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1 A COMMON TRUST U N E S C O

2 U Not underlined Monuments to be protected in situ Monuments offered as grants in return for contributions made by foreign countries Monuments to be relocated within Nubia: 1st priority Monuments to be relocated within Nubia: 2nd priority Monuments for which no provision can be foreseen TOM/ EGYPT,,,,:*$ LE!!! GEBEL CHAMS FARAS WADI HALFA (f 2nd Colororl SUDAN \ SEMNA WEST SEMNA EAST (KUMMA)./,/ km

3 A COMMON TRUST: OF THE PRESERVATION THE ANCIENT MONUMENTS OF NUBIA U N E S C O

4 I. The problem 2 The building of the High Dam The United Arab Republic is, this year, starting the construction of a high dam (the Sadd el Aali) on the Nile near Aswan, a few miles upstream from the present dam. This new dam, which wil make possible a considerable increase in the area of cultivable land and the supply of electrical energy, holds great promise for the agricultural and industrial development of the country and the welfare of its population. The High Dam wil raise the water-level over about 300 kilometres (180 miles) of Egyptian territory and 180 kilometres (112 miles) of Sudanese territory. With the existing dam, the maximum level is IZI metres above sea-level; but with the new one it wil reach 133 metres in 1966 or 1967-at the end of the first stage of the work now starting-and 182 metres when the second stage is completed. The upper valley of the Nile wil then be transformed into a lake nearly joo kilometres (300 miles) long, stretching from Aswan in Egypt to the Dal Cataract in.the Sudan, and at some points as much as 25 kilometres (16 miles) wide. Countless monuments and sites scattered along the valley, representing centuries of history and prehistory, wil disappear for ever beneath this mass of water. Some of the threatened monuments, in particular those at Philae and Abu Simbel, are among the finest works which have come down to us from the past, and their destruction would be an irreparable loss to mankind. An attempt must be made to preserve these relics of a heritage whose value, for art and history, is inestimable. The request of the United Arab Republic The United Arab Republic has been concerned with the problem since the dam project was first conceived. Its Antiquities Service has been instructed to concentrate its work on the threatened area. A Documentation and Study Centre for the History of the Art and Civilization of Ancient Egypt, an Egyptian body set up with Unesco's help in Cairo in 195 5, has been made responsible for collecting full documentation on the monuments which are in danger; and it is now actively engaged in surveying the sites, copying inscriptions and making photographs and coloured slides. But the work to be done if the Nubian monuments are to be saved is far beyond the resources of the United Arab Republic. On behalf of the Government of the United Arab Republic, H.E. Mr. Saroit Okacha, Minister of Culture and National Guidance (Province of Egypt), therefore took the initiative of asking Unesco, in April 1959, to launch an appeal for international assistance. The request was submitted to the Executive Board at its fifty-fourth session, in June 19j9, when the Board agreed in principle to international action and authorized the Director- General to take the necessary preparatory steps. In agreement with the Government of the United Arab Republic, Unesco arranged for the French Institut Gtographique National to carry out a photogrammetric survey of the area affected, and the material so obtained wil be used to make maps to a scale of I/IO,OOO. The Director-General also convened a committee of thirteen experts in different specialities,

5 Photo Christime Desroches-Noblecorn. Detail of the great temple of Abu Simbel below the Second Cataract, 280 kilometres (175 miles) south of the First Cataract. Profile of the last colossus on the south side of the fapde. The statue next to it crumbled more than two hundred years ago. 3

