The major recent archaeological discoveries in Egypt, most notably a series of coffins discovered at Saqqara, just outside Cairo, in May, are evidence of the genius of this generation of Egyptian archaeologists, restorers and Egyptologists. It is fitting that the objects they are unearthing and studying are particularly remarkable. Each new discovery ― and there have been many recently ― sheds more light on how the ancient Egyptians lived and excelled in the sciences, including medicine, engineering, astronomy, arithmetic, pharmacology and mummification, which until now has been a baffling secret.
Discovering burial sites, of course, is nothing new for the country. Even the pharaohs themselves were at points excavating Egyptian antiquities from earlier periods. After all, the term “Ancient Egypt” encompasses a period of more than 3,000 years. And not all of the “excavations” during that time were friendly. For millennia thieves have targeted tombs. This is why the pharaohs were always looking for a safe place to bury their dead, and helps to explain the existence of epic sites such as Saqqara, which was used as a burial site from prehistoric times until the Islamic era.
But the unearthing and preservation of Egypt’s cultural heritage, fortunately, takes far more constructive forms today, thanks to the careful work of the country’s archaeologists, Egyptologists and historians. And keeping the discipline vibrant is in large part about training the right people and generating in-country expertise.
When the Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass took over the Ministry of Antiquities in 2011, his main concern was just that: for Egyptian archaeologists to learn the art of excavation and restoration. He set up excavation schools and taught more than 500 Egyptian archaeologists the arts of research and excavation until they reached the same level of ability as foreign expertrs, even surpassing them.
The best evidence of this fact is today’s trove of recent discoveries. They have dazzled the world and were uncovered entirely by Egyptian hands. They include the aforementioned findings at Saqqara and the discovery by Dr Hawass of the tombs of workers who built the pyramids and the lost golden city in Luxor. The history of the city dates back to the reign of King Amenhotep III, 3,000 years ago. He also discovered the pyramid of Queen Nate in Saqqara and the Valley of the Golden Mummies in the Bahariya Oasis in the depths of the Western Desert.
When Mustafa Waziri became head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, he immediately led missions to excavate Egyptian antiquities throughout the country and began working at the Saqqara necropolis, where many of the kings and queens of ancient Egypt, senior statesmen and priests were buried.
A recent trove of discoveries dazzled the world and was uncovered entirely by Egyptian hands
In 2018, Dr Waziri announced the discovery of the tomb of "Wahti", a high-ranking employee in Saqqara from the era of Niferirkara from the late Fifth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom, about 4,400 years old. That tomb was untouched and characterised by wonderful colours and the most amazing inscriptions, because they represented daily life, not, as is often the case in tombs, high ceremony.
To the north-west of the pyramid of King Marinara in Saqqara, several tombs were discovered for a person named "Eri", a senior statesman, containing seven oil pots and a huge sarcophagus.
A second tomb belongs to the wife of a person named “Yart” ― we know this because of its proximity to his tomb ― and the third belongs to a person called “Bi Nafarfayi”, who held several positions, including the supervisor of the Great House, the royal palace. The fourth tomb was consecrated for a woman called "Betty", who bore the titles of the only king and priestess of the goddess Hathor. The fifth tomb belongs to a person named “Hannu” who was the supervisor of the royal palace and the hereditary prince.
As for the latest discoveries led by Dr Waziri, the first and largest cache was announced in the excavation area at Saqqara, south of Giza, which includes 150 bronze statues and 250 wooden coffins, dating back to the late era. This cache belongs to a number of ancient Egyptian deities, including Anubis, Amun-Min, Osiris, Isis, Nefertum, Bastet and Hathor, in addition to a group of bronze vessels related to the rituals of the goddess Isis and a headless bronze statue of the engineer “Imhotep”.
Perhaps the greatest artefact that was found was a sealed and untouched papyrus, which was transferred to the Egyptian Museum, central Cairo, for further study and restoration to its original condition.
That papyrus was called “Waziri”. Its length is estimated to be nine metres and contains chapters from the Book of the Dead, which is a group of funerary texts consisting of incantations used by the Egyptians to guide the dead through the underworld.
Weekend Essays from The National
All these great discoveries highlight the greatness and beauty of the unique ancient Egyptian civilisation. Perhaps the biggest modern event in Egypt’s ongoing mission to honour its past is the building of the Grand Egyptian Museum, which includes the artefacts of King Tutankhamun, the golden pharaoh, which the world will celebrate on November 4, the centenary of the discovery of his tomb by the British archaeologist Howard Carter in Luxor. Festivities will be held in all the cities of the world, and Dr Hawass has even composed an opera ― The Opera of Tutankhamun ― which describes the story of the king's life, full of mystery and magic.
