Demonic Beings in Ancient Egypt Introductiontourism.helwan.edu.eg/IAJFTH/files/2019/12/Volumes-2018.pdfDemonic Beings in Ancient Egypt Manal B. Hammad Introduction According to the

IAJFTH Volume 4, No, 1 2018

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Demonic Beings in Ancient Egypt

Manal B. Hammad

Introduction

According to the ancient Egyptian religious concepts, the

world was inhabited by six groups of superhuman beings; nTr

(god), nTrt (goddess), Ax (male spirit),

Axt (female spirit), nswt (King) and nsyt (queen).

1 These categories were first followed by the humans in the

royal domain who were in turn followed by officials, foreigners

and then finally by commoners.2 These groups which were

included in Onomastikon of Amenimopet, 3 were considered to be

part of the ordered cosmos. As for demons, they were excluded

from these groups; not because they were nonexistent, but rather

because they were beings of chaos.4 While, there is a collective

term indicating the gods (nTrw) in ancient Egypt, which is the

exact correspondent of the Greek „theos.‟5 There is no collective

term in the ancient Egyptian language that is equivalent to the

English word Demon,6 which was originally driven from the

1 GARDINER, A.H. (1947). Ancient Egyptian Onomastica, text Vol. I, London, 13.

2 SZPAKOWSKA, K. (2009). „Demons in Ancient Egypt,‟ Religion Compass 3/5,

799. 3 An ancient Egyptian papyrus the late twentieth Dynasty to the twenty second

Dynasty which includes different groupings that include heavenly objects, towns,

peoples and offices. See GARDINER, A.H. (1947). Ancient Egyptian Onomastica,

text Vol. I, London. 4SZPAKOWSKA, K. (2009). „Demons in Ancient Egypt,‟ Religion Compass

3/5, 799. 5 LUCARELLI, R. (2008). „ Between Men and Gods: Demons in Ancient

Egypt,‟ Italian Academy Fellows‟ Seminar Working Papers, 1 6 MEEKS, D. (2001). „Demons‟, in REDFORD, D.B. (ed.) The Oxford

Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol.1. New York, 375; WILKINSON, R.H.

(2003). „Demons‟, in The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt,

London, 81.



2

ancient Greek term „daimon‟7 that does not have an equivalent

counterpart in the ancient Egyptian groups of beings.8 Therefore,

the Egyptological literature assigned this term „demon‟ to the study

of these „minor divinities,‟9 as a convention to fill the gap in the

ancient Egyptian, which does not have a collective term for them.10

The ancient Egyptians believed that they were surrounded

by supernatural powers that affected their fate not only in the

earthly life but also in their afterlife. These fate demons11

were

benevolent protectors that played the role of their guardian angels

from anything that threatened their course of life. However these

protector demons were not always able to safeguard them against

the evil ones.12

Therefore, demons, in fact, played an important

role in the ancient Egyptian culture and are evident in both the

textual and material archaeological remains.

This article will shed light on the nature of these beings,

their categories, roles and iconography based on magical spells and

funerary texts from the Middle Kingdom down till the New

Kingdom.

Nature

In ancient Egypt, demons13

were believed to have different

origins; some were the creation of the gods for their personal

7 BURNET, J.(1924) Plato‟s Euthyprho, Apology of Socrates and Crito, Oxford,

115; FULLER,H.(2013). From Daimon to Demon: The Evolution of the Demon

from the Antiquity to Early Christianity, Masters thesis, Las Vegas, 17-18. 8 LURCARELLI, R.(2010) „Demons (Benevolent and Malevolent)‟, in DIELEMAN,

J. and WENDRICH, W. (eds.) UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, Los Angeles, 2;

GARDINER, A.H. (1947). Ancient Egyptian Onomastica, text Vol. I, London, 13. 9 WILKINSON, R.H. (2003). „Demons‟, in The Complete Gods and Goddesses

of Ancient Egypt, London, 81; MEEKS, D. (2001). „Demons‟, in REDFORD,

D.B. (ed.) The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol.1. New York, 375. 10

SASS, D.(2014). Slaughterers, Knife- Bearers and Plague-Bringers, Masters

thesis, Sydney, 20. 11

Demons of fate are Shai, see LEITZ, C. (2002) Lexikon der ägyptischen

Götter und Götterbezeichnungen VII, OLA 116, 4; His counterpart Renenet,

see LEITZ, C. (2002) Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen

IV, OLA113, 686-689; Mesketet, see LEITZ, C. (2002) Lexikon der ägyptischen

Götter und Götterbezeichnungen III,OLA 112,442-443. 12

MEEKS, D. (2001). „ Demons‟, in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt

I, Oxford, 375. 13

VELDE, H. te, „ Damonen‟, in LÄ I, 980-984.

B. HAMMAD, M


3

purposes, while others were a result of human beings either dead or

alive, being awakened for an individual permanently or

occasionally. According to Meeks, these beings were assistants to

major gods and goddesses, who limited themselves to inactivity

with humans, who were instead contacted by demons. 14

Thus they

could be ranked as an intermediate between gods and mankind.15

The lack of designated cult places for the demons is an important

distinction between them and deities16

at least till the New

Kingdom.17

Demons possessed special powers that were not

universal, but rather limited in nature and range. They tended to

work in gangs of multiples of seven18

and they performed certain

tasks upon command.19

Furthermore, they were defined as the „ religious frontier-

striders‟20

as they played a dual role, acting on the borders between

order and chaos, embodying the ideas of mAat and isft,21 as they

14


I, Oxford, 375. 15

VELDE, H. te, „Damonen‟, in LÄ I, 981. 16

ASSMANN, J. (2001). The Search for the God in Ancient Egypt, London, 7-8;

LURCARELLI, R.(2013) „Towards a Comparative Approach to Demonology in

Antiquity: The Case of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia,‟ Archiv für

Religionsgeschichte 14, 16-17. 17

LURCARELLI, R.(2010). „Demons (Benevolent and Malevolent)‟, in

DIELEMAN, J. and WENDRICH, W. (eds.) UCLA Encyclopedia of

Egyptology, Los Angeles, 2; SZPAKOWSKA, K. (2009). „Demons in Ancient

Egypt,‟ Religion Compass 3/5. It should be noted that from the late period

onwards a union between the deities and the demons became clearly supported,

an example of which is seen in the deity who was worshipped in the Greco-

Roman period with his own temple cults yet with the qualities of a demon as one

of his titles was the „Master of Demons.‟ See KAPER, O.E. (2003). The

Egyptian God Tutu: A study of the Sphinx- God and Master of Demons With a

Corpus of Monuments. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 119, Leuven. 60-63. 18

MEEKS, D. (1971). „Genies, anges, demons en Egypte‟, in GARELLI, P. (ed.)

Genies Anges et Demons: Egypt – Babylone -Israel – Islam – Peuples altaiques

- Birmanie – Asie du Sud-Est – Tibet – Chine, Sources Orientales 8, Paris, 44-45. 19

WILKINSON, R.H. (2003). „Demons‟, in The Complete Gods and Goddesses

of Ancient Egypt, London, 81. 20

AHN, G.(2006).‟Demon / Demonology,‟ in STUCKRAD, V.K. (ed.), The

Brill Dictionary of Religion, vol.1, Boston, 503. 21


thesis, Sydney, 23.



4

could be used as instruments of punishment against the evil or

were able to save and help the good.22

They were associated with

gods like Sekhmet, Hathor, Nekhbet, Osiris and Ra.23

Demons do not dwell in the divine land of light or in

temples, but they rather live in night, darkness or in natural

places24

such as desserts pools, rivers, streams, ponds, foreign

places, 25

mountains, 26

as well as caves, pits, tombs, as all were

considered doorways into the netherworld.27

They were not

brightened by the sun, but were rather blind or sometimes they had

an evil eye. They spoke no language, but incomprehensible

howling and they were deaf. Moreover, they were smelly and they

fed on waste matters.28

Gender was irrelevant to the role played by

the demons, however most of the sources referred to male demons

as for female ones rarely occurred. 29

Categories

In ancient Egypt demons can act in pairs, in threes or in a

gang, but nevertheless they can also manifest themselves as a single

individual.30

Demons fall under two categories; the demons that

inhabit the netherworld; these are stationary attached to a certain

22

MEEKS, D. (1971). „Genies, anges, demons en Egypte‟, in GARELLI, P.

(ed.) Genies Anges et Demons: Egypt – Babylone -Israel – Islam – Peuples

altaiques - Birmanie – Asie du Sud-Est – Tibet – Chine, Sources Orientales 8,

Paris, 47-48. 23

MEUER, G. (2002). Die Feinde des Konigs in den Pyramidentexten, Freiburg,

78. 24

LEITZ, C. (2002). Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen,

II, OLA 111, 506. 25

VELDE, H. te, „ Damonen‟, in LÄ I, 981. 26

LURCARELLI,R. (2010) „Demons (Benevolent and Malevolent)‟,in


Egyptology, Los Angeles, 4. 27




LURCARELLI, R.(2010) „Demons (Benevolent and Malevolent)‟, in





Egyptology, Los Angeles, 3.

B. HAMMAD, M


5

place that serves as their home.31

They are described and depicted

in funerary literature, known as „Guardians,‟ as they watch over the

netherworld,32

As for the second category they are demons travelling

between the earth and the beyond acting upon the world of the

living by order of the gods and these are mentioned in magical

spells and papyri as well as ritual texts. They are known as

„Wanderers,‟33

as they move from one place to another. They were

connected to diseases, misfortune to humans, nightmares and

demonic possessions.34

Despite the fact that these two categories of demons; of the

both worlds are distinguished, yet they appear to complete each

other in the religious belief in evil spirits. In other words, the

demons that appear in the funerary texts may well be the same as

those mentioned in amuletic and magical texts.35

The guardian-demons

The ancient Egyptian conception of the netherworld

included many gates, portals, pylons and doors,36

which must be

passed by the deceased to reach the place of the afterlife existence.

31

LURCARELLI, R.(2013) „Towards a Comparative Approach to Demonology

in Antiquity: The Case of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia,‟ Archiv für

Religionsgeschichte 14, 17. 32

LUCARELLI, R. (2008) „ Between Men and Gods: Demons in Ancient

Egypt,‟ Italian Academy Fellows‟ Seminar Working Papers, 1 33



Egyptology, Los Angeles, 2-3. 34

LUCARELLI, R. (2008).„Between Men and Gods: Demons in Ancient

Egypt,‟ Italian Academy Fellows‟ Seminar Working Papers, 1 35

LUCARELLI, R. (2006). „Demons in the Book of the Dead‟, in BACKES, B.,

MUNRO, I. and STÖHR, S. (eds.), Totenbuch-Forschungen: Gesammelte

Beiträge des 2. Internationalen Totenbuch-Symposiums, Bonn, 25. bis 29.

September 2005,Leiden, 204 36

LURCARELLI, R.(2010). „ The guardian- demons of the Book of the Dead‟,

BMSAES 15, 86.



6

Moreover, it was populated by these embodied creatures with

supernatural powers, which are conventionally called

sAwty.w „guardian-demons.‟37

Their main function was restricted to

the protection of the sacred passages, gates and doorways of the

netherworld which they never leave, allowing no one in except

those who belonged.38

Those „door- watchers‟ or „door-

guardians,‟ were depicted in the vignettes 145 and 146 of the Book

of the Dead39

(fig.1) as triads of demons guarding the

arr.wt - gates of the house of Osiris: iry-a3, „the doorkeeper‟;

sAw(y), „the watcher‟ and smi, „the herald,‟40

nevertheless, some variants of these spells depict each portal

guarded by only one demon.41

Moreover, they acted as protectors

of the King/justified deceased in his journey across the

netherworld.42

Their protective function is related to the vigil of

Osiris during the hours of the night, when his mummy needed

protection before rebirth.

37

These entities were sometimes referred to as „Genies‟ when they were

depicted or mentioned in the temples, as their status changes from being

guardians of the afterlife to being genies of the temple. They were introduced to

the temple due to their skill in opening the way. See LUCARELLI, R. (2017)

„The Significance of the Book of the Dead Vignettes‟, in SCALF, F. (ed.), Book

Of The Dead, Becoming God in Ancient Egypt, Chicago, 134; SZPAKOWSKA,

K. (2009). „Demons in Ancient Egypt,‟ Religion Compass 3/5, 802;




SZPAKOWSKA, K. (2009). „Demons in Ancient Egypt,‟ Religion Compass

3/5,802 39

FAULKNER, R.O. (2010). The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, Cairo,

134-135. 40

LURCARELLI, R.(2010). „The guardian- demons of the Book of the Dead‟,

BMSAES 15, 87, 93;HART , G. (2005). The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian

Gods and Goddesses, 57-58. 41

MUNRO, I. (1987). Untersuchungen zu den Totenbuch Papyri der 18.

Dynastie: Kriterien ihrer Datierung. Studies in Egyptology, London. 42


of Ancient Egypt, London, 81.

B. HAMMAD, M


7

They were not only described in the Book of the dead;

vignettes 144 to 147 ( fig.2 ),43

but also in other funerary books such

as the Coffin texts44

and the New Kingdom Books of the

Afterlife,45

as well as on tomb walls. They were depicted in

anthropomorphic forms with hybrid human-animal representations

(fig.3a) that varied between reptiles, felines, canines, baboons,

donkeys, goats, hippopotami, bulls, insects, scorpions and birds.

Sometimes they are represented as monstrous representations

combining two or more animals or animal and humans into one

body.46

They were fully armed with traditional weapons such as

knives, spears and daggers47

as well as anx signs, vegetal elements,

48

torches and rearing cobras49

or upstanding lizards50

(fig.3b).

It seems that these demons were looked upon as beings of

flesh and blood 51

and that their physicality was the key to their

power. This is confirmed by the fact that many names, titles and

epithets of the demons refer to their physical attributes, which

43

LURCARELLI, R.(2010). „The guardian- demons of the Book of the Dead,‟

BMSAES 15, 86. 44

Guardian – Demons were widely depicted on coffins to protect the mummies.

BARGUET, P. (1967). Le Livre des morts des anciens egyptiens Litteratures

anciennes du Proche Orient 1. Paris, 190,203. 45

For More information on these books see HORNUNG, E.(1999) The Ancient

Egyptian Books of the Afterlife, London. 46

KAKOSY, L. (1982). „Mischgestalt‟, in LÄ IV, 145-148. 47

SZPAKOWSKA,K.(2009).„Demons in Ancient Egypt,‟Religion Compass 3/5,

802. 48

LURCARELLI, R.(2010). „The guardian- demons of the Book of the Dead‟,

BMSAES 15, 86. 49

MEEKS, D. (1971). „Genies, anges, demons en Egypte‟, in GARELLI, P. (ed.)

Genies Anges et Demons: Egypt – Babylone -Israel – Islam – Peuples altaiques

- Birmanie – Asie du Sud-Est – Tibet – Chine, Sources Orientales 8, Paris, 17-84. 50

LUCARELLI, R.(2017) „Gods, Spirits, Demons of the Book of the Dead‟, in

SCALF, F. (ed.), Book Of The Dead, Becoming God in Ancient Egypt, Chicago,

135. 51

HEERMA VAN VOSS, M. (1983), Vijf dekaden – Demonen da capo,

Voordracht gehouden bij het tiende lustrum van het Vooraziatisch-Egyptisch

Genootschap Ex Oriente Lux. Leiden, 7; LUCARELLI, R. (2006). „Demons in

the Book of the Dead‟, in BACKES, B., MUNRO, I. and STÖHR, S. (eds.),

Totenbuch-Forschungen: Gesammelte Beiträge des 2. Internationalen

Totenbuch-Symposiums, Bonn, 25. bis 29. September 2005, Leiden, 203.



8

emphasize their aggressive dreadful nature.52

Among those are:

„the Swallower of Sinners,‟ „the Bellower‟ and „the Rapacious

One.‟53

It is noteworthy to mention that, their names are rarely

written with the determinative of divinity (A40),54

but rather using

a knife (T31), a snake (I14) one of the above mentioned

animals or even a dead man55

(A15). Door- guardians can be

malevolent guardians, hostile to humans, if they attempted to enter

restricted zones without the appropriate knowledge. This explains

why demons were well described and depicted pictographically in

much detail so as the deceased would be able to visually recognize

them and know their secret names 56

in order to overcome their

aggression57

and pass through these different zones of the afterlife.58

Only then these guardians will serve as benevolent ones protecting

Osiris/the justified deceased across the afterlife. Thus, they can be

defined as lacking moral sense rather than evil 59

as on one

occasion, they can be a threat and on the other, they may be

protective. 60

52


3/5,802; LUCARELLI, R. (2006).„Demons in the Book of the Dead‟, in

BACKES, B., MUNRO, I. and STÖHR, S. (eds.), Totenbuch-Forschungen:

Gesammelte Beiträge des 2. Internationalen Totenbuch-Symposiums, Bonn, 25.

bis 29. September 2005, Leiden, 203. 53


3/5,802. 54

Gardiner‟s sign-list, See GARDINER, A. H (1957). Egyptian Grammar. Being

an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs, Oxford, 528. 55


Humans gained superiority over these guardian- demons through the magical

power associated with knowing their secret names. HART, G. (2005). The

Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, 55; LURCARELLI,

R.(2010). „ The guardian- demons of the Book of the Dead‟, BMSAES 15, 86. 57

LURCARELLI, R. (2010) „Demons (Benevolent and Malevolent),‟in



MUNRO, I.( 2017) „The Significance of the Book of the Dead Vignettes‟, in

SCALF, F. (ed.), Book Of The Dead, Becoming God in Ancient Egypt, Chicago,

59; LURCARELLI, R.(2010). „The guardian- demons of the Book of the Dead,‟

BMSAES 15, 89. 59




B. HAMMAD, M


9

It is important to note that not only individual demons

appear in the Book of the Dead, but also classes of demons with

collective names, 61

which operate both in the netherworld and on

earth.

The wanderer-demons

These gangs of demons were rarely depicted, but rather

mentioned through collective names62

in the amuletic and magical

texts recorded on papyri and ostraka.63

Many of these gangs acted as

troops at the service of major deities, particularly Ra, Osiris, Seth,

Bastet and Sekhmet.64 It seems that these gangs usually comprised

of seven members or even multiples of seven. They were generally

known as Ssr.w or arrows, a name also given to the seven

Decan stars, which are the closest to the sun. This explains the

strong relationship between the demons and the astronomic cycles,

that made their influence stronger on earth during specific dates, 65

especially during the festival days, as confirmed by the calendars

of Good and Bad 66

and The Book of the Epagomenal Days of


September 2005,Leiden, 203. 61

LUCARELLI, R. ( 2017). „The Significance of the Book of the Dead

Vignettes‟, in SCALF, F. (ed.), Book Of The Dead, Becoming God in Ancient

Egypt, Chicago, 135; LUCARELLI, R. (2006). „Demons in the Book of the

Dead‟, in BACKES, B., MUNRO, I. and STÖHR, S. (eds.), Totenbuch-

Forschungen: Gesammelte Beiträge des 2. Internationalen Totenbuch-

Symposiums, Bonn, 25. bis 29. September 2005, Leiden, 203. 62

LUCARELLI, R. ( 2017) „The Significance of the Book of the Dead


Egypt, Chicago, 135. 63

Many of these spells were inscribed on clay ostraka, see LEITZ, C. (1999).

Magical and Medical Papyri of the New Kingdom. Hieratic Papyri in the British

Museum, Vol. 7, London. 64


I, Oxford, 377. 65


I, Oxford, 377. 66






10

Papyrus Leiden I 346, which confirms the importance of protecting

the house against the turn of the year and the disease bringers.67

These SmAy.w „wanderer demons‟ were

responsible for illnesses, misfortunes and troubles to humans and

their evil could be partially warded off only through magic.68

They

even entered and haunted houses, which is evident from the

magical spells69

made to defend different parts of the houses

against those evil beings.70

They also outlined the frames of the

false doors in their homes by the red paste, a protective color

against the evil spirits and demons, so as not to enter the house

through these open gates; the false doors.71

Furthermore, they

attacked and entered the human body not only at night during

sleep, but also by day causing what is known as demonic

possessions.72

Nightmares rsw.t Dw.t 73were

also included in Middle Kingdom execration texts among a long

list of hostile doings these demons could do to harm an individual. Many spells and prescriptions survived especially from the New

67


thesis, Sydney, 64 68




BORGHOUTS, J. (1978) „Ancient Egyptian Magical Texts,‟ Nisaba 9,

Leiden, 10-11. 70




False door within the premises of the houses of the living is most probably

associated with the enactment of the ancestors‟ cult at home. HARRINGTON, N.

(2013). Living with the Dead: Ancestor Worship and Mortuary Ritual in Ancient

Egypt, Oxford, 67 – 71. 72




KOUSOULIS, P. (2011). „Ancient Egyptian Demonology, Studies on the

Boundaries between the Demonic and the Divine in Egyptian Magic‟, Orientalia

Lovaniensia Analecta 175, 64.

B. HAMMAD, M


11

Kingdom containing recipes of how to ward off those demons

responsible for nightmares. 74

Among these gangs also were xAty.w 75

„the slaughterers.‟whose name was mentioned in the Pyramid

Texts as early as the Old Kingdom, meaning that they were rather

funerary, yet they were still mentioned in the medical-magical

texts from the New Kingdom76

(fig.4) confirming their dual

function in both the netherworld and the earthly life. The main role

of the slaughterers, which was recorded as early as the Second

Intermediate Period,77

was to bring diseases, illnesses and plagues. 78

Sass, suggested that the development of this role grew from the

close connection between their hieroglyphic name

xAty.w and the word xAy.t which

means disease.79

Moreover, they were emissaries of goddess

Sekhmet,80

goddess of plague and fear, 81

in her harmful aspect.

74

KOUSOULIS, P. (2011). „Ancient Egyptian Demonology, Studies on the

Boundaries between the Demonic and the Divine in Egyptian Magic‟, Orientalia

Lovaniensia Analecta 175, 67. 75

LEITZ, C. (2002) Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen

V, OLA 114, 635-638. 76







SCHIPPER, B.(2007). „Angels or Demons? Divine Messengers in Ancient

Egypt‟ in REITERER, F., NICKLAS, T. and SCHOPFLIN, K. (eds.), Angels:

The Concept of Celestial Beings: Origins, Development and Reception, New

York, 7. 79






York, 7. 81

LUCARELLI, R. .( 2017) „The Significance of the Book of the Dead


Egypt, Chicago,135.



12

This is confirmed by the fact that they were stated in the Book of

the Dead as xAty.w sxmt signifying their close

relationship with the goddess,82

where the passages mentioned

i xAty.w sxmt m-Hw.t iAw.w “the deceased praised the demons of

Sekhmet in the House of the Elders”(fig.5)

nn iw(i) xAty.w m-sA “so as not to

follow him.”83

Similarly most of the magical texts of the New Kingdom

mention magical practices performed by the local magicians and

priests in order to heal the living physically and/ or psychologically

from the evil doings of the slaughterers.84

Spells were written on

papyrus strips folded inside little containers and worn on necklaces

to keep the demons away.85

Also, they were considered responsible

for mental and internal diseases; and some were mentioned in the

medical-magical texts of the Middle Kingdom onwards. Few of

those demons were named as individuals in spells such as the

demon SAqq,86 who was blamed for the headache.87

He was

depicted, in few Ramesside spells from Deir el Madina,88

as a

82





These passages are described in chapters 145, 149 of the Book of the Dead (

the Saite version), see LEPSIUS, R., (1842) Das Todtenbuch der Ägypter nach

dem hieroglyphischen Papyrus in Turin, Leipzig, pl. 65.82, 86; LAPP, G. (1997)

„The Papyrus of Nu ( BM EA 10477)‟, Catalouge of the Books of the Dead in

the British Museum, Vol. 1, London, pl. 83.44, 45. 84


Leiden, 14-15. 85

MEEKS, D. (2001). „Demons‟, in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt

I, Oxford, 377. 86


Leiden, 17. 87

LEITZ, C. (2002) Lexikon der ägyptischen Götter und Götterbezeichnungen

VI, OLA 115, 444-445. 88




B. HAMMAD, M


13

naked child with a bad headache89

(fig. 6). Moreover, the demon

nsy and his female counterpart nsy(t)90 who affected various parts

of the body and might even cause death.91

Many of the spells against the demons were directed

against the mt(w) and the Ax(w).92 The mt(w) were

the unjustified dead who were doomed 93

and not admitted to the

kingdom of the dead, so they became demons,94

ready to provoke

the living in every way they could. This behavior is evident from a

letters sent from a man to his deceased wife acting as an evil spirit

against her living spouse which is causing him problems95

(fig.7).

The importance of such a correspondence is based on the fact that

it is showing the deceased souls who could turn into evil haunting

spirits. The man in this letter is actually questioning the fact that he

had not committed anything bad for his dead wife, stating all the

good favors he had done to her during her life and also after her

death; although she had caused him troubles.96

As for the Ax(w),these were spirits belonging to the realm

of the supernatural, however they were not independent entities

like the gods or the demons, but they rather represented the

89




Leiden, 36-37. 91


3/5,802. 92

These groups were referred to as both males and females. BORGHOUTS, J.

(1978) „Ancient Egyptian Magical Texts,‟ Nisaba 9, Leiden, 4. 93

These probably transgressed against the gods, did not pass required tests for

successful transformation or proper funerary rituals were not carried out. 94

VELDE, H. te, „Damonen‟, in LÄ I, 982; SZPAKOWSKA, K. (2009).

„Demons in Ancient Egypt,‟ Religion Compass 3/5,800. 95

For a full translation of this letter, see WENTE, E. (1990)‟Letters from

Ancient Egypt,‟ Society of Biblical Literature: Writings from the Ancient World

1, Atlanta, 216 – 217. 96

TEETER,E. (1993) „Popular Worship in Ancient Egypt‟, KMT 4, No. 2, 35-

36.



14

modified status of the living after death.97

These glorified blessed

spirits have been pious, committed no sins and thus were declared

as justified.98

They were adored and venerated by being given an

important position within the solar bark and had a special

connection to god Re being his companions on his solar boat and

hence known as the Ax iqr n Ra. They contributed as

benevolent ghosts in the judgment of the deceased, which is

evident by a number of spells in the Book of the Dead.99

They also

acted as intermediates between the divinities and the mortals.100

However, as soon as they were neglected or not having a suitable

place for to survive they might take a demonic form.101

These

Ax(w)- demons were mentioned in many spells of the daily and

funerary magic.102

Another group of these gangs was wpwty.w „the

messengers‟. 103

These were divine messengers sent to earth to act

at the service of the Gods. Thus they could either play a positive or

a negative role against those they face.104

They were associated

with different deities; but frequently mentioned in funerary,

magical and temple texts as the “messengers of Sekhmet,”105

and

97



Egypt, Chicago, 136. 98

FRIEDMAN, F.(1985). „On the Meaning of Some Anthropoid Busts from Deir

El-Medîna,‟ The Journal of Egyptian Archeology 71, London, 85. 99


3/5,801. 100

DEMARÉE, R. J.(1983) „The Ax iqr n Ra-Stelae: On Ancestor Worship in

Ancient Egypt‟, Egyptologische Uitgaven 3, Leiden, 283 – 284. 101



Leiden, 19. 103




York, 10. 104




York, 12. 105

VELDE, H. te, „Damonen‟, in LÄ I, 983

B. HAMMAD, M


15

messengers of Seth, the god of chaos and evil. 106

Moreover, they

were associated with God Osiris, which is evident not only from

the Coffin Texts that mentioned them as

wpwty.w wsir, 107 but also from ch. 125 of the Book of the Dead,

where the deceased begs Osiris, lord of the Atef crown to save him

from his messengers, who shoot forth harm and create

punishments. 108

One of the roles of these divine messengers was to punish

the sinful in the Realm of the Dead, thus they were related to the

last judgment (fig. 8). This is further confirmed by the text

mentioned in ch.163 of the Book of the Dead (fig.9):

ir ir.tw mDAt tn Hr tp tA nn KfA.tw. f in ipwty.w th nty .(w) irr (w) swAw n tA Dr. f 109 “If this book is used on earth, he shall not be

seized by the messengers who attack those who commit wrong in

the whole earth.”110

These messengers (punishers) were also

sometimes depicted in scenes together with the same text used with

the deceased‟s declaration of Innocence,111

which shows their close

106



Egypt, Chicago,136. 107

LUCARELLI, R. (2006). „Demons in the Book of the Dead‟, in BACKES,

B., MUNRO, I. and STÖHR, S. (eds.), Totenbuch-Forschungen: Gesammelte


September 2005, Leiden, 205. 108

FAULKNER, R. (2010). The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, Cairo, 33. 109

LEPSIUS, R., (1842) Das Todtenbuch der Ägypter nach dem

hieroglyphischen Papyrus in Turin, Leipzig, pl. 78.17, 18. 110




September 2005, Leiden, 205. 111




September 2005, Leiden, 205.



16

connection with the forty two judges that witness the deceased‟s

confession.112

Despite the fact that these messenger-demons usually acted

as a gang, yet two of them were specifically mentioned

independently in ch. 29 and 31 of the Book of the Dead (fig.10). In

ch. 29 the deceased addresses wpwty n nTr nb

“Messenger of any god, get back, have you come to take away this

heart of mine which belongs to the living?” Moreover, in ch. 31.for

driving off a crocodile which comes to take away the deceased‟s

magic from him in the realm of the dead, the deceased threatens to

his to the Great God saying; wpwty rn n wa “Messenger is the name of one while Bedty is the name of the

other.” 113

Despite their frequent existence in funerary texts from

the Old and Middle Kingdoms yet they were also widely

mentioned in magical papyri 114

and temple texts especially from

the New Kingdom onwards. 115

Conclusions

The ancient Egyptians believed in supernatural beings that

closely affected their lives, their fate, their destiny and even their

afterlife. Demons were in fact recognized by the ancient Egyptians

despite the fact that they were never defined in the hierarchical list

of their supernatural beings. These entities were believed to have

consisted of subordinates and emissaries of the superior angry

deities, damned unjustified dead, aggressive transformed spirits,

and specialized gangs of demons. They were given names, titles

and epithets that referred to their physical attributes and

emphasized their aggressive dreadful nature. They lived in night,

darkness or in natural places such as desserts, pools, rivers,

112

VELDE, H. te, „Damonen‟, in LÄ I, 983. 113

FAULKNER, R. (2010). The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, Cairo, 54. 114


Leiden, 17. 115




September 2005, Leiden, 206.

B. HAMMAD, M


17

streams, ponds, foreign places, mountains, as well as caves, pits,

tombs, as all were considered doorways into the netherworld.

The ancient Egyptians categorized demons according to:

their mobility, as some were stationary attached to a certain place

that served as their home, while others moved between the earth

and the beyond; also through their behavior, which was either

benevolent or malevolent, hence were divided into sub-types. They

mostly were either celestial guardian-demons who had a protective

aggressive role to protect the gateways, regions and passages of the

netherworld against those who did not belong. They were well

described and depicted pictographically in much detail in the

funerary texts, so as the deceased would be able to recognize them

and know their secret names in order to overcome their aggression

and pass through these different zones of the afterlife. They were

depicted in anthropomorphic forms with hybrid human-animal

representations and were fully armed with traditional weapons

such as knives, spears and daggers.

The second type was the wanderer-demons. These gangs of

demons were rarely depicted. They travelled between this world

and beyond acting on behalf of their angry deities fulfilling their

orders. They were malevolent causing illnesses, misfortunes,

troubles and nightmares to humans. Moreover, they haunted their

houses and caused possessions. As a result many magical spells

were invented to create a safe protected space where demons were

not allowed to enter. Nevertheless, the ancient Egyptians fear of

demons continued and they interpreted any daily accidents or

troubles to demonic acts. Accordingly and to appease them, from

the Late Period onwards, some demons started to be worshiped and

received a cult.



18

Fig. 1, Representing door- guardians from chapters 144 and 146 of the

Book of the Dead. After, FAULKNER, R. (2010). The Ancient Egyptian

Book of the Dead, Cairo, 134-135 and 138-139.

B. HAMMAD, M


19

Fig. 2, Representing guardian demons in vignettes 146, 147 from the

Book of the Dead. After, SCALF, F. ( 2017) Book Of The Dead, Becoming God

in Ancient Egypt, Chicago, 236-237



20

.

Fig. 3a, Representing guardian-demons in anthropomorphic forms

with hybrid human-animal representations. After, WILKINSON, R.H. (2003).

„Demons‟, in The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt, London, 81.

B. HAMMAD, M


21

Fig. 3b, Representing guardian-demons holding traditional weapons

such as knives and upstanding lizards depicted on the coffin of Horawesheb

British museum EA 6666. After, SCALF, F.( 2017) Book Of The Dead,

Becoming God in Ancient Egypt, Chicago, 134.

Fig. 4, Slaughtering-demons holding beheaded bodies of the

damned from the tomb of Ramesses VI. After, SCALF, F.( 2017) Book Of The

Dead, Becoming God in Ancient Egypt, Chicago, 58.



22

Fig. 5, Hieroglyphic texts confirming the close relationship between the

slaughters and goddess Sekhmet. After, LEPSIUS, R., (1842) Das Todtenbuch

der Ägypter nach dem hieroglyphischen Papyrus in Turin, Leipzig, pl. 65.82, 86.

Fig. 6, Representation of demon SAqq who was blamed for the

headache. After, WILKINSON, R.H. (2003). „Demons‟, in The Complete

Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt, London, 81.

B. HAMMAD, M


23

Fig. 7, A letter from a man to his deceased wife.After: The official

website of the Egyptian museum in Leiden,

http://www.rmo.nl/collectie/zoeken?object=AMS+28+vel+3, accessed on April

26th

, 05:23 pm CLT

Fig. 8, Representing messengers who punish the sinful in the Realm of

the Dead, vignette 125 of he Book of the Dead. After, SCALF, F.( 2017) Book

Of The Dead, Becoming God in Ancient Egypt, Chicago, 81.



24

Fig. 9, Hieroglyphic texts confirming divine messengers will attack those

who commit wrong in the whole earth. After, LEPSIUS, R., (1842)

Das Todtenbuch der Ägypter nach dem hieroglyphischen Papyrus in Turin,

Leipzig, pl. 78.17,18.

Fig. 10, representing ch. 31.of the Book of the Dead for driving off a

crocodile which comes to take away the deceased‟s magic from him in the

realm of the dead. After, SCALF, F.( 2017) Book Of The Dead, Becoming God

in Ancient Egypt, Chicago, 114.

