The Rape of the Nile

by Brian Fagan

  FIGURE 16.3 Henry Breasted and his family (center) at Abu Simbel. Courtesy: Oriental Institute, University of Chicago.

  FIGURE 16.4 Queen Nefertiti from a sculptor’s workshop at el-Amarna, one of the masterpieces of Egyptian art. Archivo Iconografico/Corbis.

  The Oriental Institute was Breasted’s greatest achievement, where he ensured that archaeology, the recording of ancient monuments, and the study of written records went hand in hand. Perhaps his greatest legacies were A History of Egypt, which appeared in 1905—one of the best accounts of ancient Egyptian history ever written—and the institute’s longterm project of recording inscriptions on standing monuments, begun in 1929 and continued to this day.

  Tutankhamun overshadowed many other dramatic finds between 1910 and the outbreak of World War II, among them the 1912 discovery by German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt of the masterpiece portrait of Queen Nefertiti, found with a unique cache of art objects in a room of the house of the sculptor Thutmose at el-Amarna. In the subsequent division of finds, the head was allocated to the Germans and exhibited publicly two years later. The Egyptian government was outraged and demanded the return of the portrait, but to no avail. Adolf Hitler said, “What the German people have, they keep.”19

  Another remarkable find came in 1923, when Herbert Winlock unearthed a mass grave of early Middle Kingdom soldiers who had died in combat. The gruesome corpses bore signs of vicious combat—arrow wounds, head wounds from slingshots, and club blows that finished off the wounded. They were the bodies of soldiers who had fought for Mentuhotep I (2060–2010 BC), perhaps in Nubia, honored by being interred close to the pharaoh’s mortuary temple.20 The list of important discoveries goes on and on, as, gradually, science replaced casual excavation and recording combined with conservation became important priorities.

  ::

  These discoveries, like Tutankhamun, played out against a backdrop of rising nationalism.21 The British made Egypt a protectorate during World War I, but a revolution in 1919 took them by surprise, forcing them to concede great autonomy to the Egyptians. A period of semi-independence lasted until Colonel Nasser’s revolution of 1952, which swept away the monarchy, the old political parties, and the power of the landlords.

  Tutankhamun linked archaeology to the ebb and flow of local politics. The Egyptians took advantage of their limited independence to overhaul antiquities laws. They introduced far stricter controls on artifact exports, supervised excavation permits more closely, and developed programs to train Egyptian Egyptologists, despite an obstinate hold on the Antiquities Service and the museum by Lacau and his successor, Étienne Drioton. Europeans still headed the Egyptology Department at Cairo University, despite a greater emphasis on ancient Egypt in local schools. Foreign researchers continued to work along the Nile, although at a reduced intensity from earlier times, a product of more rigorously enforced export laws. Increasingly, the emphasis turned to recording as much as excavation, as Egypt continued to wrestle with a rapidly expanding tourist industry.

  The Egyptians gained full independence and complete control over their past in the 1950s, after French administration of the Antiquities Service had endured for ninety-four years. In 1952, Egyptian archaeologist Muhammad Zakaria Gonheim, keeper of the Saqqara necropolis, unearthed a hitherto unknown step pyramid. Two years later, Gonheim removed the masonry blocking the doorway to the underground passages. Layers of funerary vessels lay on the passage floor, as did a decayed wooden casket containing a cache of golden armlets, a sheet-gold cosmetic box in the shape of a shell, and faience (glass) beads. Some mud-sealed vessels bore the name of the pharaoh Sekhemkhet (2649–2643 BC), the successor of Djoser, builder of the well-known Step Pyramid nearby. Unfortunately, Sekhemkhet’s translucent alabaster sarcophagus was empty.22 The Saqqara discovery was a source of great pride to the Egyptian public.

