Traveling Through Egypt From 450 B.C. to the Twentieth Century

by Manley, Deborah; Abdel-Hakim, Sahar

• ISBN13: 9789774161698
• ISBN10: 9774161696
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-06-01
• Publisher: The American University in Cairo Press

Summary

'œEgypt is one of the two wings of the world, and the excellences of which it can boast are countless. Its metropolis is the dome of Islam, its river the most splendid of rivers.''”al-Muqaddasi, c. 1000 To travelers, Egypt is a place of dreams: a country whose lifeblood is a mighty river, flowing from the heart of Africa. Along the fertile fringe of its banks an astonishing civilization raised spectacular monuments that our modern minds can hardly encompass. For centuries this past dominated travelers' minds'”yet the present and its great buildings too engaged their interest and admiration and gave them pleasure. The experience of Egypt has over the centuries inspired travelers to write of what they saw and tried to understand. These travelers' observations are part of the history of modern Egypt, for seeing ourselves through others' eyes helps us to understand ourselves. The compilers of this anthology have selected records of travelers from many countries and cultures over many centuries, and, mainly using the Nile for a pathway, here offer these travelers' observations on the many facets of Egypt. The collection includes extracts from the writings of Herodotus, Strabo, Ibn Hawkal, al-Muqaddasi, Pierre Loti, Rudyard Kipling, Florence Nightingale, and many more.

Author Biography

DEBORAH MANLEY has lived in India, Canada, and Nigeria. She is the author of a number of books, including a biography of Henry Salt and The Trans- Siberian Railway: A Traveller's Anthology.

SAHAR ABDEL-HAKIM is an assistant professor in the Department of English at Cairo University. She is the author of a number of essays on women travelers to Egypt. They are both founding members of the Association for the Study of Travel in Egypt and the Near East (ASTENE). Together they edited Traveling through Sinai: From the Fourth to the Twenty-first Century (AUC Press, 2006).