For 10 years, Carter worked at the site of the tomb, where almost 5,400 artefacts were discovered. Of course, what most people do not know about the excavation is that much of the real credit should go to a 12-year-old boy named Hussein Abdel Rasoul. His task was to transport water to workers at the site. He discovered the opening of the cemetery when lowering a water container from the back of a donkey. There is a photo of him wearing a necklace from the tomb. Later, the Ministry of Antiquities transformed his house in Luxor into an open museum. His discovery was indicative of a process, the results of which can be seen today. At that time, archaeology was limited to foreigners, but the workers who helped them were Egyptians, and they were quietly learning the discipline from foreigners.
People such as Howard Carter are and always will be integral. But he belongs to a bygone colonial era. Now, Egyptians are stepping up like never before.
Egypt’s heritage is a world-renowned source of wonder, which enchants visitors from all over the world. But while an important part of Egyptology’s identity is global, it is still positive that today Egypt is seeing the fruits of the hard work of figures such as Dr Hawass and Dr Waziri, in the form not just of new wonders, but a new generation of Egyptian experts.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor
The specs
Engine: 1.4-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 180hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 250Nm at 3,00rpm
Transmission: 5-speed sequential auto
Price: From Dh139,995
On sale: now
MEDIEVIL%20(1998)
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Countries offering golden visas
UK
Innovator Founder Visa is aimed at those who can demonstrate relevant experience in business and sufficient investment funds to set up and scale up a new business in the UK. It offers permanent residence after three years.
Germany
Investing or establishing a business in Germany offers you a residence permit, which eventually leads to citizenship. The investment must meet an economic need and you have to have lived in Germany for five years to become a citizen.
Italy
The scheme is designed for foreign investors committed to making a significant contribution to the economy. Requires a minimum investment of €250,000 which can rise to €2 million.
Switzerland
Residence Programme offers residence to applicants and their families through economic contributions. The applicant must agree to pay an annual lump sum in tax.
Canada
Start-Up Visa Programme allows foreign entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a business in Canada and apply for permanent residence.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Why does a queen bee feast only on royal jelly?
Some facts about bees:
The queen bee eats only royal jelly, an extraordinary food created by worker bees so she lives much longer
The life cycle of a worker bee is from 40-60 days
A queen bee lives for 3-5 years
This allows her to lay millions of eggs and allows the continuity of the bee colony
About 20,000 honey bees and one queen populate each hive
Honey is packed with vital vitamins, minerals, enzymes, water and anti-oxidants.
Apart from honey, five other products are royal jelly, the special food bees feed their queen
Pollen is their protein source, a super food that is nutritious, rich in amino acids
Beewax is used to construct the combs. Due to its anti-fungal, anti-bacterial elements, it is used in skin treatments
Propolis, a resin-like material produced by bees is used to make hives. It has natural antibiotic qualities so works to sterilize hive, protects from disease, keeps their home free from germs. Also used to treat sores, infection, warts
Bee venom is used by bees to protect themselves. Has anti-inflammatory properties, sometimes used to relieve conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, nerve and muscle pain
Honey, royal jelly, pollen have health enhancing qualities
The other three products are used for therapeutic purposes
Is beekeeping dangerous?
As long as you deal with bees gently, you will be safe, says Mohammed Al Najeh, who has worked with bees since he was a boy.
“The biggest mistake people make is they panic when they see a bee. They are small but smart creatures. If you move your hand quickly to hit the bees, this is an aggressive action and bees will defend themselves. They can sense the adrenalin in our body. But if we are calm, they are move away.”
Schedule for show courts
Centre Court - from 4pm UAE time
Johanna Konta (6) v Donna Vekic
Andy Murray (1) v Dustin Brown
Rafael Nadal (4) v Donald Young
Court 1 - from 4pm UAE time
Kei Nishikori (9) v Sergiy Stakhovsky
Qiang Wang v Venus Williams (10)
Beatriz Haddad Maia v Simona Halep (2)
Court 2 - from 2.30pm
Heather Watson v Anastasija Sevastova (18)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (12) v Simone Bolelli
Florian Mayer v Marin Cilic (7)
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
Race card
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m
6.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,400m
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m
7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m
8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m
9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m
9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m
HWJN
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BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
