Face to face with the Golden Mummies

Once a major agricultural and trade centre, Bahariya oasis is now a budding desert resort. Nevine El-Aref looks for mummies
Desert trips and safaris rarely quicken my pulse. I prefer water sports, visits to ancient Egyptian monuments, or exploring medieval Cairo. But I had not visited Bahariya oasis for two years. Apart from wanting to see again this beautiful oasis with its picturesque huddle of old houses perched on a ridge overlooking luxuriant palm groves, I was anxious to see how much it had developed since my last visit. So, when friends suggested a weekend trip, I agreed to go. I am glad I did.
We packed our reference books, towels and provisions into an air-conditioned mini-bus and headed west. Two highways lead to the oasis. One is 365 kilometres long and goes by the dusty Cairo-Fayoum road before climbing out of the Nile Valley up to the desert plateau. The other begins at the Sixth of October city. We took the second way.
The new dual carriage highway made for easy progress. About us, the soft ochre of the desert was smudged by tar and littered with barrels and debris left by road builders. Bahariya, 350 kilometres from Sixth October city, is usually a four-hour drive. But Anwar, our driver, ignored the speed limit and we arrived in three. Having dozed for most of the trip, I awoke to find that we were descending the escarpment and as we did so Bahariya came into view.
Amr, a friend and tour guide, took us to El-Beshmo Lodge Hotel in Bawiti, the main town, where we checked in for the weekend. The hotel is primitive, with only the most basic facilities and all on one floor. But it has charm. Its domed architecture is a delight. Its rooms and coffee shop simulate palm fronds in the traditional Bedouin style. It fills quickly and reservations are essential as there are only 25 rooms.
In front of the hotel, a few steps from the building, gushes a wonderful hot spring called Ain Al-Beshmo. The water flows from a fissure in the main cliff that runs along the border of Bawiti and the ancient village, Al-Qasr. As it spills down the cliff, the water meets a colder spring. There the fall flows into the natural basin and the water runs hot and cold. The small garden surrounding the area looks especially lovely when adorned, as it was during my visit, with apricot blossom. Close to the spring is the tomb of Sheikh El-Beshmo.
Ahmed Fakhri the Egyptologist and writer, in a book on Egyptian oases, regarded Ain El-Beshmo as the most beautiful spring in the western desert. But reliance on the visual can be deceiving. When I headed toward the basin to wash my hands I was hit by an unpleasant aroma and backed away. Mohamed Omar, the hotel receptionist, laughed. "The water is clean and clear; this smell comes from the high iron content," he said, and promptly plunged his own hands into the basin, washed his face, and sipped the water.
El-Beshmo Lodge Hotel is today one of many in Bahariya. Mostafa Soliman, head of the oasis local council, said that three years ago
Bahariya was "the forgotten oasis, despite its beauty and its proximity to Cairo. Few knew about it, except for some foreigners who passed through it on their safari trips. But the discovery of the Valley of the Golden Mummies by Zahi Hawass [Director General of Giza plateau and Bahariya oasis] has rescued Bahariya from obscurity."
Bahariya now boasts twelve hotels and a camp site. A further four hotels are under construction. There is no doubt about the growth of tourism in the area. All the hotels provide three different programmes for tourists. The first is a local tour around Bawiti, visiting historic sites like Alexander the Great's temple, the tomb of one of Bahariya's ancient governors and the Antiquities Museum. The second is a safari trip to the White and Black deserts. Third is a visit to the spring where visitors can camp and enjoy Bedouin life with a night of musical entertainment.
We wasted little time settling in before setting off to see the oasis' historic sites and landmarks. We walked from the hotel to the Al-Sheikh Subi area, site of the newly discovered tomb of a 26th dynasty Bahariya governor. As we walked, we passed among the mud-brick houses of farmers. Many are decorated with plants, animals, geometric designs or welcome verses. Alongside these simple dwellings stand houses of brick and concrete, like those of any modern city. There are also now more schools and factories, and other trappings of urban living, like cafeterias and shops.
At the governor's tomb, however, we discovered that we could not enter the site. The Egyptian archaeological team excavating it did not allow us to enter because of work in progress. But most of the haul so far unearthed is now exhibited in the single room Antiquities Museum.