B. HAMMAD, M


25

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Dictionary of Religion, vol.1, Boston (2006), 503-504.

IAJFTH Volume 4 , No, 1 2018 ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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Low-Cost Carriers and Low-Cost Terminals: Myth or Reality in Egypt

Farouk Abdelnabi Hassanein Attaalla Mohamed Ramadan Ragab

Faculty of Tourism and Hotels Fayoum University

Abstract There is rareness of information about lowcost airlines and lowcost Terminals in Egypt and the Middle East. Most of the international publications are limited to information about Europe and North America, and few are from Asia and Australia. The current study aims to provide comprehensive information about lowcost airlines and lowcost airports, presentation of some international models of lowcost airlines and airports, and assessment of the Egyptian situation in the light of these two new phenomena. The methodology includes statistical analytical approach, purposive sample, and SPSS program to analyze data. The outstanding findings are that the traffic share of LCCs in Egypt is still modest and the absence of concept of LCTs in real practice. The current study recommends for estimating costs and benefits of lowcost carriers and building standard lowcost airports in Egypt.

Keywords LowCost Carriers LowCost Terminals Legacy Airlines Major Airports Secondary Airports

Introduction

Airport patrons contain passengers, airlines, employees, concessionaires, tenants and others (Murray and Fodness, 2007).One of the most apparent influence of aviation deregulation has been the rise of the low cost carrier (LCC) sector which has rampaged the airline industry and placed challenges on airports (Graham, 2013). Whereas Barrett (2004) pointed out the lowcost carrier segment of the industry has grown fast and this growth has been accompanied with the reform of the airport business. Regionally, RoyoVela and MartinezGarcia (2010) stated that lowcost carrier services are important for many tourist destinations and lowcost scheduled flights, as opposed to charter services, are a relatively new phenomenon in Europe. Another view, Richard (2008) mentioned lowcost carriers catalyze the development of lowcost airports (LCAs). Literature said that the gains to the passenger from the airline and airport competition are as follows (Barrett, 2004):

Attaalla. F Ragab. M ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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• Lower air fares. • Using smaller airports with shorter waiting times for baggage, shorter

walking times and less confusion at airports. The problem of study is that the majority of literature articles have focused on the Low cost carriers and low cost terminals in Europe and a few researches on the Asia and Pacific regions. Moreover the academic literature is far less clear and conclusive about the overall impacts of LCC operations at airports (Graham, 2013). Furthermore, the increase in direct competition between local cost carriers and traditional airlines at small airports is not clear and need more research (Givoni et al., 2016). Moreover, the suggestion that the growth of lowcost airlines leads to the development of lowcost airports facilities has basic coincidences for airport planning and investment (Richard, 2008). The main objectives of the current are: • To provide a holistic explanation about the different aspects of LCCs and

the LCTs. • To overview some of the eminent international experiences of LCCs and

LCTs. • To evaluate the Egyptian aviation industry status in view of both of

requirements and impacts of LCCs and LCTs.

Literature Review Lccs Literature Review The air transportation deregulation has undoubtedly had the impact on increasing the number of LCCs (Wang, Bonilla, & Banister, 2016), which have become prevalent emulator in the air transport sector (JIA, 2012; Gittell & Koch an, 2006). Moreover liberalizing the air aviation industry is salutary in order to attract more rivals to the airline sector, which leads to lower airfares (Hsu, Yen, Chang, & Woon, 2016; Lin, 2011; Smyth & Pearce, 2006). According to Abd elhady et al. (2019) the product is considered the most important element of the marketing mix elements for FSCs. In Contrast, the price was considered the most important criterion for LCCs. The LCC sector is a major player in the airline and airport sector Especially lowcost carriers offer the prospect of commercial viability to somewhat smaller airports because they frequently seek locations away from major, crammed hubs (Francis et al., 2003). In the year 2011 there was 21% increase in revenues and 12% increase in passengers due to the operations of LCCs (Airline Business, 2012). However, modicum is known about the profiles of those LCC travellers and their choices among various flight attributes (RoyoVela and MartinezGarcia, 2010). They, in the same time, give a display about the most common LCC travellers' categories include pricesensitive, destination and flight conscious, nonsensitive, business, educational and second residence travelers. The

Low-Cost Carriers and Low-Cost Terminals: Myth or Reality in Egypt ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

30

savors and characteristics of their trip are: flight properties (flight fares, waiting times, flight duration, and flight quality); trip and destination variables (package tour, nearness of the airport to trip destination, valuation of the destination, satisfaction with stay at destination); the number of times that individual had previously flown with lowcost flights (RoyoVela and MartinezGarcia, 2010). Operational competence is not strategy but actually follows from it. Airlines that have selected a lowcost tactic have achieved these low aliments out of rusticity of product design, rusticity of processes and rusticity of organization. Other airlines seek lower costs through lower prices (Gillen and Lall, 2004). In this context, Graham (2013), reviews the attributes of the LCC model which include low fares, increased aircraft and crew exploitation, single aircraft type, lower salaries, elevated seating density and single class of service, no free inflight food/drink or other frills, direct internet selling, pointtopoint services, short/mediumhaul route structures, and the use of secondary airports. And update information on services provided by lowcost carriers, Murray and Fodness (2007) pointed out that Passengers' expectations of an airport service quality are a multidimensional, hierarchical construct that includes three key dimensions: function, interaction and diversion Figure 1 shows the market share of low costcarriers and full service carriers worldwide in 2013. It is clear that low cost carriers (LCCs) have taken over 23% of the total air traffic, and 22% of market share by available seat kilometers (ASKs) then.

Fig.1: The market share of low costcarriers and full service carriers worldwide 2013 Source: (Airline Profiler, 2015)

According to (IATA’s statistics, 2017) there were estimated 3.8 billion air passenger departures globally in 2016, a strong increase over the 3.5 billion


31

departures in 2015. Of these, almost 50% (some 1.9 billion) were domestic departures, 35% (1.3 billion) were international departures and the remaining 16% (604 million) were connecting departures, furthermore LCCs accounted for 27% of overall seats flown globally in 2016, up from 19% a decade ago. the top three markets were unchanged in 2016, with the US clearly ahead of the pack, accounting for Around 815 million of the total number of global passengers, China and Japan are ranked 2 and 3, with 490 million and 141 million departures, respectively. As well as low cost carriers operated 11% of total international traffic in the Middle East compared to 5% in the EU, 20% of total intraregional traffic in the Middle East compared with 49% in the EU, and 6% of total domestic traffic in the Middle East compared with 32% in the EU over the five years average 20102014 . The figure 2 provides more details.

Fig.2: The LCC market share in 2014 Source: (Amadeus, 2014)

Furthermore LCCs capacity share for available seatkilometers within the Middle East, increased by (15.9%) in 2013, compared to (0.1%) in 2003. More information is illustrated in figure 3. In additions, LCCs are the major players since almost 50% of intraEuropean air flights are serviced by low fares airlines (Smith and Dziedzic, 2016).


32

Fig. 3: LCCs capacity share (% of total seats) for the Middle East

Source: Source: (CAPA & OAG report, 2014)

Another example related to the superiority of lowcost carriers in British regional airports. The businesslike results signalize that, holding other variables constant and on average, every LCC passenger promotes revenue by £5.59, while major carrier passenger boosts commercial revenue by £2.87 (Lei and Papatheodorou, 2010).Table 1 indicates the world's best lowcost airlines according to Skytrax in 2017.

Table (1): the world's best 10low cost airlines in 2017 Airline Name Rank Continent

Air Asia 1 Asia Norwegian 2 Europe

JetBlue Airways 3 North America EasyJet 4 Europe

Virgin America 5 North America Jetstar Airways 6 Australia&Pacific

AirAsia X 7 Asia Azul Linhas Aéreas

Brasileiras 8 South America

Southwest Airlines 9 North America Indigo 10 Asia

Source: (www.worldairlineawards.com, 2018):

From the table above it is found that Air Asia is ranked the first and the Indigo came in the tenth position. It is clear the superiority of Asian low cost airlines followed by the European ones. Given the best markets for lowcost airlines in 2016 the case was different. The U.S. airline industry generated total operating revenue of over 200 billion U.S. dollars, making the United States one of the massive markets for the airline industry worldwide. The


33

country also has about a third of all airports in the world more than any other country: around 15,000 airports of all sizes, out of which more than 5,000 have paved runways. As an example, HartsfieldJackson Atlanta International in Georgia was the busiest airport in the country, having handled a slight over 101 million passengers in 2016 alone (Statisa, 2018).

Low-Cost Terminals (LCTs) In today's airport business, two fundamental terminal types can be discrete; traditional terminals and lowcost terminals. A traditional terminal is designed to handle the flights and passengers of national carriers (NCs) with full service facilities. While a lowcost terminal is developed by low capital investment cost with the purpose of reducing costs and increasing efficiency (Njoya and Niemeier, 2011). Lowcost airports contend traditional airports in three basic elements (Richard, 2008; William, 2012): • In a metropolitan multiairport system, secondary airports provide

alternatives to the major hubs and perhaps are more convenient to some passengers. However, there is a challenge with defining secondary airports.

• Secondary airports offer opportunities to turnoff major airports. • Lowcost airlines and airports together form parallel networks of routes

which compete with those of the legacy airlines and the major airports. In general, most of all the LCTs are in Europe with a few in the US and

Asia. Examples are Marseille, Bordeaux, Lyon, Tampere Pirkkala, Turku, Budapest, Amsterdam, JFK New York, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Zhengzhou (Graham, 2013). The need of a secondary airport is trenchant to decongest the skies when the major airports become saturated, giving an option to aircraft operators that are segmented as fullservice airlines, lowcost carriers, regional airlines and general aviation. However, the high cost of operations at these airports has been a bugbear for all airline operators (Chandrakanth, 2015). Moreover, some airports have developed LCTs to be appropriate for needs of lowcost carriers. The main purpose of the LCTs is to provide minimalistic and reliable terminal facility at a reasonable price (Njoya and Niemeier, 2011). Furthermore, the transformation from secondary airport to lowcost airport is a result of the growth in the LCC industry (Hanaoka and Saraswati, 2011). Development of a LCT may be either a fully new building or a refurbishment one converted from previous use as a cargo, charter terminal, or maintenance facility. The refurbishment option is popular in Europe and has the advantage of minimizing investment costs (Graham, 2013). According to the general manager of Ryanair, the LCCs need three requirements of any LCT which are: low airport charges, fast turnaround times, and onestorey airport terminals (Richard, 2008). Another opinion sees that location and configuration are deemed to be two of the main factors


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which influence the operational competence of a LCT and its ability to process quickly aircraft turnarounds (Hanaoka and Saraswati, 2011). Outstanding example is the distant site of the LCT from the main terminal at Kuala Lumpur has been one of the master reasons why the LCC Jetstar did not use it and as a consequence it is being replaced with a building close to the main terminal. Other support case is in Singapore, Air Asia and Jetstar together did not use the purpose built LCC facilities because transfer passengers have to go through immigration and pick up their luggage (Graham, 2013). In this context, Hanaoka and Saraswati (2011) explain the best model development of a LCT that achieves two objects: the first to minimize the rate of passenger walking range from the waiting point to aircraft gates, and the second to minify the average aircraft taxiing space required from the runways to the apron area and the obverse is right. Distinctions between LCTs and conventional terminals may be visible in three semblances: checkin lounges, departure area, and arrival lounges. In checkin hall there are selfservice checkin kiosks and finite deluxe lounges. In the departure area there is a limited seat configuration accompanied with standing space for most travellers. In the arrival area there is one or two conveyor belts for baggage handling (Hanaoka and Saraswati, 2011). Table 2 indicates the world's best lowcost terminals according to Skytrax in 2017.

Table (2): the world's best 10lowcost terminals in 2017 Airport Name Rank Continent

Tokyo Narita T3 1 Asia Kansai T2 2 Asia

Kuala Lumpur LCCT 3 Asia Melbourne T4 4 Australia London Stansted 5 Europe

Brussels Charleroi 6 Europe East Midlands 7 Europe

Milan Bergamo 8 Europe Luton 9 Europe

Berlin Schönefeld 10 Europe Source: (www.worldairlineawards.com, 2018)

Table 2 shows that Europe has the highest number of lowcost airports, while Tokyo Narita T3 in Japan is ranked first in the world.

Cases From Usa Delta Airlines was the largest airline in the world based on sales, reaching more than 40 billion U.S. dollars in sales revenue in 2015. Passenger airlines can face much scanning for their passenger contentment and repose. A 2016 North American Airline Satisfaction Study by J.D. Power & Associates


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registered Alaska Airlines and Delta Airlines as the best traditional carriers for satisfaction, while lowcost airline JetBlue Airways gained the top position of lowcost carriers tested in the study. United Airlines, Delta Airlines, American Airlines and Southwest Airlines are the top ranked airlines based on 2016 domestic market share. Delta operates out of Atlanta, and HartsfieldJackson Atlanta International Airport, Delta’s hub, sees the most passenger traffic in the United States. At 358 billion, American Airlines boasted the most passenger kilometers flown in 2015. Chicagoheadquartered United Airlines is a subsidiary of United Continental Holdings. United has flights to 238 domestic destinations and 60 different countries, the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston being its largest passenger hub with over 40 million passengers every year. The statistic represents the U.S. domestic market share of leading airlines in 2016. During this time period, Southwest Airlines was the leading airline in the U.S., with a domestic market share of just over 19 percent, followed closely by Delta Airlines. Figure 4 shows further clarification (Statista, 2018).

Fig. 4: Domestic market share of leading U.S. airlines in 2016 Source: (Statista, 2018)

Fig.5 portrays Southwest Airlines Company's revenue passenger miles (RPMs) from the fiscal year of 2010 to the fiscal year of 2016. In the fiscal year of 2016, the superior lowcost carrier transported passengers just under 125 billion miles. In that selfsame year, the airline had amplitude of over 184 billion available seat miles (Statista, 2018).


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Fig. 5: Southwest Airlines Co.'s revenue passenger miles (RPMs) from FY 2010 to FY 2016

(in billions) Source: (Statista, 2018)

The ranking in figure 6 shows the leading airports in the United States in 2016, regarding to the number of passengers processed. In 2016, about 46.7 million passengers were put on board at the airport of Atlanta, GA (Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport) (Statista, 2018).

Fig. 6: Busiest U.S. airports in 2016, based on the number of passengers enplaned Source: (Statista, 2018)


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Cases From Europe Through Europe, traditional airlines are confronting with everincreasing rivalry from lowcost carriers (LCCs), accounting for roughly 50% of total European flights. The Europe’s major LCCs are filling their cabins and their coffers. The most prosperous, Ireland’s Ryanair, was on track for a net profit of $1.4 billion in 2017. Ryanair was running at load factors of 95% and has a stunning ability to go on stripping out costs; its recent Q3 results saw costs exfuel drop by 6% compared to a year before. In additions, The UK’s massive market share of passengers, for instance, was held not by British Airways, but EasyJet. Moreover, most passengers in Spain, Italy and Poland travel with Ryanair than with Iberia, Alitalia or LOT Polish Airlines. Furthermore, the most widespread operator visible in much of Eastern Europe was Hungarybased LCC Wizz Air (Dron, 2017).

• The Charleroi–Ryanair case. The use of secondary airports and especially their financial arrangements with LCCs has outraged some legal argument. In November 2001, the Walloon region, owner of Charleroi airport, signed a covenant with Ryanair, offering particular stipulations for the use of the airport. These terms involved a lowering in landing fees, a constant price of one hour per passenger for ground handling services, and financial support for the opening of Ryanair’s outpost and for advertisement and other forms of promotion of the airline’s flights. Compared to published rates for regional airports, Ryanair enjoyed a 50% recoup in landing fees and paid 10% of the published handling charges (Barbot, 2006).

• Costbenefit Analysis (CBA) of Low Cost Carriers for Portuguese Airports. To estimate the outcomes of low cost routes on the local economy, there was an assessment of the serene economic impact of LCCs. There was an adoption for a CBA methodology in order to assess the overall economic wellbeing generated by LCC routes in the areas economically influenced by four Portuguese airports, namely the airports of Faro, Lisbon, Funchal and Oporto. Easyjet and Ryanair airlines had the major lot of the low cost market in Portugal. In 2012, they together accounted for about 78% of the whole traffic on LCC (7.6 million passengers). Easyjet carried approximately 3.8 million passengers (39.2% of LCC traffic) and Ryanair around 3.7 million passengers (38.8% of LCC traffic). The gross revenue created by low cost airlines can be calculated as the sum of income from employment created plus growth in tourism income, which is considered equivalent to tourist spending. To quantify these benefits, there was consideration of only passengers disembarking from LCCs, from which responsible recorded an increased induced income through job creation and an increased turnover in the tourism sector. Particularisms split the effect on employment into three types of effects: direct, indirect and induced. With regard for the direct impact, they deemed the employment generated by the


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induced increase of passengers, given the employment average per 1,000 travelers carried by Ryanair and Easyjet: 0.11 workers in 2005 and 0.13 in 2012. Concerning the indirect effect, particularists presumed a multiplier effect on direct employment, whereas induced employment arise from the multiplier effect of the direct and indirect employment generated (Costa, 2014). As regards (EURlex, 2015) the market portion of fullservice carriers (FSCs) in Europe diminished, due to liberalization of air transport sector in 1990s. In contrary, lowcost airlines (LCAs) made more use of the liberalization of 5th /7th freedom and "Cabotage" rights within the EU (EURlex, 2015). Hence, the deregulation of the aviation sector has certainly had the great influence of growing the number of LCCs, which have become a dominant competitor in the air transport market. Furthermore, liberalizing the air aviation sector is advantageous so as to attract more competitors to this industry, which leads to lower airfares (Abdelhady et al., 2018).The figure 7 presents the effect of liberalization on market access to EU by LCCs.

Fig. 7: market access by LCCs to EU market Source: (EURlex, 2015)


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• Again, according to (Ryanair, 2016), the air traffic of Ryanair increased by 18% to 106.4 m travelers in 2016, compared to 90.6 m in 2015. As well as load factors boosted from 88% to 93% in the year 2015. Figure 8 clarifies the considerable increment in traveler numbers out of Ryanair in 2007, in comparison with the year 1996. More details are obvious in figure 8.

Fig. 8: Ryanair Passenger Growth 19962007

Source: (Ryanair, 2016)

Here is a display for the three Cheapest Airports to fly to in Europe; they offer the main facilities for passengers to embark their flight (Hopper.com, 2017): • A round trip to Europe for $755 (or much less)? This budgetminded

traveler's dream is well within reach if you make Stockholm your next destination. Arlanda Airport has seen an amazing 30% passenger growth over the past five years, becoming a major gateway for international travel to destinations all over the world. New Yorkers can fly there with Scandinavian Airlines, United, Delta or Norwegian Air Shuttle, the last of which also offers service to Oakland and Los Angeles.

• Who could resist the appeal of Iceland's unique volcanic landscape and surprisingly trendy capital? Keflavik International Airport, which serves as a hub for both Icelandair and WOW Air, makes it easy to cross this awesome destination off your bucket list by offering scheduled flights to and from a whopping 10 locations in the United States: Anchorage, Baltimore, Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, Newark, New York City, Orlando, Portland, Seattle, and Washington. And with an average flight price of just $775!

• Malpensa Airport is the largest airport serving the Milan Metropolitan area. It handled 18 million passengers in 2012 (twice as much as Linate) and is a


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focus city for a handful of airlines, including EasyJet and Alitalia. Flights to and from the US, at an average roundtrip cost of $781, include direct service to New York and Miami as well as seasonal service to HartsfieldJackson Atlanta International Airport. All in all, Milan Malpensa is a better option than Linate for fliers eager to reach Milan without layovers.

Table 3: Low Cost Terminals in Europe 2017

Airport Name Airport

Code City

Country

Arlanda Airport ARN Stockholm Sweden Keflavik International Airport

KEF Sandgerdi Iceland

Milan Malpensa Airport MXP MILAN Italy Copenhagen Airport CPH Copenhagen Denmark Dublin Airport DUB Dublin Ireland Linate Airport LIN Milano Italy Chopin Airport WAW Warsaw Poland Tegel Airport TXL BERLIN Germany Vienna International Airport VIE Vienna Austria Gatwick Airport LGW London England

Source: (Hopper.com, 2017)

It is clear that the top ten airports of low cost airports are distributed and are present in most European countries. This is consistent with what was mentioned earlier in this study in terms of Europe's acquisition of the largest proportion of the world's lowcost airports.

Cases From Asia • Singapore's Civil Aviation Authority opened the lowcost airline terminal in

March 2006. The new terminal includes two adjacent singlestory buildings for departure and arrival. The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) put a $13 traveler fee for passengers departing from the new terminal (Lott, 2005).

• The Narita Airport Terminal 3 Experience with Jetstar Japan The new Terminal 3 at Narita Airport was opened on April 8, 2015 and was consecrated foremost to Japanese lowcost airlines, starting with Jetstar Japan, Jetstar Airways, Vanilla Air, Spring Japan and Jeju Air. These lowcost carriers have made it potential to take domestic flights for unbeatable fares, particularly if one is planning to travel to Hokkaido or Okinawa. The Terminal 3 is optimized ergonomics in its design according to the concept of naivety; functionality and userfriendliness; and a subtle Japanese touch to the decoration of the terminal. At the terminal, welldesigned directional signage greet arriving passengers and a few minutes’ walk to get to the


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immigration queues. The luggage handling is distinctly effective. The pathway connecting Terminal 3 and 2 has colored running tracks to guide passengers and it takes 10 minute walk. The Jetstar Group’s existence at the terminal is very evident through checkin counters which are easily found close to the departures entrance and the selfcheckin pods with large touchscreens. Security and immigration checks are smooth and hasslefree with straightforward process. There are facilities for international transfers, allowing visafree connections to the other airlines that have a codeshare or interline agreement with Jetstar Japan or Jetstar Airways (www.japanexperience.com, 2018).

Cases From Middle East and Egypt

• Flynas Wins Skytrax Award for Best Low Cost Airline in the Middle East for 2017

The Saudi national carrier, Flynas, received a Skytrax award for Best Low Cost Airline in the Middle East for 2017. The award ceremony was held in the French capital, Paris, during the International Paris Air Show. The Skytrax award symbolizes over and above recognition for Flynas which also won the World Travel Awards Best Low Cost Airline of the Middle East in 2015 and 2016, and lately was awarded the Best Airline Supporting Arab Tourism. Flynas is the leading lowcost carrier of Saudi Arabia and has a fleet of 29 aircraft, operating over 1000 scheduled flights every week to 17 destinations within Saudi Arabia and 15 international destinations. Since its launch in 2007, Flynas had successfully carried more than 32 million passengers from its bases of Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Abha (www.Flynas.com, 2018).

• There are several airports in Egypt serving good transportation facilities to the tourists across the globe as it is clear in the table 4 below. Cairo International Airport is considered to be the main airport of Egypt that is situated around 15 miles away from the northern Egyptian city towards the northeast region. Beside this, there are outstanding airports in Egypt especially: Borg El Arab Airport, Luxor International Airport, Hurghada International Airport, Sharm elSheikh International Airport, Aswan International Airport, Abu Simbel Airport, Assiut Airport, Taba International Airport, Marsa Alam International Airport, El Nouzha Airport, Mersa Matruh Airport, and El Arish International Airport.


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Table (4): Egyptian Airports

Airport Name Airport

Code City Airport Name

Airport Code

City

Aswan Airport ASW Aswan Cairo

International Airport

CAI Cairo

Mersa Matruh Airport

MUH Mersa Matruh

Luxor Airport LXR Luxor

El Nozha Airport

ALY Alexandria Sidi Barani

Airport SQK Sidi Barani

Abu Simbel Airport

ABS Abu simbel Abu Rudeis

Airport AUE Abu Rudeis

Mount Sinai Airport

SKV Santa

Katarina Kharga Airport UVL Kharga

Ramadan Airport

TFR Ramadan Al Alamain International

Airport DBB Dabaa

Tour Sinai Airport

ELT Tour Sinai Dakhla Airport DAK Dakhla

Hurghada Airport

HRG Hurghada Sharm El Sheikh

International Airport

SSH Sharm El Sheikh

Shark Elowainat

Airport GSQ

Shark Elowainat

Port Said Airport PSD Port Said

Taba International

Airport TCP Taba Siwa Airport SEW Siwa

Marsa Alam Internatiomal

Airport RMF Marsa Alam

Al Arish International

Airport AAC Al Arish

Borg El Arab Airport

HBE Alexandria El Minya Airport EMY El Minya

Asuit Airport ATZ Asuit Sohag Airport HMB Sohag Source: (www.wikipedia.com, 2018)

However, all these airports do not take into consideration the standards and requirements of lowcost airports, according to the officials of lowcost airlines in Egypt during interviews with them.

Egypt Field Results and Discussions This part includes field visits to the headquarters of six outstanding and standard lowcost airlines operating their flights in Egypt. These companies are Air Cairo, Air Arabia, Flynas, Nile Air, Air Italy, and Agean Air. These airlines depend mainly on Cairo International Airport and Borg El Arab Airport for several reasons as follows (Abdelhady et al., 2018):

1. Expanding market share in the aviation industry.


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2. Reducing the aircraft operating costs. 3. Reducing the risk of lost revenue potential from empty seats.

The choice of the companies is based on the lowcost business plan model excluding any other airline, whether full service, regional or helicopter, flying ambulance, or aviation training. The current research focuses on LCCs' business in Egypt as OriginDestination Market for their flights. The collection of primary data has required designing a short questionnaire divided into two main parts based on the literature data about LCCs and LCTs mentioned in the previous studies. The filed visits were conducted during May 2018. The primary data are analyzed by the Statistical Package for Social Sciences SPSS and the table 5 provides more details herein.

Table (5): Results of SPSS

Item Yes No Mean Std. Deviation

Hearing about the concept of low cost carriers.

4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52

Average 120 % of the air flights achieved by low cost carriers in Egypt.

6 (100) 1.0 0.00

Type of the airports do low cost carriers prefer for their flights.

Secondary 1 (16.7)

Major 5 (83.3)

1.8 0.41

A low-cost approach of your low cost carrier is based on: Simplicity of product design 4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52 Simplicity of processes 5 (83.3) 1 (16.7) 1.2 0.41 Simplicity of organization 5 (83.3) 1 (16.7) 1.2 0.41 low prices 4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52

A low-cost airline operates flights to and from Egypt towards: North America 3 (50.0) 3 (50.0) 1.5 0.55 South America 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Europe 5 (83.3) 1 (16.7) 1.2 0.41 Australia 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Asia 6 (100) 1.0 0.00 Africa 4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52 Hearing about the low cost terminals.

2 (33.3) 4 (66.7) 1.7 0.52

Design of the low cost terminals minimizes the average passenger walking the average aircraft taxiing.

4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52

Merits that the low cost terminals provide to low cost carriers: Reduction in landing charges 3 (50.0) 3 (50.0) 1.5 0.55 Fixed price per passenger for ground handling services

6 (100) 1.0 0.00


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Financial support for the LCCs' advertisement & promotion of flights

4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52

Egyptian airports that provides services for your low-cost airline Aswan Airport 4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52 Mersa Matruh Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 El Nozha Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Abu Simbel Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Ramadan Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Tour Sinai Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Hurghada International Airport 3 (50.0) 3 (50.0) 1.5 0.58 Shark Elowainat Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Taba International Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Marsa Alam International Airport 1 (16.7) 5 (83.3) 1.8 0.41 Borg El Arab Airport 4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52 Cairo International Airport 5 (83.3) 1 (16.7) 1.2 0.41 Luxor International Airport 3 (50.0) 3 (50.0) 1.5 0.55 Sidi Barani Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Abu Rudeis 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Kharga Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Al Alamain International Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Dakhla Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Sharm El Sheikh International Airport

4 (66.7) 2 (33.3) 1.3 0.52

Port Said Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Siwa Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Al Arish International 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 El Minya Airport 6 (100) 2.0 0.00 Asuit Airport 1 (16.7) 5 (83.3) 1.8 0.41 Sohag Airport 1 (16.7) 5 (83.3) 1.8 0.41

Source: SPSS Version 20

• All respondents are aware of the concept of LCCs except the respondent of

Air Italy. • All respondents are agreeing on the average 120 % of the air flights

achieved by low cost carriers in Egypt. This outcome is fit with what stated

about the LCCs traffic share in the Middle East meantime the five years average 20102014 as stated by Amadeus (2014). However, the total traffic share of LCCs in Egypt is still lower than the percentages of pioneer destinations in LCC business like Europe since 50 % total flights by LCCs according to Dron (2017, P:1). At the level of the individual company share, there is also a decrease in this ratio when comparing between international lowcost airlines and their Egyptian counterparts. Obvious example said by Costa (2014, PP: 141142) that Easyjet and Ryanair airlines had the major


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lot of the low cost market in Portugal. In 2012, they together accounted for about 78% of the whole traffic on LCC (7.6 million passengers). While a progenitor Egyptian example is Air Cairo Airline with nearly 5 % of total flight through Egypt. Moreover mean of flights and traffic share varies at the some Egyptian airports from which its flights start as it is obvious in the table 6 below.

Table (6): Air Cairo International Traffic Share from Egypt Airports 2016

Airport Air Cairo Traffi Percentage

Sohag Airport (HMB) 39.7 Asuit Airport (ATZ) 43.5 Borg El Arab Airport (HBE) 12.4 Marsa Alam Airport (RMF) 6.1 Hurghada Airport (HRG) 6.9 Sharm El Sheikh Airport (SSH) 2.5 Cairo Airport (CAI) 0.8

Source: (ECAA, 2017)

• Although LCCs depend mainly on the use of secondary airports, they have moved into primary airports in direct competition with FSCs.

• Simplicity of product design and simplicity of organization come in the first priority as a lowcost approach of a lowcost carrier to be based on. While simplicity of product design and low prices come in the second priority. This result is matching with the opinion says that LCCs airlines have selected a lowcost tactic have achieved these low aliments out of rusticity of product design, rusticity of processes and rusticity of organization. Other airlines seek lower costs through lower prices (Gillen and Lall, 2004, P: 50).

• Asia is the first destination lowcost airlines operate flights to and from Egypt. Europe, Africa, North America are in the rest ranks respectively. Australia and South America are not considered as destinations for LCCs flights.

• Preponderance of respondents see that design of the low cost terminals minimizes the average passenger walking distance from the waiting point to aircraft gates, and the average aircraft taxiing from the runways to the apron area and vice versa.

• Merits that the low cost terminals provide to low cost carriers were fixed price per passenger for ground handling services, financial support for the LCCs' advertisement & promotion of flights, and reduction in landing charges in order.


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• Cairo International Airport is in the first center for the Egyptian airports that provide services for lowcost airlines. Sharm El Sheikh, Luxor, Hurghada, Aswan, Borg El Arab, Sohag and Asuit come in the rest situations. Other Egyptian airports are not selected by LCCs. However, according to Air Cairo officials, there is neither an airport in Egypt that has been established to be a lowcost airport nor a building in a large airport has been allocated for this purpose.

• Conclusion The current study gives through investigation about the Egyptian case in light of the panoramic view about the international business of LCCs and LCTs. The research provides a comprehensive explanation about LCCs and LCTs including the outstanding characteristics and the best international LCCs and LCTs in 2017. It is obvious through the current study that best international market for the business of LCCs and LCTs are the United States of America, Europe and Asia in changeable way with little superiority of the United States of America in revenues of LCCs. Pertaining to the Egyptian Experience, there is no complete agreement and disagreement on some of the criteria of lowcost carriers and lowcost airports in Egypt compared to international experiences. The study shows that the number of LCCs airlines operating in the Egyptian market is small compared to the world markets. Moreover, the large airports are the main destination for these companies without secondary airports and this is contrary to the global trend. As to our limit of knowledge there is no calculation for the LCCs revenues in Egypt and the Middle East region as a whole while this is achieved in many places like Singapore and Portugal. Future studies should pay more attention to the average revenue created by every LCC passenger compared to major carrier passenger commercial revenue. Also more studies about the impacts of LCCs on the tourism sector should be done. Finally, there is necessity for developing standard LCTs in Egypt as regional and secondary airports such as the new Terminal 3 at Narita Airport in Japan and was consecrated foremost to Japanese lowcost airlines or as separated buildings inside major airports by a refurbishment one converted from previous use as a cargo, charter terminal, or maintenance facility which is a popular option in Europe for its advantage of minimizing investment costs.

Recommendations Over the last years, airports have changed significantly the way they operate, based on a series of factors, such as the rapid advancement of technology, the security issues, air travel affordability making travel accessible to more people, the emergence of lowcost companies and the changes of the typology of the modern traveller. The results of the study


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have a number of practical implications for Egyptian civil aviation authorities. According to the current results, recommendations can be given to the ministry of civil aviation in Egypt. These recommendations are derived from the findings of the study as well as previous literatures to improve the performance of LCTs and LCCs in Egyptian aviation market by improving their appeal to passengers:

1. The need to establish terminals in Egyptian airports to be lowcost terminal (LCTs) to serve lowcost carriers (LCCs), because one of the core characteristics of LowCost Carrier (LCCs) is their use of secondary and regional airports.

2. The need to set up specific criteria for the concept of low cost carriers (LCCs) and low cost terminal (LCTs) in Egypt compared to international experiences.

3. The need to provide all the necessary supports to encourage lowcost carriers to work in Egyptian aviation market. LCCs continuously look for financial and demandrelated opportunities and expect airports to facilitate quick and efficient operations.

4. The need to improve the service provided at airports, whereas service quality within airport terminals is a crucial factor in the travel experience and cost, demand and efficiency are the most important criteria for lowcost carriers when choosing airports to operate from.

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Investigating the Effects of Using Simulation Training on Hotel Front-Office Employees’ Performance

Nirmeen M. Elmohandes Tamer M. Abbas Neveen M. Mansour

Abstract

Human performance in hospitality organizations is affected by various elements; one of these elements is employees training. One method of preparing employees to business world complexity could be incorporating simulation training into their training. Simulation training is defined as a micro world where employees can participate through experiments, testing strategies, and doing their best for achieving the better understanding of the aspects of the real world. This paper aims to investigate the effects of using simulation training on hotel frontoffice employees’ performance through using data gathered from fivestar hotels. The study employed a selfadministered questionnaire consisted of 30 items. The items are divided into seven groups. These groups are categorized for seven variables: knowledge application (KA), employees experience (EE), teamwork (TW), employees interest (EI), problemsolving (PS), decision making (DM) and job performance (JP). The second section asked employees for profiling information (e.g., gender and age). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were applied to test a hypothesized model. Findings reflected that simulation training has positive effects on employee performance in fivestar hotels.

