Washington University researchers have recently made a series of important discoveries based on examinations of the bones and DNA of a mummy recently added to the permanent collection of the St. Louis Science Centre.

Al Wiman, vice president of Public Understanding of Science at the Science Centre, found the mummy in the Centre's storage where it had been packed away since 1985. The mummy had been purchased privately in the Middle East at the turn of the 20th century-the same time that banker Charles Parson bought two mummies that he later donated to the University.

Wiman contacted the University's Department of Radiology [Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology] in order to learn more about the mummy without tampering with its contents.

"On the computer we could electronically unwrap layers of bandage and remove skin," said Charles Hildebolt, professor of radiology...

University researchers study mummy using modern technology, Andrea Winter, Washington University Student Life, Washington University, Missouri, USA, April 18, 2007.

The pyramids of Giza have been removed from an Internet competition to name the new seven wonders of the world, but the anger of Egypt's antiquities chief remained unmollified Thursday.

Swiss-Canadian filmmaker Bernard Weber's contest to choose the seven new wonders of the world through global voting enraged Egyptian officials when the pyramids — the one of the original wonder still standing — were included in the competition.

"After careful consideration, the New 7 Wonders Foundation designates the Pyramids of Giza — the only remaining of the 7 Ancient Wonders of the World - as an Honorary New7Wonders Candidate," said a statement on the Web site that added that votes could no longer be cast for the pyramids...

Egypt's pyramids out of seven wonders contest, Middle East Times, Cyprus, April 20, 2007.

[T]he sands of time have taken their toll of the Step Pyramid. Most of its outer casing has gone, the core of the masonry has disappeared in some places, deep cracks have spread all over the walls and ceilings of the pyramid's underground corridors and its southern tomb, while several parts of the queen's tunnels, found beneath the pyramid's main shaft, have collapsed. For safety reasons the pyramid is closed to visitors.

Several solutions have been proposed to save this unique monument. Now, following three years of archaeological and scientific studies, a comprehensive restoration project to save and preserve this great pyramid from further destruction has been outlined.

... The restoration project is the first complete plan to rescue the Step Pyramid of Djoser and the southern tomb. Speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly, Zahi Hawass, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), described it as a pioneer project comparable to the salvage operation of the Abu Simbel temples. Hawass added that the project would be carried out by Egyptian engineers and archaeologists in three phases with a budget of LE25 million. Plans include consolidating the underground tunnels, monitoring the cracks, restoring the wall decorations and inspecting the natural ventilation inside the pyramid and the southern tomb.

The first phase, which started early this month, requires the cleansing of the pyramid from inside and outside as well as removing all accumulated dust and sand of the past decades in an attempt to reduce the load on the pyramid's structure...

Restoring Djoser's Step Pyramid, Nevine El-Aref, Al-Ahram, Egypt, Issue No. 841, April 19 - 25, 2007.

Previously:

Culture Minister announces start of restoration of Djoser step pyramid, April 07, 2007.

There are always people in your life on whom you depend for advice and who you consider as a kind of guardian. In my life, this man is Ambassador Abdel-Raouf El-Reedi. I have depended upon him for many decisions in my life, and I always view his advice as sincere and useful. He is a man you can trust because he is genuine, honest, and loves his country without looking for a position or reward.

I met Ambassador El-Reedi in 1983 while I was pursuing a doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania. His office called me and said he wanted to talk to me. I heard his voice on the other end of the telephone and felt that he could enter into the heart of a person very easily. We also both discovered that we were from the same city in the Delta, Damietta. I even began calling and speaking to him with a Damietta accent.

Ambassador El-Reedi came to the United States as ambassador after Ashraf Gorbal, who was considered one of the best Egyptian ambassadors ever and played an important role in Egyptian-American relations during the time of President Anwar El-Sadat. It was difficult for anyone to fill his position. But El-Reedi used another type of diplomacy, the diplomacy of being frank and sincere, which caused him to enter into the hearts of many Americans...

Dig Days: The ambassador who loved Egyptology, Zahi Hawass, Al-Ahram, Egypt, Issue No. 841, April 19 - 25, 2007.

The long-standing dispute between Cairo and Berlin over the iconic bust of Nefertiti, currently housed in Berlin's Altes Museum, reached new heights this week when German Culture Minister Bernd Neumann rejected a request to loan the bust to Egypt for three months..

The decision came a year after the Supreme Council of Antiquities' (SCA) Secretary-General Zahi Hawass requested the loan in a speech delivered before presidents Hosni Mubarak and Horst Khöler at the inauguration of the Egypt's Sunken Treasures exhibition in Berlin last May. Hawass asked for the loan of the bust so it could go on show at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo to coincide with the centenary celebrations of the German Archaeological Institute in Egypt. In return, Hawass pledged during his speech, that the SCA would offer another statue to the Egyptian Museum in Berlin for the three months that Nefertiti was in Egypt.

"Experts have reservations about taking Nefertiti on a long trip, which we have to take seriously," said Neumann...

Face to face, Nevine El-Aref, Al-Ahram, Egypt, Issue No. 841, April 19 - 25, 2007.

Previously:

Egypt Vows 'Scientific War' If Germany Doesn't Loan Nefertiti, April 19, 2007.

Berlin museum rebuffs threat over Nefertiti, April 17, 2007.

Egypt threatens German ban in Nefertiti row, April 16, 2007.

Nefertiti Is Too Fragile to Visit Egypt, German Minister Says, April 13, 2007.