Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni said that the first stage of Sharm El-Sheikh museum will be completed in three months' time.

The Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) Dr. Zahi Hawass said that the museum is being constructed on a surface of about 30 feddans.

Hawass said this stage includes also Roman Theatre and a Cafeteria.

The supervisor of the project Abdul Hamid Qutb said that the second stage will start early next month, then the museum will be ready to open next year.

Some 1400 Pharaonic artefacts will be displayed at the museum.

1400 Pharaonic artefacts displayed at Sharm El Sheikh Museum, State Information Service, Egypt, July 30, 2005.

... children were transported back in time to a foreign land were pharaohs ruled and a giant Sphinx stood guard over ancient tombs filled with mummies.

Tuesday's artCentral artCamp class "Ancient Egypt: Animals and Plants of the Nile" with Anne-Marie Gailey had a classroom full of avid art students "wrapped up" trying to recreate images of hippos, crocodiles, scarab beetles and lotus flower sculptures and jewellery.

For Gailey, the history and archaeology attached to a class like this is the realization of years of study....

Ancient Egypt inspires young artists, Carthage Press, Missouri, USA, July 27, 2005.

Six weeks after opening, the highly touted King Tut comeback exhibit has drawn massive crowds and more than a few complaints.

At least 200,000 visitors have viewed the ancient Egyptian treasures displayed in Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs since it opened June 16 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

The show has received rave reviews from many visitors. But others have panned its overcrowding and lack of mummies, including King Tut himself, who was the star of the show nearly 30 years ago...

King Tut exhibit draws raves, complaints, Lexington Herald-Leader, Kentucky, USA, July 29, 2005.

The Humboldt Arts Council and Morris Graves Museum of Art will sponsor an overnight art tour to Los Angeles in September.

Museum Director-Curator Jemima Harr will be the leader of this artistic adventure. Departing Sept. 9 and returning Sept. 10, the group will visit the King Tutankhamun exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Getty Museum and the Hollywood Bowl for a performance of "A Night at the Copa." ...

Museum is sponsoring trip to King Tut exhibit, The Times-Standard, California, USA, July 29, 2005.

By Hassan Saadallah

The resentment with which African Americans received the CT scan image of the King Tutankhamen mummy as displayed by the National Geographic was not surprising. African Americans consider the ancient Egyptian civilisation as a 'black' African one, established at the hands of Africans given that it was created in Africa thousands of years before Egypt was conquered by armies from the north and east. They have gone as far as to consider themselves an extension of such a civilisation which they boast of belonging to in the American society.

The suggested features of the young king are easily recognisable as 'Egyptian', and possessing similar features to those carried by members of the 18th and 19th dynasties, Abdu Hassaan, a tour guide, told The Egyptian Gazette. However, African Americans are convinced that the ancient Egyptian civilisation was built by 'black' Africans and having developed alongside many other African civilisations spread throughout the continent.

African Americans are convinced that the ancient Egyptian civilisation was established by the Nubians, who happen to be their cousins. "African Americans pay frequent visits to Nubia and mix with the people there, offering them help prompted by the kinship they enjoy," said Hassaan.

Some American researchers find a relationship between African Americans and Nubians, basing this conclusion particularly on the similarity of facial features, particularly the nose. They link this connection to the kings of the 25th dynasty who had a dark complexion.

However, according to historical accounts, Pharaohs mostly lived in Upper Egypt where the hot temperature affected their skin, making it dark in colour, but not black.

Commenting on this, Dr Handouqa Ibrahim, a professor of history at the African Research Institute, said that many books have talked about the African 'black' origin of the ancient Egyptian civilisation. Antadiop, a famous African intellect, is considered a staunch zealot of this theory which he expounds in his book 'The Negro Origin of the Egyptian Civilisation'. He based his book on the testimony of certain historians, such as Herodotus, who referred to the Egyptians as 'black people'.