  President Nasser made the Aswan High Dam a symbol of the new nation; the UNESCO-sponsored move of the Abu Simbel temples to high ground symbolized a new national pride. An international effort surveyed the area to be flooded by Lake Nasser, resulting in the discovery of thousands of archaeological sites, some of great importance. The Egyptians rewarded major participants with artifacts, even complete temples. The United States was given the temple of Dendur as a reward for its efforts in Nubia. Such is institutional greed that the temple soon became the target of intense competition among the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Kennedy family, who wished to erect it by the chilly and damp banks of the Potomac beside the Kennedy Center. The Met won, but it had just finished selling off thousands of its smaller Egyptian antiquities—mummies, scarabs, beads, and pottery acquired through large-scale digs in earlier years. The island of Philae, the site of some of Belzoni’s adventures, also vanished underwater. The British had partially drowned its exquisite temples when they built the original Aswan Dam amid swirling controversy in 1902. UNESCO now moved them to nearby Agilkia Island, which was landscaped to resemble the original.

  Egyptian archaeologists continue to make remarkable discoveries, among them a stela of pharaoh Kamose at Karnak containing details of his struggles with the Hyksos. In May 1954, a young antiquities inspector named Kamal el-Mallakh uncovered the funerary boat pits by the pyramids at Giza, one of which contained a royal boat of the Fourth Dynasty. Today, foreign scholars collaborate closely with Egyptians in research with a common goal, with excavation carefully targeted, with precise goals, to avoid further destruction. Some collaborations have yielded sensational results. Back in 1962, Egyptian archaeologist Kamal Abu el-Saadat persuaded the navy to lift a huge statue of Isis from the waters of Alexandria Harbor. Thirty-two years later, a team of French underwater archaeologists headed by Jean-Yves Empereur began a survey of the seabed that yielded at least forty shipwrecks and what he claimed, controversially, were the remains of the Pharos lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the classical world. Another Frenchman, Frank Goddio, is using controlled diving and satellite imagery to map a submerged palace with marble floors.

  Ancient Egypt still grabs international headlines. In 1999, Zahi Hawass of the Supreme Council for Antiquities (successor of the Antiquities Service) announced the discovery of a cemetery with at least 10,000 occupants in the Wadi Bahariya Oasis to the west of the Nile. Most of the excavated dead date to the first and second centuries AD, lying in multichambered tombs on shelves. Much of the importance of the Wadi Bahariya cemetery lies in the information it will reveal about the people themselves—their diet, health, and life expectancy.23

  The discoveries continue to delight and amaze, but the international climate for archaeology has changed, in a world that is ardently nationalistic and increasingly jealous of its diverse cultural heritages. People are far more aware of archaeology, conscious of the enormous contribution that the discipline can make to the proper study of humankind. The Egyptians know only too well that the wealth of ancient Egypt is spread through the museums of several continents. Mummy after mummy, sarcophagus after sarcophagus, statue after statue, museum storerooms and galleries are filled with the dusty remains of Egyptian antiquity from Moscow to New Zealand, Glasgow to Cape Town. Most of these riches were acquired by private collectors and then donated to the museums, or acquired in massive field seasons, supported by private donations, where often quantity was more important than quality. In 1983, a new antiquities law made all artifacts the property of the state, except for those already in private collections. One cannot blame the Egyptians for being restrictive in their permit granting and nationalistic in their recent attitudes toward ancient Egypt. They understand the importance of the tourist industry to the national economy, of the need to balance conservation with an unrelenting public thirst to enter Tutankhamun’s sepulcher and admire Old Kingdom tomb paintings. The authorities face agonizing decisions. Do they admit visitors to royal graves and witness the near-certain deterioration and perhaps disappearance of unique wall paintings from sheer people pressure? Or do they close everything to save it f
or future generations? The debate on these issues has hardly begun. The dilemma pits the preservation of the priceless and finite archive that is ancient Egypt against the pressing economic needs of a developing country—altruism for future generations against short-term advantages. No one envies the Cairo authorities the decisions that lie ahead in an environment where funds are exiguous and the task of protection and conservation absolutely overwhelming. The rape of the Nile is entering a new phase, where, instead of looting the past, we destroy it with our love, our breath and sweat, and our feet.

