By Omayma Abdel-Latif The issue of peace-building in the Middle East seemed unlikely to be mentioned at an event celebrating the completion of restoration work on the Sphinx. But Federico Mayor, director-general of UNESCO, spoke of the Sphinx being a symbol of stability and then urged the audience, which included the American, British and French ambassadors, to be "peace-builders". "Let us all be peace-builders and, with a new millennium approaching, let us open the page of dialogue," Mayor said. "Millions will come to admire this civilisation along the Nile. They will come looking for peace in this land of the Sphinx." Mayor also paid tribute to President Mubarak's efforts to promote regional peace. "My warmest greetings to President Mubarak who ensures a most relevant role in making peace a reality and who works hard to bring peace to the Middle East," Mayor said. Speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly on the eve of the gala celebration, Mayor said that UNESCO was keen to assist Egypt with its restoration projects. "Egyptian civilisation is the most impressive achievement of mankind. More importantly, Egyptians deliver on their promises and the Sphinx is a witness to that," said Mayor. On Monday night, President Mubarak, accompanied by Mrs Suzanne Mubarak, played host to a gathering of Egyptian and foreign antiquities officials and diplomats who came to launch the Sphinx "on a new journey into the future". The area at the foot of the monument, where a 300-seat theatre had been erected, was bathed in light. The "statue of revelation", as the Sphinx was described by Culture Minister Farouk Hosni, was half-covered by a white sheet studded with golden stars. "The Sphinx refused to be covered completely," Zahi Hawass, the director of the Giza Plateau, told Al-Ahram Weekly. "It was the original intention to cloak the entire monument with the star-spangled cloth that was finally placed only over its paws and rear. For two solid days, despite every effort, we failed." Scaffolding was raised to an appropriate height to facilitate the operation but each time the cloth was dragged over the head it came off. "It was clear that the Sphinx, whose head has never been covered, refused to be obscured, even for a grand unveiling ceremony," Hawass added. The one-and-a-half-hour ceremony began with speeches by Hosni and Mayor. Hosni described the just-completed restoration scheme as the "resurrection of the Sphinx". "The restoration work was carried out according to the best and most modern techniques devised by man," the culture minister said. The audience was treated to a 20-minute documentary entitled Sphinx '98. This was followed by a concert, featuring an aria from Don Carlos, sung by Reda El-Wakeel, the grand aria from La Traviata by Iman Mustafa and an aria from Carmen by Hanan El-Guindi. Ramzi Yassa was the soloist in Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No 1. Mubarak, accompanied by some of his guests, inspected the restored parts of the statue. Earlier in the course of the event, Mubarak awarded decorations to those who were involved in the restoration work. Mayor topped the list. He was awarded the order of merit, first class. Archaeologist Zahi Hawass, artist Adam Henein and sculptor Mahmoud Mabrouk were awarded the order of art and science, first class. Amm Said Hassan Mohamed, the Pyramid Plateau's oldest restorer, was awarded a medal of distinction. It took an all-Egyptian team of restorers, workers, archaeologists and sculptors 3,600 days of hard work, 12,478 stones and $2.5 million to bring the restoration project to such a "happy and satisfying ending", said Hawass. Carved in the living rock during the Fourth Dynasty (2620-2500BC), the Sphinx has been guarding the western approaches of the Pyramid Plateau for nearly 4,500 years. However, exposure to pollution and erosion has caused the Sphinx to decline. A boulder falling from the statue's shoulder in February 1988 served to focus the limelight on its predicament. When the latest restoration project was launched, focusing mainly on the left side, chest and neck, the mistakes of the past had to be avoided. A team of archaeologists, sculptors and restorers was given the task of healing the wounds of the colossal statue. "It was built for the future to sit as an enigma watching thousands of years becoming past," Mayor said. "It is a witness of our common past, symbol of a common future, because the future is our heritage." But will additional restoration become necessary in the future? Yes, says Gaballah Ali Gaballah, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. "It will always have to be looked after as much as it is looked up to." --see article by Zahi Hawass--