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 1
Egypt: An Overview	p. 5
The Geography of Egypt, c. 450 B.C.	p. 5
The Boundaries of the Country, c. 960	p. 6
The Rising of the Water, 25 B.C.	p. 7
How the Nile Changes the Country, c. 1050	p. 7
Two Seasons, 1767	p. 8
The Climate of Egypt, 1882	p. 8
The Delights of Nile Water, 1826	p. 9
Nile Water, 1825	p. 9
Notes along the Nile, 1910	p. 9
Characteristics of the Soil, c. 1200	p. 11
Papyrus, the Paper of Egypt, 1908	p. 11
The Commerce of the Country, c. 1000	p. 12
The Food of the Country, c. 1200	p. 12
Dress of the Male, 1844	p. 13
Dress of the Poorer Women, 1812	p. 13
The World of Women of Means, 1914	p. 14
Trying to Explain Some History, 1913	p. 14
The Benificence of Egypt, c. 1000	p. 15
Arriving in Egypt: At Alexandria and Elsewhere	p. 17
As the Nile Flows into the Mediterranean, 1806	p. 17
Alexandria, c. 960	p. 18
The Day of Our Landing, 1183	p. 18
Passing through Egypt, 1843	p. 18
Coming from the Desert, 1483	p. 19
Sleepless in Alexandria, 1857	p. 20
A Guide to Alexandria, c. 1000	p. 21
Some Features and Antiquities of Alexandria, 1183	p. 21
A Tourist's History, 1779	p. 23
Muhammad 'Ali's Alexandria, 1813	p. 23
Alexandrian Sightseeing, 1849	p. 24
Alexandrian Street, 1833	p. 24
What to Wear? 1819	p. 27
On Our Way, 1840	p. 27
The Nile Delta	p. 29
The Delta, c. 960	p. 30
Through the Towns and Villages, 1183	p. 30
Visiting a Village, 1812	p. 30
Ramadan in Lataifa, 1992	p. 31
Evidence of the Past, 1908	p. 32
Two Sides of Rosetta, 1819	p. 32
Damietta, c. 1000	p. 33
Damietta, 1908	p. 33
Ancient Boats, c. 450 B.C.	p. 34
Boats and Boatmen on the Nile, 1844	p. 34
The Sailing Boats of the Nile, 1819	p. 35
Lake Manzala, 1908	p. 35
Tinnis, a City, c. 1000	p. 35
Water and Money, c. 1050	p. 36
Bird Life in the Delta, 1868	p. 37
Night Monsters, c. 450 B.C.	p. 38
"The Field of Victory," 1908	p. 38
The End of the Mahmudiya Canal, 1836	p. 38
The Father of Rivers, 1833	p. 39
Women along the Banks of the Nile, 1819	p. 39
Pleasures and Ennui, 1842	p. 40
First Sight of the Pyramids, 1848	p. 40
By Train to Cairo, 1883	p. 41
Cairo: Mother of Cities	p. 43
Cairo, c. 1000	p. 43
Mother of Cities, 1326	p. 45
A City of the Earth, 1913	p. 45
The Cities that Make Up Cairo, c. 960	p. 46
Somewhere to Stay, 1855	p. 47
Water and Minarets, 1868	p. 48
Canals Cut through the City, 1039	p. 48
The Citadel above Cairo, 1819	p. 49
Looking down across Cairo, 1834	p. 50
The Mosques of Cairo, c. 1000	p. 51
The Great Mosque of Sultan Hassan, 1857	p. 51
The Splendid Mosque, 1846	p. 52
The Buildings of Cairo, c. 1200	p. 53
Streets, Houses, and Palaces of Cairo, c. 1612	p. 54
The Sultan's Banquet, c. 1050	p. 56
The Ever-changing Streets, 1865	p. 56
The Bazaars of Cairo, 1839	p. 57
Ancient Coins, 1801	p. 58
Cries in the Market, 1844	p. 58
Cries in the Streets, 1970	p. 58
The Bagnio, 1783	p. 59
The Baths of Cairo, c. 1200	p. 60
A Changing City, 1970	p. 61
The Gardens of Cairo and Memorials of Jesus, 1839	p. 62
The Rise of the Nile: The Nilometer, 1833	p. 63
The Nilometer, c. 1000	p. 64
Celebration, 1826	p. 64
The Country Prospers, 1817	p. 66
Cairo in Festive Mood, 1863	p. 66
The Tombs of the Caliphs, 1873	p. 67
Visiting the Dead, 1326	p. 69
Cairo in the Evening, 1873	p. 69
Pyramids and Sphinx	p. 71
The Spell of the Pyramids, 1956	p. 71
The Wonders of the Country, c. 1200	p. 72
The Construction and Cost of the Pyramids, c. 450 B.C.	p. 72
How a Pyramid is Built and Unbuilt, 1825	p. 73
Extravagance, c. 50	p. 74