6 belonging to eight countries, who met in Cairo in October They had to consider what excavations should be made, how the monuments could be removed to safety or preserved in &U, what other measures were to be suggested, and how much the work would cost. At the opening of the meeting, H.E. Mr. Saroit Okacha, who had made special endeavours to ensure the success of the undertaking, read out the important Declaration by the Government of the United Arab Republic (see page IZ), specifying along what lines international aid should be organized and what forms it might take. In return for the assistance it would receive, the government stated its readiness : I. To cede to excavators in the threatened area at least half the proceeds of their finds, with the exception of certain items which are unique or essential for completing the national collections (this reservation is in conformity with the provisions of the Recommendation, adopted by Unesco s General Conference in I 95 6, on international principles applicable to archaeological excavations). 2. To authorize excavations, on the same terms, outside the threatened area, for example, in the Royal Necropolis of Sakkara. 3. To cede, with a view to their transfer abroad, certain Nubian temples and various antiquities from the State reserves, on the understanding that all sych items would be assigned to museums or scientific institutions open to the public. This Declaration and the experts report were considered by Unesco s Executive Board at its fifty-fifth session (November I 9 5 9), together with a communication on the same subject from the Government of the Sudan. dudes a large number of archaeological and prehistoric sites which have so far hardly been studied. Little time remains for prospection and excavation; and unless advantage is taken of it, we shall soon have to abandon, once and for all, the hope of further important discoveries like the recent one of the fortified site of Buhen. As soon as it was informed of the plans for building the dam, the Sudanese Antiquities Service drew up a programme of work to be done. But it cannot be carried out quickly enough without foreign assistance. The Sudanese Government therefore hopes that foreign specialists wil be willing to take over part of the operations under the Service s direction. It has also asked Unesco to have a photogrammetric map made similar to the one being prepared for Egyptian Nubia by the French National Geographical Institute. In , its Survey Department carried out a general aerial survey; and the photographs thus obtained, interpreted with the help of an expert sent out by Unesco, provide material for preparing an archaeological map. The Service does not, however, have enough staff to prepare the photogrammetric map which is essential to research. In return for any assistance that may be granted, the Government of the Sudan has stated that, under the legislation in force in the Sudan, anyone carrying out excavations is entitled to >o per cent of the finds, except for specimens needed to complete the national collections. H.E. Mr. Ziada Arbab, Minister of Education, has also pointed out that the prehistory, history and archaeology of this area are less well known than in the case of Egyptian Nubia, so that research prospects should arouse great interest in learned circles. 4 The request of the Sudan The Government of the Republic of the Sudan, in its turn, had drawn Unesco s attention to the monuments and sites in Sudanese territory which were threatened by the building of the dam, urging that international aid should also be extended to Sudanese Nubia. This area, though less rich in famous monuments than Egyptian Nubia, in- A world-wide campaign After considering all the problems connected with the saving of the Nubian monuments, the Executive Board decided to grant the Governments of the United Arab Republic and the Sudan the assistance they had requested. To give effect to this decision, it asked the Director- General to launch, on behalf of Unesco, an appeal

7 for international co-operation. The two governments have agreed that a single appeal should be made for assistance to both countries. Therefore, on 8 March 1960, Unesco wil launch a world-wide campaign to secure offers of participation in the work. The Director-General has set up an International Action Committee of eminent persons to help in organizing the campaign. It is also expected that national committees wil be formed for the same purpose in individual Member States. The Director-General has further decided that the campaign should be sponsored by a Committee of Patrons, of which His Majesty King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden has graciously consented to act as chairman. The procedure for international co-operation Unesco is itself giving material and technical support to the Governments of the United Arab Republic and the Sudan in their preparations for the work. Its experts have outlined the action to be taken. Henceforth, its role wil be to promote a great movement of international collaboration and to act as intermediary between those taking part in the work and the two governments. Participation should be as broad as possible. Offers may be made by governments, public and private institutions and individuals interested in the undertaking. They may take a variety of forms: financial contributions, supply of equipment, services (sending out of experts or technicians, training of prospecting teams, excavating, etc.). Offers are to be addressed to the Director- General and wil be transmitted by him to whichever of the two governments they concern. Financial contributions wil also be received by the Director-General on behalf of the government to which they have been offered. The Director-General is authorized to set up a trust fund for this purpose. In the light of his own appraisal of the needs, he wil allocate any funds addressed to him without being specifically assigned. In agreement with the Director-General, the Government of the United Arab Republic has set up an advisory committee of experts from different countries. This committee wil examine offers of participation forwarded to the Government of the United Arab Republic and wil advise it on the allocation of work for safeguarding monuments, the use of financial contributions and the distribution of the material offered in return for aid. 11. The sites and monuments of Nubia Nubia in history Nubia lies on either side of the present frontier between Egypt and the Sudan. Under the Pharaohs, it was divided into Lower Nubia or the land of the Uaua (stretching from north of the First Cataract to the Second Cataract) and Upper Nubia or Kush (from the vicinity of Buhen to the north of the Fourth Cataract). This is the part of the country that Greek and Latin authors called Ethiopia. This region is historically interesting because it offers, side by side, numerous remains left behind by communities of different origins, belonging to different cultures. It was the highway to the centre of Africa, a place where the Mediterranean and African civilizations met, and seems to have been inhabited uninterruptedly since prehistoric times. 5