Yet Dr Ibrahim refutes these claims, noting that tracing the development of the Egyptian civilisation from the stone-age reveals that non-Egyptian elements had little influence on it. At the time when the Egyptian civilisation was at its prime, most African cultures were still primitive. "Why did these civilisations not develop if the black people were really the builders of the ancient Egyptian civilisation?" said Dr Ibrahim in an interview with The Gazette.

The Egyptian civilisation had an impact on peoples of the African continent on both the cultural and doctrinal level. The Egyptians spread their belief about immortality and resurrection to neighbouring parts of the continent, particularly Libya and Ethiopia, said Dr Handouqa. Egypt also had strong relations with inhabitants of West Africa, basing this on the discovery of a pottery chard there which is very similar to pottery used in Egypt at its time of manufacture. Egypt also enjoyed trading relations with its neighbours, reliant on them for numerous raw materials. But this does not mean that the ancient Egyptians were 'black people', he noted.

African Americans profess Egypt as 'African' civilisation, The Egyptian Gazette, Egypt, July 28, 2005.

A BBC team is currently visiting Aswan to film a documentary series on the history of King Tutankhamen and the pharaohs.

The series will consist of six episodes and will be broadcasted in the UK and France.

Filming is scheduled to continue until August 10.

BBC films documentary in Aswan, State Information Service, Egypt, July 28, 2005.

After two years of being hidden behind long iron bars, the Rameses II statue will be once again visible in Bab el-Hadid Square.

The Arab Contractors Company will remove the jungle of bars surrounding the statue, acting on, instructions from the Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Antiquities, Zahi Hawass...

Rameses II statue to be freed from cage, State Information Service, Egypt, July 27, 2005.

Recently returned from a trip to Egypt, Jude Petheram shares some of her observations and views on the plight of the ordinary Egyptian farmers in the Nile Valley.

Farmers everywhere know the value of water, especially those living along the banks of the Nile River in Egypt.

Farming along the fertile banks of the Nile is still the same as it has been for centuries...

The Nile Valley — where ancient meets modern, Stuff, New Zealand, July 27, 2005.

A landmark exhibition of artefacts from Egyptian boy king Tutankhamun's tomb has sold 500,000 tickets since it first went on display in the United States one month ago, organisers said.

The exhibition, "Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs," is the first American display in 29 years of the gilded treasures found in King Tut's tomb when it was uncovered in 1922...

Historic King Tut exhibit in US sells 500,000 tickets in one month, AFP via Yahoo! News, USA, July 25, 2005.

cf. Visitors throng King Tut exhibition in US, AFP via Sify News, India, July 26, 2005.

After selling a half-million tickets in 30 days for the King Tut exhibition, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art extended the hours the public may see the famed tomb treasures, LACMA announced on Monday.

The exhibition now will open at 8 a.m. daily, an hour earlier than the previous opening time, the museum announced.

The last run-through will begin at 7 p.m. most days, but the museum also has scheduled six special "Tut After Dark" days, which extend the start time for the last showing to 8 p.m. or 9 p.m.

"From the beginning, we have felt strongly about providing this once- in-a- lifetime opportunity for Los Angeles residents to see these extraordinary treasures, knowing the great public fondness that exists for King Tut," said LACMA President Melody Kanschat...

LA County Museum Of Art Extends Tut Exhibit Hours, NBC4 News, USA, July 25, 2005.

cf. LACMA Extends Museum Hours for “Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” Exhibition, Yahoo! Finance, USA, July 25, 2005.

"Tutankhamun's Tomb," photos from the 1924 Howard Carter discovery of the tomb of King Tut, Leon County Public Library throughout July.

Tutankhamun: “Wonderful Things” from the Pharaoh's Tomb, The Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science until November 27, 2005.

Private collections of Egyptian antiquities are rare in the United States.   There are only two or three such collections in the Southeast, according to Peter Lacovara, the curator of ancient Egyptian, Nubian and Near Eastern Art at Emory University's Michael C. Carlos Museum in Atlanta.