  In the shadows, the surreptitious treasure hunting continues in an unending war between the government and dealers and villagers with centuries of looting in their bones. As these words are being written, newspaper reports tell of a sting operation by the antiquities authorities at Beni Suef, where some officials were caught with a Greco-Roman mummy in their possession. The lust to collect and to own is a still littleunderstood human quality, but one that fuels an unending hunger for fine antiquities, for papyri, figurines, and all the riches of ancient Egypt. Much progress has been made in recent years to highlight the evils of the international antiquities trade, but as long as there is demand, there will be people to fill it—quiet expeditions in the dead of night, flashlights glimmering in rock-cut chambers, and carefully wrapped bundles slipped away into hiding in the hours of dawn.

  The story of Egyptology is one of heroes and villains, bold deeds and incredible discoveries, of adventure, high-minded research, and downright skullduggery. In the end, the heroes and the scientists may prevail, but the price we have paid for this victory is enormous. Fortunately, the mystique and mystery of ancient Egypt have survived looters and gunpowder. There is a changelessness about Egypt that captivates the visitor and offers hope for the future. Amun still journeys across the heavens in an endless journey that symbolizes continuity. As Robin Feddon once wrote of the Egyptian winter:

  Rising from the Eastern Desert the sun sips up the heavy winter dews and passes daily across the valley through a cloudless sky. At evening, it sinks behind the Libyan hills, creating, as a magnificent finale, its breath-catching sunsets. Day after day the progress is repeated; day after day the evolution is the same. . . . Ancient Egypt lies there, preserved in the balsam of the sun.24

  Amun still casts his spell.

  Notes and References

  I consulted hundreds of articles, books, and reviews in writing this book. These notes make no attempt to cover all the sources that I consulted, but offer the reader an opportunity to delve into a very complex and ever growing literature on the history of Egyptology. Each chapter starts with a Guide to Further Reading, giving some general references, which may also appear in the more detailed entries. (In some cases, the guide covers several chapters, for obvious reasons.) At times, I have attempted a brief identification or summary of a god, an individual, or a site to amplify the narrative.

  CHAPTER 1: PLUNDERING THE PHARAOHS

  Guide to Further Reading

  Ancient Egyptian civilization has been published almost to the degree of eccentricity. General books on the subject abound, so one can offer only a few titles here. Robin Feddon’s obscure but wonderfully written Egypt: Land of the Valley (London: John Murray, 1977) gives an evocative impression of the land, ancient and modern, like none other I have read. Barry Kemp, Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization (London: Routledge, 1989), is an analytical work aimed at a more specialized audience. In my view, it is the best analysis of ancient Egyptian civilization in print. Cyril Aldred’s classic essay The Egyptians, 3d ed. (London and New York: Thames and Hudson, 1998), is an excellent shorter treatment. My own Egypt of the Pharaohs (Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2001) is a superficial history with superb photographs by Ken Garrett. See also Vivian Davis and Renée Friedman, Egypt Uncovered (London: Stewart, Tabori, and Chang, 1998), which focuses on recent discoveries. All these sources will guide you to the basic literature.

  Three books of more specific focus are worth recommending here. Mark Lehner, The Complete Pyramids (London: Thames and Hudson, 1997), describes the history, architecture, and significance of these most striking of Egyptian monuments. Lise Manniche, City of the Dead: Thebes in Egypt (London: British Museum, 1987), is more technical but a mine of information on the Theban necropolis. To read hieroglyphs, try Mark Collier and Bill Manley, How to Read Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Step-by-Step Guide to Teach Yourself (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2003), where numerous references will be found.

  1. Howard Carter and A. C. Mace, The Tomb of Tut-Ank-Amen (New York: George H. Doran, 1923–1933), 4.

  2. For convenience, I have used the term Thebes in these pages, only using Luxor in a modern context, this being common practice in the literature.

