SCA News
May 2000

CONTENTS: Restoration of the Aqueduct / Registration of Monuments / Coptic Art to be exhibited in Paris / Historical buildings to be registered / Conservation of the Sphinx

Restoration of the Aqueduct

A signed agreement between the SCA and the Wadi El Nil Company, in the presence of Minister Farouk Hosni, entitles the so-called company to restore the famous aqueduct to provide the Citadel with water taken out of the Nile located at a lower level than the Citadel. The funds raised for the completion of the project are 38 million Egyptian pounds. Joined efforts between the SCA and the Cairo Governorate cleared the area and led to the evacuation of the surrounding places as a first step towards restoration. Actual costs of this important phase are 1.2 million EGL. Further efforts to clear a wider area are to be elaborated within that second phase of the mentioned project in order to reach a better highlight of the walls of the Aqueduct extending from Fom El Khalig to the Citadel crossing railroads and Salah Salem Street.

These walls used to carry water from the Nile through magra el oyoun  to the Citadel. Salah el Din El Ayyuby had built digs to help the raise of the water but actually there are no traces of these digs.

 El Nasser Mohamed Ibn Kalaoun did two renovations in 1310 and 1340 when he erected four Sakkiehs to carry water to the top from Fom El Khalig. Water was then stored in wells still existing up in the Citadel. El Nasser built also a sakkieh driven by oxen to provide with water his mosque, the sultanate palaces, the stables and the Citadel houses, the only remains out of the sakkieh is a well full of debris.

Water was carried to these buildings through pipelines out of a cistern also built by El Nasser Mohamed Ibn Kalaoun. The only remains out of the cistern are a cylindrical well and the small square room lying under the sakkieh.

         The project is executed in three phases, according to Abdallah el Attar, head of the Islamic Department. The sakkieh in Fom El Khalig and the annexed room will be first restored followed by the walls from Fom el Khalig to the end of the so-called bridge. The second phase includes the walls from that point to the intersection between the railway roads and the walls. The final phase will focus on the remaining part extending to Salah Salem Street.

         Dr. Gaballah announced that the walls would be cleared to 30 ms depth and this measure requires the removal of unneeded buildings. Inhabitants suffering from these measurements would be compensated, the misuse of the place will stop and gardens will surround this monument that witnessed an important era in Egypt's history. Awareness of the importance of these monuments as a primordial side of the restoration project would be spread amongst the population who is to be considered as the future safeguard of these monuments.

         Thus cleared and restored the area along the walls is ready for visitors interested in this aspect of Egypt's history.

Registration of monuments

Dr.Gaballah assigned to Mr. Mohamed Abdel Makssoud the responsibility of the registration of all Sinai restituted Monuments and actually stored in The Egyptian Museum. These monuments shall be removed after registration to SCA stores in Kantara Shark to be exhibited in two museums newly built for this purpose in El Kantara Shark and El Arish, Sinai.

Mohamed Abdel Makssoud, General Manager, North Sinai and Eastern Delta area announced that restituted monuments belonging to Sinai area are stored in two thousand boxes. These monuments refer to Pharaonic eras, Graeco-Roman period and Islamic period.

Repartition of these monuments according to interest will orientate scientifical value objects to El Kantara Shark Museum while other monuments will be displayed in El Arish Museum. UNESCO participated in the erection of the two museums.

According to Dr. El Saghir, head of the department, El Kantara Shark Museum through displayed objects will interest students of the scientific centre established in the City. El Arish Museum, to be inaugurated soon, is set according to modern museology system, costs of erection reached 10 million EGL while costs of El Kantara Museum will reach 2 million EGL.

Coptic Art to be exhibited in Paris

Farouk Hosni, Minister of Culture is inaugurating 15th May the Coptic Art exhibition held in l'Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris.  Present will be Pope Shenouda and Aly Maher, Egypt Ambassador. Dr Gaballah cooperated with Dr. Nasser El Ansary and selected related objects, 95 pieces, from the Islamic and Coptic Museums. The French audience will admire these masterpieces during three months.

Palaces, villas and historical buildings to be registered

A joined effort between the SCA and IDSC will lead to the registration of all buildings of historical or architectural importance. The information Centre of the Ministerial Council together with the SCA Islamic Department is combining their efforts in order to classify palaces, architecturally important buildings or buildings related to a high ranked person.

Registration is done through computers. According to Raouf Ismail, Director of the information centre for cultural heritage IDSC, technology will help scholars and researchers to obtain easily any required information.

Conservation of the Sphinx

Farouk Hosni, Minister of Culture assigned specialists to conserve and preserve constantly the sphinx that has been restored for ten years. Zahi Hawass, the committee responsible is overviewing the constant measure of seismic movements, the detection of wind direction, and the maintenance of the rocks. Mahmoud Mabrouk, Abdel Hamid Kotb and Mostafa Abdel Kader are acting each in his specific domain to keep appropriate maintenance to the Sphinx.

Reported by:
Naglaa El Zahlawi

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