Luxor4u

Foreign archaeological missions resume excavating Upper Egypt after 13-year ban

Jul. 04, 2015 16:00

By THE CAIRO POST
CAIRO: Egypt has lifted a 13-year-old ban on excavation permits issued to foreign archeology missions working in Upper Egypt, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) Mostafa Amin was quoted by Youm7 Friday.

For 13 years, the excavation permissions were limited only to Egyptian missions to explore treasures in Upper Egypt but due to the “successive requests from foreign Universities and researchers, the council agreed to give the licenses after 13 years of suspension,” Amin told Youm7 without going into further details on number of the foreign missions applied for the permits.

Allowing any foreign mission to search the Egyptian artifacts should be approved by the Ministry of Tourism and five other sovereignty bodies, former head of the SCA Abdel Halim Nour el-Din told The Cairo Post Saturday.

Moreover, the mission should be escorted by security forces and accompanied with Egyptian archeologists, Nour el-Din said, noting that the mission should pay certain fees. He added that all the excavated artifacts should be documented only under the supervision of the Antiquities Ministry.

Nour el-Din added that the number of the Egyptian archaeology missions does not exceed 12, while there are around 200 foreign missions nationwide. He added that the big number of the foreign missions stems from their professionalism in excavation work along with their advanced equipments and high financial capabilities.

In March, the Director-General of Upper Egypt Antiquities Sultan Eid said told media reporters that only 60 foreign missions are “researching in the Luxor.”

Among the active foreign missions is the Spanish one headed by Dr. Myriam Seco Álvarez of the Academy of Fine Arts of Seville who is excavating in the Thutmosis III Temple at the Deir el-Bahari in Luxor, where a 4,000-year-old female mummy wearing jewels in the necropolis was unearthed.


http://www.thecairopost.com/news/158350 ... 3-year-ban

Its a shame to see these 'diggers' that have trained for many years to learn their craft prohibited from applying their trade in Egypt due to selfish bureaucracy. A small, but welcome start for them.

Dusak wrote:Its a shame to see these 'diggers' that have trained for many years to learn their craft prohibited from applying their trade in Egypt due to selfish bureaucracy. A small, but welcome start for them.

Bureaucracy a.ka. 'im in the 'at

It's taken them time to rescind the buffoon's edict...no doubt due to 'domestic issues'

Not only will it give something for foreign egyptolgists to do..but a lot of local employment too.

I thought they were already working here, met a guy in Aswan who was working with a foreign team on Elephantine Island, then he was moving to Gebel el Sisi later, another English lady on the ferry had come over to help the Brits at Assaif tombs. Marsam is full of archiologist during the season.

Sounds like you bumped into Shahaad who's working for Indiana Jones...thev'e been finding quite a bit down there..
mind you everybodies finding stuff it's really only a matter of digging....
https://www.facebook.com/GebelElSilsila ... ct?fref=ts

The Eastern desert seems not to get enough attention in my humble opinion, but as I have always said about the Sahara, you should be able to pick up a spade and dig down in any randomly chosen location and come up with something..
Keep them Seven Dwarfs of Snow White's occupied for many lifetimes.. Wot..

carrie wrote:I thought they were already working here, met a guy in Aswan who was working with a foreign team on Elephantine Island, then he was moving to Gebel el Sisi later, another English lady on the ferry had come over to help the Brits at Assaif tombs. Marsam is full of archiologist during the season.

I noticed that apparent discrepancy too Carrie...and of course there are foreign institutes at work (e.g. the Poles at Hatshepsut).

Possibly they are on digs licensed long ago, and the embargo was only on new permits?

carrie wrote:I thought they were already working here.

Existing excavations were allowed to continue but new permits have not been permitted for many years.

i think further excavation should be done in Giza, Cairo in those areas there is no telling what is hidden underneath the modern city of Cairo.

Well, if its claimed that the Pyramids are laid out in the same configuration as Orions belt, then surely it would make sense to find out where Sirius is geographically.
Should not be too difficult to find.....
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30 seconds later..


Infact I think I just found it on Google Earth..

That was one big IF!

Bullet Magnet wrote:Well, if its claimed that the Pyramids are laid out in the same configuration as Orions belt, then surely it would make sense to find out where Sirius is geographically.
Should not be too difficult to find.....
.
.
30 seconds later..


Infact I think I just found it on Google Earth..

How about the third pyramid on the right.

Well, the GP is my particular fascination, but if all 3 pyramids do mirror Orion's belt, then there is something interesting in the place where Sirius would be.
More South American than Egyptian....

Problem is these days, the stars don't tell the story they used to a long time ago, same stars, different people..

Cairo itself is not simply a consequence of the Pyramids, but there have been many interesting finds, including a statue that cannot be lifted upright due to its colossal size.
It's rather embarrassing that we cant even lift a statue that the Ancients managed to quarry carve and transport all the way from Aswan.

Heliopolis may be an interesting place to excavate, it's Greek by name, and those Greeks are good a burying the past, especially their failures and mistakes, as were the Romans..

Until further notice, no new excavations will be permitted in Upper Egypt (defined as from Giza to Abu
Simbel). Missions already working in this area may continue excavating in their original concessions, but no
new excavations will be authorized there. Concessions will only be granted in this area for restoration,
preservation, archaeological survey, documentation, and epigraphic work

This is the rule being rescinded. As you can see, it did not affect existing missions nor did it prevent all new missions in Upper Egypt, just those whose purpose was to excavate. This explains why there have been some new projects in the intervening years. I doubt the change will have much impact on Luxor proper. It is more likely to be felt elsewhere in Upper Egypt. In fact, people may feel free now to leave Luxor and go work elsewhere as more opportunities have opened up for those holding on to grandfather clause concessions, but they will have to publish their existing concessions too before they can move so that will delay the impact as well on people returning to Luxor from elsewhere.