Ramadan Mohamed, the head of the excavation team, welcomed us to his tent and showed us photographs of some of the discoveries, includingshawabti figures from the tomb of Na'assa, the governor's wife. Mohamed described the tombs' subterranean chambers in such detail that we were able to visualize them and share in the excitement of discovery.
Later, we drove our bus to the area of Al-Tibbaniyah, to the temple of Alexander the Great and the newly-discovered tombs of two rulers of Bahariya. The temple is a modest ruin of sandstone blocks connected to a paved road by a long stony passage. On its partially preserved walls is a scene of Alexander himself, in the presence of Amun-Re and other gods. Many of the accompanying inscriptions are still intact, including the name of the Macedonian conqueror in a Pharaonic cartouche. "This is the only temple in Egypt dedicated to Alexander," Mohamed El-Tayeb, chief antiquities inspector in Bahariya, told us. He explained that one of Alexander's favorite generals built the temple, which comprises two parts. The northern section has 45 chambers enclosed by a wall. Behind the temple, stand the living quarters of its priests, and two other rooms which may have been offices. A small side chapel with a brick altar completes the complex.
At nearby Qasr Salim, we visited the tombs of Bannentiu and his father. Both are hewn from rock, about six metres below ground level. Each consists of a pillared hall and three burial chambers decorated throughout with coloured funerary scenes depicting the dead surrounded by gods. Bannentiu's tomb is better preserved than his father's and is the most frequently visited in Bahariya.
Into the bus again and we found ourselves in Qarat Hilwa where the unique tomb of Amenhotep, the governor of Bahariya, is located. It should not be missed.
The tomb is ruined with a collapsed ceiling. It dates to the second half of the 18th and the first half of the 19th dynasties. It consists of a courtyard and two chambers. In the courtyard a fragmentary scene is painted. The owner of the tomb sits on a folding stool supervising his estate. Servants fill and store wine jars. In another delightful scene, Amenhotep lounges on a chair while his wife reclines on a mat at his feet. A third scene on the north wall of the tomb shows Amenhotep and his wife kneeling to adore the goddess Hathor, who emerges from the hillside in the form of a cow.
A collection of pottery is piled next to the tomb. I picked up a shard to see it at close quarters. The tomb guard immediately dashed over. "Please put it down," he said. "No one is allowed to touch anything and I am watching you!" I quickly returned the shard to the pile, pleased at the assiduous monitoring of the antique site, and joined the group at the bus.
Our tour guide, aware of our growing fatigue, revived us with the promise of a magnificent sight to view the sunset. Because we were not in a four-wheel drive, we had to take a long route around the oasis to reach Ain El-Mistillah, a hot spring, and its eponymous temple. The drive itself was worthwhile. Crops are plentiful in Bahariya and we drove across rural areas blanketed with traditional crops like dates, olives, tomatoes, watermelons and cantaloupes.
When we finally reached Al-Qasr village, we visited the Miftillah, a temple built by Amasis, the famous king of the 26th dynasty, in honour of Amun-Re. Completely buried until 1900, this temple was re-excavated in the 1930s by Ahmed Fakhri. "The temple was destroyed in ancient times," Inspector El-Tayeb told us, as we walked around the remaining structures. The structures are decorated with reliefs of ancient gods and goddesses. Scenes from the myth of Isis and Osiris are carved in a chapel dedicated to the god Bes.
Desert footsteps
The temple has now been restored by the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA). Windblown sand has been removed from its corridors, the structure of the building has been strengthened and the walls cleared of fungus and salt. The whole edifice has been covered with a protective wooden ceiling.
As we explored, the sun dropped towards the western horizon. The surrounding desert took on a rosy hue, and a slight breeze ruffled our hair. We climbed to the top of a sandy hill overlooking a jungle of palm trees standing over a small hot spring. In silence we watched the sun sink, and long afterwards, as light fled the earth, no word was spoken.
