Egypt - Aswan

Aswan

Aswan seems to close the doors on the Middle East and to open those on Africa. Swirling and flowing strongly, the Nile snakes its way between islands
and black rocks which disturb its stately majesty, and challenges the high dunes of golden sand to bury it once and for all.

The name “Nubia” comes from the ancient Egyptian word meaning precious metal.

Aswan, gateway to Nubia

Aswan seems to close the doors on the Middle East and to open those on Africa. Swirling and flowing strongly, the Nile snakes its way between islands and black rocks which disturb its stately majesty, and challenges the high dunes of golden sand to bury it once and for all. The feluccas with their great triangular sails travel lazily from bank to bank and island to island.

On Fridays, a barge chugs out on to the river with a crowd of young people on board, laughing and singing to the sound of drums and tambourines while others on the Nile corniche respond to their call. Night falls and the cafes along the riverside are lit up. When a football match is on, hundreds of men sip their tea, eyes fixed on the old television screens. At the least touch of brilliance from their favourite team, they applaud, yell and shout to each other.

The town on the right bank was already the hub of trade with Nubia in ancient times. No ivory or precious woods can be found on its narrow streets today but the third largest city in Egypt is full of the scent of spices straight from the south. The souk adopts the colours and smells of Sudanese markets. The Nubian people, recognisable from their black skin, possess a dignity and easy grace which give the Sudanese a similar appeal. Sudanese are present in fairly large numbers in Aswan enjoying life at a slow pace. Sudanese women wear long, brightly coloured veils wrapped around their bodies.

Nubia

Nubia disappeared when its life-source, the Nile, was tamed. Nubia is the region to the south of Aswan, now submerged under the waters of Lake Nasser. It stretched as far as Khartoum, capital of present-day Sudan. The rocky First Cataract at Aswan marked the line between Egypt in the north and Nubia in the south. Like all regions bordering the nurturing Nile, life in Nubia followed the rhythm of floods and the depositing of silt which enabled crops to grow. From earliest times, there were those who sought to understand this mystery. Artefacts dating from the fifth millennium BC – ostrich eggs for example – testify to voyages undertaken to the south. Very shortly after the unification of ancient Egypt, Nubia found itself dominated by its larger neighbour to the north which sought to exploit the riches in gold that Nubia’s land offered. The name “Nubia” even comes from the ancient Egyptian word meaning precious metal. The province was also a source of leopard skins, incense and aromatic plants.

In the Middle Kingdom, under the reign of Montuhotep II, the northern part was conquered but in the south the Kings of Kush still ruled. From their capital, Kerma, they resisted their powerful northern neighbours as best they could. The Nubians were vanquished and enslaved by the New Kingdom before being able to take advantage of anarchy prevailing in Thebes which they then seized. The Nubians pushed as far north as Memphis starting the rule of the black pharaohs which lasted until the Assyrian invasion from the north. The Kushites withdrew towards the south to Meroe and what remained of their civilisation.

Nubian territory was divided once more at a much later date when the British created the frontier between Egypt and Sudan in the nineteenth century. Some Egyptians retained a persistent longing for this lost region.

With successive dams on the Nile at Aswan, the majority of inhabitants had to leave their villages under threat from the waters to head for those further north in the area of Kom Ombo where they tried to maintain their cultural identity at least in the architecture.

Museum of Nubia

Open 9am to 1pm and 6pm to 10pm in summer, and 5pm to 9pm in winter. Admission fee charged.
For Nubians, the museum represents official recognition of their identity, the essence of their history – now lost beneath the waters of Lake Nasser – and of their civilisation.

The two architects, an Egyptian and a Mexican, have succeeded in creating one of the most beautiful museums in Egypt. The building is pleasant and spacious and the exhibition spaces inter-relate perfectly. The museum retraces the whole of Nubian civilisation from prehistoric times to today and displays certain objects rescued from the flooding when the great dam was built.

Just beyond the entrance is an interactive point in English and Arabic which shows the layout of the museum. On the right, a fairly sombre room is devoted to temporary exhibitions. On the lower ground floor, a large model illustrates Nubia’s geographical location. Behind it, a colossal statue of Ramesses II greets visitors, an eternal smile playing on his lips. Beginning the museum visit on the left, visitors pass through prehistory – magnificent animal carvings, pottery, jewels and tools – to antiquity.

The Kingdom of Kush first appeared in Upper Nubia during the Old Kingdom. It was annexed by Egypt in the reign of Thutmose I then reappeared after the fall of the New Kingdom. For a time, the capital of Kush was established at Meroe, part of present-day Sudan. The exhibits demonstrate the Nubian kingdom’s prosperity. The next two rooms deal with the conversion of Nubia to Christianity and Islam. Large informative panels describe the rescuing of Nubian temples by Unseco. Finally, an entire section of the museum is devoted to contemporary civilisation in the form of reconstructions of houses, a schoolyard, wedding ceremony and farm labouring. It is worth mentioning too the beautiful open-air museum on several levels featuring reconstructions of a prehistoric cave and Islamic tombs.

The feluccas

The triangular sails of the feluccas form an integral part of the Nile landscape. They are not just for the tourists: these sturdy sailing boats are still a common mode of transport for people and animals, as well as for goods. Some skippers sail tens even hundreds of kilometres up the Nile with cargoes of stone – as in the time of the pharaohs – or cement.