Keywords Simulation training, types of simulation training, pros and cons of simulation training, employee job performance.

Introduction The hospitality industry is highly labor intensive with the performance of its human resource being a significant and determining factor in its sustainability. Consequently, this reliance on human resources for its proper functioning and growth, demands both effective and efficient workforce practices in order to employees to perform at optimum levels, thereby enabling the industry to remain viable in a rapidly changing, and fiercely competitive, global environment (Ogbeide and Harrington, 2011). Many hotels have become increasingly aware that mismanagement of resources can lead to their demise; they have focused on cost minimization while

Elmohandes, N. Abbas , T. Mansour, N. ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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simultaneously maintaining quality and gaining competitive advantage (Birdir, 2002). Developing highlevel competencies among hotel employees is a challenging task. Employees must improve a wide range of higher order thinking, problem solving, and cognitive skills to be effective at their work. The universal economy is changing swiftly; the ability to be skillful, flexible, and adaptable is a requirement to be successful. However, the various methods and tools generally used for training business skills at hospitality establishments become insufficient to cope with the complexity of organizations and unsteady conditions of today’s market. Consequently, it is an inevitable necessity to use other training types to be able to fulfill the market requirements (Baker and O’Neil, 2002; Lehtinen, 2002; Siewiorik, 2012). One method of preparing employees to business world complexity could be incorporating simulation training into their training. The simulation environments could help trainee practice leading, managing unexpected situations, and solving problems. Preceding studies have pointed that for the purpose of training ‘real life’ company operations complex training environments are required (Zack, 1998; Sterman, 2001; Siewiorik 2012). Many authors revealed that simulation training could submerge a trainee in a simulated environment where he or she can practice tasks and increase understanding, and useful experience. Moreover, trainees perform some functions as creating a production strategy, defending an investment plan to aboard of directors, and resolving unexpected events in the business context (Vescoukis et al., 2009).

Literature Review Simulation Training Several authors (Hays and Singer, 1989; Gröbler, 2004; Kanner, 2007; Anderson and Lawton, 2009) made a distinction between simulation and simulators. a simulator is a complex device that provides a highly realistic simulation of the operational situation and provides a situation adequate for practicing and maintaining previously acquired skills. Whereas, simulation is the act of immersing the trainee in the simulator. Romme (2003, p. 53) defined simulation training as “simulation is a micro world in which people can participate by running experiments, testing different strategies, and building a better understanding of the aspects of the real world". Therefore, micro world can compress time, space, enable experimenting, and training when the consequences of some decisions and actions can be seen only over time. It is also worthwhile to focus on the definition of Gilgeous and D’Cruz

Investigating the Effects of Using Simulation Training on

Hotel Front-Office Employees’ Performance

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(1996, p. 34) for simulation training where defined as “an activity carried out by cooperating or competing decisionmakers trying to achieve within the rules, their objectives”. According to Clarke (2009, p. 448) “trainees learn by managing a simulated firm, most often with a competitive industry or environment. Trainees make decisions usually, but not exclusively by allocating resources. The simulations can focus on the firm’s internal mechanisms/dynamics, its interaction with its environment, or both. In some training, decisions focus on a particular business function or analysis or span many business functional areas”. Whereas, Day and Reibstein (1997, p.33) defined simulation training as, “a facsimile of reality” which is intended to display what would transpire if the assumed conditions were to occur in reality. Simulation training offered a more effective way in understanding issues than the extrapolation of trend lines, forecasting and brainstorming. Simulation training can remove the gap between frontoffice employees and the real world by providing experience with complex problems, make the content more understandable, and provide information about employees’ problemsolving strategies (Gredler, 2004). Fripp (1997) referred to what extent the simulation provided different advantages and emphasized the following advantages: (1) motivation, users reported that simulation training is stimulating and enjoyable, a clear prerequisite of learning which cause motivation; (2) teamwork, simulation training is a base for developing team working skills; (3) riskfree environment, this advantage appeared through the ability to take business decisions which would not be possible in reality for fear of failure; (4) variety, simulation training provided a type of training which complements with other methods of training such as: case studies or lectures; and (5) experiential training, simulation training allowed people to see the consequences of their decisions in experiential environment.

Types of Simulation Training Chilcott (1996) discussed that there are two types of simulation: (1) role playing simulation training, this type focuses on “learning by doing” which provides employees an opportunity to train through a reallife situation, they solve problems and make decisions. It allows them to know the results of these actions and the impact regarding applying in the real world; and (2) system dynamics simulation training, which based upon model that numerically describe the situation. Chilcott stated also that system dynamics simulation training is not as important as role playing simulation training.


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On the other hand, Hall (2011) explained that simulation training included five forms as follows: (1) Total enterprise simulation, this simulation involves most business functions (marketing, finance, and operations) and are often described under the blanket category of "total enterprise" simulations; (2) Functional simulation, focuses on a specified functional areas such as sales, marketing, and operations; (3) Concept simulation, focuses on specific business issues and concepts, and this might be the launch of a new product (Product Launch simulation), the operation of a simple factory unit or basic statistical concepts; (4) Planning simulation, involves the preparation of a business plan. For example, longrange market diversification plan or the development of an annual budget; and (5) Process simulation, involves the practical use of mathematical techniques such as statistical forecasting, inventory planning, analysis of sales performance. Simulation training allows employees to study the problem aspects effectively. Previous studies identified three main types of simulation: based training roleplay, noncomputer based, and computer simulation. Each is different in composition and utility. In a roleplaying training, it is divided into interactive and non interactive. On one hand, interactive means each participant plays a role of a character in a situation following specified rules and interacting with other role players. Noninteractive, on the other hand, in the case of presentations where participants adopt a character role. Regarding to noncomputerbased, the key elements entail interaction within a predetermined context, often involving forms of competition, cooperation, conflict or collusion with a set of rules. Finally, computerbased simulation aims to replicate system characteristics using simple object representations (Feinstein et al., 2002; Lean et al., 2006). The Study Hypotheses John et al. (2012) mentioned that simulation training generally had some factors: knowledge application, employees experience, teamwork, employees interest, problem solving, job performance, and decision making.

Avramenko (2012) agreed with Adobor and Daneshfar (2006) that simulation training realism impacted directly on knowledge enhancement and knowledge application confirmed the work. Whereas, Tan and Laswad (2008) maintained that a positive relationship between simulation training and knowledge enhancement and knowledge application which leads to ability enhancement. Therefore, this study hypothesizes that: Hypothesis 1: knowledge application of simulation training has a positive impact on employees’ job performance.




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Simulation training engaged and motivated rather than other training methods which increase employees' work experience through gaining complex skills (Garris et al., 2002; Salas et al., 2009). The absence of real risk in simulation training increases employees' confidence level in a less stressful ,but still motivating environment (Alinier, 2003). Thus, this study hypothesizes that:

Hypothesis 2: Employees experience of simulation training has a positive impact on employees’ job performance.

Anderson (2003) stated that employee’s cohesion and independence affected by their expectation of using simulation. While, Iqbal et al., (2014) noted that although simulation training is costly ,but it payback more than its costs for employees’ interest and organization interest. Iqbal added also that the simulation training design should be extracted from employees and organization needs to get better results. Hence, this study hypothesizes that:

Hypothesis 3: Employees interest of simulation training has a positive impact on employees job performance. Simulation training helped in developing necessary interpersonal and communication skills by creating teamwork as a base of training development (Edelheim and Ueda, 2007). Simulation team members enhanced the skills, knowledge and abilities while working in teams (Froebel and Marchington, 2005). In addition, it required employees interdependent in the task and share responsibility for the outcomes. Teams enabled employee to cooperate, enhance individual skills and provide constructive feedback without any conflict between individuals (Jones et al., 2007). Therefore, this study hypothesizes that:

Hypothesis 4: Teamwork of simulation training has a positive impact on employees job performance. Simulation training is one of the best training methods which allows employees to gain the feature of strategic decision and behavioral skills (Tompson and Dass, 2000). In addition, Machuca (2000) and Zantow et al. (2005) highlighted that it is valuable tool which creates employees’ master complex decision making skills. Hence, this study hypothesizes that:

Hypothesis 5: Decision making of simulation training has a positive impact on employees job performance. Astleitner (2002) explained that critical thinking increases when employee train through simulation. For instance; Problem analyzing, reflecting on judgments, and evaluating results are key elements of both critical thinking and simulation. Furthermore, simulation training provides a discussion


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environment for strategies and techniques for individual and problemsolving improvement. Through simulation training, employees can gain the skill of solve one problem with various strategies which leads to higher quality solution (Li et al., 2007). Therefore, this study hypothesizes that:

Hypothesis 6: problem solving skills of simulation training has a positive impact on employees’ job performance.

The given hypotheses are expressed in the proposed research model shown in Figure (1) as follow:

Fig. 1: The proposed research model




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Methodology Testing hypotheses against the proposed model has been applied using surveying approach. Data were collected via a selfadministrated questionnaire. Frontoffice employees in fivestar hotels in Greater Cairo were the target population for this research. In terms of research sample, in this study, convenience sampling technique was used to select the employees who participated in questionnaire . Eleven fivestar hotels out of thirtythree hotels was selected for this study (Egyptian Hotel Association, 2013). 280 questionnaires distributed, two hundred and seven (n 207) valid questionnaires were completed and returned, thus achieving a response rate of 73.92 percent.

Survey Instrument The final version of the questionnaire was divided into two sections. In the first section, employees were asked to rate 30 items on a fivepoint Likert type scale: ‘strongly disagree’; ‘disagree’; ‘neither agree nor disagree’; ‘agree’; and ‘strongly agree’. The 30 items are categorized for seven variables: knowledge application (7 items), employees experience (4 items), teamwork (4 items), employees interest (3 items), problemsolving (3 items), decision making (4 items) and job performance (5 items). The second section asked employees for profiling information (e.g., gender and age). Table 1: illustrates a descriptive analysis of simulation trainingperformance scale (30item).

Table 1 : A descriptive analysis of simulation trainingperformance scale (30item)

Construct Item’s label

Items Mean Standard deviation

Rank

Knowledge application

KA1 Simulation training is helpful in applying concepts that are taught in my discipline.

3.79 1.029 6

KA2

Simulation is effective in creating a training context that makes me willing to open my mind.

3.76 .924 7

KA3 Simulation training is effective in getting me to apply what I learned in training.

3.82 .888 5

KA4 Simulation makes training more enjoyable.

3.89 .888 2


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(Continued)

Table 1 (Cont.) : A descriptive analysis of simulation trainingperformance scale (30item)



Rank

KA5 Simulation makes the material in my training easier to understand.

3.96 .913 1

KA6 Simulation provides an educational experience where I can learn about interfunctional coordination

3.88 .879 3

KA7 Simulation training enables employees to experience competition within a marketplace.

3.86 .907 4

Employees’ experience

EE1 Simulation training provides an opportunity for me to apply theory in realworld situations.

3.86 .947 2

EE2 Simulation training helps to improve my work performance.

3.85 .946 3

EE3 Simulation training provides me with the experience of running my work effectively.

3.85 .953 4

EE4 Simulation training helps me to analyze the strategic decisions effectively.

3.97 .900 1

Team work

TW1 Simulation training allows me to work within a group.

3.95 .860 1

TW2 Simulation training forces me to manage my time wisely.

3.91 .906 2

TW3 Simulation training is an effective tool that helps me to organize my efforts to take the decisions.

3.90 .854 4

TW4 Simulation training effectively improves my teambuilding skills.

3.91 .922 3

Employees’ interest

EI1 I feel simulation training is exciting. 3.95 .910 1

EI2 Simulation training provides more fun than participating in traditional lecture.

3.87 .933 3

EI3 Overall, simulation games are effective training tools.

3.91 .885 2

Problem-solving

PS1 Using simulations provides me an opportunity to improve my problem solving skills.

3.98 .833 1

PS2 Simulations present problems which I have to solve.

3.94 .857 2




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(Continued)

Table 1 (Cont.) : A descriptive analysis of simulation trainingperformance scale (30item)

Data Analysis

For data analysis, Renner and powellTaylor (2003) discussed some steps for analyzing the data that were adopted in this study as follows: (1) getting to know your data, focus the analysis; (2) categorizing information; (3)



Rank

PS3 The simulation helped me learn about my opinions on problemsolving.

3.92 .900 3

Decision making

DM1 Simulations help me learn about management decision making.

3.95 .893 2

DM2 Simulations provide an opportunity to analyze the outcome of my decisions.

3.88 .938 4

DM3 Using simulations develops my decisionmaking skills.

3.96 .852 1

DM4 Simulation training provides me with decisionmaking experience.

3.92 .900 3

Job performance

JP1

Simulation training helps me to understands duties and responsibilities of the work and complete the task with the level of proficiency required.

3.89 .855 5

JP2

Simulation training helps me to follow the established procedures in order to accomplish my work as scheduled.

3.92 .897 4

JP3 Simulation training helps me to be selfdirected, efficient, and creative in my work.

4.01 .815 2

JP4 Simulation training helps me to fulfill my job responsibility accurately and efficiently.

3.98 .887 3

JP5 Simulation training promotes the cooperation with my supervisors, peers and others.

4.04 .869 1


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identifying patterns and connections within and between categories and interpretation or bringing altogether.

For the descriptive analysis, SPSS version 22 was used to analyze the employees’ simulation trainingperformance scale (30 items) descriptively. Furthermore, the MannWhitney U test was used in this study to compare the scores of employees’ gender in fivestar hotels. The KruskalWallis test was used in this study to compare the results among age, education, and years of experience in the tested hotels to determine if there is a significant difference among them. Moreover, AMOS version 23 was used for data analysis. A twostep approach for structural equation modeling (SEM): In the first step, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to test the measurement model. In the second step, maximum likelihood was used to estimate the structural model and to explore the causal relationship among all variables. Composite reliability (CR) and Cronbach’s α for each latent variable will be used to test the construct reliability, and average variance extracted (AVE) will be used to test the construct convergent and discriminant validity (Hair et al., 2010).

Results

Table 2: presents the profile of the sample of frontoffice employees in the investigated hotels. Particularly, 207 employees were selected from fivestar hotels. The majority of employees’ position in hotels was receptionist and those employees composed of 54.6% females and 45.4% males. Almost half of employees’ age is less than 30 years old with achieved percentage 48.3%. The majority is held a university degree. With regarding to experience in the hotel industry, almost half of employees 50.2 % had experience from 1 up to 5 years. Further, the large category of employees attended less than five times simulation training.




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Table 2: Profile of respondents (N=207)

Variables Frequency

percentage

Gender

Female 113 54.6

Male 94 45.4

Age

Less than 30 100 48.3

30 up to 40 86 41.5

41 up to 50 19 9.2

51 or older 2 1.0

Education

Secondary school 5 2.4

University degree 137 66.2

Postgraduate (MBA, MSc, PhD) Others

64 1

30.9

.5

Years of experience

Less than 1 year 35 16.9

From 1 up to 5 104 50.2

6 up to 10 years 49 23.7

11 up to 15 years 16 7.7

16 or more

3 1.4

Experience in current hotel

Less than 5 years 128 61.8

5 up to 10 years 66 31.9

11 up to 15 years 22 5.3

16 or more 2.0 1.0


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(Continued)

Table 2 (Cont.): Profile of respondents (N=207)

Structural Equation Modelling

Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)

In the current research, testing the scales reliability of the data collected from the frontoffice employees applied through Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). CFA was used to measure the structure fit of the hypothesized model for fivestar hotels (see Figure 2). Composite reliability and Cronbach’s α over the value of 0.7 were used to ensure the best reliability level (Hair et al., 2010). The lowest composite reliability and Cronbach’s α is .90 which exceeds the minimum acceptable value and reflects a good level of reliability. At the same context, to ensure good convergent validity, all values of average variance extracted (AVE) of scales should exceed the value of 0.5 (Hair et al., 2010) as presented in Table 3. Additionally, ensuring the best discriminant validity required that the AVE value of each scale being greater than the squared correlation for each pair of scales as shown in Table 4.

Variables Frequency percentage

Times of attending simulation training

Less than 5 times 95 45.9

From 5 up to 10 70 33.8

From 11 up to 15 31 15.0

16 times or more 11 5.3

Current position

Receptionist 73 35.5

Reservation 41 19.8

Guest relation 32 15.5

Concierge 30 14.5

Telephone operator 31 15




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Table 3: Factor loadings, validity analysis, and reliability test of the measurement models

Latent/ Measured variable Factor loading CR AVE α KA .940 .690 .938 KA1 1.00 KA2 .96 KA3 .91 KA4 .92 KA5 .92 KA6 .86 KA7 .81 EE .918 .737 .917 EE1 1.00 EE2 1.12 EE3 1.09 EE4 .97 TW .918 .736 .917 TW1 1.00 TW2 1.10 TW3 1.03 TW4 1.08 EI .917 .788 .919 EI1 1.00 EI2 .96 EI3 .87 PS .906 .763 .905 PS1 1.00 PS2 1.09 PS3 1.07 DM .914 .727 .914 DM1 1.00 DM2 1.11 DM3 .96 DM4 1.01 JP .920 .699 .919 JP1 1.00 JP2 1.14 JP3 1.07 JP4 1.21 JP5 1.11

Note: All factor loadings were significant at ≤ .001; CR = Composite reliability; α= Alpha reliability


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Table 4: Discriminant validity of the measurement model Construct KA EE TW EI PS DM JP KA .690

EE .60 .737 TW .47 .60 .736 EI .37 .40 .42 .788 PS .42 .38 .40 .67 .763 DM .39 .44 .44 .51 .67 .727 JP .37 .46 .42 .46 .54 .57 .699

Note: The bold values along the diagonal line are the AVE values for the constructs, and the other values are the squared correlations for each pair of constructs; KA= Knowledge application; EE= Employees experience; TW= Teamwork; EI= Employee's interest; PS= Problem solving; DM= Decision making.

Structural Models and Hypotheses Testing Standardized path coefficients (ß) and the significance of the hypothesized relationships were utilized to test the proposed hypotheses in a causal diagrammatic form (see Figure 2). The results in Table 5 reflect no relationship between knowledge application and job performance, rejected H1 (ß= 0.033, p < 0.001). The findings reveal relationship between employees’ experience and service job performance, supported H2 (ß= 0.238, p < 0.001). Moreover, the findings reveal relationship between teamwork and job performance, supported H3 (ß= 0.055, p < 0.001). The findings state relationship between employees’ interest and service job performance, supported H4 (ß= 0.089, p < 0.001). The findings reveal relationship between problemsolving and job performance, supported H5 (ß= .218, p < 0.001). The results also show relationship between decision making and job performance, supported H6 (ß= .346, p < 0.001).




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Table 5: Summary of the structural models estimates

Hypotheses Path ß tvalue Results H1 KA JP .033 .474 Rejected H2 EE JP .238 3.007 Supported H3 TW JP .055 .778 supported H4 EI JP .089 1.166 Supported H5 PS JP .218 2.411 Supported H6 DM JP .346 4.443 Supported

Note: KA= Knowledge application; EE= Employees experience; TW= Teamwork; EI= Employee's interest; PS= Problem solving; DM= Decision making; ß = Standardized path

coefficient; *Absolute t-value > 1.96, p< 0.05; **Absolute t-value > 3.29, p< 0.001.


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Variance Analysis The current study showed no statistical difference between employees’ gender and simulation training impact on job performance. Further, the results also showed that there is no statistical difference between employees’ age, education, experience, working in current hotel and current position and simulation training impact on job performance. On the other hand, this study showed statistical difference between times of attending simulation training and job performance.

Discussion and Implications The current study reflected the effects of simulation training on employees’ job performance by skill which gained in training. the study tested whether knowledge application skills which gained through simulation training have impacts on employees’ job performance in Egyptian fivestar hotels. Previous studies (Adobor and Daneshfar, 2006; Tan and Laswad, 2008; Avramenko, 2012) highlighted the simulation training that improves some employees’ skills (i.e., KA, EE, TW, EI, PS, and, DM) which influence on their job performance. Inconsistent with these studies, this study showed a negative impact from Knowledge Application factor on employees’ job performance. A possible interpretation for this negative relationship lacks of managerial support for enhancing this point during training, a poor fit of content becoming a barrier for employees to apply their knowledge, the delivery methods of knowledge is very essential for firm’s employees to confirm that they are able enough to apply it, knowledge management is the systematic management of an organization's knowledge assets for the purpose of creating value and meeting tactical and strategic requirements; it consists of the initiatives, processes, strategies, and systems that sustain and enhance the storage, assessment, sharing, refinement, and creation of knowledge. Sometimes, employees have some restrictions and discomfiture during their manager attendance. In terms of other employees’ skills (i.e., EE, TW, EI, PS, and, DM), it is growing consensus that simulation training has a positive influence on employees’ skills. Consequently, these improved skills have a positive impact on employees’ job performance. Consistent with prior studies (Machuca, 2000; Astleitner, 2002; Garris et al., 2002; Anderson, 2003; Froebel and Marchington, 2005; Zantow et al., 2005; Jager, 2007; Salas et al., 2009; Van Der Zee and Slomp, 2009; Pasin and Giroux, 2011; Iqbal, 2014), the current study revealed that Employee's Experience has been increased within hotels because the received encouragement and motivation via simulation training that enables employees to tackle problems that confronted them at the workplace easily.




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A Teamwork skill also has been risen because of teams enabled employees to cooperate, enhance their skills and provide constructive feedback without any conflict between team members, sharing the sense of responsibility, and giving staff the opportunity to know each other which lead to team synergy and team cohesion. Hotel Employee's Interest has been positively affected due to the staff’s sense of riskfree environment and they don’t expect any punishments if they failed “because it is just a game”. Tendencies to employees’ critical thinking and Problem-Solving have been highly encouraged via simulation training. Problem analyzing, reflecting on judgments, and evaluating results are key elements of both critical thinking and simulation. Furthermore, simulation training provides a discussion environment for strategies and techniques for individual and problemsolving improvement. Through simulation training, employees can gain the skill of solve one problem with various strategies which leads to higher quality solution. For growing employees’ Decision Making skills, employees have an open discussion with their teammates, sharing ideas, and getting meaningful feedback and identifying the risk of each decision they made to avoid risks in the next time. One example of simulation training application in the investigated sample is Hilton chain. Employees form teams and create virtual or traditional simulation training environment where they must respond and decide regarding guest related issues, problems and scenarios in a given time frame (e.g., answering the telephone, checking guests in and out, and general guest interaction in the front desk scenario). The level and speed as well as the appropriateness of their response directly affect the simulated guest’s satisfaction while it also influences on their skill related to knowledge, problemsolving, decision making, teamwork, experience and make them feel interested to attend more sessions in this training. Based on the theoretical and practical part, this study reflected the following recommendations that suggested promoting simulation training applying in hotels aiming to grow up employees' effort and performance at workplace. First, fivestar hotels should adopt the notion of simulation training due to this kind of training has myriad benefits for both levels individually and organizationally. For employee level, employees' skills will increase via holding training sessions that aim to pose real situations or problems and attempt to tackle these problems to avoid the risk of temporary problemsolving and decisions making which may lead to material and moral losses (e.g., customer dissatisfaction, bad image, negative WOM). For organization


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level, organizations endeavor to possess unique employees in terms of their mental and intellectual abilities. Second, managers, especially in the fivestar hotels, should pay attention for the content of modules that associated with simulation training sessions, the steps of applying these modules and answer employees' questions aiming utilize each employee skills in problemanalyzing, problemsolving and decisions making. Providing a fit content and covering all aspects of problem or issue for employees is required to help them apply their knowledge striving to solve problem and make best decisions. Third, improving employees' skills in feed backing stage during session requires from trainer and manager to do constructive criticism, this will motivate them and prevent mistakes repetition next sessions. It will also remove their sense of foresting. Managers who attend the session should enhance employees with comfort ability and freedom to present their opinions. Fourth, removing the sense of jealousy between employees is the trainer responsibility by persuading them that all team members are responsible for decision, respect all teams because the positive energy pushes out all negative energy and stopped comparing between each other. Fifth, using a diverse simulation training types is required. The majority of Hotel leaders prefer to use computerbased, noncomputerized, and roleplaying. However, few hotel chains use fixed type of simulation training because of uncontrollable circumstances (e.g., lack resources). This study recommended hotels to use all types of simulation to achieve integration and idealism, and to save time and costs. Finally, it is not necessary to arrange simulation training only when the managers of hotel cannot overcome on a specific real problem you can arrange it for employees' skills using refreshment and make them more active. Preparing simulation training sessions periodically will be useful because each hotel hires new employees who may be not exposed for such this training in other hotel. As the results of the current study showed; the more employees attend simulation the more increase in his performance.

Limitations and Future Research Identification of hotel in Greater Cairo that applies simulation training was the major barrier in the current study that is why we made pilot study before beginning this study. The current study investigated and focused on the effects of using simulation training on hotel frontoffice employees’ performance in Cairo fivestar hotels. Hence, further researches could sample other destinations in Egypt such as Sharm ElSheikh and Hurghada.




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Moreover, the current study focused only on frontoffice department. So, further studies could focus on other departments in hotel especially on food and beverage and housekeeping. Further studies also could use other statistical methods, which may lead to better understanding of simulation influences.

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The United States Recognition for the United Arab Republic: Why?

Rania Ali Maher

Abstract Throughout the 1950’s, relations between the United States and Egypt vacillated widely from relative amicability to salient confrontations. Whereas containment of the communist menace and forming intra-regional coalitions were the focal points of the US foreign policy in the Middle East, eliminating Western influence and establishing Egypt as the dominant actor in the Arab world directed Nasser’s policy. This conflict of interests came to a head in the aftermath of the Suez Crisis and the declaration of Eisenhower Doctrine. However, by the beginning of 1958, the State Department realized that its efforts to halt Nasser’s growing power in the Arab world had failed and that the only way they could achieve their objectives in the region was by reestablishing a working relationship with Nasser and his newly-formed United Arab Republic. Taking this as an initial point, the main purpose of this paper is to answer the question: Why did the United States recognize the UAR despite the threats it represented to its interests?

Keywords Eisenhower Doctrine, Nasser, Communism, Syrian Crisis of 1957, United Arab Republic.

Egyptian-American Relations: From Hostility to Amity By the declaration of Eisenhower Doctrine in January 1957, relations between Egypt and the United States reached low ebb. While the Doctrine was presented as a means to counter Soviet penetration in the Middle East, this new policy appeared to be based primarily on circumscribing Nasser’s power and influence in the Arab world, which were enormously strengthened following the Suez Crisis. To achieve this, the American policymakers sought to isolate Nasser from his allies, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria, and then build a strong anti-communist alliance without Egypt (FRUS XII 1955-57: no.161). Since March 1956, the Eisenhower administration had decided, “to build up an Arab rival of Nasser”, who could challenge his leadership in the region and could halt the increasing communist influence in which he appeared to be supporting (FRUS XVI 1955-57: no.650). Meanwhile, Nasser’s rising popularity and the accompanying expansion of the revolutionary Arab

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nationalism tenets caused the conservative Arab royal countries to reassess their positions towards Egypt (Dawisha 2003). Because of Saudi Arabia’s possession of the world’s largest reserves of oil and its important position in the Islamic world, Eisenhower and Dulles chose King Saud as a counterpoise to Nasser, believing “that mutually antagonistic personal ambitions might disrupt the aggressive plans” of Nasser (Ferrell 1981: 323). The official visit of Saud to Washington in January 1957 marked the real beginning of the US effort to bolster Saud’s standing in the Arab World and his conversion to the pro-West camp. This was clearly manifested in Saudi Arabia conciliatory approach towards Iraq -a member in Baghdad Pact- after a long and bitter enmity with the Hashemite dynasty. In their meeting in Washington, King Saud and Iraqi Crown Prince Abd al-Ilah pledged to patch up their differences and to exchange visits and ambassadors for the first time (Lesch 1992; Yaqub, 1999). During the Arab Conference that held in Cairo on February 26-27, Saud also exerted great efforts to bring the US point of view closer to that of the Arab leaders to the extent that Nasser complained that he acted as if he were the US President’s representative. In the meetings, Saud showed openly that he was against positive neutralism and in sympathy with a pro-Western policy (NA RG 59 684A.86/2-2857; Al-‘Azm 1973). The Jordanian crisis of 1957, then, portrayed the break-up of Nasser-Saud alliance completely when the latter decided to dispatch a Saudi contingent to Jordan to support King Hussein against his pro-Nasser prime minister, Sulayman al-Nabulsi. The situation in Jordan had reached crisis point when Nabulsi gained more popularity at the King’s expense because of his new policy that epitomized in obstinately condemnation of the Eisenhower Doctrine, accepting foreign aid from the Soviet Union, backing stronger ties with Cairo and Moscow, the abrogation of the Anglo-Jordanian treaty of alliance and its replacement by the Arab Solidarity Pact between Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Egypt (Yaqub 1999). Therefore, Hussein forced the resignation of his prime minister on April 10, claiming that his country was threatened by communism, in an attempt to secure American support. The State Department responded cursorily, mobilizing units of the Sixth fleet to a forward position in the Eastern Mediterranean and providing the King with $10 million of emergency aid. On the other hand, it convinced Saudi Arabia and Iraq to support Hussein with military aid (FRUS XXIII 1955-57: no. 76; 83). Receiving such backing, Hussein publicly blamed Nasser and accused Egypt of being behind the turmoil in Jordan. He then declared martial law,

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and arrested Nabulsi and many of his followers (Dawisha 2003). In response, Nasser, through Cairo radio, unleashed a propaganda campaign against Hussein and the United States, describing the crisis as an American plot and the King as an agent of imperialism (Holland 1994; Geary 2007). After the crisis, King Saud made his first official visit to Iraq where he declared that the Baghdad Pact was “of advantage to the Arab world” and showed his strong opposition to Nasser by sending an unofficial message to both the British and the Americans via Nuri Said, the Iraqi Prime Minister, advising them of withholding any financial or economic aid to the Egyptian president, with the aim of maintaining the maximum pressure on the already straitened Egyptian economy. He believed that this would be the better way to force Nasser to turn to him for help, so he would seize the opportunity to compel Nasser to mitigate his pro-Soviet policy (McNamara 2005; Podeh 1993). Thus, it can be said that by the mid-1957, the United States had achieved its aim of dismantling the Arab Solidarity Pact and forming a new royalist coalition between Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Iraq, leaving Nasser with only Syria as an ally. Nasser, by his turn, had understood perfectly that the United States thumped in accomplishing its policy of isolating Egypt and containing his influence in the Arab world. He also realized the importance of not losing Syria either to the Western or Eastern camp, as this would inevitably end his dream of Egypt’s prerogative for Arab hegemony (Podeh 1993; McNamara 2005). With the approach of autumn, Nasser met this challenge when Syria became a zone of regional and international struggle. The crisis officially started on August 13 when the Syrian government announced the expulsion of three American diplomats for their involvement in a conspiracy to overthrow the regime in Damascus, which the State Department believed was about to becoming a Soviet satellite in the region. In response, the US declared, on the next day, the Syrian ambassador in Washington and his second secretary persona non grata (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 355). Previously and throughout 1956 and 1957, the Eisenhower administration had worried about what it saw as a growing Soviet infiltration in Syria. This feeling was intensified by a number of events occurred in the second half of 1957. The bid for building a new Syrian oil refinery at Homs was awarded to a Czech company after a fierce contest with an American corporation (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 349). This was followed by the signing of a wide-ranging technical and economic agreement with the Soviet Union. Then came finally the appointment of a suspected communist, Afif al-Bizri, as Syria’s new commander-in-chief (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 359). In addition to the predominance of the Ba’athists and Communists in the Syrian government since their big triumph at the polls in May (Lesch 1992), the State Department perceived those actions to be paving the way for unacceptable


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communist seizure of the country. Similarly, Nasser was progressively disturbed by the growing communist influence in the Syrian government at the expense of the nationalists (Ba’athists and pro-Nasserists), a matter that would ultimately let Syria to slip away from his domain and would challenge his doctrine of positive neutralism (Yaqub 1999; Al Otaiby 2002). Hence, both Eisenhower and Dulles looked for intervening actions that would prevent the loss of the Middle East to communism (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no.182). They decided to send Loy Henderson, Deputy Under Secretary of State for Administration, to urge Syria’s conservative Arab neighbors to form a regional alliance including Turkey against Damascus. Realizing that a unilateral action would inflame the Arab world against the United States, Henderson, in his meeting with Turkish, Iraqi, Jordanian and Lebanese high officials, made it clear that the United States would only back Iraqi-Jordanian and Turkish military intervention into Syria that had the nature, which could be justified in the United Nations (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 364; 374). The American plan was to create justification for invoking the Eisenhower Doctrine by inciting Turkey and Iraq to mass their troops along their borders with Syria in an attempt to provoke a clash with the Syrian army. On the same time, the US committed itself to provide them with arms and to preclude any Israeli or Russian intrusion (Lesch 1995; Geary 2007; Eisenhower 1965). Henderson’s mission merely aroused a great storm of anti-Western propaganda (Lesch 1992; Sorby 2000). As a result of the relentless campaign unleashed by Cairo radio for weeks against American imperialism and its agents in the region, and due to their apprehension of Arab masses backlash, Syria’s pro-Western Arab neighbors disavowed the idea of launching a military attack against it (Geary 2007; Al-Jebarn 1988; Dawish 2003). On the contrary, they showed great support to the Syrian government. King Saud, the most likely candidate for leading the Arab action against Damascus, was the first to blow a rash retreat, blaming Washington for creating superfluous problem in the Middle East (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 375; Eisenhower 1965). He regarded the US-Syrian crisis as an opportune moment to assert the leadership role assigned to him by Washington, but in his own way. He played the role of arbitrator, travelling between Arab capitals to ease tensions (Lesch 1992; Anderson 1995). Consequently, the Lebanese, Jordanian and Iraqi governments baked down from attacking the Syrian regime, declaring their solidarity with it and denouncing any aggression against the government in Damascus (Eisenhower 1965; Lesch 1995; Ashton 1996).