8 (, Romantic drawing by Horeau, nineteenth century. Nubia is seen in the foreground: first the two temples of Abu Simbel; then that of Wadi es Sebui with its dromos before it; in front of the peninsula, the sanctuary of Dendur; a little farther back, the great temple of Kalabsha; to the west, the temple of Dakka. Also seen are the sanctuary of Debod with three,small pylons in front of it, and, in the middle of the river, Philae. On the terraces rising up along the Nile, traces are found of various Palaeolithic industries. Neolithic rndustries and rock carvings of the same period are likewise well represented. Between Neolithic and historic times, there appeared the A Group people, as the Archaeological Survey of Nubia calls them, who where still occupying Nubia at the time of the early Egyptian dynasties. Under the Old Kingdom, whose own boundary extended up to the neighbourhood of the First Cataract, the Egyptians organized trade with Nubia and exploited its natural resources. Egyptian objects dating from the earliest dynas- ties and the Old Kingdom, probably obtained by barter, have been found among the offerings in typical A Group tombs in the Sudan. Between 2400 and 2000 B.c., a people from the south-known as the C Group people-settled in Lower Nubia and developed a specifically Nubian civilization there, combining Egyptian influences with local traditions. Under the Middle Kingdom, the armies of the Pharaohs, for the purposes of trade with the south, occupied the country upstream from the Second Cataract. The centre of the Sudanese market was then Kerma, south of the Third