About 90 works from one such collection recently went on view at Charlotte's Mint Museum of Art in a similarly rare exhibition titled "Ancient Egyptian Art for the Afterlife."   Among these works are mummy boards, scarabs, ceremonial vessels and figurines representing deities and servants.   These objects were interred with the mummified remains of socially prominent Egyptians over a period of about 3,000 years ending with the first century A.D. Later they were uncovered and traded on the international market, where they eventually found their way into the hands of a Charlotte lawyer who lent them anonymously to the Mint...

Art From the Tombs, Relish Now!, North Carolina, USA, July 24, 2005.

Filming on a BBC series about ancient Egypt has run into difficulties, including illness and bad weather, resulting in an overspend on the multi- million pound budget.

Egypt, a six-part dramatisation based on the archaeologists who uncovered secrets of the ancient kingdom, has turned into a "fiasco in the desert," according to some production staff.

The six-hour series is based on three stories: Howard Carter's excavation of Tutankhamun's tomb, Giovanni Battista Belzoni's discovery of the Valley of the Kings and the work of Jean-Francois Champollion, the Frenchman who decoded hieroglyphics...

BBC's ancient Egypt series is cursed by costs, sickness and sand storms, The Telegraph, UK, July 25, 2005.

I have blogged the changes to the British and Canadian tourism in recent posts.   Neither the US or Australian respective departments have amended their travel advice since the terrorist attacks in Sharm al-Sheik on Saturday, although the US State department have issued a public announcement.

U.S. Department of State: Bureau of Consular Affairs: Public Announcement: Egypt, July 23, 2005.

U.S. Department of State: Bureau of Consular Affairs: Consular Information Sheet: Egypt, June 01, 2005.

Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Travel Advice: Egypt, May 24, 2005.

Britons who have planned holidays in Egypt are being encouraged to go ahead despite the risk from terrorism. Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, went out of his way yesterday to praise Egypt as a stable country with effective law enforcement. His message to holidaymakers is: "Be aware of the risk, then make up your own minds." ...

Be alert, but don't cancel trips to Egypt, Straw tells Britons, The Independent, UK, July 24, 2005.

cf. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw: Be alert, but don't cancel trips to Egypt, State Information Service, Egypt, July 24, 2005.

More travel advice.   This time from Canada.

Foreign Affairs Canada advises against all travel to the ... Egypt-Gaza border area due to the violence in Gaza.

... Canadians should avoid unnecessary travel to Sharm el-Sheik and area ...

Foreign Affairs Canada advises against all travel to some regions of Egypt, TravelVideo.TV, Canada, July 23, 2005.

cf. Consular Affairs Bureau: Travel Report for Egypt.

I'm sure we had this story a couple of weeks ago?

A Westport design and project management firm has played a key role in "Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs," the exhibit of Egyptian antiquities now touring American museums.

In conjunction with National Geographic, AEG Exhibitions, Arts and Exhibitions International and the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, McMillan Group designed an exhibit of 11 galleries spread over 15,000 square feet and displaying 114 objects excavated from King Tut's tomb and those of his ancestors...

Creating a show fit for a king, Stamford Advocate, Connecticut, USA, July 22, 2005.

The Times have a question and answer session regarding tourist travel to Egypt and the recent change to the FCO advice.

Q&A: is Egypt safe for tourists?, The Times, UK, July 25, 2005.

cf. Foreign & Commonwealth Office Travel Advice: Egypt.

The latest news on the Sharm el-Sheik bombings is that the death toll has risen to 88, with 119 wounded, and the Egyptian security forces have arrested 70 people.

To keep up to date with the latest news check one of the news aggregators such as Google News of Yahoo! News.

At least 83 people have been killed and scores more wounded in a string of bomb attacks in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm al-Sheikh.

An explosion in the Old Market area was followed by two blasts in the Naama Bay area, where a car bomb tore off the front of the Ghazala Gardens Hotel...