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With the failure of the Administration to gain an all-Arab response in the way it had envisioned, the United States was left with Turkey as the only country that continued to show anti-Syrian sentiment and apply military pressure on the Syrian’s frontier. However, this path raised the tension to the international level, as the Soviet Union intervened and issued harsh direct threats against Turkey, a NATO member (McNamara 2005; Little 1990; Eisenhower 1965). The Soviets regarded the crisis as a chance to enhance their position in the Middle East by representing themselves as allies and supporters of their potential patron state (Sorby 2000). On the other hand, by the early of October, Saud had been portrayed as “the lion of peninsula”, because of his efforts in unifying the Arabs together against the imperialist forces, countering Nasser’s regional leadership (McNamara 2005: 104). Faced with this unacceptable course of events -the attempts of the Soviet Union to replace Egypt as Syria’s military defender and that of Saud to assume the role of the Arab’s leader at the expense of him- Nasser decided to take an active role in the crisis. By one spectacular move, he succeeded in restoring his prestige, sending a contingent of Egyptian troops to the Syrian port of Latakia on October 13. It was a merely figurative deployment, as the number of Egyptian troops landed was not sufficient for the purported mission, but in its symbolism, it had a great impact on Arab masses opinion. It portrayed Nasser as the incontrovertible leader of Arab nationalist movement and the savior of Syria against imperialism (Lesch 1998; McNamara 2005; Dawisha 2003). Accordingly, by this masterstroke, Nasser upstaged Saud, sustained Syria’s bent toward Egypt, strengthened the position of the Ba’ath Party and the pro-Egyptian officers in the Syrian army and thus halted the growing Soviet influence in Syria at Egypt’s expense (Lesch 1995). He was skillful enough in restoring his prestige in the region, not only at the expense of his Arab rivals, but also at the expense of his former allies, the Soviets and their communist partners inside the Syrian government (McNamara 2005). In addition, Cairo’s intervening maneuver posed a serious question in the State Department concerning the US stance towards Nasser who had emerged as the only one capable of combating communism in Syria. On November 4, William Rountree -the Assistant Secretary- reported that Nasser was concerned about Egypt’s growing economic dependence on the Soviet Union as well as the threats which the Soviet-Syrian rapprochement might represent to his influence in the Arab world (FRUS XVII 1955-57: no. 392). He confirmed that Nasser was interested in improving Cairo relations with Washington. As a sign to illustrate Egypt’s good intention, the Egyptian foreign minister played a vital role in convincing the Syrians not to proceed with their complaint against Turkey in front of the United Nations in the time that the Soviets were pushing them to do so (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 412;


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417). Nasser’s attitude led Eisenhower, himself, to think critically about the reassessment of the US position towards Egypt, asking Dulles on November 13 about the possibility of initiating a drive to bring Nasser back to their side. He recommended that this should be done skillfully in a way that they would not be in the position of “bootlicking a dictator” (FRUS XVII 1955-57: no. 398). Thus, the Syrian crisis ended in a victory for Nasser and the Syrians and a clear failure for the Eisenhower Doctrine policies. It proved that the Eisenhower administration had completely misread the scene in the Middle East. They realized that the little could be done without Nasser (Kerr 1967). Hence, it can be said that if the year of 1957 witnessed the high tide of the American-led front against Nasser, it created, by its end, a congenial atmosphere for Egypt and the United States to reach a “modus vivendi” (Lesch 1992).

A Change in Plans: United States’ Rapprochement with Egypt and Syria: Realizing that the growing Soviet influence in the region threatened his own policy of Egyptian leadership of the Arab world and his independent position vis-à-vis the superpowers, and that the United States had the power to stymie his role in the region, Nasser became convinced that he should move to the West. On the other hand, the State Department realized that playing off Arab rivalries had become ineffective or even counterproductive. It merely increased instability, hostility towards Washington and opened the door to Soviet penetration. Thus, the Administration figured out that it would have to reconsider its relation with Nasser, as he became, willy-nilly, “the symbol of radical Arab nationalism.” (FRUS VXII 1955-57: no. 367). Therefore, the Egyptian-American rapprochement, after the Syrian crisis, did not occur abruptly. There had been some signs earlier that their mutual interests, particularly regarding Syria, produced some sort of temporary accommodation (Lesch 1995). As early as the summer of 1957, Nasser made it clear to the United States, through Raymond Hare, its ambassador in Cairo, that he was seeking better relations with Washington. He stressed that although Egypt had a satisfactory relationship with the Soviet Union, but this did not mean that he was supporting communism. He affirmed that it was the US policy which was forced him to shift towards the Russians (FRUS XVII 1955-57: no.334; 350). In a statement to the Associated Press and the National American


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Broadcasting Company on September 27, 1957, Nasser expressed his willing to improve Egypt’s relations with the United States and that he had no objection to have a meeting with President Eisenhower on the condition that the latter would take the initiation (Nasser’s Speeches 1957). On the ground, Nasser ordered the Egyptian press and radio to moderate their propaganda attacks on the United States. He, then, declared that Egypt would resume its trade relations with the West, preliminary with France (Lesch 1995). In spite of concluding new agreements with the Soviets for Egypt economic development, the Egyptian government announced the arrest of 18 Egyptian communists for conspiring a coup against Nasser to verify that the latter was independent and was opposing communism (Heikal 1988). On the other hand, he offered the Syrian government the use of Egyptian technicians instead of Soviets in the training of the Syrian army in order to ease the tension in the American-Syrian relations and to reduce Syria’s reliance on Soviet aid (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 379). In December, Nasser accentuated his desire for closer relations by sending several emissaries to the Eisenhower administration showing Egypt concern for keeping Syria from falling too deeply into the Soviet orbit. On December 9, Dulles met Mahmoud Fawzi, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, who conveyed Nasser’s point of view concerning the Syrian matter, saying that Egypt believed that the communist threat in Syria was exaggerated, and that “in the coming months we might hear of reassuring developments [there]” that would prove Nasser’s sincerity towards US. On the next day, Ali Sabry, Nasser’s political advisor, revealed to Hare that the main difference between the United States and Egypt was their attitude toward nationalism, confirming that nationalism had no link with communism, and Egypt was more concerned about the impact of communism in the region than the United States “since Egypt had to live in the area and could not escape the consequences” (NA RG 59 674.00/12-1157). On December 11, Nasser sent Mohammed Heikal, his friend and confidant, to the US Embassy in Cairo to deliver a “very urgent and serious message.” He informed Hare that the President had checked the CIA reports sent to him about the Syrian officials who had become Soviet proxies and he believed that something should be done about them. He assumed that this was Egypt’s responsibility; and that any American or Turkish intervention in the Syrian problem would have drastic results and Egypt was the only country that could successfully intervene “with minimal repercussions.” He then asked the United States for giving Egypt a free hand in Syria for only three months to impede the communist influence there. Without revealing the details of Nasser’s plan, Heikal concluded the message with the assurance that this information should be used with “absolute secrecy” (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 420).


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Having exhausted all obtainable opportunities, Dulles had no choice except to do business with Nasser. He promptly accepted Nasser’s proposal, but he stressed that his approval did not mean that the US would bind itself from taking actions to protect its interests in Syria. On the other hand, Hare had been informed that the State Department would arrange with Egypt for the appointment a new ambassador in Damascus, believing that this would give them the chance for exerting their influence there (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 421). However, Dulles stressed that they should proceed most cautiously, as Nasser might try to play the US and USSR off against each other in order to enhance his position in the area (FRUS XVII 1955-57: no. 413). On the other hand, Nasser’s mediation paved the way for an American-Syrian rapprochement, convincing both parties that direct negotiations would be the only path to ease tension (NA RG 59 783.00/8-3157). Meetings between the American officials and Ba’ath leaders reflected the desire of the American and Syrians to enhance their relations. In his meeting with the Assistant Secretary of State on November 7, Salah el-Bitar, the Syrian Foreign Minister, made no secret of the Syrian government desire “to normalize the diplomatic situation with the US and ….. to find ways and means of improving relations.” (FRUS XIII 1955-57: no. 419). On January 10, 1958, Ba’ath Party sent three representatives to Alfred Atherton, the US consul in Aleppo, asking for US backing and for using its power to preclude any turmoil on the Syrian borders from the Israeli or Turkish sides. They assured that the Ba’ath Party was dominating the main vital positions in the army and that they would intervene in the next parliamentary elections to curb communist influence, urging the US to support Bitar to achieve this aim. At the same time, they asked for keeping their contacts with Akram Al-Hourani, a prominent member of Ba’ath Party and the speaker of the Syrian parliament, at the minimum so as to not to give the chance to the communists of accusing him of being working under US direction (NA RG 59 611.83/1-2558). Accordingly, the incidents of the year prompted all parties to re-evaluate their attitudes towards each other. Nasser understood that any drastic action in Syria to eliminate communist influence would not succeed on its own but required the American support or at least its blessing (Podeh 1999). From the Syrian side, Ba’ath Party and other nationalist elements realized the dangers represented by the Communist Party’s members, who became more active in Syrian political arena and gained more prestige at their own expense (Seale 1965).


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Besides, the Eisenhower administration acknowledged the failure of its policies in the Middle East. The weight of evidence showed that the methods it used to eliminate the Soviet influence there produced the opposite effect. It inflamed the nationalist sensibilities of the entire region against US. Many top American policy advisers and even Eisenhower himself came to the conclusion that they should follow a new policy accommodated with Arab nationalism and its leader, Nasser (Geary 2007). On January 10, the NSC Planning Board, headed by Robert Cutler, the President special assistant for national security affairs, submitted a long-detailed report under the title; “Long-Rang U.S. Policy toward the Near East”, in which they stressed that “current trends in the Near East [were] unfavorable to Western interests; US and Western influence [had] declined, while Soviet influence [had] greatly increased”. They added that “many Arabs identified the US with the colonial and ex-colonial powers in the area”. The paper stated that there was a substantial belief within the area that the US was seeking to protect its interest in the region by opposing any political or economic progress, while the Soviet Union supported the goals of Arab nationalism. Also, the majority of the Arabs believed that the US sought “to keep the Arab world disunited in order to dominate the area and [was] committed to work with reactionary elements….” Accordingly, the NSC recommended the termination of the policy of isolating Nasser, the acceptance of his policy of neutralism that became “a permanent factor in the Near East political arena”, and the cooperation with Egypt where matters of common interest were involved, specifying the limitation of “communist control in Syria.” They also emphasized the importance of the proclamation of U.S. support for “the ideal of Arab unity” between two or more Arab states who had good relations with Washington, nominating Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Iraq (FRUS XII 1958-60: no. 3). Consequently, the assumption that the US instigated the program of normalizing its relations with Nasser after the Lebanese crisis and the Iraqi revolution of 1958 had been refuted by the declassification of the mentioned report. However, it should be borne in mind that this program did not come into force until the formation of UAR because of Dulles’ reluctance to accept Nasser’s positive neutralism.

The US Position toward the Formation of the UAR: While Washington was holding the meetings for the discussion of the NSC report and debating the best approach for dealing with Nasser, Egypt and Syria were in the process of the formation of the UAR. It is beyond the scope of this paper to discuss the details behind the merging of Egypt and Syria in the United Arab Republic, but one scene of that story should be mentioned. According to the Egyptian and Syrian accounts, Egypt was not the one who initiated the drive for unity with Syria. It was not part of Nasser’s plan to


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assume complete authority over the Syrian government in the immediate future, all he had sought was to monitor its foreign policy, as he did not want to be involved in the internal affairs of the country. Nasser discerned the political, economic and institutional differences between the two countries, and the Egyptians and international reservations that would make the immediate unity with Syria a risky scheme. However, under pressure from the Syrians, Nasser acceded to the union even though he knew that such move would represent a financial burden for Egypt and would create additional problems for him in the international arena (Eisenhower 1965; Jankowski 2002). Realizing the dramatic consequences of rejecting the Syrian’s plea on his image as the preeminent Arab leader (Nutting 1972), Nasser justified his acquiescence to the Syrian, saying: “[I] had taken [the] plunge because there was no alternative and without much thought about outside reaction…” (FRUS XIII 1958-1960: no. 197). But as a price for his approval, he insisted on having an integral union between the two countries rather than a federal one, as some Syrians had preferred, and considered the exclusion of the Syrian army from politics and the dissolution of all the Syrian’s political parties as indispensable preconditions for proclaiming the union. He also demanded the holding of a plebiscite in Egypt and Syria to demonstrate public support for the unification. Syria’s internal political instability, the external threats and the great popular enthusiasm to Nasser gave the Syrian leaders no option except to submit to the Egyptian terms, deeming that “no one would dare to say no to unity…the public would tear their heads off.” (Jankowski 2002: 106). As a result, on February 1, 1958, President Nasser and President Quwatli announced, from Abdeen Palace in Cairo, the creation of the United Arab Republic and the selection of Nasser as its first president (Barrett 2007). Since Nasser was keen for keeping the United States abreast of his steps in Syria, seeking its backing, so he sent Heikal to the US Embassy on the same day he reached a settlement with Bitar, informing them that the Syrian Foreign Minister had been successful in urging Nasser to accept the union. Heikal was also so smart in reassuring the US Embassy official that the suggested move would be within the context of the secret green light given to Nasser by Dulles on December 12, 1957 for acting in Syria, divulging that Nasser had decided to dismiss both Al-‘Azm and Bizri, the two suspected communists, from their positions once he took control of the situation there (NA RG 59 674.83/1-2158). Nevertheless, the declassified documents do not evidently indicate whether a similar Egyptian diplomatic approach was made to the Soviets or not (Podeh


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1999), however, it has been confirmed that Nasser was expecting Soviet opposition to the union (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 197; Taha 1974). Accordingly, it can be said that while the State Department was not surprised by the union, confusion and perplexity dominated the scene in the Kremlin, particularly because of Nasser’s plan to eradicate the Communist Party in Syria (Holland 1994). Unaware of the secret early contacts between Egypt and the United States, President Quwatli, Prime Minister ‘Asali and Minister Bitar approached the State Department to ensure its blessing. In their meetings with the new American Ambassador, Charles Yost in January 1958, they revealed their desire for dissipating misunderstandings and enhancing the relations between the two countries. They also raised the question of Arab unity and expressed their hopes that the United States would not oppose the union as it had countered the Tripartite agreement of 1955 before (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no.185). The news of the creation of the UAR reached Washington while Dulles was attending the annual meeting of Baghdad Pact Council at Ankara in late January. His absence from office caused him to draw conclusions based more on his instincts rather than on clear evidences and at odds with his own State Department (Ashton 1996). Believing that the USSR was behind the move toward union, Dulles called for a specially restricted session of the Council on January 28, in which he expressed his opinion about the dangerous of the union on the Western interests in the region, claiming that it might drag both Jordon and Lebanon under its domination, leaving Iraq and Saudi Arabia in risk. In other words, he elucidated that such arrangement would not only placed the Arab states under Nasser’s control, but actually it would put them under the Soviets’ domination. He urged a rapid action from the Arab states against the union that would be certainly supported by the United States, stressing that Washington would not take the lead as it did during the Syrian crisis (FRUS XII 1958-60: no. 9). In a private meeting with the Iraqi delegation, headed by Nuri al-Sa’id, whom Dulles regarded as “the key to the situation”, the latter went so far in his pledges, emboldening Nuri’s plot of fomenting a tribal revolt in northern Syria against the union and permitting Iraq to annex sections of northeastern Syria with US backing (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 193). However, Dulles’s harsh reaction had been tempered on the next day when he received intelligence reports, advocating the anticommunist origins of the Egyptian-Syrian union (Eveland 1980). Regretting his impetuosity in encouraging an early Iraqi’s initiative, Dulles took a more prudent line in the next session, suggesting a multilateral Arab-led response to the union, as “if Iraq [would] alone oppose”, he said “it would be accused of acting on influence of non-Arab BP powers and while that would be better than doing


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nothing it would not be as helpful as a common position.” He recommended that Baghdad Pact should not make a statement condemning union in the present time, as they should wait for the other Arab countries’ reactions. He promised that the US would urge Saudi Arabi, Jordan and Lebanon to arrange for a common Arab action with Iraq against the union which they “considered dangerous” (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 188). Returning back to Washington, Dulles found himself isolated from the State Department, which formed a cautious assessment of the implications of the Egyptian-Syrian merger. All the reports from American diplomats in the region and US intelligence pointed out that the union was a Syrian initiative by the Ba’athists and their allies in the army to eliminate the growth of communist influence in the Syrian’s government and army, and that Nasser had been forced to accede to the Syrian’s appeal in order to maintain his prestige in the Arab world as the leader of Arab nationalism. The Near Eastern Affairs office report on January 21 recommended the acceptance of the union as the United States was not in a position “to prevent some kind of union from taking place…”. Although the union had long-term disadvantages on the US’s interests, as it would facilitate Egypt’s domination of Arab world at the expense of Saudi Arabia and Iraq, and it might exacerbate Egypt-Syria relations with Israel, however, they stressed that its short-term advantage outweighed what could be seen as disadvantages, believing that “if Egyptian-Syrian union were accompanied by effective measures to eliminate entirely the influence of the Syrian Communist Party and its allies,” this would be adequate for the present time (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 186; 187). In the 354th meeting of the National Security Council that held on February 6, Dulles, in a manner that had “the flavor of an apology” (Ashton 1996), provided the Council with an explanation for his reckless promise of encouraging Iraqi expansionism of Syria and for his harsh attitude in Ankara, stating: “There had been practically no solid intelligence at Ankara as to how this union had actually come about. Intelligence material available in the Near East does not compare in quantity or quality with what is available to us here in Washington, and the U.S. Delegation accordingly felt very isolated and very much in the dark.” In addition, he justified that “There was strong pressure on the United States to speak out against the union.” In the same meeting, Allen Dulles, CIA Director, underlined that the USSR was not behind the union and there was an opposition to the union by the Syrian communists and even Moscow itself had been “puzzled as to what attitude to take”, thus, the United States, the CIA recommended, should seized the opportunity to weak these two countries (FRUS XII 1958-60: no. 10).


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Hence, Dulles had no option except to retreat from his confrontational approach to Nasser and the new unity. He, then, instructed NEA to examine the possibility of “extending the hand of friendship” to the UAR, as “it might be a good and profitable occasion” particularly that “the Soviets [were] hesitant about their attitude to the union.” Nevertheless, Dulles still had hopes for a common Arab action against the union (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 191). Despite the fact that the establishment of the UAR set off a wave of confusion and panic among the conservative regimes in the Arab world, no one could condemn it publicly. As mentioned before, Iraq was the first country that showed hostility to the union during Ankara meeting and Crown Prince ‘Abd al-Ilah induced the members of Baghdad Pact not to recognize the UAR on the ground that it had been initiated by Nasser to control the Arab world and it was pushed by the Soviets, thus, it constituted a great dangerous not only to Iraq, but to all the members and it should be opposed (FRUS XII 1958-60: no. 9). King Hussein of Jordan also declared to the American Ambassador in Amman that the UAR posed dire threat not only to Jordan and Lebanon, but to the free world and that he called for the revival of treaties for economic and military integration between Iraq, Jordan and Saudi (FRUS XI 1958-60: no. 157). For Saudi Arabia, although King Saud was angry and acknowledged the dangerous of such move on his position, but he was “unenthusiastic” about taking part in a common action against the union (Eisenhower 1965). On February 7, Saud informed the US that it would be “better not to take any opposing measures re Egypt-Syrian union so long as…[it did] not harm any other Arab state…..”(FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 193). Thus, lack of Saud’s support meant the failure of Dulles’s plan for formulating a common Arab action to combat the union. On the next day, Dulles was obliged to withdraw his recent pledge at Ankara BP meeting of supporting an Iraqi operation in Syria. He sent a decent rejection to the Crown Prince, mentioning the obstacles that would hinder the implementation of the Iraqi’s plan, especially that Washington had “no reports of any widespread opposition in Syria to the union” and that the Syrian tribes had been “subjected [to] strict surveillance and control by [the] Syrian military.” Accordingly, “US and Iraq…. would find themselves in an extremely difficult position if they should move…to break up [the] union without…. official support of non-union Arab states, especially Saudi Arabia.” (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 193). The US’s apathetic reaction to the union was so disappointed to the conservative Arab leaders, particularly to Iraq (Podeh 1999). Realizing that the recognition of the UAR was inevitable, Dulles advised Eisenhower on February 8 “to extend recognition to the new republic as soon as such step is appropriate.…….”, as the United States would not be able to stand alone against the union “without giving offense to the popular appeal of


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Arab nationalism”, especially that the Arab states could not adopt any common action and one or more of them were about to recognize the UAR (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 194). He also informed the British that although they had the tools to stir up troubles for Nasser in front of the formation of the UAR, but they were now believed that this would only cause Nasser to move closer to USSR and would pave the way for developing the new republic as “a wholly communist controlled state” (McNamara 2005: 118). Nasser, by his turn, again approached the State Department, four days before holding the plebiscite, but this time by himself when he summoned Hare on February 17 to belay any possible opposition. He was afraid that his intention might be misinterpreted, so he firstly clarified that at the time he made his secret approach to Hare through Heikal in last December, “he had no thought of Egyptian-Syrian union except as something which might be worked out in five years or so.” He then used the communist menace as a device to induce Washington not to oppose the union, saying: “…. There was no real government in Syria. Kuwatly resigned five times. Azm had made alliance with Communists and was planning organized new party which would probably have been sort of Communist front. Collapse was imminent. Syrian conservatives and businessmen also came to say union necessary to save from Communists. Only the name of Nasser could save the situation (this stated factually rather than arrogantly).” Nasser stressed that he would be able to handle the situation, “but it [would] be rough going” (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 197). In other words, he presented the union to Washington as an act to forestall a communist coup in Syria. By February 15, it became obvious for the Eisenhower administration that the United Arab Republic was a fact and they would have to take advantage of it. In its circular telegram to Amman, Baghdad, Beirut, Jidda, Khartoum, Ankara, Karachi, London, Tehran, Cairo, Damascus, Paris and Tel Aviv, the State Department made it clear that the recognition of the UAR would be dovetailed with American interests, as this step would give the US the chance “to assert a certain amount of constructive influence upon [Nasser]”, whose popularity was now at the peak in the Arab world. The telegram, also, avowed that it would not be in the interests of the US and its Arab friends to withhold recognition in the time that the concept of unity had a great popular appeal among the Arab masses (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 196). In another confirmation of the same assessment, Dulles wrote to the Iraqi’s government on February 21 declaring that: “withholding recognition would be politically


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disadvantageous and that we should establish correct relations with UAR from outset.” (FRUS XIII 1958-60: no. 199). By going through the State Department documents, it can be easily concluded that the quick recognition of the UAR was supported by the CIA, US ambassadors in Egypt and Syria, and by most of the officials in the State Department believing that the new republic might provide the US with opportunities to bring Nasser back to their side and it might create some sort of competition between Nasser and the Soviets. Therefore, it was of little surprise that the United States extended recognition to the UAR on February 25, just three days after the proclamation of the results of the plebiscite.

Conclusion It can be stated clearly that by the end of 1957, the State Department had reached the conclusion that Nasser could be neither unheeded nor toppled in the near future. The Eisenhower Doctrine, which was designed to isolate him and undermine his domestic and regional power produced nothing except a vehement opposition to the US among the Arab masses. Nasser’s triumph in the battle over Syria had dealt a severe blow not only to the Eisenhower administration and his regional enemies, but also to the Soviets. He became a “regional hero” with no competitor in sight. Though, it took Eisenhower and Dulles some time to recognize that Washington could not feasibly win over the Arab world without reaching an accommodation with Nasser, the creation of UAR added a sense of urgency to change the direction of US policy in the Middle East. There was a growing belief in the administration that the Egyptian-Syrian merger would provide Washington with opportunities to bring Nasser back into a more neutral stance and keep Syria from becoming a Soviet base in the region, especially after seeing all of their previous efforts in the region come to an unsuccessful end, and ironically, were only successful in bringing Syria closer to the Soviets. In spite of their concern about the long-term implications of the union, the State Department realized that the only attainable solution to the Syrian problem was to be under Nasser’s command, who courted the Americans with displays of moderation and sobriety during the last few months of 1957. On the other hand, the Eisenhower administration was careful not to appear to be acting against its declared policy of supporting unity among Arab states as long as it expressed the wishes of Arab masses. Certainly, Egypt and Syria were not among the candidates that were nominated to form the ideal US model of Arab unity, however, Washington had no option except to take a positive position towards the new republic. Thus, the US’s quick recognition of the UAR, against the wishes of the conservative Arab regimes, was viewed by decision-makers in Washington as the only means to bring Nasser back to the Western camp and to combat the perceived expanding Soviet influence in Syria. Accordingly, it can be said that the Eisenhower administration was


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forced to acquiesce to the stream of Arab nationalism and to its preeminent leader, Gamal Abd el-Nasser.

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- No. 398, Letter from the President to the Secretary of State, Washington, November 13, 1957, pp.795.

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United States Department of State. Glennon, John P., Editor. Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS), 1958-60. Lebanon and Jordan, Vol. XI, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1958-60:

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- No. 3, Memorandum from the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern, South Asian, and the African Affairs (Rountree) to Secretary of State Dulles, Washington, January 21,1958, NSC 5801: “Long Range U.S. Policy toward the Near East, pp.4-5.

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- No. 191, Memorandum from the Secretary of State’s Special Assistant (Greene) to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern, South Asian, and the African Affairs (Berry), Washington, February 5,1958, p. 191.

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- Lesch, David W. (1992). Syria and the United States, Eisenhower’s Cold War in the Middle East, Westview Press, pp. 112-3,118-120, 128, 158, 173, 202.

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Relations, 1945-1958, Ph.D. Thesis, Faculty of Arts, Illinois State University, p.184.

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1958-1963, Ph.D. Thesis, Faculty of Humanities, University of Manchester, pp. 50.

- Geary, Brent M. (2007). A Foundation of Sand: U.S. Public Diplomacy, Egypt, and Arab Nationalism, 1953-1960, Ph.D. Thesis, Faculty of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University, United States of America, pp.192, 210-2, 228.

- Holland, Matthew Floyd (1994). A Role in Search of a Hero: America and Egypt from Roosevelt through Eisenhower, Ph. D. Thesis, Graduate College, University of Arizona, United States of America, pp. 138, 328.

- Yaqub, Salim Clyde (1999). Containing Arab Nationalism, The United States, the Arab Middle East, and the Eisenhower Doctrine, 1956-1959, Ph.D. Thesis, Faculty of the Graduate School of Yale University, United States of America, pp. 146, 190, 227.

Websites - Nasser’ Speeches (1957). Nasser’s Statement to the Associated Press

and the National American Broadcasting Company on 27/9/1957. URL:

http://www.nasser.org/Speeches/SpeechesAll.aspx?CS=0&x=2&lang=ar. Accessed on March 15, 2018.


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A Gap Analysis of the Essential Competencies Expected and Perceived from Hospitality Graduates in the Industry:

The Case of Egypt

Maher Fouad Hossny Associate professor

Faculty of Tourism and Hotel Management, Hotel Management Department - Beni-Suef University

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine, identify the essential competencies expected and perceived from hospitality graduates in the industry. A gap means analysis technique used to analyze hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions about Employment of Graduates in the hospitality industry. Industry management conceded that hospitality education modules need to reflect recent and future industry challenges and improvements to guarantee graduates are outfitted with suitable and industry-relevant competencies. Required data are collected with a self-administered questionnaire adapted from competency model of Chung-Herrera, Enz, and Lankau (2003). The questionnaire was distributed randomly among 280 managers of chain hotels in Egypt after permission from the directors of Human Recourses. Gathered data were examined using descriptive statistics and factor analysis method. The results of this study reveal that hospitality managers’ expectation is less than their perception from Employment of fresh Graduates in the hospitality industry. Furthermore, factor analysis generates five groups of competencies required by hospitality industry namely; (Transferable Competencies, Professional Competencies, Generic Competencies, Analytical skills, and Conceptual skill). The results are very important for both of hospitality education and industry as it can help to determine and prioritize the needed competencies in the field of hospitality industry. It is therefore urgent that hospitality, educational institutions need to meet the requirements of the industry in their demand for competencies needed from the graduated.

Keywords Competencies, hospitality education, hotel industry, hotel skills, employment.

Introduction Hospitality industry has raised concerns in regards to the shortage of appropriately qualified employees. The industry emphasized that there is an

A Gap Analysis of the Essential Competencies Expected and Perceived from Hospitality Graduates in the Industry: The Case of Egypt


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extreme deficiency of skilled employees who graduated from hospitality education, especially in the hotel management department, and that education of these potential employees needs to be more lined up with industry requirements (Raybould and Wilkins, 2005). Although, hospitality education plays a main part of both hospitality education and industry, with accentuation on building up student’s competencies, rather than operational, and an aptitude (Roberts and Whitelaw, 1999). There is a gap between hospitality higher education and industry. Hospitality education needs to study the needs of what hospitality industry really needs from current hospitality graduates, which help them to develop appropriate curriculum matching with the needs of the industry. In the hospitality industry, experts expect that students will be trained for not just aptitudes and abilities at the advanced level, but to also have lots of competencies such as, critical thinking skills, enthusiastic knowledge as a result of a multi year degree (Ogbeide, 2006). The purpose of this study was to highlight the requirements and expectations of middle management in the hospitality industry in Egypt, because a limited empirical research has been done on this topic. The specific objectives of the study were to examine (a) is there is a gap between expectation and perception competencies about the employment of graduates in the hospitality industry; and (b) what are the requirements of skills and competencies needed by the industry for future career goals. It is expected that findings would provide insights into how the hospitality industry views employment of graduates in the hospitality industry as well as how well higher institution for hospitality education has prepared students for their career challenges.

Literature review There is a gap amongst experts and academics in every single instructive field and enterprises (Jenkins, 1999; Stanton, 2006; Anderson, 2007; Brownlie et al., 2008; Belli, 2010; Lilien, 2011). The part of educational establishments has been constantly reported that, as students getting ready for work, industry is giving them a simple direction to business and industry tasks (Waryszak, 1999; Ogbeide, 2006). The fundamental goal of hospitality education is to furnish the industry with high caliber graduates outfitted with pertinent management capabilities (Hansson, 2001; Christou, 2002). Generic and transferable skills, including initiative, communication, human resource management, and critical thinking are fundamental to profession achievement (Tas et al., 1996; Kay and Russette, 2000). Hospitality industry requirements are looking for graduates with transferable abilities, including solid composed and level of communication skills, interpersonal aptitudes, cooperation, and critical thinking abilities (DEETYA, 1998). Hospitality

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management foresee that graduates have transferable generic skills in specific area such as, strategic management, communication, decision-making and basic leadership (Buergermeister, 1983; Goodman and Sprague, 1991; Cichy et al., 1992; Williams and DeMicco 1998). Professional degree or certificate programs, incorporating those in hospitality management, are proposed to fulfill the industry’s developing interest for high skilled staffs. Accordingly, there exists a need to guarantee that the academic curriculum meets instructive expectations, as well as those of industry and undergraduates, with respect to the ranges of abilities required in the work environment (Raybould and Wilkins, 2005). Hospitality Education cycle plays one of the essential parts in professions of the future hospitality employees. It is extremely pivotal to recognize the contrasts between the education and training, in this manner, to have an alternate perspective on the idea of hospitality management. Baum (1995) noticed that, colleges give the education process of the creation, food service methods, and management, while on the job-training training is given by the industry. In addition, education has been characterized as a field of multidisciplinary contemplate, which brings the points of view of numerous controls, particularly those found in the sociologies, to sustain on specific areas of use and practice in the hospitality industry (Riegel and Dallas, 2006). As indicated by Johanson et al. (2010) there are some essential skills required by the hospitality industry, for example, Communication abilities; featuring of relational abilities and language skills whether oral and written. The capability to talk confidently to clients, supervisors, and colleagues is an expertise required and utilized consistently. Alongside that, having the capability to impart thoughts to lead, motivate, educate, train, and facilitate frequently includes communicating skill. Communication skills must keep on being critical for positions in hospitality tasks. Zegward and Hodges (2003) looked at competency as an individual trademark, and Hodges and Burchell (2003) incorporated the dependence on individual capability as opposed to technical ability. According to Zeithaml et al. (2006), in hospitality industry managers are searching for a level of service competence such as, knowledge, skills, and a tendency for service job such as, attitude and interest. Hospitality Managers frequently comment on the absence of readiness of students entering the hospitality working environment (Kember and Leung, 2005; Barrie, 2006) and that they are searching for work- ready include people with an extensive variety of mixed abilities (Yorke and Harvey, 2005).



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Hospitality industry’s perceptions relating to hospitality graduates Hospitality industry is considered a labour intensive; therefore, human recourses play a significant role in the industry whenever they are looking to hire employees (Grobler and Diedericks, 2009). Consequently, significant hospitality education curriculums are basic for a definitive accomplishment of this industry (Kay and Russette, 2000). The nature of the HR relies upon having the appropriate level of education, industry training, talented, and committed to industry tasks. In any case, it was noticed that over 30% of the aggregate management workforces in hospitality industry do not possess a basic capability in the hospitality industry. The hospitality industry hires graduates at entry-level or middle level positions depend on the skills they have. Hospitality managers’ mentioned that graduates are not willing to begin at the base, since they trust that their capabilities should give them quick access to middle management. On the other hand, those in the hospitality industry are revealed that newcomers need to learn the cultural awareness and the actions of the business through intensive on the job-training (Moyle, 2008). Hospitality industry expectations Hospitality education looks to furnish undergraduates with the required aptitudes for good work opportunity and for better future occupation. From the undergraduates perspective, their choice and satisfaction with their hospitality programs and establishments, future profession prospects and simple direction to the business are ranked the higher scores in the undergraduate determination (Alhelalat et al., 2009; Gray et al., 2003). In addition, establishment's reputation, academic quality, program accreditation, and industry acknowledgment were a response to a central issue identified with what undergraduates require from their academic programs and instructors (Crisp, 2010; Spake et al., 2010; Gray et al., 2003). Hospitality Industry censured the institutions for tourism and hospitality education for unplanned individuals properly, and giving them the required training by the industry (Airey, 1988). Gill et al., (2000) added that the skills required by hospitality industry are gathered into three classifications: industry-particular or vocational skills (mostly specialized aptitudes, for example, food service and arrangement, stock management, cost control); generic skills (e.g. managerial skills, communication, problem-solving, selling skills) and competence getting from attitude to the workplace (e.g. enthusiasm, responsibility, the will to learn).


