Archaeologists have found a hall in a Pharaonic tomb in the southern city of Luxor that they said could yield important information on how ancient Egyptians dug their tombs.

The Egyptian-Spanish team discovered the hall at Zira Abu Al Naga on the west bank of the Nile, as it was excavating the tomb site, the secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Zahi Hawass, said on Thursday.

They believe that the tomb belonged to an official responsible for temple and tomb decorations during the rein of 18th dynasty (1580-1314 BC) Queen Hatshepsut, Hawass said...

Archaeologists unearth Pharaonic hall in Egypt, Middle East Times, Cyprus, March 31, 2006.

cf. Pharaonic tomb may hold ancient secrets, Sapa-AFP via Independent Online, South Africa, March 31, 2006.

And from the Egyptian Gazette we have.

by Hassan Saadallah

An Egyptian-Spanish archaeological team, operating on the West Bank in Luxor, have discovered a room housing the tomb of the foreman responsible for decorating all the temples and palaces in the ancient city of Thebes (modern-day Luxor) in the reign of Queen Hatshepsut (1502 - 1482 BC). The discovery, announced by Culture Minister Farouk Hosni, also includes a collection of wooden and clay artefacts.

According to Zahi Hawass, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, this important discovery sheds light on the design of the buildings that housed tombs in the 18th Dynasty. "The building is 34 metres long and there are many drawings carved on the walls, as well as the words of sermons Ancient Egyptians listened to at the time," he explained, adding that the finds will displayed in the Luxor Museum.

cf. New discovery in Luxor, The Egyptian Gazette, Egypt, March 31, 2006.

By Jill Kamil

When two substantial books with similar titles featuring images on the cover that are almost the same are published by the same press in the space of a single year, one feels almost challenged to discover the difference between them, if only in order to guide potential readers...

, Richard H. Wilkinson, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, 2005, pp. 255.

, ed. Byron E. Shafer, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, 2005, pp. 335.

, Toby Wilkinson, Thames and Hudson, London, 2005, pp. 271.

Ancient temples and dictionaries, Al-Ahram, Egypt, Issue No. 788, March 30 - April 05, 2006.

By Zahi Hawass

Several years ago I went to the Egyptian Museum and met its then director, Mamdouh El-Damati. I met a man in his office, a short man with dark skin named Refaat who spoke English with a saidi (Upper Egyptian) accent. After several minutes of conversation, I realised that he was super smart. I understood he had spent most of his life in Cambridge, England, and had married a charming English lady, Ashley, with whom he has a daughter and a son. El-Damati told me that Refaat supplied the museum with computers and other essentials needed for day-to-day activities. He had even sponsored the visits of several curators to the British Museum. I was very happy to meet him, but wondered what he wanted because I always believe there is no such thing as a free lunch. Refaat later came to my office with El-Damati and explained his entire programme, as well as his support for the museum.

I later received an invitation from Neil MacGregor, director of the British Museum, to deliver a talk at the museum on the occasion of its 250th anniversary. I arrived at Heathrow Airport and found Refaat waiting for me with his driver. He stayed with me for most of my visit to London. I found out that the Egyptian Section of the British Museum depended on him to sponsor events. I also found out during this visit, for the first time, that sometimes there is a free meal...

Dig days: Refaat Rozeik, Al-Ahram, Egypt, Issue No. 788, March 30 - April 05, 2006.

An ancient quarry rich in natural and cultural heritage is a potential site for nomination to the UNESCO's World Heritage List, says Nadja Tomoum.

Wadi Al-Hitan, the Whales Valley, known for its rich palaeontological history (especially for its skeletons of primitive whales and other vertebrate fossils), is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List as an area of outstanding natural history. It lies within the boundaries of the Lake Qarun nature reserve and forms part of the Wadi Al-Rayan Protected Area in the Fayoum governorate. In this area lies Widan Al-Faras, which may soon be the only ancient quarry left in Egypt that still bears traces of one of Egypt's oldest industries — stone cutting.

The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), in response to a request to draw up a management plan for the protection and preservation of the quarries in the northern Fayoum, is now looking into the possibility of asking UNESCO to incorporate Widan Al-Faras within the Wadi Al-Rayan Protected Area. This spring, a survey of the ancient quarries at Widan Al-Faras carried out as part of the Quarry Scapes Project will be continued with the aim of assessing the risks to the site and developing practical and methodological guidelines for its conservation. This project is a joint initiative coordinated by the Norwegian Geological Survey and funded through the EU Commission to draw together academic and other institutions in Europe with partners in Egypt, Turkey and Jordan. The project has been established for the conservation of ancient stone quarry landscapes, mainly focussing on their documentation, conservation and heritage management...

Fayoum's ancient quarry under threat, Al-Ahram, Egypt, Issue No. 788, March 30 - April 05, 2006.

On March 6, at the New School in New York, Michael Kimmelman, The Times's chief art critic, moderated a discussion about antiquities and their provenance. He opened by delving into the topic of the Euphronios krater, a 2,500-year-old Greek bowl that the Metropolitan Museum of Art has recently agreed to return to Italy. Here are excerpts, edited for clarity, from the conversation:

MICHAEL KIMMELMAN: Questions about whether the Euphronios krater was looted are nothing new.

PHILIPPE DE MONTEBELLO: Documents emerged out of the criminal trial against the Getty Museum. How Italy prosecuted its case in the United States is rather shabby. It was entirely through the press. For years, we wrote countless times to the Italian ministry, to the justice department there and so forth, asking for a direct dialogue and really never got it. I went with our secretary and counsel Sharon Cott in 1999 and it led to nothing. I was there in 2003 to discuss the whole issue of the silver that the archaeologist Malcolm Bell said, on circumstantial evidence, came from Morgantina in Sicily, asking whether they had any hard information. I got blank stares...

Is It All Loot? Tackling The Antiquities Problem, New York Times, New York, USA, March 29, 2006.

cf. Stolen art met with public yawn, USA Today, Virginia, USA, March 29, 2006.