9 Cataract. The Pharaohs built fortresses along the road leading to it, including Buhen, near Wadi Halfa-a quite recent discovery-which was to be rebuilt under the New Kingdom; Mirgissa, near Buhen, standing on a rock at the edge of the Nile; and, further south, Semna (West) and Kumma (Semna East), built on either side of the Nile, which, in this part of its course, flows in a narrow bed between granite cliffs. The Egyptians of the New Kingdom penetrated as far as the Fourth Cataract. It was at this time that so many Egyptian tombs and pious foundations were built by the Pharaohs along the banks of the Nile. After the kings of the XVIIIth Dynasty, Rameses I1 had large sanctuaries like Derr, Gerf Hussein, Wadi es Sebui, Abu Simbel (in Egyptian Nubia) and Aksha (in Sudanese Nubia) built in stone or hollowed out of the cliffs. At the same time, Nubians were holding high positions at the court of the Pharaohs. Nubia was governed by a viceroy of Kush, through whom the Nubians were able to place the priest Herihor on the throne of Egypt in IO31 B.C. In 715 B.C. the princes of Kush, whose capital was at Napata, became Pharaohs of Egypt, founding the XXVth Dynasty. They reigned over both Egypt and Nubia and carried Egyptian civilization as far as the Sixth Cataract. Everywhere in Nubia temples were designed after those of the Pharaohs. Workers from Memphis came as far as Kawa to build and decorate the great sanctuary. This influence continued to be felt even after the kings of Kush had lost Egypt. About the sixth century B.c., the capital of the land of Kush was transferred from Napata to Meroe (between the Fifth and Sixth Cataracts), and, during the so-called Meroitic period, Kushite culture became less and less Egyptian and more African. The hieroglyphic writing changed and a cursive Meroitic script was used in official documents. A Meroitic style developed, many remains of which-still hardly studied at all-are to be found in the Wadi Halfa area. In Lower Nubia, Greeks settled in the Dodecaschoenus (so-called because it measured twelve schenes, or 73 miles). The district later became a Roman protectorate. Many temples (among them Philae, Kertassi, Debod, Taffeh, Kalabsha and Dendur) date from the time of the Ptolemies or the Roman emperors and were often built upon the remains of older edifices. Greek and Latin inscriptions give us information about Graeco-Roman Nubia. During the first centuries of the Christian era, most of the country was inhabited by the Nobatae, who were often engaged in struggles with a nomadic people, the Blemmyes. The latter had the mastery at Philae, where they came to worship Isis. An inscription at Kalabsha tells us that they were beaten by Silko, king of the Nobatae. About 330 A.D., one of Emperor Justinian s generals finally drove them from Philae. The Nobatae at this time were converted to Christianity, and churches sprang up all over Nubia. Then, in the Year LO of the Hegira, the Arabs conquered the country and all Lower Nubia soon embraced Islam; the churches were turned into mosques, and the Christian kingdom took refuge to the south of Khartoum. But fortified churches and monasteries of a later date (thirteenth or fourteenth century A.D.) are also to be seen in Nubia. These were probably built at the time when the Coptic communities had to defend themselves against their Moslem neighbours. The sites Egyptian Nabia. Systematic prospecting was begun in Egyptian Nubia as soon as the danger of a rise in the level of the present dam became apparent. With the means then available, test excavations were made throughout the threatened area, up to ground-level ILI. It cannot, however, be said that there is nothing more to be discovered; the proof of this can be seen in the results of the last two seasons excavations by German and Italian expeditions. At Amada, the German school of archaealogy has uncovered new tombs and houses. At Ikhmindi, a Byzantine city, the archaeologists of the University of Milan have discovered the city s foundation stone in a church outside the walls, with a late Greek inscription giving the date, the reasons for building the town and the names of the architects. Farther north, the same

10 expedition found, in a tomb, a bronze bowl of pure Meroitic style, engraved with pastoral scenes. At Kalabsha, near the already excavated temple, the Antiquities Service has discovered a chapel and probably located a sacred lake. However, no trace has yet been found of the viceroys palace in the vicinity of Aniba, the capital of Lower Nubia. Nor have the important tombs and necropolises which must be assumed to exist in various places been brought to light. Ideally, all the sites lying between levels 121 and 182 should be excavated. Further excavations at Ikhmindi, Kasr Ibrim and Sabagora would also produce much. And investigation of the terraces above the river would undoubtedly reveal many Palaeolithic and Neolithic prehistoric sites still to be explored. Sudanese Nubiu. Unlike Egyptian Nubia, this region has never been systematically prospected. A ground survey of the area from the Egyptian frontier to Wadi Halfa and a preliminary aerial topographic survey from Wadi Halfa to Sarkamatto have revealed some hundred sites, of which only ten or so have been partially excavated to date. Several of these sites are of interest to prehistorians. At two points near the Second Cataract, pre-chellean tools, possibly of the Kafuan indus- try, have been located. At little farther south, a complete sequence of Palaeolithic industries has been noted, from the Chellean to the Mousterian. Levalloisian faceted-platform implements are generally found associated with the tools of Acheulian, Mousterian and Sebilian sites, thus offering an opportunity of studying the relationship of this industry with the others. Neolithic remains have been discovered in three places. The great numbers of rock paintings and carvings of apparently Neolithic origin indicate that many other sites from that period exist. Those already excavated have produced material susceptible to dating by the carbon-14 method. Many A Group burial grounds have never been excavated. It is still an open question whether a B Group people with a distinct culture succeeded the A Group, as the first investigators supposed, during the time of the Old Kingdom. Further excavation may give the answer. The problem of the relationship of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom civilization to the Kerma and C Group cultures might be cleared up in the same manner. Several Middle Kingdom fortresses have not yet been explored, such as that of Dorgonarti; Mirgissa has been only partially excavated. Most of the very many New Kingdom sites, such as the temple of Rameses 11, at Aksha, have not been touched. Front of the temple of Gerf Hussein, 90 kilometres (56 miles) south of the First Cataract. Except for the peristyle, the main part of the sanctuary is hollowed out of the Nubian sandstone, which is in very bad condition. This temple cannot be saved, as it is in too poor a state and would cost too much to preserve, but some of the reliefs can be taken away. 8 Upper part of the outer peristyle of the birth b house at Philae. A door in the left-hand tower of the first pylon leads to the room where the mothergoddess came to give birth to her son Horus. The human figures with cows ears adorning the abaci are characteristic of Hathoric capitals.