  3. T. E. Peet, The Great Tomb-Robberies of the Twelfth Egyptian Dynasty (Oxford: Griffith Institute, 1990); quotes in this paragraph and below are from pp. 21, 23. Translations of tomb-robbing records can also be found in Henry Breasted, Ancient Records of Egypt (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1906).

  4. Peet, op. cit. (1990), 17.

  5. An incident described at length below, in Chapter 13.

  6. Peter A. Clayton, Chronicle of the Pharaohs (London and New York: Thames and Hudson, 1994), is an authoritative summary of all that is known about ancient Egyptian rulers, their chronologies and deeds. This book provided the dates used in this book.

  7. Pliny quotes in this and the preceding paragraph come from Leslie Greener, The Discovery of Egypt (New York: Viking Press, 1966), 1. For convenience, I refer to Muhammad Ali, which complies with the Library of Congress convention. Some authors use Mehmed (or Mehmet), which is the Turkish usage. I am grateful to Professor Donald Reed for his briefing on this arcane point.

  CHAPTER 2: THE FIRST TOURISTS

  Guide to Further Reading

  The colorful history of Egyptology has become a fashionable topic. Peter Clayton, The Rediscovery of Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson, 1982), covers early depictions of Egypt by European artists. Nicholas Reeves, Ancient Egypt: The Great Discoveries (London: Thames and Hudson, 2000), is a lavishly illustrated chronicle of discovery from 1798 to today, an essential reference for anyone interested in the history of Egyptology. See also Peter France, The Rape of Egypt (London: Barry and Jenkins, 1991), which covers much the same ground as the present book. John Marlow, Spoiling the Egyptians (London: Andre Deutsch, 1974), is more concerned with the economic, financial, and technological aspects of Egypt in the nineteenth century, but is excellent for the general reader. F. Gladstone Bratton, A History of Egyptian Archaeology (London: Hale, 1967), is informative on the early Greek authors and the first tourists. For Roman tourists, see Tony Perrottet’s entertaining Route 66 A.D.: On the Trail of Ancient Roman Tourists (New York: Random House, 2002), and Ibrahim Amin Ghali, “Touristes romains en Égypte et Égyptiens à Rome sous le Haut-Empire,” Cahiers d’histoire Égyptienne 11 (1969): 43–62. Leslie Greener, op. cit. (1966), is a popular work that is good on early visitors. A series of recently published volumes, not available when this book was revised, deal with various aspects of changing attitudes to Egypt and Egyptology, among them David Jeffreys, ed., Views of Ancient Egypt Since Napoleon Bonaparte (London: UCL Press, 2003).

  1. Allegedly, Pharaoh Amenemhet (1991–1962 BC) wrote these words at the beginning of an instruction to his son Senusret I (1971–1926 BC). He was assassinated in the thirtieth year of his reign. It may be that a royal scribe set these words down on the orders of the new king.

  2. Lucie Duff-Gordon, Letters from Egypt (London: Macmillan, 1865), 12.

  3. Miriam Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol. 2: The New Kingdom (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1976), 43–44.

  4. David Grene, trans., The History: Herodotus (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987), bk. 2.21, p. 139.

  5. Ibid., bk. 2.86, p. 166. For mummies and mummification, see Salam Ikram and Aidan Dodson, The Mummy in Ancient Egypt: Equi
pping the Dead for Eternity (London: Thames and Hudson, 1998). A fascinating, if gruesome, account of some of the diseases that afflicted the ancient Egyptians and modern experiments with their mummification techniques can be found in Rosalie David and Rick Archbold, Conversations with Mummies (New York, William Morrow, 2000).

  6. Manetho (fl. ca. 280 BC) was Egyptian high priest at Heliopolis, whose Aigypticaka divided Egyptian history into thirty dynasties that still form the framework for ancient Egyptian chronology.

  7. Auguste Mariette in a letter to his friend Desjardins, 1874. Quoted in Greener, op. cit. (1966), 10.