Wonders of the World, c. 1000	p. 74
Abu'l Haul, the Sphinx, c. 1200	p. 75
The Sphinx, 1852	p. 76
The Sphinx and the Sepulchres, 1882	p. 76
Pyramids and Sphinx, 1835	p. 76
The Terrors of the Interior of a Pyramid, c. 1612	p. 77
Into a Pyramid, 1737	p. 78
Where is the Queen? 1882	p. 79
Astronomical Correctness, 1834	p. 79
Lifted to the Summit, c. 1865	p. 80
From the Summit of the Great Pyramid, 1825	p. 81
As Old Cheops Has Done, 1843	p. 82
Celebrating on High, 1843	p. 83
Innocents Abroad, 1870	p. 84
Lotus and Pyramid, 1927	p. 85
The Fayoum	p. 87
The Fayoum, c. 1000	p. 87
Cairo to the Fayoum, 1873	p. 87
A Land Created, c. 1000	p. 88
Joseph's Canal, 1985	p. 89
Looking down across the Fayoum, 1836	p. 89
Collecting Dewdrops, 1813	p. 90
Sailing toward the Temple of Jupiter Ammon, 1819	p. 92
The Labyrinth? c. 450 B.C.	p. 93
Working at the Labyrinth, 1843	p. 93
Seeking the Bedouin, 1914	p. 94
History and Science, 1875	p. 95
Arrangements for Traveling up the Nile	p. 97
Up Nile, c. 960	p. 97
Just an Excursion, 1819	p. 98
The Firman, 1737	p. 98
Things Useful for a Journey in Egypt, 1847	p. 98
Hints to Ladies, 1846	p. 100
The Dahabiya, 1873	p. 101
Nile-boat Prayers, 1842	p. 103
Esprit du Nil, 1873	p. 103
At Home on the Nile, 1849	p. 104
Onboard a River Steamer, 1863	p. 106
Instructions to the Managers of Cook's Nile Steamers, 1892	p. 107
South by Train, 1873	p. 109
On the Boats, 1990	p. 110
Only on the River, 1836	p. 111
Melancholy and Invaders, 1851	p. 111
Tracking, 1873	p. 112
The Khamsin, 1849	p. 113
Wind-bound, 1836	p. 114
The Journey to Luxor	p. 115
The Constant Change of Scene, 1833	p. 115
Egyptian Harmony, 1868	p. 116
Nile by Night and Dawn, 1845	p. 117
Communications with the People, 1814	p. 118
So Much to See, 1848	p. 118
Tombs of Beni Hassan, 1852	p. 119
Life in the Grottoes, c. 1865	p. 119
Nefertiti Lived Here, 1930	p. 120
The Temple of Hermopolis at Minya, 1813	p. 121
Asyut and Explorations, 1836	p. 122
Timseach! Timseach! 1845	p. 123
The Love of Abydos, 1908	p. 124
Luncheon with Osiris, 1904	p. 124
Donkeys to Dendera, 1822	p. 125
Approaching Dendera, 1902	p. 125
Coming upon Dendera by Night, 1829	p. 126
Ikhmim: A Wondrous Thing, 1183	p. 126
Luxor: Both Sides of the Nile	p. 129
Luxor-Ancient Thebes, 1846	p. 129
A Hundred Gated Thebes, 1817	p. 129
The Struggle to Visit Thebes, 1737	p. 131
Good Morning, Luxor! 1873	p. 131
Luxor Temple: Grandeur and Craft, 1844	p. 132
Life at Thebes, 1850	p. 134
Modern Life Overshadows the Past, 1910	p. 136
Karnak at Last, 1799	p. 137
Karnak, 1813	p. 138
Karnak in Silence, 1873	p. 138
Dining at Karnak, 1930	p. 140
Antique Makers, 1855	p. 141
Protectors of the Tombs, 1792	p. 141
Temples on the Other Side, 1819	p. 142
Medinet Habu and the Tombs, 1799	p. 142
Preparing to Collect the 'Young Memnon,' 1817	p. 145
The Great Statue of the Ramesseum, 1852	p. 146
To the Valley of the Kings, 1904	p. 146
To the Valley of the Kings, 1938	p. 146
'Belzoni's Tomb,' 1819	p. 147
Entering a Tomb, 1888	p. 148
Making a Mummy, c. 450 B.C.	p. 148
The Tombs of the Private Thebans, 1836	p. 149
Mummies Unearthed, 1819	p. 150
Resurrection Men, 1825	p. 151
Lodging in the Valley, 1829	p. 151
Treating with the Mummy-snatchers, 1873	p. 151
The Mummy's Hand, 1938	p. 152
Walking above the Valley, 1927	p. 153
On the Other Side, 1927	p. 154
Toward and at Aswan	p. 157
Upper Egypt in January, 1836	p. 158
Raising the Water from the Nile, 1844	p. 158
Armant: Ancient Hermonthis, 1846	p. 159