11 Photo Docurncntation and Study Centre on,ancient bgypr, Cairo. Philae General view of the island of Philae. The monuments of the great sanctuary which can be seen go back to the XXXth Dynasty; the landing-stage to the south dates from the time of Pharaoh Nectanebo. Philae was the last refuge of the worship of Isis in Christian times. In the background is the island of Bigeh where, according to legend, part of the body of Osiris (left leg) was buried and where the goddess Isis went to hold funeral rites at regular intervals. Detail of the bas-relief depicting Horus, the hawkheaded god, Isis son, with Pharaoh paying homage to him. 9

12 Photo Unesco-Laurema.;... z.... The kiosk, part of which has collapsed, at Kertassi, 45 kilometres (28 miles) south of the First Cataract. It can be transported piecemeal to a Nubian oasis to be created in the Western Desert near Kalabsha. Quarry at Kertassi; the wall in front has a monumental doorway leading to a small recess forming a naos. This qudrry provided the stone used in the building of the Philae temples. Bet a1 Wali, about 56 kilometres (35 miles) south of the First Cataract, on the left bank; here Rameses I1 had a speos hollowed out of the rock; the entrance hall is now open to the sky. The experts have recommendedcutting this temple out of the cliff. Below: a protodoric column carved out of the interior of the rock, in the hypostyle hall, and a detail from a relief, on the outside, showing prisoners brought before the king by one of his sons at the end of a campaign in Asia. 0 r:

13 Photo Unesco-Mariani, The temple of Kalabsha, a few hundred metres south of Bet a1 Wali, is, except for Philae, the largest Graeco- Roman foundation in Nubia. Rebuilt by Augustus on remains dating from the time of Amenophis 11, it is dedicated principally to the Nubian god Mandulis, a Nubian version of the god Horus, son of Isis. Preserved almost in its entiretv. it has manv othei buildings associated with it: landing-stage, quays, birth house, various chapels. The whole sanctuary may be moved to the oasis which is to be created at the same latitude. Photo Documenrauon and Studv Cenrre on hncrcnr tisv~r. Cairo. Temple of Kalabsha: the goddess Isis-Wajet (Smiling with youth), one of the six huge figures carved on the back of the temple in the ambulatory. 11

14 A Pylon of the temple of Dakka, 107 kilometres (67 miles) south of the First Cataract. Sanctuary dedicated to the god Thot by the Ethiopian king Ergamenes, a contemporary of Ptolemy IV (Evergetes 1). The earlier foundations go back to Amenemhet I (XIIth Dynasty), Tuthmosis I11and SetiI. This temple wil be removed to one of the two oases to be created in the Western Desert. When it is dismantled, many blocks of stone dating from earlier periods, which had been used over again, wil probably be identified. 12 Dakka: detail from the stile of a door opening into the main hall of the temple. The goddess of the First Cataract, Anuket, holding the symbol of life and the long staff which was originally surmounted by papyrus fronds, is receiving homage from, Ptolemy.

