a tank.
Photo: Jane Smythe
1
3. ARCE Membership
Coordinator, Jeff Novak,
represented ARCE and led
a family activity during
“Archaeology Day” at Mission
San Jose National Historic
Park in San Antonio in
October 2010.
2
4
3
Celebrating Four Decades of Service to the American Research Center in Egypt
On November 28, 2010, ARCE Director Dr. Gerry Scott honored the service of long time ARCE employee
4. ARCE Fellows attended a
“welcome back” breakfast
after the January 25
Revolution. Pictured are:
From R-L in front row:
Eric Trager, Dan Gilman, and
Walter Armbrust.
From R-L in back row:
Mohamed Bamyeh, Eric
Schewe, Hannah Barker, me,
Carolyn Ramzy, Mme. Amira,
Sinem Adar and M. Jones
Photo: Jane Smythe
Mr. Amir Hassan Abdul Hamid.
Surrounded by family and colleagues during a recognition ceremony, Mr. Amir humbly stood by as
Dr. Scott recounted the variety of ways Mr. Amir has served the organization, its members and fellows over
the past 40 years. Shortly after Dr. Scott's presentation, Rasha Amir, feted her father with a touching speech
recounting his inspiration and support for his family during the years he was employed by ARCE.
In his retirement Mr. Amir plans to remain active; providing support to expeditions and archaeological
teams arriving from the United States who need logistic and administrative support.
ARCE wishes him well and thanks him for many years of devoted service. Photos: Djodi Deutsch
45
devel opme nt
The ARCE Endowment Campaign
ENDOWMENT SOCIETY ($50,000+)
Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan /
Dr. Marjorie Fisher
Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation
Sarah E. Harte and John S. Gutzler Fund
Mrs. Terry Rakolta
U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Cultural Affairs
ENDOWMENT TRUSTEES ($25,000+)
Mohamed and Susan El-Shafie Fund
Marilyn M. Simpson Charitable Trust / Dr. William
Kelly Simpson
Mr. Raymond Smith
ENDOWMENT BENEFACTORS ($10,000+)
Dr. Betsy M. Bryan
Dr. Ben Harer and Mrs. Pamela K. Harer
Dr. Sameh Iskander
Mr. Chris Karcher and Ms. Karen Keach
Dr. Grier Merwin
Dr. Carol A. Redmount
Dr. Gerry D. Scott, III and Mrs. Kathleen Scott
Dr. Emily Teeter
Theodore N. Romanoff Prize / Mrs. Barbara Brooks
ENDOWMENT FRIENDS ($5,000+)
Ms. Dina Aboul Saad
Drs. James and Susan Allen
Dr. Jere L. Bacharach and Ms. Barbara Fudge
Dr. Andrew Bednarski
Dr. John Coleman Darnell
Ms. Kathann El-Amin
Mr. Richard A. Fazzini and Ms. Mary E. McKercher
Ms. Nimet S. Habachy
Mr. Thomas Heagy and Mrs. Linda Heagy
Mr. Michael Jones
Mr. Donald R. Kunz, Esq. and Mrs. Edith Kunz
Ms. Brienne H. Loftis / Encana Cares (USA)
Foundation
Ms. Rachel Mauldin
Ms. Catherine Moore
Dr. David O'Connor
Ms. Dorinda Oliver
Dr. Bonnie M. Sampsell
Mr. John P. Shearman
Mrs. Dirce Toulan and Dr. Nohad Toulan
46
Mr. Robert L. Wilson and Mrs. My Kieu Wilson
ENDOWMENT DONORS
Dr. Elie Abemayor and Ms. Judy Shandling
Ms. Janie Abdul Aziz
Mrs. Wissam Aboul Saad and Dr. Halim Aboul
Saad
Mr. John M. Adams
Ms. Rebecca Binkley Albright
Mr. Joe Alcorn and Ms. Sylvia Wittels
Mr. Robert Andresen and Ms. Elaine Quinn
Ms. Cindy L. Ausec
Dr. Susan H. Auth
Dr. Mariam Ayad
Dr. Brenda J. Baker
Ms. Virginia M. Barrett and Dr. R. Conrad Barrett
Dr. Marlene Barsoum
Ms. Evelyn Batot
Mr. Al Berens and Mrs. Barbara Berens
Ms. Katherine R. Berger
Dr. Laurel Bestock
Dr. Basima Bezirgan
Ms. Rebecca Binkley Albright
Ms. Lynn M. Bishop
Ms. Lisa M. Black
Dr. Craig N. Boyer and Mrs. Carol Boyer
Mrs. Elizabeth S. Bredin and Mr. John Bredin
Brown & Brown Insurance Services of San Antonio,
Inc.