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Key requirements for hospitality employees It is essential to distinguish between the key skills, competencies, and characteristics of hospitality staffs to decide the basic factors that help in the accomplishment of a hospitality graduate. Many studies have recognized interpersonal skills development as a main key of significance for graduates in the work environment (Nelson and Dopson, 1999; Raybould and Wilkins, 2006; Spowart, 2011). Hospitality interested for undergraduates have transferable competencies, communication, activity, inventiveness, and initiative, which empowers them to be a piece of an adaptable and versatile workforce (Bennett, 2002; Bennett et al., 1999). Hospitality Managers additionally required personal characteristics, for example, the ability to adapt to pressure, react to a change and intercultural relational skills. It is conceivable that education providers are not sufficiently responsive to the changing idea of work, the working environment and the prerequisites of managers (Gow and McDonald, 2000). Hospitality industry requires various skills of hospitality specialists, and these skills include an extensive variety of individual capacities and characteristics such as, Attitudinal (Lafer, 2004) – timeliness, loyalty and discipline

• Technical (Baum, 2002, 2006) – numeracy, education, frameworks learning • Generic or soft skills (Baum, 2006; Raybould and Wilkins, 2005, 2006) – e.g. communication, critical thinking • Emotional (Hochschild, 1983) – the capacity to oversee feelings in the work environment • Esthetic (Nickson et al., 2005; Warhurst and Nickson, 2007) – "to be looks great" and "sounding elegant" • Cultural (Arora and Rohmetra, 2010; Baum et al., 2007; Dawson et al., 2011; Mkono, 2010) – a familiarity with social assorted variety • Experiential (Baum, 2006) – the capacity to develop through involvement • Linguistic (Blue and Harun, 2003), and • Transferable (Bennett, 2002). Kay and Russette (2000) recognized the interpersonal skill of a person as a center competency in the hospitality industry. Fallows and Steven (2000) likewise reasoned that individual achievement and performance are upgraded through abnormal amounts of interpersonal skills. This point of view is upheld in later investigations; for instance, done by Hind et al. (2007), Huang and Lin (2011) and Lolli (2013). Interpersonal skills have been valued among the most essential competencies for entrants graduated to the hospitality



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industry (Kay and Russette, 2000; Chung-Herrera et al., 2003; Tesone and Ricci, 2005).

Research methods Sample A Random sample of 280 operational hospitality middle managers was chosen randomly by using cluster sampling due to the large population, which spread, over a large geographical area. The target groups for this research were the hotels of international chains in Egypt, such as Hilton, Marriott, Four Seasons, Sheraton, Kempinsky and Radisson Blu.

Research instrument The research instrument used in this study was a semi-structured survey based on the research questions and literature review. The survey instrument builds based on the academic and practical collection. The academic competency was based on the model: leadership competency model of Chung-Herrera, Enz, and Lankau (2003) – for employees holding non-managerial positions. However, the practical competency was based competency of standard training procedures for five-star hotel chain. Survey developed to ascertain hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions about the fresh employment of Graduates in the hospitality industry who had studied at the department of hotel management in different faculties of tourism and hotel management. The instrument consisted of twenty skills to rate the level of essential competencies and qualifications required by the industry. All questions used in the questionnaire had responses, which were rated on the 5-point Likert scale. In order to make answers more clear and precise, both of the competency models were presented in a scale, where managers had to rank competencies from Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree on a Likert scale of 1 to 5, where: 1 = Strongly Disagree 2 = Disagree 3 = neither disagree nor agree 4 = Agree 5 = Strongly Agree A modified questionnaire was used in a pilot test involving 20 hospitality managers and Hospitality academics to identify problems regarding comprehensibility of the questions as recommended by Dillman (2007). After analysis of the pilot test data, a few minor modifications were made to the format of the questionnaire before it was delivered to all participants

Data collection The survey was conducted at five-star hotel chain, Egypt. The survey was delivered personally to directors of Human Recourses who were a contact members at each of the participating hotels. Director of Human Recourses was responsible for ensuring that the survey was administered to managers. 280 questionnaires were distributed, and 214 (76%) were completed and


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considered to be valid for research purposes. Survey collected personally from each director of Human Recourses.

Data analysis The SPSS version 24.0 was used for all analyses. Response percentages in each category were calculated and presented in tabular form. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to analyze the data and verify the gaps that may exist between hospitality expectations and perceptions about Employment of Graduates. Factor analysis was used to group the different competencies needed by hospitality industry

Internal consistency To test the measurement consistency of the constraint dimensions, reliability analyses were conducted. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient scores indicated that the items used to measure these constructs were marginally reliable, as alpha scores for perception were .72 and .68 for expectation. Nunnally (1994) greater than or close to the standard of 0.70 recommended the reliability alphas, which are designed to check the internal consistency of items within each variable.

Results and Discussion A careful analysis of Table 1 shows that 17 out of 20 competencies mean score differences are statistically significant; p < .01, p < .02 level, and t-values are greater than +/-2.00 levels (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994; Hair et al., 1998). Moreover, a Mean score for manager’s expectation and perception are above the midpoint 3.00, indicating respondents agreed, if not strongly agreed, with the items listed under these competencies related variables.



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Table 1: Items related to hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions about Employment of Graduates in the hospitality industry

Item Perceptions Expectations Gap t Sig.

(2-tailed)

1. Work ethics Graduated, seek to protect and build the company's reputation and the morale of its colleagues by engaging in conduct that builds respect and take whatever actions are necessary to correct or prevent inappropriate conduct of others

3.799 4.320 -.520 -

5.09 .000

2. Flexibility Graduated, prepared to keep different hours than the rest of the workforce. He is also flexible in the way he works..

3.697 4.307 -.609 -

6.13 .000

3. Language Skills Graduated required, to have language skills because they allow him to be better able to communicate with his clients. His Language skills can also help to build better relationships with customer and can prove to be invaluable in the long run.

3.669 4.307 -.637 -

5.92 .000

4. Administrative Graduated have the enough skills to deal with personnel and financial management of the business

3.846 4.307 -.460 -

4.49 .000

5. Enthusiasm Selected graduated are enthusiastic about their jobs and strive to do the best work possible. They want to give their customers the best experience available

3.814 4.037 -.223 -

2.25 .025

6. Pro-active graduated must be very thorough in their work and realize that any oversight could result in customer dissatisfaction

3.832 4.223 -.390 -

3.40 .001

7. Communication Skills Graduated have an excellent communication skill. They can communicate effectively both orally and in writing

3.186 4.158 -.972 -

7.67 .000

8. Teamwork Preferred graduated have the ability to work well with others and can be a productive member of a team. They value the contributions of everyone.

3.311 4.153 -.841 -

8.23 .000

9. Strategic thinking Graduated have a vision for the future of the department/property.

3.418 4.134 -.716 -

6.39 .000

10. Emotional Graduated have the ability to manage emotions in the workplace

4.148 4.255 -.106 -

1.51 .132

11. Cultural Awareness Graduated required to work with people from different cultural backgrounds. His ability to be culturally aware and get past his own cultural norms is crucial to building a successful career. He is also required to break free from cultural barriers and help his customers feel more comfortable

3.083 4.069 -.986 -

8.22 .000


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Continued

12. Interpersonal Skills graduated have top notch interpersonal skills, as the very nature of the business is to provide spectacular customer service

3.307 4.018 -.711 -

6.59 .000

13. Leadership Graduated have the ability to turn ideas into productive action and make significant contributions to an organization's overall success.

3.646 4.009 -.362 -

3.01 .002

14. Organized graduated have to be organized and multitask without difficulty

3.204 3.865 -.660 -

5.64 .000

15. Commitment Graduated to be committed to ensuring customer satisfaction. You must do whatever it takes to keep customers happy and create repeat business.

3.111 3.711 -.600 -

4.06 .000

16. Computer Know-How Graduated have a good computer skill and is familiar with a wide range of technological applications that are used within the industry.

3.200 3.641 -.441 -

3.09 .002

17. Technical graduated have the sufficient knowledge and skills essential to producing the product or service

3.055 4.088 -1.032 -

9.32 .000

18. Can-do Attitude Graduated able to can-do attitude that will make everyone feel at ease with him. He have punctuality, loyalty and discipline

3.353 2.669 .683 4.84 .000

19. Multitasking Graduated should be multitasks and able to achieve more than one objective in the same time

3.572 3.497 .074 .532 .595

20. Knowledgeable of Safety/Hygiene Issues Graduated are familiar with rules of safety and hygiene as they apply to food serving places, hotels, and other places where people spend time.

3.446 3.311 .134 .962 .337

Based on the data presented in Table 1, the most negative gaps are found to be technical competency concerning the knowledge and skills essential to producing the product or service (-1.032). Cultural Awareness (-.98605), Communication Skills (-.972), teamwork (-.841), Strategic thinking (-.716), Interpersonal Skills (-.711), Organized (-.660), Language Skills (-.637), Flexibility (-.609), Commitment (-.600). However, the lowest gaps score calculated belongs to the Work ethics (-.520), Administrative (-.460), Computer Know-How (-.441), and Enthusiasm (-.223). The pervious negative gaps demonstrate that hospitality expectation with a certain attribute is less than its perception. These results explain that the highest important negative gap found is a technical competency. This result on contrast with a research conducted by Raybould & Wilkins (2006) in the UK and US. Their



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result has found technical attributes were less important than generic interpersonal and human relations attributes. However, result consistent with a previous study by Crebert et al., (2004) who emphasized on the significance of technical skills during the study and after graduation. The professional idea of hospitality management is ideal to use work-coordinated learning as a strategy for exchanging classroom exercises, and practical lectures to the work put. Hospitality Education providing such curriculums have the basics of physical facilities that allow for teaching of technical skills such as restaurant service, culinary art, and services to clients, which students will require in the hospitality industry. Those students having a mandatory semester of work-incorporated then exchange these technical skills to the genuine workplace. On other hand these results supported with a previous studies such as, Harkison et al., (2011) who found a gap exists between what hospitality require and what hospitality education provides. He explained that the aptitudes gap alludes to the contrasting viewpoint of managers and teachers on the necessities and abilities expected to enter the workforce. Baum (2002) and Spowart (2011) added that in the hospitality industry, many employers consider that new recruits are not work prepared and not being instructed to address the issues of the industry. Therefore, hospitality management educators are encouraged to focus on the variables with the biggest negative gap that is statistically significant because these variables are not meet the hospitality expectations. One of the most important results is the positive variable gap of graduated attitude (.683). This indicates that the manager’s perception with a graduated attitude is higher than their expectation. This result consistent with a pervious study by Harkison et al. (2011) who stated that there is a uniqueness in view between hospitality graduates and industry managerd; while students think that their knowledge and skills after graduation are sufficient to get a job in the industry managers focus on personality and initiative. Industry executives' perspectives recommend that managers esteem attitude characteristics more than skills. A paired t-test conducted on the perception and expectation means to determine whether there is a significant difference between the means or whether this difference is due to random chance. Table 2 shows the descriptive statistics for hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions


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about Employment of Graduates in the hospitality industry. The result indicates that the average mean of skills perceived by Graduates in the hospitality industry (70.73) less than the expected skills from them (78.05). Based on the results of the paired t-test in table 3, the results showing a statistical difference between perception and expectation gaps in 17 items out of twenty and thus should be considered.

Table 3: Paired Samples Test- Perception and expectation

Pair 1:

Mean Std.

Deviation

95% Confidence

Interval of the Difference

t df Sig. (2-tailed)

Lower Upper Perception-expectation

-7.316 13.371 -

9.113 -

5.518 -8.023 214 .000

The dependent samples t-test showed an average reduction in perception scores with 7.316 than the expectation scores with a standard deviation of 13.371 in the sample of 214 Employment of Graduates in the hospitality industry. This results in a t-value of t = -8.023 with 214 degrees of freedom. The dependent sample t-test was used to account for managers differences in the perception-expectation of the Graduates. The observed decrease is highly significant (p = 0.001).Therefore, the result reveals that there is a gap difference in means of expectation and perception competencies about the employment of graduates in the hospitality industry. In addition, with 99.9% confidence the observed reduction in perception score can also be found in the general population. With a 5% error rate, that the difference in perception and expectation of the graduates' scores will be between -9.11384 and -5.51872.

Table 2: Mean for hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions

Mean N Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean Pair 1 Perception 70.7395 215 10.22856 .69758

expectation 78.0558 215 8.32161 .56753



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This finding is consistent with the literature that criticism the higher education programs were in fact getting to be distant from the immediate needs of the industry (Beth et al. 2003). Sharp difference has been noticed in the hospitality literature between hospitality educators and industry experts with respect to the degree to which hospitality educators are responsible for competencies, internship, and competency development (Harper et al., 2005; Williams 2005). In accordance with the findings of Jebril (2015) there is a gap between hospitality education outcomes and industry needs in relation to what competencies should graduates acquire and the degree to which they match what hospitality industry requires. The academic outcomes and business essentials of the hospitality industry are not identical in reality as the current field study concludes.

Factor analysis To examine the variables of the competencies required by the hospitality industry for graduates hotel employees, a principal component factor analysis with varimax rotation was implemented. As the KMO (Kaiser-Mayer-Olkin) measure of sampling adequacy indicated .721, the factor analysis was believed to be a useful validation of the factor model. The mean skills gaps for all twenty skills required by hospitality industry items are determined. The higher the negative perceived- expected of the skills gap, the lesser is the chance of hospitality managers’ expectations meeting the perceptions’ level. Hence, seventeen items having higher mean service quality gaps were identified and analyzed through Factor Analysis. The 17 items yielded five factors with eigenvalues greater than 1.0 (Table 4). These factors explained 54.58% of the variance and were labeled: (1) Transferable competency, (2) Professional Competencies, (3) generic competency, (4) Analytical skills, and (5) Conceptual skill. Table 4 shows the analysis of the 17 items was conducted, followed by varimax rotation to examine their dimensionality. The criteria for the number of factors extracted was determined on the basis of percentage of variance extracted by the factors reach at least 40% of the cumulative variance. Items with eigenvalue equal to or greater than 1 were chosen for interpretation. Factor analysis identified five underlying dimensions


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Table 4: Rotated Component Matrix for hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions about Employment of Graduates

in the hospitality industry 1 2 3 4 5 Q3 .861 Q1 .846 Q2 .804 Q7 .514 Q6 .407 Q17 .663 Q8 .634 Q15 .610 Q12 .810 Q11 .785 Q13 .593 Q16 .817 Q4 .622 Q14 .557 Q9 .662 Q5 .579 Q18 .578 Eigen Values 4.391 2.511 1.511 1.347 1.158 Variance Explained (%) 21.95 12.55 7.55 6.73 5.78 Cum Variance Explained (%)

21.95 34.50 42.05 48.79 54.58

From the previous matrix, the highest factor loading for each item is specified. The results indicate that items 3, 1,2, 7, and 6 combine to define the first factor; items 17,8 and 15 combine to define the second factor; the third factor contained the items 12, 11, and 13; items 16,4 and 14 combine to define the fourth factor and item 9,5 and 18 are identified in the fifth factor. The underlying dimension for each factor is identified and shown in Table 5



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Table 5: Factors and their underlying dimensions

Factor 1

Q3 Language Skills

Transferable

Competencies

Q1 Work ethics

Q2 Flexibility

Q7 Communication Skills

Q6 Pro-active

Factor 2

Q17 Technical,

Professional Competencies

Q8 Teamwork

Q15 Commitment

Factor 3

Q12 Interpersonal Skills

Generic Competencies Q11 Cultural Awareness

Q13 Leadership

Factor 4

Q16 Computer Know-How

Analytical skills Q4 Administrative

Q14 Organized

Factor 5

Q9 Strategic thinking

Conceptual skill Q5 Enthusiasm

Q18 Can-do Attitude

These groups of competencies are very important for both of hospitality education and industry as they can help to determine and prioritize the needed competencies. The importance of this groping is supported by a study by Millar et al., (2008) who explained that when industry managers and educators specify the actual aptitudes and skills required by hospitality industry, they can categorize them into different groups, accordingly empower management to quickly assess where an employee performing well or lags in a particular group. As educators and professionals communicate with each other, it will become easier to identify the competencies that can be incorporated into the groups and then into classroom curriculum to


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Practical implications The current study helps to focus on competencies under hospitality expectation, which need immediate attention to enhance the hospitality education. Furthermore, to raise the standards of hospitality education, procedure, and outcomes in relation to the particular competencies required by the industry; specially technical competency concerning the knowledge and skills essential to producing the product or service, Cultural Awareness, Communication Skills, teamwork, Strategic thinking, Interpersonal Skills, Organized, Language Skills, and commitment.

Conclusions This study mainly is focused on identifying the skills and competencies required for the hospitality industry and middle management expectation and precipitation about the employment of graduates in the hospitality industry. The findings have implications for management, instructors, fresh employees, and students. Hospitality management is urged to structure the induction and training of new graduates exploit their solid mentor competencies. The implication of the above findings is that hospitality management institutions should take care of those competencies perceived as essential for the field by rehearsing experts, and provide curriculum to develop them. The results of the study achieved the research objectives, as the results indicate that a gap found between hospitality managers’ expectations and perceptions about the employment of graduates in the hospitality industry. The expectations of the managers are determined by the essential competencies and qualifications required by the industry, which graduated, acquired from the education of hospitality management. The results of the study indicate that hospitality graduates' competencies are not met to the industry requirement. Middle management requires that students should have more Transferable Competencies, Professional Competencies, Generic Competencies, Analytical skills, and Conceptual skill in order to match the standards of the industry for hospitality graduates' Competencies. However, the industry also has certain perceptions to measure skills and ability to manage the operation, time, situations, and guests. It is important to determine the gap that may exist between hospitality expectations and perceptions about employment of graduates, so that graduates are better developed and trained for a career in a challenging industry. The results indicated that there are some gaps between hospitality expectations and perceptions about Employment of Graduates in



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the hospitality industry. In fact, the gap analysis approach conducted to evaluate the hospitality education outcomes rather than the graduated. The results are in contrast to a study done by Cho et al., (2007) on the gap between hospitality education and industry which explain the significant gaps and interesting differences on perceptions about hospitality education exist between what student acquired from skills during his study and hospitality needs. This result can help of both the educators and hospitality professionals to prioritize and emphasize the items with highest significant negative gaps and de-emphasized the items with positive or non-significant gaps. In addition, according to Milman & Ricci (2004) closure of the perception and expectation gap between hospitality education and industry is considered the main key to reduce the employees’ turnover. The most negative gaps are found to be technical competency concerning the knowledge and skills essential to producing the product or service. This competency needs further developments and improvements by hospitality education and hospitality industry. The hospitality industry should develop the cooperation with hospitality, educational institutions; this cooperation could endeavor to develop the internship and curriculums in which meet the hospitality requirements and expectations. Interestingly, the positive variable gap found of graduated was the attitude of hospitality graduates. This indicates that the manager’s perception with a graduated attitude is higher than their expectation. The factor analysis prioritized the competencies needed by the hospitality industry into 5 groups, namely, Transferable competencies, professional competencies, generic competence, analytical skills, and conceptual skill.

The implication of the study The implications of the findings can assist instructors to raise the standards of their education procedure and outcomes in relation to the particular skills required by the industry; especially technical competency concerning the knowledge and skills essential to producing the product or service, cultural awareness, communication skills, teamwork, strategic thinking, interpersonal skills, organized, language skills, commitment. . In addition, there is a requirement for genuine endeavors for academic-industry association in deciding the course content and approaches to expand the graduates’ employment skills. The findings also recommend the absences of a solid relationship among hospitality education programs and industry professionals. These relationships may become stronger through enhancing training programs and developing new activities through the cooperation of the industry by providing summer training, seminars for the students to let them know the hospitality requirements and companies’ goals and mission. In addition, hospitality institutions could seek to set up working associations


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with human resource management and hospitality professionals for the purpose of the community and sharing of information that will upgrade the perception of graduate preparation upon entry to the workforce. There is a need for implementing an assessment by hospitality educators to enhance student competency development so that a close the gaps between what hospitality needs and what hospitality education providers.

Limitations Despite many statistically significant results, the study is not free from limitations. The study is conducted in five star hotels with a quantitative approach; hence, the findings cannot be generalized to all categories of the hospitality industry such as, four, three star hotels and independent organizations. Future studies in other hotels categories are necessary for a complete understanding of hospitality expectations and perception about Employment of Graduates in the hospitality industry. Second, the method for examining career goals and expectations used simple descriptive statistics, and factor analysis, thus the study has limitations in explaining the complicated relationships among different measurement such as, correlations, and regression analysis. Future Research may aim to explore the real reasons behind existing of gaps between hospitality industry and hospitality education Originality/value – The position taken in this study recognizes the need to enhance the student’s competencies and skills to meet the requirement of hospitality industry. This enhancement needs collaboration of both of hospitality educators and professionals to adapt curriculums, training, and development plan to satisfy the hospitality managers’ expectations

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How will web and social media usage affect the future of museums?

Case Study: The Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo Dr. Hamida Abdel Samie Mohamed Dr.Moataz Ahmed Marie

Abstract Museums worldwide are starting to explore the potentials of web and social media as new channels for marketing, communication and collaboration with their target audiences. The overall objective of this study is to describe the current usage of web and social media by the Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo. The study adopted a mixed research design that integrates both quantitative and qualitative approaches. First, (15) semi-structured interviews were conducted with the museum staff members. Second, an exploratory survey was administered to (140) participants that addressed questions about the overall assessment of the website design. The main findings indicated that museum staff was actively implementing a high advanced, innovative technological strategy. Besides, the results of the survey showed that participants were partially satisfied with the current design of the museum's website. Based on the previous findings, the researchers recommended strategies for museums' managers that could guide them to introduce new technologies.

Keywords Museum of Islamic Art, Museum Websites, Museum 2.0, Social Media, Social Networking Sites.

Introduction Introducing new technologies based on web and social media can assist museums in reshaping their traditional products and creating new cultural experience for their audiences (Padilla-Meléndez and Del Águila-Obra, 2013). Through the internet, museums may be able to use their online presence to enhance their relationship marketing practices in more innovative and less expensive ways (Chung et al., 2009). The website of the museum can be considered as an important marketing tool and also an effective way for reaching new target market segments (Corbos and Popescu, 2011; Lehman and Roach, 2011). Museums can easily provide online information concerning the exhibitions and objects, besides other additional information about the subject of the museum, which is not directly related to the

Mohamed, H Marie, M ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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museum’s physical collections (Morse, 1999; Ke and Hwang, 2000). Museum professionals and directors should think critically about their websites and the information they provide from the perspective of museum visitors both before and after museum the actual visit (Marty, 2007; 2008). The experience resulted from visiting the museum websites can significantly influence users' intentions to revisit websites for personal and professional purposes and actually to visit the museums themselves (Pavlou, 2012). Social media usage has been widespread for a long time within the archaeological and museum sectors (Pett, 2012). Social media were identified as the emerging technologies that have a great impact on the museum environment, especially in terms of education and interpretation (Whelan, 2011). Social media are considered as one sign of the so-called “Museum 2.0” (Srinivasan et al., 2009). Museum 2.0 is neither tool- nor application focused (Srinivasan et al., 2009: 269). Museum 2.0 creates an environment in which museums improve people's lives by facilitating the construction and strengthening of diverse communities, and by supporting social interaction among members of those communities (Srinivasan et al., 2009). Social media has been adopted so easily by museums for its potential to help visitors co-create and interact non-personally with museum exhibits themselves (Stuedahl and Smørdal, 2011). The majority of museums have limited resources, thus usage of social media becomes particularly interesting as they can achieve great impact with limited financial resources (Hausmann, 2012). Less attention has been devoted to the usage of web and social media technologies by the Egyptian museums. Gomma and Yousef (2014) evaluated the websites of Egyptian museums and concluded that many Egyptian museums still lack the technical expertise to participate in the digital revolution. To this purpose, the recent paper presents a case study of a medium-sized cultural institution, the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) in Cairo; which owns an outstanding, well advanced website design. This website provides the visitor with all information he/she needs along different consumption phases such as: visiting times, mission and vision, history, collections, maps, videos and photos of the museum. The website linked to the pages of the museum on different social media such as: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, Google+ and Instagram. Moreover, some publications and periodicals of the museum's library are available for downloading through a number of links on this website. The rationale of the study is to understand how web and social media tools can affect the future of museums and propose some strategies with regard to their value as service delivery tools. In keeping with the purpose of the study, three research questions were formulated:

How will web and social media usage affect the future of museums? Case Study: The Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo


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How do the museum staff members utilize web and social media? What is the role of web and social media in marketing the Museum of Islamic Art? How do visitors perceive the overall design of the museum website?

Literature Review Web Usage and Museums Nowadays, many museums have already established websites and advocated to invest increasingly more money to improve their quality (Pallud and Straub, 2014). Museums can develop their websites to be new channels with online communities such as museum amateurs and professionals (Nuo, 2013). Moritz (1996) listed three reasons for the establishment of museums' websites: marketing museum's art works, raising visitor's awareness of their exhibits and improving their educational and research mission. Through their websites, museums would inspire an environment in which visitors can gain new original experiences and ideas, besides exploring the exhibited objects and art works (Fotakis and Economides, 2008). A successful website must sustain technological advances, meet visitors’ expectations and deliver several essential features to encourage a better online experience (Zafiropoulos and Vrana, 2005; Fotakis and Economides, 2008). Goals of museum websites may include life enrichment, knowledge enhancement, online learning, entertainment and ultimate experience (Belanger et al., 2006). There was a fear that museum websites would discourage people from visiting the museum (Marty, 2004). It is hard to define why the museum guests physically visit museums and virtually directed to the museum websites (Kravchyna and Hastings, 2002). Some people go to museums to explore temporary exhibits and permanent collections, while others go to meet people and museum staff (Kravchyna and Hastings, 2002). However, most museum experts assured that websites offer unique opportunities for encouraging people visiting the museum (Marty, 2004). In general, the well-designed website should keep; dynamic, stable updating, managing and innovative approaches (Lazarinis et al. 2008). Websites dealing with more information are more likely to get picked up by famous search engines (Lovelock, 2000). Schweibenz (2004) classified museum websites into four main categories: the (brochure museum) through which the website contains the basic information about the museum, the (content museum) where the website gives detailed information about museum’s collection and invites the virtual visitor to explore its exhibits online, the (learning museum) upon which the website offers different points of access


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to its virtual visitors according to their age, background and knowledge , the (virtual museum) through which the website provides not only information about the institution’s collection but also links to digital collections of others. However, some museums design their websites without deep strategic planning and with little impact on museum-visitor relationships (Lehman and Roach, 2011).Museum directors and professionals may face many challenges when designing their websites, only some of which are technical (Coburn and Bacam, 2004). For this purpose, several studies for evaluating museums' websites have been conducted (Kabassi, 2017). The main problem is represented in the deficiency of a satisfying and adequate website design (Fotakis and Economides, 2008). Hertzum (1998) suggested that museum websites may suffer from three main problems: • The majority of museum sites have been established without a clear vision. • The sites have not been evaluated to find out whether they match the users’ needs and wishes. • The material on the sites tends to duplicate material in the physical museums rather than to rethink it, given the possibilities provided by the new medium. By evaluating the museums’ websites, the web designers and museum staff would identify the shortages and deficiencies of their design (Fotakis and Economides, 2008). Pallas and Economides (2008) found out that websites provided a satisfactory content while many sites had incomplete content when they evaluated art museums’ websites worldwide in North America and Europe. Mason and McCarthy (2008) concluded the main features of the New Zealand museums websites to be: technical competence, navigability, visitor information, collections, mission, visitor relationships and marketing. Holdgaard and Simonsen (2011) evaluated Danish museums; they found out that significant differences were recorded depending on size and purpose of the website. Many websites are simply brochures holding ordinary information, while others pose high advances of Web 2.0 applications (Holdgaard and Simonsen, 2011). Capriotti and Pardo-Kuklinski (2012) examined the degree of dialogic communication developed by Spanish museums on the Internet, they found out that vast majority of the museums is simply using the Internet and the web 2.0 as new means to create and present old media. Filippini et al., (2012) have focused on a better understanding of people’s motivation for visiting a museum website and whether this motivation has an influence on the way they engage online. Planning a museum visit is ranked as the primary reason people visit museum websites (Goldman and Schaller, 2004). Kravchyna and Hastings (2002) found that (57%) of museum website users visit museum websites both before and after they visit physical museums. Similarly, Thomas and Carey (2005) found that



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(70%) of museum visitors specifically looked for online information prior to a museum visit. Moreover, Gomma and Yousef (2014) designed a conceptual model based on a range of advanced services and technological facilities to be examined when analyzing the Egyptian museum websites. The study concluded that the existing museum websites are very limited as most of the Egyptian museums still have not constructed their websites yet (Gomma and Yousef, 2014).

Social Media Usage and Museums In recent years, many museums have started adopting various forms of social media tools, like social networking sites, blogs, wikis, photo and video sharing, podcasts, virtual environments and tagging, for the following reasons: to engage people with museum content, broadcast cultural propaganda, communicate and marketing their campaigns, influence target audiences, provide interactive cultural experience and create new relationships between museums and the public (Dicker, 2010; Gu, 2012; Pett, 2012). Museum visitors may express their opinions and experiences, and post their own photos and videos taken during their actual visit (Pett, 2012). Consequently, using social media transforms them from passive observers into active participators and creators (Villaespesa, 2013). In this issue, social media could be used to encourage audiences to respond to museums efforts and relate their experiences back to themselves, to other communities of interest and to the museum itself in meaningful ways (Kelly and Russo, 2008). Broadly speaking, social media provides accessibility and the opportunity to engage with the historical content even outside the physically barriers of the museum (Knell, 2003). In 2004, Web 2.0 was first introduced to describe a platform whereby content and applications are no longer created and published by individuals, but instead are continuously modified by all users in a participatory and collaborative approach (Kaplan and Heinlein, 2010). In 2005, User Generated Content (UGC) was applied to describe the various forms of media content that are publicly available and created by end-users (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Hence, social media are defined as" the group of Internet-based applications that are built on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of User Generated Content" (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010:61). Social media can be also defined as those applications that foster online communication, networking, and/or collaboration with target audience (Russo et al., 2008). The usage of social media by museums has been categorized into three main fields (Kidd, 2011): marketing (which promotes the face of an institution), inclusivity (which develops a real and online community) and collaborative (which goes beyond communication and promotes collaboration with the audience). Additionally,


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the integration of social media into museums’ curatorial and practices preserves a situation in which these media are primarily used to engage visitors in short-term voting and rating, or to engage communities in collecting images (Stuedhal, 2014).Social media have been used to create a participative cultural experience (Russo et al., 2008). With many museums undertaking digitization initiatives, it is easy to upload this content onto the Internet (Whelan, 2011). It was stated that social sites also facilitate conversation surrounding the document, making the content and the collection more accessible (Whelan, 2011). Thus, social media have the potential to become a learning experience (Whelan, 2011). Furthermore, social media can tap the collective intelligence of a museum’s community to uncover facts and stories that would otherwise be lost (The Marcus Institute for Digital Education in the Arts, 2010).This can be done on sites such as Flickr where visitors may be able to identify people or places in archival photographs (Whelan, 2011).Generally speaking, social media have become an important tool of cost effective marketing for museums (Whelan, 2011). There are several studies focused on museums and how they apply social media platforms In this issue, Zafiropoulos and Vrana (2005) classified the information features into six dimensions according to their thematic similarity: Contact -communication, Visit the museum, The museum, Education, Website features and Use of social media. While, Boost (2009) examined how museums used social media in Belgium. Additionally, Kelly (2010) explained how Web 2.0 and social media were changing the ways of engaging and communicating with audiences in museums. Moreover, Vogelsang and Minder (2011) investigated why Swiss museums would not use social media and how to solve the problem. A comparative study among several European countries and the USA was conducted by López et al. (2010). Kidd (2011) highlighted the use of social media in the museums sector in the UK and explored the challenges of utilizing social media. Furthermore, Fletcher and Lee (2012) investigated social media uses in American museums. According to their findings, museums mostly use one-way communication strategies at Facebook and Twitter focusing on event listing, reminders, and reaching larger or newer audiences by increasing the number of fans and promotional messaging (Fletcher and Lee, 2012). Pett (2012) demonstrated how social media can be implemented within the museum sector for marketing, for a participatory multi-vocal dialogue, for creating a strong online brand and for creating a research presence. Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) categorized the social media tools into the following:



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1- Collaborative projects Collaborative projects can be either wikis such as the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, or social bookmarking applications such as the web service Delicious (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Virtual Museum Worlds can be considered as one famous example for museum wiki (Mancini and Carreras, 2010).It was created by San Francisco’s Exploratorium to be a virtual space for education and a web resource for professionals (Mancini and Carreras, 2010).

2- Blogs Blogs are special types of websites that usually display date-stamped entries in reverse chronological order (OECD, 2007). They are the social media equivalent of personal web pages and can appear in different forms, from personal diaries describing the author’s life to summaries of all relevant information in one specific content area (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Museum blogs often include posts about specific subjects (e.g. the conservation process, the stories surrounding an object, or other supplementary contextual information) (Walker, 2014). However, blogs are still little used by museums to communicate with their audience for a number of reasons (Kaushik , 2007): High maintenance and time requirements; Fear of negative comments and of dissemination of an image of the

institution that contradicts its real/intended image; Non-interest in an overly direct relationship with users.

3- Content Communities Content communities exist for a wide range of different media types, including text (e.g., BookCrossing,), photos (e.g., Flickr), videos (e.g., YouTube), and PowerPoint presentations (e.g., Slideshare) (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Flickr, first appeared as a tool to collect images from the web and publish them on other pages, offers another advantage to share files and organize large collections of pictures, indexing them using passwords, tags or places (Mancini and Carreras, 2010). Many archives, museums and libraries have used this application to disseminate images of old documents and objects that are not normally accessible (Mancini and Carreras, 2010). Instagram, first launched in October 2010, includes dedicated mobile applications that allow users to take and direct photographs by adding filters and frames, and to share them online where other users can react through comments and likes (Weilenmann et al., 2013). YouTube is considered as the main social network dedicated to video sharing, where users can upload,


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view and comment videos (Lazzeretti et al., 2015). Museums increasingly used YouTube for affecting and maintaining interests in institutional activities and events (Lazzeretti et al., 2015).