Dozens killed in Egyptian blasts, BBC News, UK, July 23, 2005, includes video footage.

cf. Thirty dead as bombers attack Red Sea resort, The Times, UK, July 23, 2005.

cf. Blasts in Egypt Kill at Least 62 at Resort in Sinai Peninsula, New York Times, New York, USA, July 23, 2005.

cf. Egyptian resort town blasts kill dozens, CNN, USA, July 23, 2005.

cf. At least 75 killed in Egyptian resort blasts, MSNBC, USA, July 23, 2005.

cf. Death toll in Red Sea bombings at 83, Reuters, UK, July 23, 2005.

cf. 75 dead on Egypt’s National Day bombing, Aljazeera, UAE, July 23, 2005.

cf. The impact of the bombings on Egypt’s tourism, Aljazeera, UAE, July 23, 2005.

cf. Militants take credit for Egypt bombings Contra Costa Times, California, USA, July 23, 2005.

Blasts cast shadow over Egypt's recovery, BBC News, UK, July 23, 2005.   Contains a history of terrorism attacks in Egypt.

One of art history's most beautiful women is moving to a new address this summer, marking the reunification of the Berlin Egyptian Museum's fabulous collection after more than six decades of division.

The exquisite limestone bust of Queen Nefertiti forms the focal point of the collection, which re-opens to the public on August 13 in its new- old home at Berlin's Museum Island complex in the heart of the German capital.

The grand re-opening culminates 15 years of painstaking restoration work, museum renovations and cataloguing of the collection, which was split up for safekeeping during World War 2 and which languished in minimal exhibition spaces in both halves of the divided city — until now...

Queen Nefertiti moves to her new digs, IOL, South Africa, July 22, 2005.

Rare drawings by William Blake and Joshua Reynolds and a number of collections of letters have passed into public hands.

The works, which were privately owned, have been accepted by the government instead of inheritance tax.

"The range of objects is breathtaking, from an ancient Egyptian bronze to 20th Century political archives...

Rare drawings given to the nation, BBC News, UK, July 21, 2005.

Computerized tomography breathes new life into the ancient king's life and demise.

Using three-dimensional computerized tomography-scan imaging, a team of researchers from the United States and Egypt recently made 1,700 high- resolution cross sections of the pharaoh's bones, teeth and skull.   The effort is part of a five-year conservation project to preserve not only King Tutankhamen, but also most of Egypt's known mummies...

...

In addition to their work on Tut, an international group of radiologists, epidemiologists and forensic pathologists is documenting hundreds of mummies found at Egypt's Bahariya Oasis.   Because so many of the ancient bodies are richly decorated, the area is known as the Valley of the Golden Mummies...

High Tech Tut, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Virginia, USA, July 21, 2005.

An Egyptian delegation, currently visiting Australia, received seven valuable monuments.

Egyptian authorities had contacted their Australian counterparts to stop sales of the 2500-year-old artefacts which were posted for sale on a website.

Dr. Zahi Hawass said the Australian authorities also found 33 antiques some of them were stolen in a famous case known as Al Shaer Case.

Hawass said full cooperation between the Attorney-General office, the Foreign Ministry and the Council led to restoration of other monuments from Switzerland Britain, the United States and Australia.

Egyptian delegation visits Australia to receive stolen Artefacts, State Information Service, Egypt, July 20, 2005.

Egypt received on Tuesday a rare antique made of alabaster with hieroglyphic inscriptions.

The antique had been taken by an American national from a tomb at the Valley of the Kings in Luxor in 1958.

The piece has been retrieved almost 50 years after its disappearance, said Dr Zahi Hawass, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities...

At the end of this article it states “Hawass had written an article in an American newspaper on Egyptian monuments stolen abroad.”   Does anyone know which article this is referring to?

Egypt retrieves artifact taken by American, State Information Service, Egypt, July 20, 2005.

Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Antiquities said that Egypt would harvest $36 million from the tour of Tutankhamun's exhibition in four American States.

He said that the golden pharaoh managed to fascinate the American people again 26 years after the first exhibition.

This came in a symposium titled "Tutankhamun invaded America" organized by Mubarak's Public Library in Giza.

He said that the number of the exhibition visitors in Los Angles reached 10,000 a day while the price of a ticket jumped to $30 in the weekend.

$36m returns of Tut's tour of four American states, State Information Service, Egypt, July 19, 2005.