Egypt Journal #4
Monday, December 04, 2006
JOURNAL: November 20, 2006 - Monday - 12:05 a.m.
Our promised "short day" turned out to be another long one. But we began and ended in prayer, so our experiences were framed as they should have been. We saw the Hanging Church, and the churches of St. Sergius and St. Barbara - all very old and dating in parts to the 8th/9th up to the 12th/13th centuries. We also saw the ruins of the Old Babylon fortress wall, which is still in remarkably good shape. It was begun by Caesar Augustus in the 1st century A.D. and finished during Trajan's reign.
We also visited the Coptic Museum, which houses Coptic artifacts dating to very early periods. There was, for instance, a full Greek psalter dating from the 4th/5th centuries. And I couldn't help but imagine whose hands had held it and whose eyes had read it (Athanasius'? Cyril's?? It boggles the mind). The leader covers that the Nag Hammadi texts were found in were also there on full display. And icons painted on plaster walls have been extracted and preserved in the museum's collection; they date from a wide variety of time periods but are all impressive examples of early Christian art.
I picked up a couple of things for Emily today that I think she'll really like. One is a silver cartouche necklace; the cartouche was a seal used by the Pharaohs, which contained their names in hieroglyphics. I had this one printed with her name on one side and mine on the other. It's pretty cool. The other item is a bottle of "essence," which is an Egyptian type of perfume that claims to be purer and more concentrated than typical Western fragrances. We visited a shop where the "essence" is mixed and sold - a counterpart to our visits to the carpet and papyrus shops earlier in the trip. These places are wonderful examples of local Egyptian artisanry. They make, package, and sell their products under one roof. And all of them are all too happy to serve you with Egyptian or Turkish coffee while they give you their sales pitch!
Heading to Alexandria tomorrow. Hope I can fit in both work and nap on the bus!
Our promised "short day" turned out to be another long one. But we began and ended in prayer, so our experiences were framed as they should have been. We saw the Hanging Church, and the churches of St. Sergius and St. Barbara - all very old and dating in parts to the 8th/9th up to the 12th/13th centuries. We also saw the ruins of the Old Babylon fortress wall, which is still in remarkably good shape. It was begun by Caesar Augustus in the 1st century A.D. and finished during Trajan's reign.
We also visited the Coptic Museum, which houses Coptic artifacts dating to very early periods. There was, for instance, a full Greek psalter dating from the 4th/5th centuries. And I couldn't help but imagine whose hands had held it and whose eyes had read it (Athanasius'? Cyril's?? It boggles the mind). The leader covers that the Nag Hammadi texts were found in were also there on full display. And icons painted on plaster walls have been extracted and preserved in the museum's collection; they date from a wide variety of time periods but are all impressive examples of early Christian art.
I picked up a couple of things for Emily today that I think she'll really like. One is a silver cartouche necklace; the cartouche was a seal used by the Pharaohs, which contained their names in hieroglyphics. I had this one printed with her name on one side and mine on the other. It's pretty cool. The other item is a bottle of "essence," which is an Egyptian type of perfume that claims to be purer and more concentrated than typical Western fragrances. We visited a shop where the "essence" is mixed and sold - a counterpart to our visits to the carpet and papyrus shops earlier in the trip. These places are wonderful examples of local Egyptian artisanry. They make, package, and sell their products under one roof. And all of them are all too happy to serve you with Egyptian or Turkish coffee while they give you their sales pitch!
Heading to Alexandria tomorrow. Hope I can fit in both work and nap on the bus!
Labels: Duke Divinity School, Egypt Journal
posted by Andrew C. Thompson at 10:26 AM
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