4- Social Networking Sites (SNS) "They are applications that enable users to connect by creating personal information profiles, inviting friends and colleagues to have access to those profiles, and sending e-mails and instant messages between each other" (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010:63). SNS can assist museums to maximize the effectiveness of their marketing practices (Lopez et al., 2010; Lehman and Roach, 2011). Many SNS focus on specific topics (e.g., gapyear.com for travel-related topics) and are developed around specific functions such as location-based services (e.g., Foursquare provides reviews for establishments or attractions based on the user’s geographic location) or visual image-oriented communication (e.g., Pinterest) (Chung et al., 2014). According to Wikipedia, the largest social networking sites are U.S.-based Facebook and MySpace (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Facebook provides a platform for connecting with friends through a variety of tools (posting, private and instant messaging, photo sharing, comments, group pages, etc.). Facebook is especially valued for not only its ability to maintain a relationship with users who may have been only briefly interested in a particular collection or have visited the museum once in their life time but also for having an opportunity to keep up with museum's events (Pett, 2012). There has been an increase in the number of museum groups at Facebook, formed both of enthusiasts (I Love Museums, UW Museology) and of professionals, members and curators (Museum Professionals Unite Across Facebook, International Museum Web Professionals) (Mancini and Carreras, 2010). Twitter is "the most popular micro-blogging platform that enables users to exchange text-based messages of up to 140 characters" (Lazzeretti et al., 2015: 275).Most museums start using Twitter to improve the museum’s ability to reach new audiences and to connect with visitors in a more meaningful way (Angus, 2012; Fletcher and Lee, 2012). Fletcher and Lee (2012) revealed that museum staff adopted Twitter for multiple reasons: displaying event listings or reminder notices, posting online promotions or announcements and presenting games and quizzes to foster dialogic/conversational engagement with users. To sum up, Twitter and Facebook perform the double role of increasing one-way communication (such as the dissemination of information about collections and events) and two-way communication (such as invites to contribute and reply to followers’ comments) between the museum and its visitors (Lazzeretti et al., 2015).



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Pinterest was launched in March 2010, ranked as the third most popular social network in the US behind Facebook and Twitter (Experian Marketing Services, 2012). The social networking features of Pinterest are built around the activity of collecting digital images and videos, and pinning them to a pinboard (collection) (Hall and Zarro, 2012). Pinterest was defined as a social curation site that combines the social media features, such as sharing, liking, commenting with collecting capabilities like creation and curation (Hall and Zarro, 2012).

5- Virtual Game Worlds Virtual worlds are platforms that reproduce a three dimensional environment in which users can appear in the form of personalized avatars and interact with each other as they would in real life (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010).

6- Virtual Social Worlds The virtual world of Second Life allows people to stay in contact with members of a community and to collaborate with museums in developing ideas and events (Mancini and Carreras, 2010). Many companies and universities, including some museums, have established a presence in Second Life to attract virtual residents to their courses and products (Mancini and Carreras, 2010).Concerning the challenges of adopting social media, Haussmann (2012) identified shortage of resources, difficulties in the measurement of cost-benefit ratio and success of media campaigns as the main obstacles against a further use of social media in museums. Similarly, Fletcher and Lee (2012) mentioned shortage of time, staff and support from other staff members as the main limitations for social media usage. When social media tools are used in museums, they provide an open-ended cultural information space which is structurally unclear. This structural uncertainty can result in many unforeseen issues (Russo et al., 2006):

The museum is unable to predict the ways in which social media will be used;

It is difficult to predict the number of people who will participate (affecting download speeds and time);

It is difficult to plan for consistent length/duration of participation. Moreover, the usage of social media is threatened with potential risks (Pett, 2012).

Copyright Privacy concerns Exposure of young participants to audiences Lack of expertise in implementing the right social media solution for

a particular situation


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Maintenance of an archive can be difficult or impossible Choice of software for interactions can be harmful to the cultural

experience.

Case Study: The Museum of Islamic Art, Cairo Background The Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) in Cairo is considered one of the world's largest museums specialized in Islamic Art (Bier, 2017), as it contains one of the richest and most beautiful collections of Islamic artifacts worldwide (more than 100000) (O'Kane, 2006). These collections dating to the different eras of Islamic history include various types of objects, such as ceramics, metalwork, textiles, carpets, woodwork, glass, carved stone and ivory, jewelry and weapons (O'byrne, 1981). These artifacts were collected throughout the Islamic world, such as Egypt, China, India, Andalusia, Iran, the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant and North Africa (O'Kane et al., 2012). Furthermore, the museum houses a very important and rich collection of manuscripts and objects related to various Islamic thematic sciences such as medicine, geometry and astronomy (O'Kane, 2006). The Museum is considered the oldest museum in the world for Islamic art (Bier, 2017; Ministry of Antiquities, 2017). The idea of foundation a museum for Islamic arts firstly emerged in 1869 during the reign of Khedive Ismail (Herz, 2006; Leturcq, 2014). This idea was accomplished in 1880 during the reign of his son Khedive Tawfiq, when Frantz Pasha collected a number of Islamic artifacts and masterpieces (111 pieces) in the eastern Iwan of al-Hakim Bi Amr Allah Mosque in Gamalia (Leturcq, 2014). In 1892, a small building space was erected in the courtyard of the mosque and was called House of Arab Antiquities or The Museum of Arab Art with Frantz Pasha as its manager (Herz, 2006). In 1903, the museum's collection was moved to the current building in Bab al-Khalq square during the reign of Khedive Abbas Helmi (Bier, 2017). In 1951, the museum's name had been changed from The Arab Museum to the Museum of Islamic Art to prove that the museum's collections represent all Islamic regions not only the Arab countries (Mostafa, 1979; O'byrne, 1981). The display layout was modified in a way that the masterpieces were displayed in 23 halls according to their historical era and the material of which they were made up (www.miaegypt.org). In 2010, the museum was reopened after 8 years of renovation and comprehensive development (O'Kane et al., 2012; Leturcq, 2014). This renovation project involved the construction of a new administrative building and reorganization of the exhibition halls (Berger, 2017). After this phase of renovation, the new



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display layout becomes including approximately 2500 masterpieces (Bier, 2017). Unfortunately, on 24th January of 2014, the Museum's building and some of its collections (179 objects) were heavily damaged as a result of a terrorist attack which had targeted the Cairo Police Headquarters that stands across the street (Berger, 2017). The Museum was reopened again in January 2017, after a rehabilitation project to repair its building and restore its damaged objects (Bier, 2017). This project was carried out with the support and generous donations offered by the UNESCO, ARCE, the United Arabic Emirates, Switzerland, and Italy (Ministry of Antiquities, 2017). By this renovation project, the display layout was modified, that the new display is comprised of 25 Galleries including Islamic coins and armor (Bier, 2017) and accommodating approximately 4400 objects (Ministry of Antiquities, 2017). Moreover, the display showcases were improved, interactive computer stations were employed and a specially designed tour for the blind was introduced. Finally, two catalogues were published in Arabic and English targeting both the adults and children (www.miaegypt.org). In the field of technology, a distinguished web site has been launched for the museum (www.miaegypt.org). This website is representing a response to its mission, as it provides the user with all information he/she might need in terms of museum’s history, collections, maps, videos and photos.

Description of the Website (www.miaegypt.org) The animated dome of the Nilometer is shown on the homepage of the website with the museum’s logo in the center of it. This homepage contains some news about the museum, as well as, its mission and vision. The mission of the MIA is to display, preserve and interpret Islamic artifacts, and to reach a maximum number of national and international visitors. MIA also aims to develop education programs, encourage scientific research and collaborations as well as foster a greater understanding and appreciation of the contributions made by the Islamic civilization to world heritage in the fields of arts and sciences (www.miaegypt.org).


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Fig. 1 The Homepage of the Museum’s Website

Source: www.miaegypt.org

As shown in figure (1), the website contains the following features:

Visiting: tells the user about the museum opening times, museum entrances and the disabled parking.

Timeline: provides the user with an interesting storyline about the museum’s history and the renovation phases.

Panorama: contains a panorama for some exhibition halls such as the Hall of Eastern Islamic World, The Halls of Coin and Weapon and Medicine .

Museum Map: describes the museum's main plan.

Collections: shows a virtual tour about the museum’s various artifacts and objects, such as textile and carpets, stones, pottery and ceramic, ivory, metals, wood works, glass, coins, weapons, jewelry and manuscripts.

Research: is very important for students and researchers because it contains the museum's official scientific magazine and some publications of



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its library such as books and periodicals specialized in the Islamic art and civilization. These publications are available for downloading through a number of links on this website.

Restoration: gives documentation to the restoration works that happened to the museum’s building and objects throughout the different eras.

Media center: contains a number of photos and videos of the museum.

Workshop: provides variable information and photos about the scientific and practical workshops and training courses that are organized by the museum.

Contact us: offers the contact information such as location, phone numbers and mail.

Voice center: contains some voice records about the museum's mission and vision, important news and some halls of the museum. In addition, the website provides the user with a direct access to pages on different social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, Google+, and Instagram. Users can also download the museum flyer, which contains links of the museum on web and social media. Moreover, the MIA was the first museum in Egypt to offer Mobile Application which can be downloaded for free from the Google Apps. Besides it offers a variety of services including directing the user from his/her place to the museum, sending notifications for the museum's workshops and seminars. Furthermore, it provides the user with all information about the museum and its collections, panorama for some exhibition halls, direct contact details with curators to serve researchers everywhere in the world along with many more advantages options (www.miaegypt.org).

Research Methods This study adopted a case study approach to investigate the implementation of web and social media technology at the (MIA). This website was specifically chosen due to its numerous features and esthetic characteristics. Yin (2003) defines a case study as an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon in depth and within its real-life context, especially when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident. Data were collected using a mixed research method design based on semi-structured interviews and an exploratory survey. Professional researchers have started to create mixed method design to gain a more complete set of information and to reach more practical findings (Mayo, F.B,


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2014).In order to answer the research questions, the empirical research was undertaken at two stages: Stage One: A qualitative methodology was selected because it allowed for in-depth data collection directly from participants. Semi-structured interviews were a suitable method to collect data from museum staff members because they offered plenty of flexibility for in-depth responses, provided the interviewees with the opportunity to share their experiences and allowed interpretations. A total of (15) museum staff member was interviewed from February to March 2018. The interviews were conducted with the General Manager of the Museum, Director of Information Center, Director of Marketing Department, Director of Guidance Department, (3) Marketing Staff,(5) Information Technology Staff and (3) Curators. The interview schedule was divided into two main parts; web and social media usage. Categories of interview questions included participants’ job titles and responsibilities, education and experience, role of web and social media in marketing the museum, types and purpose of social media utilized informants’ perceptions of the effectiveness of using web and social media, and challenges of adoption new technologies. Years of experience in the current position ranged from 1 to 10 with an average of 3 years. The contents of each interview were transcribed and analyzed.

Website usage at MIA The website of the MIA was launched in August 2016 by E-motion agency which was firstly established in June 1998 in Egypt as one of the digitally most creative agencies that is specialized in web design and development. The funding of the website's construction was an initiative donation from the Ministry of Communication for Egyptian Small and Medium Enterprises. The total costs of establishing the website was approximately (250000) EGP. The MIA was also stated to be a member of the following global web pages:

www.eternalegypt.com www.discoverislamicart.org www.qantara-med.org

In response to a question about the responsible authority for managing the website, the interviewees indicated that the E-motion agency has the upper hand in managing the website with the assistance of the museum information staff. The existence of the Information Center in the museum guarantees the success of this website. As the director of information center commented that many Egyptian museums lack the internal expertise in the field of managing new technologies. Regarding the kind of resources that were utilized for



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presenting information on the website, interviewees listed three types of them; Expositive (Graphic and Audiovisual), Hyper-textual (the use of links, which allow a greater degree of interaction than Expositive resources) and Participative (interactive and immersive resources through virtual tours, organized systems for virtually visiting the museum). Concerning the multiple uses of the website, the interviewees showed high appreciation to the significant role of web technology in communicating and interacting with the changing and modern audience. Museum visitors are now searching for more sophisticated and satisfying cultural experience. The interviewees also accepted the notion that their website can play an integral role in bringing the tactical and strategic aspects of their marketing and communications efforts. They assured the use of the web as a means of facilitating information and data access, in relation to collections cataloguing and research management. The website also serves the mission of the MIA in various facets; displaying, preserving and interpreting Islamic artifacts, reaching a maximum number of national and international visitors, developing education programs, encouraging scientific research and enhancing dialogue with external audience. However, some interviewees were partially satisfied with the current level of the website because it was not updated since its first construction due to the lack of financial assets. Regarding the tracking methods for measuring the performance of the website, the interviewees stated that they applied different quantitative and qualitative methods for tracking by using Google Analytics. It is a free service offered by Google that generates statistics about website, including visits, views, bounce rates, and average time on site. The analysis also included data for sessions, users, page views to distinguish between new visitors and returning visitors to the website. When asked about the challenges facing museum staff in developing their website, the insufficient financial resources for updating were at the top of the list, beside, the rigid thinking and regulations and lack of cultural awareness. The director of the guidance department declared that not all the collections of the museum were exhibited on the website due to several reasons including financial constraints and the fear of decreasing the actual visits to the museum. Regarding the future plans for the website development, the interviewees expressed their great intentions toward updating the website to modify the current information and add more photo albums for collections. Moreover, the museum staff members are preparing to include special section in the website for disabled users "Blind Area". They are also intended to enhance the animation options at the homepage of the website.


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Social media usage at MIA The museum staff assured that social media has proven to be very effective outreach marketing and communicating tool. Social media keeps the museum staff in touch with new occurrences in the field of genealogical research. Overall, the museum staff indicated that the MIA increasingly utilizes the features of social media to seek feedback from the community. There are different types of social networking sites on the website of the MIA, such as: Facebook, Twitter, Instgram, Pinterest and Google+. It is worth to note that the social tools appeared on the website since its first construction. The museum information staff stated that they used to be the sole managers of the content on social media sites. However, they all welcomed ideas, suggestions, and information from other staff members in other departments of the museum. When asked about the effectiveness of the social media tool which was formulated as to help museums to achieve their goals, the museum staff stressed the cost-effectiveness of using social media in decreasing the marketing expenses. The Information Technology team is usually responsible for the regularly maintenance, the creation of content, and the interaction with audiences via social media. Using a wide range of social media tools involves the decision of whether or not to repeat the same content on different platforms. To fulfill audience expectations, the interviewees often use planned and strategic policies accordingly to match with the features of each tool in terms of effective timeframe, voice, length, frequency, format, and content. The interviewees mentioned that the advantages of social media can be as the following:

Increasing visibility for potential visitors; Promoting of collections and exhibitions; Managing and strengthening relations with visitors; Encouraging interactivity; Attracting the audience to visit the museum; Recruiting volunteers;

Concerning disadvantages of new technologies, when everyone can post his or her opinion freely on the public page of an organization, the organization is faced with the risk of negative reviews. The interviewees thought that the advantages outweighed the disadvantages because constructive criticism could improve the services at the MIA. The findings of the interviews with the museum staff revealed the multi-roles that the social media could play in the museum's marketing activities. It provides the museum with the platforms to develop a two-way communication flow with the audience which is considered the major difference between the website and social media as it is



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difficult for the museum to have a real conversation with the audience on the official website with its specified structure, whereas the usage of social media enhances the communication to be more dialogic. In this issue, the director of marketing added that the main functions of social media tools in managing marketing practices include building awareness, engaging with community and networking. All interviewees clarified that Facebook is the most used social network at a global level as it enables the richest experience of online interaction compared to other social networks. In general, Facebook seems to perform the same functions as Twitter for the MIA in terms of sharing of the posts. The director of marketing identified two important marketing initiatives that were organized via the museum Facebook page. The first one was a competition for amateurs and photographers was developed at the museum's Facebook page in September 2017, thus succeeded in increasing the number of fans for the page and attracting this new market segment. The second one was an organized post for the MIA in January 2018 as a storyteller on the page entitled "Best Places in Egypt" , in which the curator wrote a short article about an unknown piece or artist, and an ‘ask the curator’ post was developed through which people could ask the curator some questions in real time. These methods of communication helped engage community members in the context of relationship marketing. Accordingly, this leads to a remarkable increase in the actual visits to the museum itself as the post was marked by 10000 "Likes" and 8000 "Comments". On exploring the potentials of Facebook, the director of the guidance department stated another marketing initiative entitled "My museum in your classroom" which began in 2017. This trial aimed to attract many schools' students from different countries such as India, Jordan, United Arab of Emirates, European countries and the United States of America. This initiative was organized by the four main Egyptian Museums: The Egyptian Museum, The Museum of Civilization, The Museum of Islamic Art and The Coptic Museum. The initiative page appeared on Facebook published the steps of processing which are listed below:

Establishing an account for the MIA at Microsoft Education; Publishing the MIA account so that any user can find it easily; Receiving any request for virtual visiting to the museum from any

school; Arranging the virtual visit in the pre-arranged time by using the

application of "Skype", whereas the curator starts to guide the virtual tour at the museum and the students listen to him as if they are actually presented in the museum.

Concerning the type of information that could be presented on social media, the museum staff mentioned that the contents have been classified into the following categories:


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Information and reminders about museum collections, activities and special events;

Management of relations with visitors and followers; Section-related information; Thematic quizzes and calls for contributions; Comments on current news and general interest events; Discussions,and Post photo and video content.

Concerning the tracking methods for social media, the MIA uses Google analytics and the built-in analytic feature of Facebook to get quantitative measurements of social media activities. The tracking systems provide information on the number of clicks and the time that a browser stay on each single post and the trend of web traffic in a week, month, or other time period. Followers' statistics were also collected through the Facebook Insights service and compared with those of actual museum visitors. Regarding the future plans for developing social media, the museum staff advocated the idea or the possibility to aggregate users around common conversation topics through the ‘Hashtag’ facility. This has been supported as a means for cultural museums to activate and maintain real-time, two-way discussions with visitors and collective knowledge construction processes (Fletcher and Lee, 2012).

Stage Two A quantitative approach here was used to assess the overall usability and functionality of the website from the user s' perspective. The most common form of a quantitative approach is survey research which involves the administration and collection of questionnaires to determine opinions and attitudes (Mayo, F.B, 2014). To attract more visitors to the museum, a measure of web service quality is important to successful web marketing (Kabassi, 2016). Website evaluation is an important phase of a websites’ life-cycle and many studies have paid a lot of attention to different aspects of this phase. For example, Fotakis and Economides (2008) present a quality evaluation framework named (MuseumQual), using 35 criteria specialized in museum websites that are classified into the following six categories: Content, Presentation, Usability, Interactivity & Feedback, E-Services, and Technical. Pallas and Economides (2008) in their study used a similar approach, named the Museum’s Sites Evaluation Framework (MUSEF). This specific framework uses the same criteria as (MuseumQual) in evaluating museums’ sites from the user's perspective (Pallas and Economides, 2008).



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This study depends on the website's usability for museum items adapted from the researches of (Pallud and Straub, 2014) and (Agarwal and Venkatesh , 2002). Their framework uses six categories: (1) Content, (2) Ease of use, (3) Promotion, (4) Made for the medium, (5) Emotion (6) Esthetics. "Made for the medium" is a construct that relates to offering a unique and personalized service to online users (Pallud and Straub, 2014). However, the construct of "Promotion" was excluded from this survey because the website of the MIA did not increasingly appear on the promotional media. The sample of this study consisted of (140) college students (undergraduate and postgraduate) enrolled in two different departments (Tourism and Guidance Sections -Faculty of Tourism and Hotels). Students' participation was voluntary. College students were chosen as the sampling frame for three reasons. Firstly, museums are increasingly targeting young people to widen their audience. Secondly, young people tend to remain the age group that is most likely to go online. Thirdly, this population needs to feel highly sensory experiences and thus is more demanding in terms of user experience. The participants were invited to engage with the website of the MIA as if they were a potential visitor of the museum website. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire form includes four sections: demographic characteristics, users' familiarity with the museums' websites, website's usability items (content, ease of use, made for the medium, emotion and esthetics) and users' attitude toward the available museum's resources on the website. Section 3 was measured by a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). Section 4 was also measured by using a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Very Unlikely) to 5 (Very likely). A pretest with (30) subjects was conducted one month before the launch of the study and led to the reformulation and clarification of some questions. (140) copies of the questionnaire were distributed to the selected sample. Only (116) respondents agreed to complete the survey with a response rate of (82.8%). Descriptive statistics were computed using SPSS (16.0).

Data Analysis Regarding the demographic characteristics of respondents, the sample included (62.1%) female and (37.9%) male. The majority of respondents fell in the age category ranged from 20 to 30 years old (93.8%). In terms of education, the sample included (69%) undergraduate students and (31%) postgraduate students. Respondents were then asked to identify the role of the museum website in formulating their intention to visit this museum. A percentage of (77.6%) decided to visit the museum because of its website, whereas (22.4%) mentioned that the museum website did not affect their visit decision. Moreover, respondents were also asked to determine the importance


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of having a website for the museum, all respondents (100%) agreed that it is very important for museums to have a website. Concerning the evaluation of the website, respondents were asked to indicate their level of satisfaction toward the following constructs. Reliability analysis was performed to ensure internal validity and consistency for the items appeared in this section. As shown in table (1), Cronbach’s Alpha reliability values were all above (0.8).

Table 1 Cronbach’s Alpha (Reliability)

Constructs Cronbach’s Alpha the website's usability .84 Content .87 Made for the Medium .87 Ease of Use .85 Emotion .87 Esthetics .85

Table 2 Descriptive statistics of the website's usability constructs

Statements Mean Std.

Deviation

Content 4.2 .41

The website offers content that is relevant to the core audience. 4.3 .51

The website uses media appropriately and effectively to communicate the content.

4.2 .58

The website provides current and timely information. 4.1 .63 Made for the Medium 4.1 .50 The website offers you the opportunity to be part of an online group or community.

4.0 .85

The website offers personalized/customized products. 3.8 .87 The website reflects the most current trend(s) and provides the most current information.

4.1 .75

The website provides you with the latest social media tools. 4.4 .72 Ease of Use 4.3 .47 The website offers clear and understandable goals. 4.5 .67 The website is well structured and organized. 4.6 .58 The website provides clear and understandable results and feedback regarding your progress.

3.9 .71

Emotion 3.8 .52 The website offers you an element of challenge. 3.5 .83 The website provides an interesting story line. 4.2 .74 The website ties to individuals, within and outside the organization, who have credibility.

3.7 .80

The website allows you to control the pace at which you can interact with the presented information.

3.9 .80



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Continued

Esthetics 4.6 .48 I find that the design of the website looks pleasant. 4.7 .48 The layout of the website is attractive. 4.6 .74 I find the design of the website to be creative. 4.5 .73 I find that the design of the website looks artistic. 4.7 .54 Total Mean 4.2 .38

Table (2) demonstrates the descriptive statistics of the website's usability constructs through the mean and standard deviation. According to the mean value, the constructs were descending arranged; Esthetics (4.6), Ease of Use (4.3), Content (4.2), Made for the Medium (4.1) and Emotion (3.8). Besides, respondents also considered the constructs of Ease of Use and Content as important indicators for their evaluations. In the construct of Made for the Medium, respondents were keen of finding more social media tools with mean value (4.4) at the website of the MIA. Finally, respondents were interested in the concept of storyline in the construct of Emotion with mean value (4.2). Respondents were also asked to indicate whether they were willing to use certain kinds of online museum resources when visiting the website of MIA.

Table 3 Descriptive statistics of online museum resources Online Museum Resources Mean Std. Deviation Online images of artifacts / collections data. 4.5 .50 Online tours of galleries / interactive exhibits. 4.1 .68 Smartphone applications for the museum audience. 4.2 .77 Online educational activities / learning resources. 4.1 .71 Online research materials / archives. 4.2 .69 Information about hours of operation / location / directions. 4.5 .65 Information about admission fees / pricing. 3.6 1.3 Information about museum facilities / gift shop / restaurants. 3.6 1.0 Information about current and future exhibits. 3.5 .97 Information about programs / tours / special events. 3.9 .89 Information about employment / volunteer opportunities. 3.3 .73 Information about donation / membership opportunities. 3.3 .90 Total Mean 3.9 .44

As shown in table (3), the total mean value for Online Museum Resources was (3.9).The results indicated that the highest mean value with (4.5) was recorded for the following items: “Online images of artifacts / collections data” and “Information about hours of operation / location / directions”, followed by a mean value with (4.2) for the following items: “Smartphone applications for the museum audience’ and “online research materials / archives”. While the lowest mean value with (3.3) was computed for these two items: “Information about employment / volunteer opportunities” and “Information about donation / membership opportunities”.


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Results and Discussion Cross tabulation for the relevant findings from both methods (semi-structured interviews and research survey) clarified that the website of the MIA supports technological advances, satisfies visitors’ expectations and delivers several essential features. This result corresponded with the studies of (Zafiropoulos and Vrana, (2005); Fotakis and Economides, 2008). The museum staff also confirmed that the website of the MIA was used as means of marketing, raising audience awareness and improving the museum educational and research mission. This result supported the reasons for having a website (Moritz, 1996). Moreover, (Corbos and Popescu, 2011) and (Lehman and Roach, 2011) considered the website of the museum to be an important marketing tool and also an effective way for reaching new market segments. The interviewees classified the information on the website into Expositive, Hyper-textual and Participative. This classification was similar to the study of Capriotti et al. (2016). The website also achieved the main goals of the MIA especially in developing education programs, encouraging scientific research and enhancing communication with external audience. Similarly, Belanger et al., (2006) emphasized that goals of museum websites include knowledge enhancement, online learning, entertainment and ultimate experience. However, some interviewees were not satisfied with the current level of the website because the website was not updated since its first launch. This finding confirmed the study of Hertzum (1998) that identified the common problems of museums websites. The main features of the website matched those found in the studies of (Zafiropoulos and Vrana , 2005; Mason and McCarthy, 2008: Theocharidis et al., 2014). All interviewees advocated the vital role of social media usage for museums, thus they actively implemented different social media in order to; communicate, collaborate and engage with their audience. This result corresponded to the studies of (Knell, 2003; Kidd, 2010: Dicker, 2010; Whelan, 2011; Gu, 2012; Pett, 2012). They also indicated that social media replaced their traditional tools for marketing the museum. The museum staff put more emphasize on Facebook in executing their marketing campaign.

As for the main findings from the exploratory survey, all respondents assured that it is important for the museum to have a website. This finding matches the results of (Nuo, 2013: Pallud and Straub, 2014).After experimenting the website of the MIA, survey respondents ranked the constructs of usability as follows: Esthetics, Ease of Use, Content, Made for the Medium and Emotion. The construct of "Esthetics" was at the top of the list. This result advocated the study of Marty and Twidale (2004) who confirmed that museums are supposed to be beautiful places and in turn, visitors will also expect their



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websites to be beautiful. Supporting this view, museums should also provide beauty not only in their physical displays but also in their websites (Pallud and Straub, 2014).Moreover, respondents ranked the items in each construct of usability according to their importance as follows:

The website offers content that is relevant to the core audience. The website provides the user with the latest social media tools. The website is well-structured and organized. The website provides an interesting storyline. The overall design of the website looks pleasant, attractive and

creative. Concerning the available online museum resources of the MIA, survey respondents found the following items respectively according to their mean value; Online images of artifacts / collections data, Information about hours of operation / location / directions, Smartphone applications for the museum audience, online research materials / archives, Online tours of galleries / interactive exhibits, Information about programs / tours / special events and Information about admission fees / pricing. This is a logical understanding for the resources as the website of the MIA actually includes plentiful of images and photo albums for the artifacts and the collections. Furthermore, it includes information about hours of operation / location / directions. And perhaps, the MIA website is considered to be the first Egyptian museum to include the Smartphone Application Service. On the other hand, the museum website lacks the presence of information for employment / volunteer opportunities and donation / membership opportunities. This result supports the findings of Marty (2007).

Conclusions and Recommendations Exploiting the potentials of the new technologies paves the way for museums to achieve their goals. The prime concern of this study was to clarify the usage of web and social media in museums. In order to examine the phenomena in its real context, the research adopted a case study approach for the website of the Museum of Islamic Art. This museum is considered to be one of the largest museums specialized in Islamic Art in the world. Besides, its website owns an outstanding and well advanced design. It provides the user with essential information such as visiting times, mission and vision, history, collections, maps, videos and photos of the museum. The website also has links to the pages of the museum on different social media tools such as: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, Google+ and Instagram. The literature reviewed most of the theoretical previous studies related to the usage of web and social media in museums. To go one step further, the empirical study was carried out by mixed research design. First, semi-structured interviews were undertaken with the museum staff members to


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explore their ideas, opinions and attitudes toward the usage of the web and social media. Second, an exploratory survey was designed to examine the website's usability from user s' perspective. The main findings of both methods indicated that the museum staff members actively behaved through web and social media to build and maintain two-way communications with their target audience. Moreover, survey respondents described the website of the MIA to be; having an esthetic interface, providing valuable core content, enhancing the usage of social network sites and possessing an ease of use. Based on the forgoing views, the researchers proposed some recommendations for the responsible authorities (Ministry of Antiquities, The Supreme Council for Antiquities and Ministry of Communications). A strategic, innovative and integrated plan should be developed to enhance the usage of modern technologies in the Egyptian Museums. The plan must have certain goals to construct a website for each museum, update and activate the existing websites, eliminate the routine obstacles and increase the financial support for the technological projects in the museums. Moreover, the responsible authorities should customize information teamwork in each museum. Fostering collaborations between the Ministry of Antiquities and the Ministry of Communications should be encouraged. As mentioned before; the construction of the MIA website is a donation support from the Ministry of Communications. The researchers can also propose some strategies for the museum staff members. Choosing the suitable social media tool for the right audience in the suitable time must be considered. Updating the contents on social media tools at regular times is a must. The staff members should evaluate the website's usability and functionality to assure its sustainability. Using the latest methods for tracking should be improved to measure the effectiveness of each tool. The staff members can diversify the museum products through various social sites. Finally, preserving the authenticity for the museum's collections must be considered when presenting them at the social media networks.

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Enhancing Pro Environmental Behavior at Heritage Sites: The Effect of Place Attachment

Dr. Moataz Ahmed Marie Dr. Heba Salah Zaki

Abstract With growing insight into sustainability issue, the tourists' pro-environmental behavior in cultural heritage sites became a vital topic to discuss. Until now, visitors’ environmental behavior at heritage sites has not been sufficiently examined. It has been assumed that individuals with higher levels of attachment to a particular place were more likely to protect this place. Therefore, the current research aims at examining the influence of place attachment on pro-environmental behavior of tourists at the district of Old Cairo. This study considered place attachment as a multidimensional construct including place dependence, place identity, place affect and place social bonding. A structured questionnaire has been used to collect the primary data from a sample of 400 local and foreign visitors at Old Cairo. The findings indicated that place attachment was positively correlated with the pro-environmental behavior of visitors. Practical findings proved also a positive and significant effect of all place attachment sub constructs on pro-environmental behavior at Old Cairo. Finally, this research concludes by discussing managerial implications, along with suggestions for future research.

Keywords Pro-environmental Behaviors (PEB), General behavior, site-specific behavior, Place attachment, Old Cairo.

1- Introduction Tourism industry faces various challenges associated with the environment and sustainable development, such as water consumption, waste management, greenhouse gas emissions related to travel, accommodation, and leisure activities as well as the conservation of cultural heritage (UNEP, 2011; Lee et al., 2013a). Therefore, an increasing attention has been dedicated to the sustainability issue in tourism to help sustainable development of destinations (Powell & Ham, 2008; Kafyri et al., 2012). The visitors’ intended and unintentional behaviors have damaged the environment in several tourism destinations (Lee et al., 2013b). Consequently, encouraging tourists to adopt an environmentally responsible behavior is a powerful tool for fostering sustainability in these destinations (Brown et al., 2010). The pro-environmental behavior refers to behaviors that aim at minimizing the

Marie, M Zaki, H ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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negative impacts of individuals' actions on the natural and built world (Kollmuss & Agyeman, 2002). Enhancing pro-environmental behaviors can help preserving the natural and cultural assets for future generations (Ramkissoon et al., 2012). The increasing visits to cultural and historical sites may cause several negative impacts that require a balance between visitors’ number, authenticity and preservation (Alazaizeh et al., 2016). Heritage sites which provide tourists with authenticity and interesting experiences are often fragile (Jiang et al., 2017). Thus, the adoption of pro-environmental behaviors by individuals is also closely relevant in heritage tourism (Buonincontri et al., 2017). Moreover, heritage tourists are more interested in involvement with the places rather than just enjoying the environment (Kerstetter et al., 2001). They are also higher educated and tend to spend more money and stay for a longer period in the destinations than other tourists (Lin, 2011). This leads to an increasing call for encouraging environmentally responsible practices in such settings (Buonincontri et al., 2017). One of the significant factors that can influence tourists' engagement in pro-environmental behaviors is attachment to a specific place (Halpenny, 2010). It means the bonding or emotional connections that individuals share with a place (Raymond et al., 2011; Ramkissoon, 2016). Place attachment has been identified as an antecedent to environmentally responsible behaviors of visitors in both natural and cultural settings (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Halpenny, 2010; Lee, 2011; Ramkissoon, 2016). Prior tourism and leisure studies revealed that positive attachment to a particular place was associated with the willingness of visitors to protect this place (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Halpenny, 2010; Ramkissoon et al., 2012, 2013a). Although the importance of the relationship between people and places for promoting sustainability, to date, most studies have focused on this type of association in national parks, wetland, protected areas and different environmental settings, while, only one study has been conducted by Buonincontri et al. (2017) to discuss this relationship in heritage sites. This study developed a conceptual framework to examine the relationship among heritage visitors’ experience, place attachment and their sustainable behavior. Until now no empirical studies have been conducted to examine this relationship regarding cultural contexts in Egypt. Accordingly, In an attempt to fill this void, the main purpose of this research is to examine the influence of multidimensional place attachment construct (comprising its four dimensions: place identity, place affect, place social bonding and place dependence) on pro-environmental behavior of tourists at the area of Old Cairo. Old Cairo is considered one of the most important archeological sites in Egypt because it encompasses a distinguished collection of religious monuments that represent the cultural



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heritage of Jews, Copts and Muslims, so it is called a "Multi-religious Compound" (Gabra, 2013). Due to its symbolic religious and historical value, individuals can develop strong emotional bonds with that place. Hence, it is considered an ideal heritage site to examine the effect of place attachment on visitors' pro-environmental behavior.

2- Literature Review 2-1 Pro-environmental behavior in heritage sites Several terms are being commonly used by researchers to describe the type of individuals’ behaviors that aim at conserving the environment (Sawitri et al., 2015; Ajuhari et al., 2016). Among them are: environmentally responsible behavior (Sivek & Hungerford, 1990; Lee et al., 2013a; Chiu et al., 2014), environmentally significant behavior (Stern, 2000; Hedlund-de Witt et al., 2014), environmentally concerned behavior (Axelrod & Lehman, 1993), sustainable behavior (Meijers & Stapel, 2011; Buonincontri et al., 2017) and Pro- environmental behavior (Stern, 2000; Kollmuss & Agyeman, 2002). The various terms of responsible behaviors are defined in the following table. Table 1 Definitions of responsible behaviors related to the environment.