15 Meroitic burial grounds like Jebel Dabarossa on the right bank of the Nile near Wadi Halfa and Argin on the left bank have never been excavated. Lintels found near Argin seem to indicate that a Meroitic town remains to be discovered. There are also many tumuli attributed to a so-called X Group people, which may turn out to be the Nobatae. Most of the Christian churches and monasteries have never yet been investigated at all. The monuments Many Nubian monuments lie between levels IZI and 133 and wil therefore be submerged in a few years time unless action is taken quickly. Some of them not only provide evidence about the past, but are unique works of art which should be kept in the setting where they were built. Egyptian Nzlbia. This is especially true of the two large groups of temples at Philae and Abu Simbel. The island of Philae, consecrated to Isis, contains, in an area of some 350 by 135 metres, several monuments, the oldest of which go back to the XXXth Dynasty (circa 360 B.c.). The building of the whole group spread over the entire Ptolemaic period. In the middle of the island stands the great temple of Isis, with its pylon 45 metres wide and 18 metres high, bearing the name of the Pharaoh Nectanebo as well as the portrait of the last Ptolemy. The colonnade leading to the temple, with its capitals of flowers, was built by the Roman emperors. The famous hosk of Trajan is a portico of fourteen columns, which was probably used as the landing-stage or the procession which took the goddess out of the island and brought her back to it. Small chapels also form part of this singularly harmonious general picture, in which the position of each item was determined by religious considerations. At the present time, Philae is under water for more than nine months out of the year. The water has destroyed all vegetation on the island, but has also cleaned the stone by ridding it of its incrustations of salts. The whole group is well preserved. However, this state of affairs wil change. The island lies between the present dam and the site of the new one. When the latter is built, the water-level in this lake-like stretch wil drop to level IOZ; and Philae, which stands at level 104, wil be visible throughout the year. But the production of electrical energy will necessitate daily variations in the level between IOZ and ; such variations are much more dangerous for the stone of the monuments than total submersion, as the foundations are likely to be gradually eaten away by the water. The sanctuaries must therefore be protected in sitzl, and this was one of the main problems facing the experts at their meeting in October I 9 j 9. The Abu Simbel group must also be protected where it stands. It comprises two temples cut into the cliff about 50 metres apart, with only their fasades visible externally. Sand had, for centuries, covered the large temple, until its discovery in Along its fasade, with their backs to the cliff, are four colossal figures, about 20 metres high, representing Rameses 11. The workmanship is perfect in its details, and the expression all the more admirable for the size of the faces: each measures 4.17 metres from ear to ear; the nose is 98 centimetres long, each ear 1.06 metre, each eye 84 centimetres. The interior is hollowed out of the thickness of the cliff and includes several halls: the largest of them (18 by metres) has eight Osirian pillars, against which stand Io-metre colossi representing Osiris with the features of Rameses 11. The walls are decorated with scenes illustrating the Pharaoh s exploits. The small temple, dedicated by Rameses to his consort Queen Nefertari and the goddess Hathor, is decorated outside by six colossi, IO metres high, in two groups on either side of the door. In each group, Queen Nefertari, identified with Hathor, is flanked by two statues of Rameses. The ground-level of the small temple being I 2 I, and that of the large one 125, the whole group wil be submerged for ever in Even by September 1963, the maximum water-level wil reach these heights, and the very fragile red sandstone of Abu Simbel will begin to disintegrate. The whole area between Philae and Abu Simbel is rich in monuments, and many of them 13