The Sailors Enjoy Esna, 1842	p. 160
The Barrage at Esna, 1907	p. 161
Edfu, the Ancient Apollinopolis Magna, 1827	p. 161
Edfu Seen with Clarity, 1927	p. 163
Go to the Other Side, 1847	p. 163
Kom Ombo Observed, 1817	p. 164
Observed at Kom Ombo, 1848	p. 164
Approach to Aswan: The Country Changes, 1817	p. 165
Nearly Five Hundred Miles up the Nile, 1843	p. 165
Life on the Nile, c. 960	p. 166
Doing Business at Aswan, 1879	p. 166
The Cataract Hotel and the Invalid, 1899	p. 167
The Tourists Make Their Mark, 1902	p. 168
The Monastery of St. Simeon, 1799	p. 168
The Brassy Landscape of Nubia, 1927	p. 169
Beyond the Cataract and into Nubia	p. 171
The Cataract Bars the Way, 1777	p. 172
Geographical Outline of Nubia, 1833	p. 173
Into Nubia, 1897	p. 174
An Engineer at the Cataract, 1859	p. 174
The Rush of the Cataract, 1836	p. 175
Delayed, 1817	p. 176
Whose Flag is This? 1855	p. 176
Animal Life, 1792	p. 177
The Chameleon as a Pet, 1836	p. 177
Locusts, 1827	p. 177
Philae, 1825	p. 178
Philae, 1852	p. 178
The Island of Philae, 1833	p. 179
To Philae after the Dam, 1908	p. 180
The Temple of Kalabsha, 1848	p. 182
Graffiti of the Romans, 1819	p. 183
Weather on the River, 1817	p. 183
At Derr, c. 1865	p. 183
The People of the Country, 1836	p. 184
I Fell in with ..., 22nd March, 1813	p. 184
On First Entering the Temple at Abu Simbel, August 1, 1817	p. 185
The Great Temple at Abu Simbel, 1817	p. 186
Digging at Abu Simbel, 1836	p. 187
Night in the Temple, 1862	p. 187
Celebrating at Abu Simbel, 1855	p. 188
Creatures Come down to Drink, 1817	p. 189
Climbing the Colossi, 1848	p. 189
Days at Abu Simbel, 1873	p. 191
Words from the United Nations, 1960-63	p. 193
At the Second Cataract, 1927	p. 193
The Great Rock at Abu Sir, 1836	p. 194
Hub of the Universe, 1913	p. 195
To Suez and Sinai	p. 197
Through the City of Qolzom (Suez), c. 1050	p. 197
Music and Sail from Luxor to the Red Sea, 1843	p. 198
Across the Red Sea, 1908	p. 199
Where Was the Crossing? 1846	p. 199
Water, Flora, and Fragments, 1871	p. 200
Walking through the Valley of the Cataract, 1836	p. 201
Prospects of Sinai, 1843	p. 202
The Convent of St. Catherine, 1871	p. 203
Entering the Convent, 1871	p. 203
A Problem Shared, 1897	p. 205
On Pilgrimage to the Holy Mountain, 383	p. 205
From the Holy Mountain, 1879	p. 207
Passing through Egypt, 1783	p. 208
At the Opening of the Suez Canal, 1869	p. 208
Through the Suez Canal, 1875	p. 211
Looking toward the Other Side, 1926	p. 211
The Deserts of Egypt	p. 213
The Caravan to Mecca Starts, 1836	p. 213
The Camel, 1834	p. 214
How to Travel, 1183	p. 214
The Adventure of the Takhtrouan, 1826	p. 215
More Advice to Women Travelers, 1848	p. 216
A Day in the Desert, 1871	p. 216
Night in the Western Desert, 1923	p. 217
Englishmen and Arabs in the Desert, 1835	p. 218
People of the Desert, 1818	p. 219
Visiting the Monastery of Baramous, 1833	p. 220
Creatures of the Desert, c. 450 B.C.	p. 221
Arriving from India, 1823	p. 221
Looking down from a Desert Monastery, 1833	p. 222
Into the Desert to the Oasis and Beyond, 1834	p. 223
The Great Oasis of the Libyan Desert: al-Kharga, 1909	p. 225
Daily Routine in a Desert Town, 1923	p. 226
Mirages and My Camel in the Nubian Desert, 1848	p. 226
Mines and Ancient Greeks in the Eastern Desert, 1818	p. 227
Coming out of the Desert, 1823	p. 227
Seeing, Narrating, Feeling Egypt, 1977	p. 228
The Travelers: Brief Biographies	p. 231
Bibliography	p. 247
Index of Travelers	p. 253
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