CAIRO: It s a photographic exhibition with a difference, for as you walk through the "Saqara Under Sand or "Whispers of the Dead you become immersed in the sands, tombs and findings of that ancient site, so much so that you go down history lane while sharing the sweat and toil of archaeologists and workers, who, for 16 years have kept digging and excavating to resolve the mysteries of an area that shelters three millennia of history. In cooperation with the Cultural Development Fund, the Alexandria Library, the Ars Latina Society and the Louvre Museum s Egyptian Antiquities Department, Saqara Under Sand that was staged in Jan. 2007 at the Alexandria Library and last month at the French Cultural Center, Cairo, is currently on at Prince Taz Palace. However, due to the significance of the exhibition that showcases the fruit of 16-years excavations conducted by the Louvre s French archaeological team, Saqara Under Sand is scheduled to tour the US as well as many Arab countries and South America before it will return to center stage at the Louver Museum, Paris. In sheer pictorial terms, "Saqara Under Sand highlights breathtaking statues, coffins, murals and mummies in addition to excavation works in which French and Egyptian archaeologists as well as local diggers and technicians participated. The high resolution shots are magnified and accompanied by French and Arabic illustrations which illuminate visitors on excavations that covered an area of 8,000 cubic meters to unveil treasures belonging to the Old Kingdom, the end of the New Kingdom and the Arab-Coptic era. Christiane Ziegler, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Department at the Louver, told Al Ahram Hebdo that the exhibition is primarily meant to focus on the archaeologists daily routine, the surprise element which marks new discoveries and the fascination by the workings of Time. There is a human pyramid that echoes that of king Zoser, said one of the illustrations. Any mission is made up of many skills that complement each other and are unified by a common target . At the end of the day the excavators efforts are obviously in line with the size of the discoveries. Their daredevilry is part and parcel of any archaeological work. Professionals and amateurs, some assisted in washing pots, carpentry works while others acted as singers and dancers for recreational purposes. Ziegler said that so many might not be aware of another important aspect of archaeological work which includes photography, graphics, restoration, architecture and digging. Whispers of the Dead is another name that was given to the exhibition to drive home that the dead that were recovered from their tombs and coffins are whispering rather than relating history. It also indicates that the Pharaohs wish to achieve eternity has been fulfilled, for the dead that were buried along with their belongings are telling their tales and giving accounts of their history. The Saqara site underlines a history that encompasses three millennia which started with the age of the pyramids builders and ended with the Islamic era where documents signed by the ruler of Fustat had been recovered. It was one of the most important of economic and political centers in Egypt. It had been the most excavated of all ancient Egyptian sites. But with time many of the discoveries were forgotten or destroyed before they got documented. One of them was the tomb of Akhitetb that was sold to France in 1903 and is currently one of the Louvre s exhibits. One of the team s aims was to document the tomb that nothing was known about it other than the fact that it was unearthed at a site south east of Saqara.