16 are threatened. Among them are various stonebuilt temples, like the small New Kingdom temple at Amada. with its remarkably wellpreserved reliefs, or the large sanctuary at Kalabsha (to mention only two) ; temples partially or entirely cut out of the cliff, like Bet a1 Wali, Gerf Hussein, Derr or Wadi es Sebui; rock tombs like that of Pennut at Aniba, etc. Each of these monuments provides priceless information for historians and bears witness to the art of a great period. Reliefs in the temple of Bet a1 Wali illustrate the relations of Rameses I1 with Nubia and his first campaigns in Asia. Some of the reliefs inside the speos still show the colours in which they were painted. The great temple of Wadi es Sebui still has its sacred avenue or dromos, lined with sphinxes. The sanctuary, which has also kept some of its old colours, is adorned with very well preserved scenes carved in the rock. At Derr, on the walls of the speos dedicated to the god Ra, is an account 'of some of the deeds of Rameses 11, etc. Sudunese i\u~zu. The waters wil cover the temple of Rameses at Aksha, the temple of Buhenwhich still has paintings and carvings in it-two XVIIIth Dynasty temples at Semna, rock chapels, Middle Kingdom fortresses and some twenty Christian churches adorned with frescoes The measures to be taken 14 The recommendations of the experts' meeting in Cairo Excavations. The experts at the meeting called by the Director-General in Cairo felt that the necessary excavations could not be carried out in the short time available without foreign help. They recommended that the Antiquities Service of the United Arab Republic should, starting in October 1960, organize an expedition, working for two seasons of six months (October to March), in which foreign experts on prehistory would help to discover any Lower and Upper Palaeolithic remains and any possible traces of the Neolithic, and to decide on the sites where excavations were to be conducted. These sites would then be assigned by the Antiquities Service, after consultation with the Advisory Committee, to Egyptian and foreign institutions. The experts considered that the archaeological sites could be assigned in the same manner. In their view, several sites above level IZI which had already been explored should be investigated again, mainly with regard to the Late Period and Coptic'Nubia; for this, the collaboration of Egyptologists and Coptic and Islamic scholars would be required. The first necessity would be to revise the archaeological map of the area, with the help of the photogrammetric surveys and systematic test excavations. Monuments. The experts gave priority to the study of the various proposals for preserving Abu Simbel and Philae in situ. For Abu Simbel, they favoured the plan to build an earth- and rockfilled dam abutting on the rock face at two points 700 metres apart, to the north and south of the temples. The whole group of rocky spurs out of which the temples are cut would thus be protected from the water. The distance between the temple facades and the crest of the dam, 300 metres, would be great enough to leave the appearance of the site as far as possible unimpaired. At Philae, the experts were in favour of creating an artificial lake which would never rise above level IOZ and would be cut off from the Aswan reservoir by low earth- and rock-filled dykes. The experts pointed out that these two projects could be undertaken only after preliminary topographical, geological and hydraulic surveys and studies had been made, for which specialists would be needed. By agreement between the

17 Wadi es Sebui, 150 kllometres (94 miles) south of the First Cataract. Inner court of the temple (which was dedicated by Rameses I1 to the gods Amon-Ra and Ra-Horakhti). This is the only temple which still has its dromos. On either side of the peristyle are the shafrs of Osirian pillars. The double doorway built in the old Pharaonic entrance was that of the Coptic church installed inside. Photo Christmne Desroches-Noblecourt Temple of Wadi es Sebui. During the Coptic period, a niche in the back wall of the Holy of Holies was ornamented with a picmre of the apostle Peter. Yet the Pharaonic effigies were allowed to remain: Rameses I1 still venerates the sacred boat of the sun god and offers flowers to the lord of the shrine. The carved blocks would have to be cut out of the rock. The pylons are in too bad a condition to be dismantled. The colossi, some of which are broken, and the statues of the dromos can be removed to a museum. w

18 Interior of the Tomb of Pennut, hollowed out of a cliff near Aniba, 230 kilometres (144 miles) south of the First Cataract. A small room qf the funerary chapel remains ; it contains painted low-relief figures, accompanied by inscriptions. This room will have to be cut out of the rock and moved to the neighbourhood of the proposed oasis. Photo Unesco-Mariani 16