We had been promised Bedouin musical entertainment, and wondered, after a full day of sight-seeing, whether we were up to it. But refreshed at the hotel, we took off at 10 pm and drove to Al-Agouz, where a Bedouin palm-frond tent had been erected. It was wide, and decorated with palm weavings and low sofas. In the centre was a primitive chimney. Abdel-Sadek El-Badramani, the tent's owner, lit a wood fire. We spent a lovely evening enjoying the strains of folk songs, clapping to the rhythm and taking our fill of the sun-dried bread of Bahariya with delicious kishki, a mixture of sour milk and wheat. Not until one in the morning did we all fall exhausted into our beds.
Next day, I decided to visit the Valley of the Golden Mummies. The discovery of the valley is what put Bahariya on the tourist map. I took a taxi to 'kilometer six' in the middle of the desert, got out of the car, and walked along the sand watching workers digging and removing piles of sand. At first it was not clear to me what they were doing. As I neared them, I saw that they were exposing the site, putting the sand in recycling buckets and disposing of it far from the excavated site.
El-Hussein Abdel-Bassir, the inspector in charge of the site, was welcoming, and offered to guide me through the Valley where I would come face to face with the gilded mummies. And so I did. Everything written about them is true. Their magnificence is truly indescribable.
Lastly, before we left, we visited the ethnographic museum. The museum is structured like a Bedouin house, with life size statues in poses at its entrance, each reflecting aspects of bedouin life: a man riding a camel, a woman milking a cow. The museum belongs to Mohamed Abdou, a sculptor from Bahariya. He is talented enough to turn his hobby of sculpting village scenes in clay into a profession. Two years ago he decided to launch this unique museum. The first of four rooms contains a small maquette of a woman baking bread in her rural oven. The second is a typical Bedouin house interior. The third has oasis handicrafts on display and in the fourth are traditional toys and games. There is also an open air area surrounded by palms where visitors can enjoy tea and shisha in a bedouin atmosphere.
Bahriya has enormous potential for tourism. With golden mummies, natural springs, Pharaonic antiquities, Alexander's temple, Bedouin folklore and a delightful museum, it is a destination that visitors will want to return to again, and again.
Practical information
Transportation
Buses (LE15 one-way) operate daily from Al-Azhar station at 8.00am and stop at Giza Station at 10.00am The trip is broken up with a stop at a half-way house and drops you at Bawiti at 4.00pm. Travellers can reserve their seats one day in advance. You can also take a microbus (LE11 one-way), on a first come, first serve basis from the appropriately named Bahariya Cafe, on Qadri Street, in Sayeda Zeinab.
Accommodation
Most local hotels in Bahariya fall under the two- or three-star category. Two of the hotels nearing completion, the Palm Valley Hotel (in Al-Agouz, Tel (018) 802 222) and the New Oasis Hotel (in Ain Al-Beshmo, Tel (018) 802 322), will be a little more upscale. If you have difficulty getting through to any of the hotels, contact the Tourist Information Office in Bahariya, located on the main street in the municipal building garden, just a few steps from the entrance. Tel (018) 802 167/222
Al-Beshmo Lodge Hotel, Al-Bawiti. Tel (018) 803 040; Fax 011 802 177
Alpenblick (Manzar Al-Gabal), Al-Bawiti. Tel (018) 802 184
Safari Camp Hotel, Al-Tebinya. Tel (018) 902 770
International Health Centre (Kamel Group), Al-Bawiti. Tel (018) 802 322
Panorama Hotel, Al-Agouz. Tel (018) 802 222
Al-Badeya Hotel, Al-Agouz. Tel (018) 802 431
Al-Matar Chalet, Bir Al-Matar. Tel (018) 802 167
Paradise Chalet (government hotel), Al-Bawiti. Tel (018) 802 600
Talaat Camp Hotel (soon to be opened), located seven kilometres outside Al-Kafara. Tel (018) 802 222
Suggested reading
Helpful guides include The Rough Guide and The Blue Guide for Egypt, and Cassandra Vivian's newly updated The Western Desert of Egypt. If you are interested in doing a little historical reading, try Oases in Egypt, by Ahmed Fakhri, and Zahi Hawass's The Valley of Golden Mummies.
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Related stories:
Mummy boom 22 - 28 March 2001
Mummies and family 29 March - 4 April 2001
Look at all the mummies! 25 - 31 May 2000
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