Terms Definitions References

Environmentally Responsible Behavior

Actions, by tourists, directed to reduce environmental impacts, participate in environmental preservation and/or conservation, support a more sustainable use of natural resources, and mitigate any negative environmental impacts during their activities.

(Sivek & Hungerford, 1990; Lee et al., 2013a; Chiu et al., 2014)

Environmentally significant behavior

The extent to which the individuals' behaviors change to improve the environment.

(Stern, 2000; Hedlund-de Witt et al., 2014)

Environmentally concerned behavior

Actions that participate in environmental preservation.

Axelrod & Lehman,, 1993)

Sustainable behavior

Behavior by people who take into consideration future outcomes and behave in a more sustainable manner.

Meijers& Stapel., 2011;Buonincontri et al, 2017)

Pro-environmental behavior

Behaviors and actions offered by individuals to protect the environment and minimize the negative impacts on the natural and built world.

(Stern, 2000; Kollmuss & Agyeman, 2002)

As shown in table 1, the pro-environmental behavior refers to behavior that aims at minimizing the negative impacts of individuals' actions on the natural and built world. Such behavior includes, but is not limited to, reduction of the consumption of resources and minimization of waste production (Kollmuss


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& Agyeman, 2002). Steg and Vlek (2009) defined pro-environmental behavior as behavior that not only causes as little as possible damages to the environment, but also benefits the environment. Meanwhile, Lee et al. (2013a) indicated that responsible behaviors of visitors at a specific destination should comprise appreciating the culture and life-style of the local community, protecting the natural environment and improving the well-being of residents. Visitors who adopt pro-environmental behavior aimed at encouraging the sustainable usage of natural resources, alleviating the negative environmental effects of their activities and participate in environmental conservation efforts (Sivek & Hungerford, 1990). Similarly, pro-environmental behavior at heritage sites should be related to the tourist's awareness about both historical and natural value of cultural heritage site, their obligation to participate in heritage preservation efforts, and their actual activities that are undertaken to save the cultural heritage for the present and future generations (Buonincontri et al., 2017). The most popular classification of pro-environmental behavior was developed by Smith-Sebasto and D’costa (1995), this classification includes six constructs representing civic, educational, financial, legal, physical, and persuasive actions. Civic actions refer to any actions undertaken by individuals to promote the conservation of the environment using political ways without depending on any donations or persuasive strategies (Smith-Sebasto & D’costa, 1995; Lee et al., 2013a). Such as, the voting for candidates who have environmental policies (Lee, 2011), donate time to environmental purposes (Lee, 2011), signing petitions and sending letters to government officials concerning the environment and the heritage deterioration (Buonincontri et al., 2017). While, financial actions refer to any actions aimed at protecting the environment and enhancing the cultural heritage sites by means of financial measures or donations, such as donating to charity organizations that concerned with protecting the environment and cultural heritage and deciding to purchase products according to their negative/positive effects on cultural heritage sites (Sebasto & D’costa, 1995; Lee et al., 2013a; Buonincontri et al., 2017). Unlike financial actions, physical actions are those actions the individuals undertake for the environment and not involving monetary contributions such as participating in the programs of cleaning community and classifying rubbish (Sebasto & D’costa, 1995; Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Han & Hyun, 2016). Persuasive actions are also nonmonetary actions incurred by individuals to encourage their families and peers to protect the environment and convince other people to behave in an environmentally responsible manner (Sebasto & D’costa, 1995; Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Lee, 2011). On the other hand, educational actions are those actions that mainly aimed at getting knowledge and



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information about environmental matters, such as reading papers or books, watching television programs about the environment, and attending academic courses related to the sustainability (Sebasto & D’costa, 1995; Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Lee, 2011). Finally, Legal actions are judiciary actions that aim to enforce the environmental legislations to conserve the environment (Sebasto & D’costa, 1995; Lee, 2011; Lee et al., 2013a). Based on Smith-Sebasto and D’costa (1995), Lee et al. (2013a; 2013b) developed a new classification of environmental behavior to measure the individual’s environmental behavior at home, in work, and at tourism destinations. Lee et al. (2013a) classified pro-environmental behavior (PEB) into two categories: general environmental responsible behavior and site-specific environmental responsible behavior. General environmental behavior consists of civic, financial, physical, and persuasive actions, while, site-specific environmental behavior encompasses three dimensions: sustainable behaviors of tourists for specific destinations, pro-environmental behavior, and environmentally friendly behavior. With regard to pro-environmental behavior of tourists at a particular destination, it includes various responsible actions that aimed at respecting the culture and environment at a certain destination or heritage site, such as respecting the customs and traditions of host communities, improving the well-being of local community, preserving the local environment and reduce or prevent visits to specific areas during recovering from environmental degradation (Halpenny, 2010; Ramkissoon et al., 2013a). Moreover, visitors at a specific heritage sites may also decide to protect this site through donating time or money to maintain this site, participate in voluntary tasks in a particular heritage site (e.g. cleaning, light maintenance) or adopt a work of art in a museum (Buonincontri et al., 2017).

2-2 Place attachment Place attachment has been discussed in diverse disciplines including tourism, natural resource management, environmental psychology as well as environmental education (e.g., Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Hou et al., 2005; Kyle et al., 2005; Halpenny, 2010; Ramkissoon et al., 2012; Ramkissoon et al., 2013a). Attachment to place relates to “The process whereby an individual’s experiences with both the physical and social aspects of an environment results in the development of strong emotional bonds with that place” (Chen et al., 2016: 604). It means that some people may feel connected to a certain place because it provides them with social relations or any social factors, while for others they attached to a place because of its physical aspects (Lewicka, 2010; Tonge et al., 2015). Therefore, places do not only include physical settings, but also historical, psychological, spiritual and social aspects (Tonge et al., 2015). In other words, place attachment points to the


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bonding or emotional connections that individuals share with places (Raymond et al., 2011; Ramkissoon, 2016). Literature used several terms to describe the relation between people and places such as sense of place (Jorgensen & Stedman, 2001; Hawke, 2011), neighborhood attachment (Lewicka, 2010), place attachment (Guiliani & Feldman, 1993), and connectedness to nature (Gosling & Williams, 2010). The recent literature agreed on place attachment as the most widespread term used (Ramkissoon et al., 2013a). In tourism, attachment to places is also often termed as “destination attachment” (Hou et al., 2005; Yuksel et al., 2010). Tourism literature described place attachment as a multidimensional construct, that is comprised two or more sub-constructs (Hammitt et al., 2009; Halpenny, 2010; Ramkissoon et al., 2012; Chen et al., 2016; Buonincontri et al., 2017). These dimensions include place identity, place affect, place social bonding and place dependence (Ramkissoon et al., 2012; Ramkissoon et al., 2013a; Buonincontri et al., 2017; Ramkissoon &Mavondo, 2017). Place identity and place dependence are the most cited dimensions that have been traditionally used to assess place attachment (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Hou et al., 2005; Gross & Brown, 2008; Prayag & Ryan, 2012). Scholars continue to develop other dimensions to better illustrate the social and emotional settings of place attachment (Kyle et al., 2005; Ramkissoon et al., 2012). This includes social bonding (Kyle et al., 2005; Hammitt et al., 2009) and place affect (Halpenny 2010; Ramkissoon et al., 2012).

2-2-1 Place Dependence This dimension represents the functional attachment to the place (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Ramkissoon, 2016). It related to the ability of a certain place to satisfy the recreational or psychological goals of tourists (Williams et al. 1992; Ramkissoon et al., 2012). This functional aspect affirmed the importance of physical resources to meet the desired needs and activities of visitors (Williams et al.1992; Ramkissoon, 2016). The ability to achieve the visitors' visit goals significantly depends on the uniqueness of the place compared with other places (Williams et al., 1992; Williams & Vaske, 2003; Kwenye & Phiri, 2016). Individuals with high levels of place dependence are more careful about the resource development and conservation and less willing to alter this place to another (Scannell & Gifford, 2010a; Ramkissoon et al.2013b).



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2-2-2 Place Identity Describes the profound connection between the place and the individual's personal identity (Buonincontri et al., 2017). It means that the spatial settings provide visitors with the chance to express, affirm and reflect their identities (Prayag & Ryan 2012; Kwenye & Phiri, 2016). Hou et al. (2005) indicated that the cultural destination can play a significant role in enhancing the cultural identity or self-image of visitors. Place identity is also described as the symbolically important bond between the person and the place (Halpenny, 2010), that can lead to the feeling of belonging and identity to a particular place (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Ramkissoon, 2016). People develop a strong identity with a particular site when it provides a feeling of uniqueness or facilitates distinctiveness rather than other places (Ramkissoon, 2012). For example, the place may be linked to the visitor's family, origin place, spiritual site, or provide a pilgrimage or celebratory event which implies special meanings for visitors (Tonge et al., 2015). Extensive visits to a particular place because of place dependence might lead to place identity (Moore & Graefe, 1994). Place identity has been predicted to directly affect pro-environmental behavior at a particular place (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001). In other words, for individuals who have a strong feeling of place identity, they are more likely to maintain and care for the place primitive settings (Ramkissoon et al., 2013b; Tonge et al., 2015).

2-2-3 Place Affect Affective attachment, describes the strong emotions that visitors feel towards a certain place (Halpenny, 2010). This, in turn, creates a sense of psychological comfort for visitors (Korpela et al., 2009). Tuan (1977) defined this emotional bond as “love of place”. Researches confirmed that place affect was considered an important predictor for enhancing environmental attitude and behaviors of visitors (Pooley & O’Conner, 2000; Ramkissoon et al.2012).

2-2-4 Social Bonding Describes the social relations that a certain place enhances (Buonincontri et al., 2017), whether these relationships resulted from interactions with family and friends or other individuals in these places (Kyle et al., 2005). Scholars stated that individuals became attached to places that facilitate personal relationships (Scannell & Gifford, 2010a, 2010b) and enhance the sense of group belonging (Hammitt et al., 2009). Although the importance of social bonding, the majority of studies in leisure context discussed the dimensions of place identity, dependence and affect while place social bonding remains poorly discussed (Ramkissoon et al., 2012). Kyle et al. (2005) illustrated that


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the social bonding between people can support and foster pro-environmental intentions and behaviors. Nye and Hargreaves (2009) advocated that the meanings of pro-environmental behaviors were constructed through the social interaction of individuals and may reinforce environmental actions.

2-3 Pro-environmental behavior and place attachment at heritage sites Recently, pro-environmental behavior has acquired a great interest from researchers trying to explore the motivations of individuals to behave in an environmentally responsible pattern (Greaves et al., 2013; Ramkissoon & Mavondo, 2014). Among those motivations is the place attachment which has been identified as an antecedent to environmentally responsible behaviors of visitors in both natural and cultural settings (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Halpenny, 2010; Lee, 2011; Ramkissoon, 2016). Previous studies have demonstrated that the existence of emotional bonds between people and places could lead to protective environmental behaviors (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Gosling & Williams, 2010; Halpenny, 2010; Scannell & Gifford 2010b; Lee, 2011; Raymond et al., 2011; Cheng et al., 2013; Ramkissoon et al., 2012; 2013a). For instance, Vaske and Kobrin (2001) examined the effects of only two sub dimensions of place attachment (place dependence and place identity) on general pro-environmental behavior. They reported that people who are more attached to the place were correlated with higher pro-environmental behaviors than those who are less attached. Similar findings were concluded by Halpenny (2010) and Scannell & Gifford (2010a) who reported that place attachment was significantly associated with pro-environmental behaviors of park visitors. The research by Cheng et al (2013) also found a positive correlation among place attachment and pro-environmental behaviors of visitors to the Penghu Island in Taiwan. Similarly, the findings of Lee (2011) argued that as visitor's place attachment increases, the likelihood his pro-environmental behavior also increases. Regarding place attachment as a multidimensional concept comprised place identity, place dependence, place affect and place social bonding, the results of Ramkissoon et al. (2012; 2013a) revealed that each of place attachment dimensions affected pro-environmental behavioral intentions of national park's visitors. Although these studies that have been conducted to understand the association between place attachment and pro-environmental behaviors, the findings of this relationship are still contradictory and not conclusive (Halpenny 2010; Scannell & Gifford 2010b). This inconsistency may be due to the different dimensions of place attachment, for example, Vaske and



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Kobrin (2001) used place dependence and place identity, while Halpenny (2010) utilized place identity, place dependence, and place affect. This contradiction may be also related to the different types of environmental behaviors measured, some researchers examined the general pro-environmental behaviors (i.e., Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; Halpenny 2010; Scannell & Gifford 2010b), while others focused on site specific behaviors (i.e., kyle et al., 2005; Gosling & Williams, 2010; Raymond et al., 2011). However, in spite of previous studies that examined the relationship between pro-environmental behaviors and place attachment, the vast majority of these studies was focused on national parks, wetland and different environmental settings. However, there is a scarcity in the studies conducted to examine this relationship regarding cultural contexts, particularly, in Egypt. Accordingly, the following hypotheses were proposed:

Hypothesis 1. The visitors’ place attachment positively influences the pro- environmental behavior of heritage visitors at Old Cairo district. H1a. The visitors’ place dependence has a positive effect on the PEB of heritage visitors at Old Cairo. H1b. The visitors’ place identity has a positive effect on the PEB of heritage visitors at Old Cairo. H1c. The visitors’ place affect has a positive effect on the PEB of heritage visitors at Old Cairo. H1d. The visitors’ place social bonding has a positive effect on the PEB of heritage visitors at Old Cairo.

3- Methodology 3-1 Site Description The area of Old Cairo "Masr al-Qadima in Arabic" - commonly known as Coptic Cairo or Fustat- is located to the south of modern Cairo, just opposite of Rhoda Island (Williams, 2008). The area grew up in and around the Roman fortress of Babylon, and is considered nowadays one of the most famous Cultural Heritage Sites in Egypt because it has a great historical, archaeological and religious value (Gabra, 2013). It gained its importance and fame because it includes a unique collection of tourist attractions symbolizing the cultural heritage of the three religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) (Gabra, 2013). The Jewish monuments are represented in Ben Ezra Synagogue, which considered the oldest Jewish temple in Cairo (Stiefel, 2015). The Synagogue still holds a great importance in the contemporary history of Judaism because the famed Geniza Documents were discovered in it (Glickman, 2011; Hoffman & Cole, 2016), so it's also known as The Geniza Synagogue (Stiefel, 2015). The Coptic monuments are represented in a number of interesting churches, such as: the Hanging Church (the nickname for the Metropolitan Church of St Mary the Virgin), Church of Saint


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Mercurius (Abu Sayfayn), Monastery and Church of St. George, Church of St. Sergius (Abu Serga), Church of St. Barbara and Church of the Holy Virgin (Babylon El-Darag) (Capuani et al., 2002; Gabra & van Loon, 2007; Williams, 2008). Furthermore, the area of Old Cairo houses the Coptic Museum, which offers a unique collection of art and artifacts from the history of Coptic Egypt and an exhibit about the history of Christianity in Egypt (Beattie, 2005; Gabra & Eaton-Krauss, 2006). The Islamic archaeological sites are represented in Mosque of 'Amr ibn al-'As – the oldest mosque in Egypt and Africa- (Williams, 2008), as well as, the ruins of Fustat that became prominent in the 19th and early 20th centuries when there was a growing interest in Islamic art (Petersen, 1999). Fustat was an ancient centre for the pottery industry and a new Pottery Centre is built there with the aims of preserving the traditional art (Mason, 1995).

3-2 Site Significance As a result of the existence of this exceptional diversity of religious monuments in one location, Old Cairo sometimes called the 'Multi-religious Compound' (Gabra, 2013). It is also still considered a sacred area by both Jews and Copts because the local folklore of Jews states that here is the spot where baby Moses was found, and that was later become the site of Ben Ezra Synagogue (Glickman, 2011). For Copts, it's believed in Christian tradition that the Holy Family visited this area when they came to Egypt, and rested in a cave where the Church of St. Sergius was built upon (Beattie, 2005; Gabra & van Loon, 2007). Moreover, the area has a historical significance for Muslims as the site of the first Muslim settlement in Egypt and the first mosque in Africa (Lapidus, 1988). This religious value of Old Cairo leads to the development of strong emotional bonds with that place.

3-3 Data Collection Using a structured questionnaire, data for this study were collected from a randomly selected sample of 400 both local and foreign visitors who had visited Old Cairo. The questionnaires were distributed to visitors from November 2017 to January 2018. There have been 389 responses were obtained with a response rate 97.2% of the total sample. However, only 377 of the questionnaires were usable for the final analysis.

3-4 Measurement Data was processed using the Statistical Package of the Social Science (SPSS V. 16). The questionnaire was divided into three parts. Part A included 5 questions about socio-demographic characteristics of respondents such as:



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age, gender, education, nationality and visit frequency. While, part B included 43 items to assess the pro-environmental behavior of the respondents, and finally part C included 15 questions that measured place attachment. This study was considered place attachment as a multidimensional construct, composed of place dependence, identity, affect and social bonding. Place dependence (measured by four items), place identity (with four items). These items were adapted from Vaske and Kobrin (2001). While, measures of social bonding and place affect adapted from Kyle et al. (2004), and Ramkissoon et al. (2013a). Place affect (measured by three items), and place social bonding (measured by four items). pro-environmental behavior was measured based on (43 items) that derived from Buonincontri et al. (2017). The statistical analysis used in this research is (1) Cronbach alpha to assess the reliability, (2) the descriptive analyses to compute the frequencies, standard of deviation and means; (3) correlation analysis was used to test the relationship between the research variables and finally (4) linear regression test has been conducted to estimate the significance effect of the independent variable (place attachment) on the dependent variable (pro-environmental behavior).

3-5 Data Analysis 3-5-1 Reliability

This research calculated the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for all variables and it exceeded 0.70 which means that results are reliable (Hall, 2008). Table 2 shows the reliability statistics for each variable.

Table 2 Constructs' Reliability Constructs Cronbach’s Alpha

Pro-environmental behaviors of heritage visitors .85

Place attachment .90 Place dependence .86 Place identity .91 Place affect .87 Place social bonding .81

3-5-2 Visitors' Profile The results showed that more than half of visitors 55.5% were female and 44.5% were male. The majority of visitors 86.1% had completed the university education. Around 36% of visitors were between 20 and 34 years while 48 % were between 35 and 49 years and 16% were over 50 years. Regarding the nationality of visitors, 59% were local visitors and 41% were foreign. In relation to the visit frequency, the majority of respondents were repeat visitors to Old Cairo with a percentage of 76.3% while only 23.7%


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were first-time visitors. This may reflect the visitors' attachment to Old Cairo which enables them to provide valuable information for this research.

3-5-3 Pro-environmental behaviors of heritage visitors The visitors to Old Cairo were asked to indicate their pro-environmental behaviors by using a Likert-type scale from 1"rarely" to 5"usually" to examine the level of their commitment to protect Old Cairo. The pro-environmental behaviors were grouped into two categories: general environmental behaviors and site specific environmental behaviors. The findings revealed that the total mean value for pro-environmental behaviors of visitors to Old Cairo was 3.97 (SD=,33). A mean score of 3.9 has been achieved for general environmental behaviors, while, the specific environmental behaviors related to Old Cairo achieved a mean score of 4.0. The previous results highlighted a higher level of visitors' participation in environmental behaviors at Old Cairo. This result came in favor with the findings of Kerstetter et al. (2001) which indicated that heritage tourists are more interested in involvement with the places rather than just enjoying the environment. The results indicate that the following general environmental activities were achieved the same and the highest mean value 4.7 (talking usually with others about the protection of cultural heritage, try to convince friends to act responsibly when visiting cultural heritage sites, convince someone to visit less crowded heritage sites to protect cultural heritage and buy products from firms that are careful to the history, traditions and identity of communities), while the lowest values achieved were respectively for (membership in organizations that concerned with the support and the protection of heritage (M=2.8, SD=1.2), Write letters to government officials in support of this heritage site (M=2.1, SD=1.07), signed petitions to support cultural heritage protection in the last year (M=1.9, SD=.99), and voting for elected officials that support cultural heritage protection (M=1.4, SD=.71). For Old Cairo specific environmental behaviors, the most common behaviors among respondents were respectively (e.g. increasing the scientific monitoring of the status of Old Cairo to ensure its protection (M=4.8, SD=.40), developing a stricter mandatory regulations for visitors to minimize their negative impacts (M=4.7, SD=.43), limiting the number of visitors (M=4.5, SD=.50) and joined in voluntary actions that help the protection of Old Cairo (M=4.4, SD=.70) ), while adopting a work of art at Old Cairo and donate money to support it were the least common behaviors with a mean value 3.2.



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3-5-4 Place Attachment The respondents have been asked to indicate the level of their attachment to Old Cairo heritage site by choosing a number from 1 indicating not attached to 5 indicating that they were “Very attached.” Table 3. Means and Standard Deviations results for Place Attachment (n=377).

Place attachment items Mean SD Place dependence 4.2 .44 The area of Old Cairo is the best place for what I like to do. 4.0 .35

I get more satisfaction from visiting Old Cairo than any other place. 4.3 .61 I wouldn't substitute any other area for the type of experience I get from visiting Old Cairo.

4.2 .64

I enjoy visiting Old Cairo than any other place. 4.0 .56

Place identity 4.1 .41 I think often about coming to Old Cairo 3.9 .40 I am very attached to Old Cairo. 4.3 .63 I identify strongly with Old Cairo. 4.3 .69 I feel like Old Cairo is a part of me. 3.8 .33

Place affect 4.3 .35 I feel attachment to Old Cairo 3.8 .33 I feel a strong sense of belonging to Old Cairo and its settings/facilities 4.4 .57 Old Cairo means a lot to me. 4.7 .40

Place social bonding 4.3 .26 Many of my friends/family prefer the area Old Cairo over many other heritage sites.

4.1 .33

If I were to stop visiting Old Cairo, I would lose contact with a number of friends.

4.4 .50

My friends/family would be disappointed if I were to start visiting other heritage sites.

3.7 .40

The friendships and associations I have with other people here at Old Cairo mean a lot to me.

4.8 .37

Total mean of Place Attachment 4.2 .29

As shown in table 3, the total mean value specified by participants for place attachment was 4.2 (SD=.29). A mean score of 4.3 was achieved for both place affect (SD=.35) and place social bonding (SD=.26), while, the total mean value for both place dependence was 4.2 (SD=.44) and place identity was 4.1 (SD=.41). The highest mean was recorded for the place social bonding item "the friendships and associations I have with other people here at Old Cairo mean a lot to me" with 4.8(SD=.37), followed by the place affect item "Old Cairo means a lot to me" with 4.7 (SD=.40), while the lowest mean value was for the item "my friends/family would be disappointed


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if I were to start visiting other heritage sites" with 3.7. These results mean that respondents are very attached to Old Cairo.

4- Hypotheses Tests 4-1 Correlation Analysis To find out the relationship between place attachment and pro-environmental behaviors of tourists at Old Cairo further correlation analysis has been conducted between these two main variables. The results of the correlation were shown in table 4

Table 4 The correlation of place attachment and pro-environmental behaviors

pro-environmental behaviors

place attachment

Spearman's rho pro-environmental behaviors

Correlation Coefficient 1.000 .861**

Sig. (2-tailed) . .000

N 377 377

place attachment Correlation Coefficient .861** 1.000

Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .

N 377 377

** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

As shown in table 4, the correlation was statistically significant at the 0.01 level. The place attachment has a significant positive relationship with PEB (r = .861, p < .05).

Simple linear regression analyses To achieve the aim of this research, a simple linear regression analysis has been used to test the significance impact of multidimensional place attachment construct on pro-environmental behavior. H1. Visitors’ place attachment positively influences the pro-environmental behavior of heritage visitors in Old Cairo district.

Table 5 Model Summary

Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate

1 .618a .382 .380 .26032

a. Predictors: (Constant), place attachment

The model summary shows that adjusted R2 was .380, indicating this model accounted for 38% of the variation in pro-environmental behavior.



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Table 6 ANOVAb

Model Sum of Squares Df Mean Square F Sig.

1 Regression 15.686 1 15.686 231.457 .000a

Residual 25.413 375 .068

Total 41.099 376

a. Predictor:(Constant), place attachment

b. Dependent Variable: PEB

The ANOVA table illustrated whether the model significantly predicted the outcome. The results in table 7 proved that the model fit was significant as (f = 231.457 and p<0.05).

Table 7 Coefficientsa

Model

Unstandardized Coefficients Standardized Coefficients

t Sig. B Std. Error Beta

1 (Constant) .970 .197 4.935 .000

place attachment

.704 .046 .618 15.214 .000

a. Dependent Variable: PEB

As expected, the coefficients table confirmed that place attachment positively affected pro-environmental behaviors of visitors at Old Cairo heritage site. Regression analysis for place attachment dimensions

H1a. Visitors’ place dependence has a positive effect on the PEB. H1b. Visitors’ place identity has a positive effect on the PEB. H1c. Visitors’ place affect has a positive effect on the PEB. H1d. Visitors’ place social bonding has a positive effect on the

PEB.

Table 8 linear regression analysis for place attachment dimensions Variables Adjusted R

Square F Sig. Results

Impact of place dependence on PEB

.401 252.382 .000 Accepted

Impact of place identity on PEB .508 389.843 .000 Accepted

Impact of place affect on PEB .230 113.104 .000 Accepted Impact of place social bonding on PEB

.262 134.312 .000 Accepted

Predictors: (constant) (place dependence, identity, affect and social bonding). Dependent variable: pro-environmental behavior.


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The results in table (8) revealed that place dependence, place identity, place affect, and place social bonding have a positive influence on pro-environmental behaviors of visitors at Old Cairo (Adj R square= 40.1%; sig. =.000; Adj R square= 50.8%, sig. =.000; Adj R square= 23%, sig. =.000; Adj R square= 26.2%, sig. =.000). Based on the above discussion, the research hypotheses will be accepted.

5- Results and Discussion The prime aim of this research was to examine the influence of place attachment on pro-environmental behavior of visitors at the area of Old Cairo. This research considered place attachment as a multidimensional construct, comprised of place dependence, identity, affect, and place social bonding. The respondents of this study expressed high levels of both pro-environmental behaviors and place attachment to Old Cairo. This might be due to the religious and historical significance of such Multi-religious Compound. Spearman correlation and simple linear regression have been conducted to explore the relationship between research variables and estimate the influence of the independent variable (place attachment) on the dependent variable (pro-environmental behavior). The main hypothesis of the research has been verified as a positive significant correlation was found between pro-environmental behavior and place attachment. This result came to agree with the findings of Vaske & Kobrin (2001); Halpenny (2010); Scannell & Gifford (2010b) and Cheng et al. (2013) which have concluded that the place attachment is positively associated with PEB. The empirical findings of this research also proved that place attachment has a strong positive effect on both general and site specific pro-environmental behaviors of individuals at Old Cairo. All place attachment dimensions had a positive influence on pro-environmental behaviors of visitors. Comparing these four dimensions, the place identity was leading with the highest influence %50.8, this result came to agree with the studies of Kyle et al. (2005); Halpenny (2010); Tong et al. (2015) which have concluded that place identity had a significant positive effect on both site and general environmental behaviors. Individuals who have a strong feeling of place identity are more likely to maintain and care for the place settings (Tong et al., 2015). Vaske and Kobrin (2001) also proved the same result; as place identity increased, so too did the intention to adopt the pro-environmental behaviors. Place dependence had a statistically significant effect on pro-environmental behaviors (Adj R2=.401). This result matched with the findings of Kyle et al. (2005); Raymond et al. (2011) and Ramkissoon et al. (2013a) which reported that visitors who are highly place-dependent, are more likely to act in an environmentally responsible way. Place social bonding had a lesser effect



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26.2% on pro-environmental behaviors in comparison with identity and dependence. This result came in favor with the findings of Kyle et al. (2005) and Nye and Hargreaves (2009) which supported that the social bonding between people can support and foster pro-environmental intentions and behaviors. For place affect, the regression analysis proved that Adjusted R Square was (.230), indicating that this dimension affected on visitors' pro-environmental behaviors with (23%). This result corroborates the findings of Halpenny (2010) and Ramkissoon et al. (2013a, 2013b) which proved that individuals’ place affect had a significant impact on their pro-environmental behaviors. Pooley and O’Conner (2000) also indicated that Place affect was considered a significant predictor of environmental attitudes. Based on the previous findings, the place attachment is an antecedent for pro-environmental behaviors. It explained 38% of visitors' pro-environmental behaviors at Old Cairo. This result corroborates the findings of several studies (Vaske & Kobrin, 2001; kyle et al., 2005; Halpenny, 2010; Scannell & Gifford 2010b; Lee, 2011; Raymond et al., 2011; Cheng et al., 2013; Ramkissoon et al., 2013a, 2013b; Tong et al., 2015; Kwenye & Phiri, 2016) which argued that place attachment was considered an important predictor of environmental behaviors. Accordingly, as place attachment increases, the likelihood of pro-environmental behaviors among visitors also increases.

6- Conclusion and Management Implications To date, no empirical studies, to the authors’ knowledge, have studied pro- environmental behaviors and place attachment at heritage sites in Egypt. To accomplish this, the research provides a theoretical contribution to the literature on both place attachment and pro-environmental behavior at heritage sites. A literature review demonstrated that the investigation of this relationship in cultural context would achieve more contribution to knowledge in this field. The findings of this research suggested that place attachment construct with its four dimensions has positively influenced the environmental behavior of heritage visitors at Old Cairo. This paper also provides some helpful practical implications for heritage sites managers striving to encourage sustainability based on visitors' environmental behaviors. It will also help in the planning and marketing of environmental behaviors at heritage sites. Analytical results proved that pro-environmental behaviors are significantly influenced by place attachment. Thus, to enhance pro-environmental behaviors, managers of heritage sites and planners can enhance the efficiency of their management plan including interpretation programs and develop new mechanisms that foster visitors' attachment. Moreover, it is highly suggested that heritage site management should maintain and protect heritage sites to assure environmental quality and promote place attachment among visitors. Heritage sites' management can


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also support pro-environmental behavior by actively participating visitors, suitable message posting, and, where possible, carefully training visitors on the environmental practices.

7- Area of Further Research Firstly, this study emphasized on the role of place attachment as a predictor of environmental behavior at heritage sites, further research is required to examine the impact of other predictive variables such as involvement. Secondly, the current research was conducted at Old Cairo heritage site. Thus, to generalize the study findings in other sites, future research can investigate the influence of place attachment on pro-environmental behavior at other heritage sites like museums. Lastly, further research is also required to determine whether there are differences in pro-environmental behaviors and place attachment between natural and cultural settings.

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The Gunpowder Factory (Gabḫānah) of Mohammed Ali Athar al-Nabi – Istabl ‘Antar

Shaimaa Abdel Tawab Sayed

Abstract Mohammed Ali and his administration sought to strengthen the army and built a navy and a merchant marine the first attempts at industrialization were geared towards a military industrial complex that allow Egypt to manufacture her own military hard ware and thus end reliance on foreign imports everything that had been imported was promptly copied in the new factories, which were able to turn out rifles, muskets, cannon, gunpowder and small arms in respect able quantities, so Mohamed Ali ordered to construct the Gabkhana of Ather Al Nabi in order to manufacture the gunpowder. The aim of this study is to shed light to the importance of this monument, after all, one could say that this construction “ Gabkhana of Mohammed Ali overcame the enemies but the negligence vanquished it”. The study also aims to highlight the idea of restoring and reconstructing the structure then to connect it with social activities in accordance with huge monument.

Keywords (Gabkhana – Military constructions – gunpowder – Reusing)

Introduction Cairo occupies an important status regarding the number of monumental

buildings and the varied architectural styles such as being civil and military in addition to its historical and cultural heritage. Muhammad Ali Pasha owes great efforts especially in the military industry and its establishments which enabled him to rule Egypt independently .He ordered to build lots of constructions to satisfy his needs. Among these construction is his famous gunpowder factory “Gabkhana” which is considered the most important military construction to manufacture gunpowder and to store it as well . This construction is located over a mountain known as the mountain of Istabl Antar. It is a magnificent location overlooking a panoramic view of (The seven domes – The excavations of Al-Fustat – The Museum of Civilization). Despite all these advantages, the area is closed and not available for visitors due to being in a bad condition especially the walls and in addition the trespassing of its neighboring Izbat khayrallah and its misusing in the meantime.



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Industry during the reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha His main aim was to care about the education with all its criteria as well as industry which rapidly developed in the 13th century AH/19th AD. According to the chronicles of the French occupation of Egypt, the industry was such primitive crafts especially in the second half of the 18th century AD )1( that was performed by craftsmen to provide people with the essential needs. However, there were no heavy crafts that need technology, only manpower or cattle were needed )2( . Moreover, the industrial buildings were mostly small due to the small size of markets; meanwhile, the workman was working alone or with the assistance of one of his assistants. By this way, he could meet the needs of customers and local market; this process could be named as the productive units given up on request )3( .

When Muhammad Ali pasha ruled Egypt, he

gave his care to the rise of industry as it is mainly the second pillar of the state after education to convoy the European systems also to avoid importing the armors or military equipment. He aimed also to manage his power to be independent from any European stress or authority especially when the local materials are available and the man power as well )4( . We have 2 complex for military industry : one in the citadel and the second in Bulaq (Tirsane). Al Hod-Marsud supplied 800 muskets a month, the factories in the citadel produced 3-4 cannon a month, musket factory produced over 625 muskets, various sword lances )5( . In 1231AH/1816AD, Muhammad Ali started his first attempt to establish a factory of textile in Egypt at al-Khurunfish )6( . Consequently, he started building factories especially, the military ones to promote the Egyptian

(1) In the second half of the 18th century AD, industry was divided into three main parts;

the first is connected to nutrition such as the wheat grinding, bread making, butchery, incubation laboratories, in addition to make vinegar, sugar and raisins. The second section is the types of products that connected to the cloth such as weaving, whitening of the cloths, textiles, embroidery, tannage, shoe and saddle making. The third section is the industries that connected to the inhabitance, furniture, and other economical industries.