19 17 A covered street in the Byzantine city of Ikhmindi. These piled stones show how an ancient settlement looks before systematic excavation. But the efforts of excavators wil not be fruitless. Even if the work of levelling does not bring treasures or art objects to light, it wil certainly yield information about this still little known period in the history of Christian Nubia. Besides the city s foundation stone, other material essential to an understanding of the way in which the towns of the period were laid out has already been discovered; it wil thus be easier to explore similar sites elsewhere in Nubia profitably. Ikhmindi, on the left bank of the river, is 120 kilometres (75 miles) from Aswan and not far from the small temple of Maharraqah. The rock of Ibrahim, about forty metres high, some 230 kilometres (144 miles) from Aswan, bears the remains of a huge fortress, the ruins of which should be re-excavated. This fortified city once sheltered the Roman soldiers of Petronius, and later the Bosnians whom the Sultan Selim installed there in the sixteenth 4 century. In Pharaonic times, it defended the whole region. On the blocks of stone re-used in the construction of its public buildings, the names of Tuthmosis (XVIIIth Dynasty) and Taharka (XXVth Dynasty) have been discovered. The nearby burial grounds should likewise be excavated ; they wil certainly yield tombs of the late Pharaonic period, Meroitic graves and Christian and Arab tombs. The church, which was converted into a mosque, wil be taken down and reassembled elsewhere. Photo Unesco-Laurcnza Photo Unesco-Laurenza. Kasr Ibrim caves. In the lower part of the immense cliff, four niches were hollowed out and decorated under the New Kingdom. The first two go back to Tuthmosis I11 and Rameses 11,the third to Queen Hatshepsut and Tuthmosis 111. The last is dedicated to Amenophis 11: the king is seen receiving tribute from the peoples of the south. As the white line marking the winter water-level indicates, two of the niches are submerged almost throughout the year. Several decorated niches exist along the banks of the Nile; not all of them can be saved. The chapels of Abu Oda and Jebel Shams, farther south, can be cut out of the rock and moved to a nearby site. - - Y.. n2-i. -.,... I

20 Government of the United Arab Republic and Unesco, a consulting engineer has been appointed to carry out this preliminary work during Only when the results of these studies are available wil it be possible to make an accurate estimate of the cost of the projects. Provisional estimates would indicate that between 30 and 60 million dollars may be needed for Abu Simbel, and 4 million dollars for Philae. The experts drew up a list of some twenty monuments to be transferred. The rock temples wil be cut out of the cliff and transported in one or more sections, as may be decided by the technicians responsible for the work after consultation with the Egyptian Antiquities Service. Free-standing temples wil be dismantled, transported and reassembled. In order to obviate difficulties due to the poor condition of the monuments, a mission consisting, for example, of a geologist and an architect specializing in restoration work should spend at least two months on a preliminary study. The experts recommended that every effort should be made to assign to each of the monuments removed a setting comparable with that of the place where it originally stood. The Egyptian Antiquities Service wil have the responsibility of drawing up a list of rock carvings and inscriptions, deciding how they are to be transferred, and choosing those to be offered in return for foreign aid. Docmzentation. The experts also considered that the work being done by the Documentation and Study Centre (epigraphic, archaeological, photographic and other surveys) should be continued. They estimated that, for this purpose, the centre would need the assistance of about forty experts (epigraphists, archaeologists, architects). Work planned by the Sudan The Sudanese Antiquities Service first intends to have a ground survey made simultaneously on both banks of the Nile by two separate teams. Since there are so many sites to be explored and so little time remains, it wishes to send out two excavating teams on each bank, with a prospecting team making a general survey ahead of them. Known sites would be excavated during the first season, while the prospecting teams would prepare for the second year s work. The latter, with the help of prehistorians and epigraphists might also survey the rock carvings and inscriptions, photographing and copying them and possibly removing some of them to safety. Most of the monuments in Sudanese territory are built of sun-dried brick and cannot be dismantled. But the four stone temples of Aksha, Buhen, Semna West and Kumma should be moved. These are the measures whereby it should be possible to save, so that men may know and admire it, a heritage shared by all. The task is too great for the resources of the countries concerned but it is a matter of importance far beyond their frontiers. A unified effort throughout mankind can and must make it a success: can, because the most highly qualified experts have unhesitatingly pronounced the undertaking feasible; must, because the representatives of the twenty-four countries on the Executive Board have unanimously judged it necessary. 18