Dr. Robert Bussey and Mrs. Betty Bussey
Mr. William A. Claire and Ms. Shirley M. Duncan
Mr. Nicholas Claudy and Mrs. Rosemary Claudy
Dr. Kara Cooney
Ms. Nancy J. Corbin
Dr. Daniel Crecelius and Mrs. Anahid Crecelius
Ms. Bonnie Lee Crosfield
Dr. Eugene Cruz-Uribe
Ms. Nancy Delu
Ms. Stephanie Denkowicz
Dr. Peter F. Dorman
Dr. Thomas E. Durbin
Dr. Farouk El-Baz
Dr. Gerald E. Kadish
Dr. Samir A. Gabriel, DDS & Dr. Chahira Kozma
Gabriel, MD
Ms. Camille Gaffney
development
Ms. Lisa M. Black
Ms. Patricia Blackwell Gary
Mrs. Christy R. Gervers
Dr. Claire Gottlieb and Mr. Milton Gottlieb
Ms. Beverly L. Hamilton and Mr. Lyman Hamilton
Ms. Elizabeth Hassler
Mr. Bobby Hayes
Dr. Holly Hill
Dr. Jayne Hollander
Dr. Susan Tower Hollis
Mrs. Kay E. Holz and Mr. David Holz
Dr. Thomas Emil Homerin
Ms. Cindy Hughes in memory of Jim Ringenoldus
IExplore
Dr. Salima Ikram
Mr. Peter Immerz and Mrs. Annemie Immerz
Ms. Janet Irwine
Ms. Mary N. Jamieson
Mr. Thomas Jedele and Dr. Nancy Jedele
Jefferson Bank
Dr. Jan Johnson and Dr. Donald Whitcomb
Ms. Kea M. Johnston
Mr. Vincent Jones
Mrs. Norma Kershaw
Mr. Sidney W. Kitchel
Ms. Joan A. Knudsen
Ms. Katherine Kunhiraman
Ms. Harriet Laws
Dr. Saleh Lamei
Ms. Linda K. Lewis
Mrs. Donna Lipsky and Mr. Ben Lipsky
Mr. Michael Lovellette and Ms. June C. Doezena
Mr. A. Bruce Mainwaring and Mrs. Margaret
Mainwaring
Dr. Colleen Manassa
Ms. Tippi Manske
Dr. Afaf L. Marsot
Dr. Richard C. Martin
Mr. Samuel P. Martin and Mrs. Lee A. Martin
Ms. Carol Mason
Mr. Glenn R. Meyer
Ms. Teresa R. Moore
Mr. Rick Moran and Mrs. Sandra Moran
Drs. Brian Muhs and Tasha Vorderstrasse
Dr. Francis Niedenfuhr
Mr. Jeff Novak
Northern California Chapter
Dr. John O'Brien and Mrs. Sarah O'Brien
Mrs. Sarah O'Brien in memory of John Foster
Mr. Dennis O'Connor and Mr. Bill McClusky
Mr. Thomas O'Keefe and Ms. Norma Comer
Dr. Adela Oppenheim
Mr. Clinton E. Owen and Mrs. Carol E. Owen
Mr. Gary L. Parks and Mrs. Rebecca Parks
Dr. Diana Craig Patch
Mr. Hiram M. Patterson and Mrs. Susan Patterson
Mrs. Mitzi Perdue
Dr. Barbara A. Porter
Dr. Donald M. Reid
Ms. Pamela C. Reynolds
Dr. Janet E. Richards
Mr. Jim C. Ringenoldus
Dr. Catharine H. Roehrig
Dr. Gay Robbins
Dr. Everett Rowson and Dr. Anne Macy Roth
Dr. Gonzalo M. Sanchez and Mrs. Lois E. Sanchez
Ms. Kim A. Sanders
Dr. Joseph W. Sanger
Ms. Shari Saunders and Mr. Fraser Parsons
Ms. Rose Ann Schranz in memory of Jim
Ringenoldus
Mr. Scott Schultz
Sequoia Charitable Trust / Mr. and Mrs. Paul
Marshall
Dr. William Smith and Mrs. Deems Smith
Mr. Josephy Stanley, III
Mr. James O. Stola
Stuffe & Nonsense / Candace S. Martinez
Dr. Elaine A. Sullivan
Mr. Hany N. Takla
Ms. Pamela T. Thomas
Mr. Christopher G. Townsend
Ms. Jean Walker
Ms. Roxie Walker
Rev. Cliff Waller and Mrs. Bebe Waller
Dr. Cheryl Ward
Ms. Darlene F. Ward
Drs. Willeke Wendrich and Hans Barnard
Mr. James S. Westerman
Ms. Anna White
Ms. Barbara Breasted Whitesides
Dr. Richard H. Wilkinson
Ms. Deborah L. Winters
Ms. Robin Young
Ms. Paula Terrey
updated 4/20/2011 - Thanks also to our
anonymous donors.
47
Fellowships in Egypt 2012-2013
Fields of Study
Anthropology
Archaeology
Art & Architecture
Coptic Studies
Economics
Egyptology
History
Humanities
Islamic Studies
Applications will be accepted on line
Deadline is January 15, 2012
Language & Literature
Political Science
Religion
The U.S. State Department Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)
Fellowships are available to pre-doctoral candidates in the all-but-dissertation stage and to postdoctoral scholars. Fellowships are restricted to U.S. citizens and are for a minimum stay of three
months and a maximum of one year.
National Endowment for the Humanities
The NEH makes available 1 fellowship for post-doctoral scholars and non-degree seeking professionals
for a minimum stay of four months and a maximum of one year. One of these fellows is chosen to
serve as the ARCE Scholar-in-Residence, whose role is to promote collegiality at the Center.
The William P. McHugh Memorial Fund
The McHugh Award provides assistance to a graduate student to encourage the study of Egyptian
geoarchaeology and prehistory (concurrent with an ECA fellowship for the study of Egyptian geoarchaeology or prehistory only).
The Theodore N. Romanoff Prize
This prize funds one $1000 scholarship to support the study of the language or the historical texts
of ancient Egypt. Term: Concurrent with ECA or NEH award.
The fellowship year begins October 1, 2012 and ends September 30, 2013.
ARCE fellows receive a monthly stipend to be used for costs associated with the fellowship including
living expenses, supplies, and transportation costs for the recipient.
E-Mail Contact: [email protected]
San Antonio Office • Tel: 210 821 7000
• Fax: 210 821 7007
Applications available at www.arce.org/fellowships