على الجریتلى ، تاریخ الصناعة في مصر في النصف الأول من القرن التاسع عشر، الجمعیة الملكیة للدراسات - .١٦، ص ١٩٥٢التاریخیة ، دار المعارف ، القاھرة ،

. ٢٨٧ -٢٥٣جومار، ترجمة أیمن فؤاد سید، وصف مدینة القاھرة وقلعة الجبل، ص ص )٢((3) The thing that led to a stagnancy in the status of the Egyptian economic and a decrease in

the population. Moreover the decline of the political and the social systems led to a decline in the quality of production. So , it was so hard for Egypt to rival the growth of the European renaissance and technology,

.٩٢، ص ١٩٨٥ صلاح أحمد ھریدى ، الحرف والصناعات في عھد محمد على ، دار المعارف ، القاھرة، - .٢٥)على الجریتلى، تاریخ الصناعة في مصر، مرجع سبق ذكره،ص٤(

(5) Afaf Lutfi Al – Sayed Morsot, A Short History Of Modern Egypt, Royal institute of international affairs, 1944, Vol. 62, No. 1, 1985, 1998, PP. 149-1450.

٣٣، ص ١٩٨٧نوال قاسم، تطور الصناعة المصریة منذ عھد محمد على حتى عھد عبد الناصر ، الطبعة الاولى ، )٦(

Abdel Tawab. Sh ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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industry depending on relying on foreign experts from England, France, and Italy. )7( Gradually, he replaced the foreign expert craftsmen by Egyptian ones such as managers, workers, craftsmen, after being well-trained in the different fields of industry especially, working in the military factories. )8( Actually, this reform was criticized by the orientalist when Muhammad Ali turned Egypt to be as industrial country in addition of being agricultural. As a result , many trials were made to undermine the local industries especially, the military ones to be totally relying on importing weapons . In this context, the French general Boyer asked Muhammad Ali to use the French military weapons instead of being manufactured in Egyptian factories, the matter that was rejected by Muhammad Ali as he decided to promote Egyptian industry by increasing number of factories and improving the quality of their products to rival that of Europe. )9( For that reason, General Boyer realized the rapid development of the Egyptian industries when he visited Egypt in 1924 and he was greatly fascinated by the flourishing of the Egyptian factories saying to France “Be aware, it is a dangerous competitor and all of France and Europe”. )10( There are three types of industries were introduced by Muhammad Ali as follow: 1-Heavy industries 2- Processing industries 3- Military industries These types established after the Wahhabi war (1811-1819) and the establishment of the first professional organized army in the Tirsana of the Citadel. We have six gunpowder factories set in various parts of Egypt and

natron lakes in the western desert yielded chemicals of fine quality easily )11( .

They almost spread out all over Egypt and Alexandria; however lots of Tirsanas were established aside to the military factories. Regarding Cairo, the military factories were as follows:

- The Guest house of the citadel

(7) Dodwell, H., The Founder of Modern Egypt, A Study of Mohammed Ali, Cambridge,

1931, p. 238 . رى، تعریب سلیم حسن وطھ السباعى، تاریخ محمد على مؤسس مصر الحدیثة ، مطبعة المعارف ، القاھرة شارلس م )٨(

.٥٥، ص ١٩١٨، (9)Weygend , General, Histoire Militaire de Mohamed Ali et ses fils, London, 1936, p. 195. (10)Andrew Mc Gregor, A military history of modern Egypt: from the Ottoman conquest to

the Ramadan war, praeger security international west port Connecticut, London, 2006; Pp.53-60.

(11) Ibid., p.196



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- Gabkhana )12( of the citadel )13( - Gabkhana Athar al-Nabi – Istabl ‘Antar (the topic of study) - Gunpowder laboratory at al-Rawdah “al-Baroud Khana” )14( - Al-Hawd al-Marsoud or the gunpowder factory-Tafkakhana )15( of al-Hawd

al-Marsoud. When Muhammad Ali started the development of the Egyptian Army, missions were sent to Europe to train them the art of war. These missions were trained and educated in different foreign language. Consequently, the military books were translated from French and Italian into Arabic that were necessary for the soldiers to keep the internal security and also to build the fortresses. )16(

The plan of the military constructions It was a traditional plan that spread during the reign of Muhammad Ali, it was applied in schools, factories, barracks qushlaqat and hospitals. Their plan was almost square or rectangle with one or two floors. The buildings had paralleled roofs opened with air shafts or wind catchers for ventilation and light. They had also stone or wood minarets and shallow domes. Lord Campbell mentioned this plan before in the military factories that resembled also schools, hospitals and military buildings. Muhammad Ali constructed the Egyptian factories on the European style which had paralleled roofs

(12) Gabkhana is a Turkish word divided into two sections; the first is “Geb” which means

the multisided shield, and “Khana” which means the place or house, the Gabkhana is the place where the arms and munitions were stored means the depository. Sometimes the word Gabkhana refers to the munitions itself not the depository . The word also means “the place of the gunpowder manufacturing”. For more details see:

انظر : صالح مجدي، رسالة میادین الحصون والقلاع ورمي القنابر بالید والمقلاع، كتاب عسكري، -م، ١٨٧٢ه/١٢٨٩محمد لاظ، مذكرة لطیفة في الاستحكامات الخفیفة ، كتاب عسكري، ; ٤٤م، ص١٨٥٨ه/١٢٧٥

٦في الجبرتى من الدخیل، صأحمد السعید سلیمان، تأصیل ما ورد ;١٥٤ص(13)The Gabkhana of the citadel is located in the south eastern part from the courtyard. It was

not only built for preserving the gunpowder, but also was used for manufacturing of a certain kind of gunpowder “the black gunpowder” which is called Tangah.

(14) A gunpowder laboratory was established nearby the Nilometer on the Rawdah island. This location is an area between Gizah and the old Cairo clearly shown on the map of Egypt dated to 1868AD. It is located beside al- Qasr al-Ainy school of medicine which was established by Muhammad Ali and turned to be the Hospital of al-Qasr al-Ainy. In this street, the gunpowder laboratory was existed and became known as the street of the gunpowder laboratory till 1921AD. Later on, the Rawdah laboratory became known as the BaroudKhana means the gunpowder factory or Kharagala Khana which means the factory or the white powder laboratory. Generally, its director was a French man named Maretal.

(15) It means the guns factory, it is a Turkish word “Tafnak” or “Tofnek” means the rifle, from which the word “Tafkangi” means the rifle maker, was derived.

٥٥، ص أحمد السعید سلیمان، تأصیل ما ورد في الجبرتى من الدخیل -(16)Menjin Felix, Histoire de L’Egypte sous le gouvernement de Muhammed Ali, Paris,

1823.


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comprising one or two floors provided with a row of windows, while the roofs were also flat and polished )17( . A manuscript dated to the 19th AD century, stating rules that should be available in the military buildings, that could be the elegance, durability, and abundance. This is the art of constructing solid and beautiful buildings in the same time and the art of decorating the interior and exterior facades. )18( The manuscript also stated three criteria of the military constructions in the reign of Muhammad Ali that could be, the regularity )19( , the unity and the simplicity )20( . This manuscript also the rules of planning the military buildings that must be built in a form of workshops, separated from each other around a main construction set in order that suits the type of works going inside

)21( . The Planning of the military factories: We have two types of plans:- The first: The citadel Tirsana which is a construction consists of several factories or adjoining workshops as mentioned in the manuscript. The second: Is a rectangle or square construction with a courtyard in the center. This plan could be seen in the Gabkhana of the citadel and the Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi- Istabl Antar. The two constructions are different in plan; the first one has almost arches that overlooking the courtyard, a style that occurred before the time of Muhammad Ali most probably was used as a laboratory of gunpowder in the Ottoman period and was reused by Muhammad Ali after making some restorations and renovations mostly seen in the arcades and the arches as well as some basins for the black gunpowder. As for the Gabkhana of Muhammad Ali- Istabl Antar, the white gunpowder or the sunny gunpowder was produced, therefore the architect had provided the building with a vast courtyard prepared for the barrels of gunpowder after being filtered and dehydrated. The construction was also provided with a warehouse in the center of the courtyard to preserve the

؛ مجلة الجیش، العدد الرابع ٥٠، ص١٩٥٠عبد الرحمن زكي، التاریخ الحربي لعصر محمد علي، دار المعارف، )١٧(

.١٩٢، ١٧٦م، ص ١٩٤٩ه/١٣٦٨عون، المجلد الحادي عشر، والأرب .٤م، ص١٢٨٥/١٨٦٨محمود فھمي، المطلع القمریة في الابنیة العسكریة، مخطوط حربي، ) ١٨(

(19) The simplicity is to give oneself away from any unwanted details in the decoration. Also it is the harmony in the dimensions of the facades to find more proportion and harmonization.

(20) The regularity is the analogy of the items in size, length, width and axis .١٦) محمود فھمي، مخطوط حربي، مرجع سبق ذكره، ص ٢١(



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gunpowder in the barracks building that located in the center of the courtyard of the citadel of Muhammad Ali on Muqattam )22( .

Some Definitions for the Military parts of the Gabkhana: 1- Qushlaqat or Barracks(23) : It is a separated section derived from the

idea of the Tibaq of the citadel in the Mamluke period. It is mainly some chambers prepared for the residence of the soldiers. There are two types of barracks according to its plan during the reign of Muhammad Ali:

The first type: is some barracks in one or some buildings adjoining each other. It is a rectangular plan comprising two floors and provided with various wide chambers with high roofs, and it has also some air shafts for ventilation and light. Each chamber could house numerous soldiers. It is provided with baths, kitchens and other compartments. This style could be seen in the barracks of Salah al-Din at the citadel.

The second type: is the Qushlaq or the barracks attached to the Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi – Istabl ‘Antar. The Qushlaq was set outside the Gabkhana for the safety of the soldiers from the gunpowder that could be exploded. The Qushlaq or the barracks comprising one storey could be reached by a corridor and housing various chambers on the left and the right. It is much smaller in shape than the first type )24( .

The ceiling: divided into two main types: A- Paralleled roofed ceilings B- Gable ceiling which is built of stone like those in the Gabkhana of Athar al-

Nabi. The ceilings were covered of shallow domes like that of the Gabkhana of Muhammad Ali. The shallow domed were used to decrease the density of the moisture and the temperature inside the building in order to preserve the gunpowder and the stores inside the Gabkhana. The ceiling is doubled and provided with shallow domes resting on stone piers, however, a flat ceiling was made above the shallow domes.

2- The cistern )25( : The cistern was used in the military constructions for different purposes as follows:-

م، رسالة ماجستیر، ١٨٤٨-١٨٠٥اھرة، ) أمل محفوظ أحمد جمعة، العمائر الحربیة في عصر محمد على بمدینة الق٢٢(

.١٧٨، ص١٩٩٩كلیة الآثار، جامعة القاھرة، قسم الآثار الاسلامیة، (23) Qushlaq: Plural Qishla: means the barracks of soldiers instead of the tents that were

rapidly spoiled. It is derived from a Turkish term Qash that means the winter place . .٤٤صالح مجدي، رسالة میادین الحصون والقلاع ورمي القنابر بالید والمقلاع، مرجع سبق ذكره، ص )٢٤(

(25)The Cistern: A rectangular space separated by columns or piers, of various numbers in accordance with the size of the cistern. It has a ceiling in a shape of stone or brick shallow


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a) To provide the soldiers and the building with water that comes from the citadel of Muhammad Ali at Muqqattam.

b) In the cistern of the Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi, the cisterns have two functions; first is to provide the settlers with water, and the second is to get suitable needed amount of water for manufacturing the gunpowder salts or the white gunpowder for its filtering and purification

)26( .

3- The entrances In the reign of Muhammad Ali, the entrances took the flat axis form that mainly leads directly to a corridor.This kind of entrance was used instead of the bent entrances to give more protection to the entire construction, therefore, the architect created three types of entrance according to the purpose of the building. In the Gabkhana of Muhammad Ali, the entrances were filled with various chambers prepared for the guards and to organize the access and going out process in the building. The chambers could be seen flanking entrance of the Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi.

1- The courtyards They were known before the reign of Muhammad Ali in a numerous of Islamic constructions, but in the military buildings the courtyard mainly located in the center of the building like that occurred in the Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi. Stores, cisterns, and barracks were built in the courtyards especially in the forts and the military factories )27( .

domes resting on stone piers. Its walls are covered with stucco, however, its floor is paving with stone tiles. The piers could afford more heaviness rather than the columns especially in the military constructions. The piers are used in the Gabkhana of Istabl Antar especially in the gunpowder store. It has shallow domes resting over stone piers. It could also be seen in the cistern of Athar al-Nabi while the builder divided the cistern into four arcades covered its roof by shallow domes and resting over four piers in the middle with cornered stony piers.

.٢٠م، ص ١٨٦٢ه/١٢٨٢) صالح مجدي، المطالب المنیفة في الاستحكامات الحقیقیة، كتاب حربي، ٢٦(، م١٩٣٥)عمر طوسون، الصنائع والمدارس الحربیة في عھد محمد علي باشا، الطبعة الثالثة، مطبعة العدل، القاھرة، ٢٧(

.٣٨ص



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The gunpowder (Al-Barud) )28( Historians and travellers discussed the first occurrence of the gunpowder, and the cannons. In history, the gunpowder was firstly used in China especially in the fireworks during their festivals and ceremonies

)29( . The Egyptians used the gunpowder in the Ayyubid period by Salah al-Din during his wars against the crusades, and later it was used in the battle of Ain Galout, that gunpowder was put in small Naphtha pots. And also The gunpowder was used in the Mamluke period and was put in pots to act like a hand grenade and also inside the cannons. The gunpowder chemically comprises three essential minerals; the gunpowder carbon, saltpeter, and sulfur commensurably distributed. The liter of the gunpowder is almost 840 to 845gm and produced in several shapes like gunpowder, threads, squares, tubes and slides

)30( . The gunpowder had numerous sorts and types, and it is developed with the growing of the bombs, armors and guns. The places in which the gunpowder was made in the 19th century was called the “Baroud Khana” also called “Gabkhana” means (the depository) or (the store place) or the place in which the gunpowder was preserved, especially the type that was called the black gunpowder . also another place

that was called “kahragalat )31( , a word to identify the place in which another gunpowder was made called the white gunpowder or the saltpeter ( the salt of gunpowder).

The manufacturing Techniques in the Gabkhana and the BaroudKhana The gunpowder was prepared through several processes that were mentioned in the manuscript of Mulakhas Fi Fann Al-Tubgiyah : It states the method of manufacturing through the 19th AD century. It is being produced through several processes:- It is started by crushing, mixing, pressing, imposing, and dehydration. The powder was crushed by using wooden mortars. The mortars were set vertically between some wooden beams to slide over it. If the beams set in

(28)Sometimes it is written as Baroud which is a Turkish term, it is called Abraq in Arabic.

تحقیق حسین نصار، الهیئة المصریة العامة للكتاب، ، ٢في الألفاظ العامیة، ج أحمد تیمور، معجم تیمور الكبیر -

.٩٣،ص١٩٧٨

. ٢م، بدون مؤلف، ص١٨٤٩ه/١٢٦٦) ملخص في فن الطوبجیة، مخطوط حربى، ٢٩(- ١٨م، ص ١٩٣٢ه/١٣٢٢) عبد الرازق بركات، الرسالة الفنیة في تاریخ الآلات الحربیة، مطبعة السعادة، القاھرة، ٣٠(

١٩. (31) Singular “Kahrgalah” means the saltpeter (salt of the gunpowder), it is also named

Potassium Nitrate and it is found naturally on the surface of the ground.


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higher position, the mortars might be circular in shape lied in some pieces of Oak )32( . Each mortar is 40 Kg. and slide from 40 cm high. The process starts when some of carbon (it’s carbon of gunpowder not carbon of wood) are put in each mortar with a small amount of water then to be hammered for about 15 minutes, then to add salts and sulfur. This step is applied outside the powder factory mainly inside a Moulin (the Moulins spread in the time of Muhammad Ali to grind the seeds or the dung that was used in making the gunpowder. Each Moulin was used to crush the powder and comprises 20 to 24 mortars approximately. The Moulins are known in Ancient Egypt and in the Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi). The powder is delicately crushed and being bolting. The three substances were mixed then moving inside the mortars for about 11 to 12 hours transferring from mortar to the other. A small amount of water was added to consolidate the mixture forming paste or disks. The mortars were taken to other places to dry the disks, then powder was taken from the mortar and then it was broke in a riddle from leather or metal wires, then it is passing through some riddles to be a powder and then it was dried. The dehydration has two processes: First: the natural process through the powder which exposed to air and sun on panels covered with pieces of cotton. The powder is put on cotton layers; each layer is between 5:7 ml then to be exposed to the open air from 10 to 12 minutes. Second: It is dried by using hot air on each layer of powder (10cm thick). It is the accurate process with no side effects, whereas the amount would be 1200 kg. of powder daily. For the powder, before it is put in barrels, it is bolted once again by using riddles from hair and silk to purify the powder from the dust. This process is named “the purification”. )33( The gunpowder which is produced from the private factories has three types; the first is the so-called hunting powder, the commercial powder, and the booby-trap powder. Each one of these types had private ratio in its manufacture then all these kinds were preserved in private barrels; each barrel could afford 50 to 100 kg. of powder .Then each barrel is put inside another barrel that is called the preserver taking in consideration the type of gunpowder, the name of the laboratory and the date of its manufacture. )34(

The Charcoal of the gunpowder: (32) A sort of wood “Qarow” or Oak .

.١٩٠مخطوط ملخص في فن الطوبجیة، مرجع سبق ذكرة، ص ) ٣٣( .١٩١،١٩٢جیة، مرجع سبق ذكره، ص ) مخطوط ملخص في فن الطوب٣٤(



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Natural materials that were produced from firing plants and trees. The charcoal is used for making the gunpowder that is coming from a special type of wood. The nut wood is used as well as the garlic wood, willow, and Roseberry. They are all light and white types of wood and have firing character if compared with the other types. The process of making the carbon starts by cutting the wood especially in the spring times into stems about 18m thick and then they are scratched and fired as follows: The wood stems must be put in holes with walls and preserved in cast iron panels then it is put in stores like furnaces. The furnace is closed for 48 hours then the charcoal is coming out and it is put in a dry area. The carbon then is crushed to be like a powder with no smell and taste. )35(

The Kahragalat or the Salt of the gunpowder The second element after the charcoal of the gunpowder and it is used for making the black gunpowder which used for manufacturing the cannonballs. The word means the factories in which the salt of the gunpowder is made inside it. The saltpeter is found in the organic atmosphere as the vapors to interact with a dry air. In the artificial saltpeter, debris is put as well as chemical substances to give more chemical interaction. The saltpeter is extracted by washing these materials then the saltpeter sediment remained in the bottom of the furnace. The process is repeated daily to purify the saltpeter from any unwanted deposits. To give more purification, small amount of water is put then it is vaporized and dried. Later on, the saltpeter is put in basins then it is deliberated. This process is called “the gunpowder refining”. The next step is to use a bolter from thin metal wires to give more purified white powder then it is preserved in special barrels away from the moisture and other chemical factors )36(

The Gabkhana of Athar al-Nabi – Istabl Antar This Gabkhana is located east to Athar al-Nabi district in Old Cairo (al-Zahraa outskirt) over a mound of Istabl Antar. (Plate no 1). So, it took its name “The Gabkhana of Istabl Antar”. The mound of Istabl Antar was known as “the observatory mound” or Gabal

al-Rasd )37( which is overlooking Athar al-Nabi village from the west. )38(

.١٩٥) المخطوط السابق، ص ٣٥(

.١٨٦)مخطوط ملخص في فن الطوبجیة، مرجع سبق ذكره ، ص ٣٦((37) The Arabs called the Muqattam hills by numerous names. As for its northern part, it is

called “the red mountain” or al-Gabal al-Ahmar due to its red color . Regarding The cliff which located to the western side, it is called the citadel of the mountain. This is the area occupied by the citadel of Salah al- Din. The cliff that is overlooking this part was used as an observatory marsad as the Fatimid vizier al-Afdal, son of Badr al-Gamali had


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It is considered the third Gabkhana established by Muhammad Ali in Cairo

)39 ( for preserving the gunpowder after the Gabkhana of the Citadel and the Gabkhana of Al-Giushy Mountain south of the citadel )40( . It is founded in Safar 1244AH/1829AD. )41( . The plan suggested was 230 cubits long and 200 cubits wide

)42( or 147m long and 128m wide. The suggested total area was 18816 square meters to house more than 120.000 quintal of gunpowder )43( . Although being spacious, it was not sufficient enough to carry more quantities of gunpowder. The thing that caused enlarging the plan of the Gabkhana as seen nowadays a rectangular plan 181m long and 117m wide; however, the entire space is 21177 square meter (Plate no 2) . Four fortresses were built on its four sides )44( ; they are four square towers 11m long in each side. The construction of Gabkhana has two storeys, the lower one is a wide courtyard centered by a small building acting as a store for preserving the gunpowder. A huge cistern is attached to the store under the ground level for preserving the water. The upper storey comprises chambers which were once surmounted the main entrance; most of them are vanished in the meantime. The upper floor has a defensive enclosure known as “Qadamat biyada”. A

established an observatory there. However, his father Badr al-Gamali erected a mausoleum or mashhad there. It is known to the public as the mosque of Amir al-Giyush 478AH/1085AD(Monument No.354). This part of the mountain now is called Gabal al-Giyushi.

، ١٩٧٤) بول كازانوفا، ترجمة أحمد دارج، تاریخ ووصف قلعة القاھرة، ، الھیئة المصریة العام للكتاب، القاھرة، ٣٨( .٦١ص

(39) The Gabkhana of the citadel is considered to be the oldest one, it was founded by Muhammed Ali. The Gabkhana was used as a store for the gunpowder and a center of its manufacturing as well. Moreover, it even preceded the specialized laboratories for gunpowder which were widely spread all over Egypt. This building was burnt two times; the first took place in 1235AH/1819AD , it was a great fire that damaged some parts of al- Gawhara palace and The diwan or registry of Katkhuda as it lasted for a couple of days. The second fire was in 1239AH/1823AD, it caused a serious damage to some buildings in the citadel. As a result, Muhammad Ali called for the sovereign of Saloniki and brought a group of workers to restore the building. Consequently, The Gabkhana was transferred from the citadel to another place according to documents the place was nearby the mountain of al-Giyushi east to the citadel.

.٢٠٠أمل محفوظ أحمد جمعة، العمائر الحربیة في عصر محمد علي بمدینة القاھرة، مرجع سبق ذكره، ص - م.١٨٣٠ – ٢٩ه/١٢٤٥سنة –صفر ٢٧الخمیس – ٤٧العدد –جریدة الوقائع المصریة )٤٠( العدد السابق. –جریدة الوقائع المصریة )٤١( م.١٨٣٠-٢٩ه / ١٢٤٥سنة –صفر ٢٧الخمیس – ٤٧العدد –جریدة الوقائع المصریة )٤٢( العدد السابق –جریدة الوقائع المصریة )٤٣( العدد السابق –جریدة الوقائع المصریة )٤٤(



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Qushlaq or barracks was once added from the outside in the southwestern side, but now in ruin.

a) The Exterior It has mainly four facades. The main one is the north western, it measures 117m long and 7 to 10.20m high (Plate no 3). Two square towers are outstanding from the two corners of this facade; each one is 11m long. The entrance portal is located in the center of the façade while it is protruding and leads to the interior of the Gabkhana. The main entrance is a rectangular 3.5m wide, and 4m high surmounted by a semi-circular arch. The entrance has a huge wooden door ( plate no 4). The controlling room is located on the top of the entrance, and resting on four stone corbels, and it is decorated with two rectangular window openings surmounted by a relieving arch. Most of the controlling room is destroyed now and it has on roof even ( plates nos 5,6 ). A rectangular recess is located on the right hand side of the controlling room, whereas the left side has two rectangular recesses, both were once acting as entrances of chambers in the first storey of Gabkhana. (Plate No 7). The controlling room is surrounded by two stone cornices known as Frinsh Carve .( plate no 8) Numerous slits are located in the façade used for gun fire. They are getting narrower outwards and wider inwards. They are counted 33 machicoulis openings. Each tower has a rectangular slits surmounted by semi-circular arch prepared for the cannon, on the right and left of each recess has 2 rectangular machicoulis for gun fire. The southeastern façade in its upper level has 40 machicoulis overture used for firing, while each tower has a big cannon overture resembles that in the main façade. Two slits are found to the right and left . The southwestern and the northeastern façade are 181m long each. They are mostly similar in upper level and each one have 65 rectangular machicoulis. Each tower has a wide cannon overture prepared for the big sized cannons. Each recess has two small openings for the gun fire. The southwestern façade in the western area has a prolonged wall leads to the barracks attached to the Gabkhana, however it is in hewn under the sweepings. The southeastern, the southwestern and the northeastern are mostly similar except for some few differences in the height between 7 to 8.10m because of the towers in the corners. The four facades are surrounded by stone cornice that is partly damaged.

b)The Interior The entrance of the main façade leads to a rectangular hall paved in stone. The ceiling has a shallow dome resting on four spherical triangular


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pendentives (plates nos 9,10). There are two rectangular recesses flanking the hall; each one leads to a small rectangular chamber 4.70m long and 9.5m wide, and the entire space is 44.65 square meters. Each chamber is paved with stone paving while the ceiling has semi-circular vault.(plate no 11) A rectangular door recess is opened right to the vestibule of the entrance in the south portion of the first chamber. It leads to another rectangular chamber which has a rectangular recess in its southern part, it is originally leading to the courtyard of the Gabkhana. In the meantime it reaches to modern buildings built in front of it, most of them were now vanished ( plates nos12, 13). The second chamber lies on the left of the entrance, it has a rectangular hole in the eastern area. It leads to another small room in the northeastern side. Those chambers were once used as a dwelling for the guards of the building . The corridor leads to the courtyard through a semi-circular recess with a two door leafs; the right leaf has small wooden trap door khawkha )45( surmounted by small semi-circular arch (Plate no 14 ).

c)The Courtyard of the Gabkhana The courtyard is rectangular in shape, it is 107m long, 158m wide while the entire space is 16906 square meters. It has a huge building in the middle of the courtyard acting as the depository for the gunpowder . The enclosure walls of Gabkhana have recesses different in number and width according to its location, except the southern wall, which has no recesses. The northwestern has 12 recesses; six in each side on the right and left. They are rectangular semi-circular arched recesses 4.50m wide each and 5m deep. Most of them were blocked with stone walls to be in a form of small chambers. Each wall is opened by a rectangular door overture for entering aside to a small window for light and ventilation . An external enclosure lies in front of the building and was comprised several rooms and leads to the courtyard. Some of this enclosure is ruined except for few parts. It is clearly that this wall was once roofed and was having rooms. It was extended to the northern part of the façade. The purpose of this was probably to provide more privacy to the main building and to give more protection. So the person who entered from the main door to the courtyard , should be passed from this building .

(45)The Khawkha or the trap door is a small door, suitable for one person only .It lies within

the original door of the building. It was used to facilitate the access with no need to open the original door.

.٤٣حمد أمین، لیلى إبراھیم ، المصطلحات المعماریة في الوثائق المملوكیة، ص أ -



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The western part of the northwestern façade overlooking the courtyard has a stone building added in recent times )46( used for the dwelling of the guards. The southwestern and the northeastern facades overlooking the courtyard have 30 recesses in each. Each recess has semi-circular arch and they are 4m wide each, and 1m deep. The western part of the southwestern façade is provided with rectangular door overture once leaded to the outermost barracks (now blocked).The southeastern façade is free of recesses; only an external enclosure remained. (Plates nos 15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22)

d)The Gunpowder Depository It lies in the center of the courtyard of Gabkhana. It is a rectangular plan 30m long, 95m wide, and its entire space is 2850m2. It is 10m high and its southwestern and northeastern façade has 9 rectangular piers; 2.5 wide and 1.20m deep. But for the northwestern, and the southeastern facades of the depot, they are provided with only three piers. They are surmounted by a small protruding cornice ( Plate no 23) The store could be reached through a door overture lies in the northern part of the northeastern façade. It is a rectangular door overture with semi-circular arch. (Plate no 24). The interior of the depot has mainly two sections; the first has a huge chamber for storing the gunpowder, the second is attached to a courtyard and a cistern is located underneath to be a water reservoir.

The First Section: The Gunpowder Storehouse:- It could be reached through the previous door opening, and leads to a long corridor which is a rectangular area 33m long and 6m wide. Three window openings are found in its southwestern part and overlooking the courtyards that is attached to the depository used for cooling and lighting. The corridor leads to a rectangular door overture covered by semi-circular arch with wooden door in the southwestern side and leads to another rectangular corridor (18m long) and has a vaulted roof. Three window recesses enhanced its northwestern wall overlooking the courtyard of the store and used for cooling and lighting . Rectangular door opening is found in the southeastern wall covered with semi-circular arch and provided with wooden door and preceded by a rectangular basin (3m long ) , (1,5m wide) and 50cm deep) )47(

(46) In the past, the Gabkhana was used as a guarding center for the soldiers riding camels

who were mostly Sudanese. The building then became attributed to the ministry of Interior. The building was used for the cavalry up till nowadays according to a slab recording this information.


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( plates nos 25,26). This corridor leads to the gunpowder store which is a rectangular area (26m long), and (54m wide), and the entire space is 1404m. The area comprises four arcades by 27 square piers connected by semi-circular arches and covered by shallow dome ( plates no 27,28) . Four rectangular window openings are found in the southwestern and the northeastern walls and overlooking the courtyard of the Gabkhana and used for lighting and cooling. These openings are covered with iron bars.

The Methods of Storing The Gunpowder )48( Several techniques were used in storing the gunpowder to preserve it from spoiling or exploding.The manuscript “The art of Artillery ” Fann al- Tawbgiyah described these methods as follows: The process starts by cleaning the gunpowder from the unwanted dust and then it is put in barrels; each barrel could afford more than 50 or 100 kg. Most probably the barrels were put in other bigger barrels after bolting the powder. The second step is weighing the barrels then they must be closed

)49( . The gunpowder has hygrometric criteria and can powerfully absorb the moisture and within 8 to 10 days, it can absorb 18 amount of water in each hundreds of its weight. It must be put in dry stores which are made out of stone and built isolated from the other compartments. They have also a protection from the thunders. The ground floor is covered with wood panels free from nails. The barrels should be put far from the walls; each barrel is 100kg arranged in three rows; two rows in the middle. Other barrels are 50kg arranged in 4 or 5 rows only. The types of gunpowder are put separately according to level of the production, the nature of the factory, place and the year of its manufacture. Each type is labeled and put in the bottom of each barrel. The store houses of the gunpowder must be opened in regular times to renew the air especially when the weather is clear and dry )50( .

(47) The sources are lack in mentioning any details on this basin in front of the store entrance;

most probably this basin was used to carry the water or other substances to absorb the moisture and not to effect the salt of the gunpowder. The basin was paved with stucco. It probably could be reached through putting wooden panels to act like a bridge to access the gunpowder store.

(48)Actually, the sources are lack in mentioning any details on the methods of preserving the gunpowder inside the Gabkhana. A manuscript entitled “the art of artillery” or mulakhas fann al-tawbgiyah had stated few words on this method. However, these methods are not used yet now and they are not even mentioned in the historical sources.

.١٩٢مخطوط ملخص في فن الطوبجیة، مرجع سبق ذكره، ص )٤٩( ١٩٣: ١٩٢سبق ذكره ، ص ) مخطوط ملخص في فن الطوبجیة، مرجع٥٠(



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The Second Section: The cistern attached to the depository:- The cistern is located in the southwestern part from the depot, and could be reached through a gate in the center of the depot. It is a rectangular door overture with semi-circular arch and preceded by two flight of stony steps. The previous door leads to the cistern which is a rectangular open court 17m long, and 23.30m wide, and the entire space is 370m2. The ground of the court was built of burnt brick and it represented the ceiling of the cistern from the inside. An iron measure still remained in one of its recesses to measure the level of water inside the cistern (plate no 29). The northeastern part of the courtyard has two stone buildings:- The first one is the spout of the cistern ( well spout) which took a square shape of solid stone. A solid well appeared from inside with ten recesses on its walls, and were purified regularly. besides the spout is attached to anther rectangular building of solid stone in which the water was poured which out of the cistern where there is a square small hole is found to supply the other edifice with water (plate no 30). The second building is a rectangular building known as doulab and is built of hard bricks. (Plate no 31). The ground is set higher to 50cm and has semi- circular vaulted roof. A solid stone drain or a water spout is found inside, and connected to the second section of the well spout to supply the previous building doulab )51( (plate no 32). The Interior Plan of the Cistern The cistern could be reached through a well from some recesses inside the body of the well. ( Plate no 33). These recesses lead to the interior of the cistern which is a square space 7,70m long and the entire space is 59,29m2.

Four piers are standing in the middle of the cistern supported by four semi-circular arches. The ceiling is supported by four shallow domes from burnt brick. The cistern is 6.30m deep until the bottom and it is 5.30m high. The walls are built with stucco and covered with red ashes. Those are insulator substances can resist the moisture. In the meantime the cistern preserved its red color ( plate no 34). (51)This Doulab was used in manufacturing the gun powder or the salt of the gunpowder. It

was known also as the white gunpowder or the solar gunpowder, whereas the potassium nitrate was put to purify the gunpowder and then it was bolting, and later it is exposed to the sun to be dried

.٢٠٤أمل محفوظ أحمد جمعة، العمائر الحربیة في عصر محمد علي بمدینة القاھرة، مرجع سبق ذكره، ص -


185

The First Floor of the Gabkhana It could be reached through some flight of stony steps in the northern corner of the northeastern façade. The staircase leads to the first floor of Gabkhana. (Plate no 35) which is considered as the roof of the Gabkhana in which the soldiers stand carrying their guns to protect the Gabkhana. It is known as Qadamat biyadah. This enclosure is 6.50m wide and directly connected to the Gabkhana from all sides except for the southeastern part (plate no 36). The enclosure is surrounded by another protective enclosure 2.50m high provided with multiple recesses with semi-circular arches for the guns also some cannon slits. This enclosure is connected to the four cornered towers protruding from the façade. It is noticed that the ground was once paved with stone paving; few remains existed. The southeastern façade is free from any wall; it has only 40 machicouli overtures giving false impression as if it is a protective line. The controlling room in the Main Façade They could be reached through the previous stony staircase that leads to the first floor of the Gabkhana. It was once leading to a bent corridor with some watching rooms on its back. These rooms are now vanished; nothing exists except for some openings overlooking the main façade, in addition to some walls. The chambers were rectangular in shape 35m long and 14m wide and the entire space is 490 square Meter. It is consisting of three sections; the first is two small chambers from the southeastern part. The second is a bent corridor lies in the northwestern side and has three chambers emerging; the first and second one have two rectangular window openings whereas the third one has only one window overture. Those are the openings seen in the main façade. The previous corridor leads to a rectangular overture ended by a stair case (now vanished). This staircase was once leaded to the second part from the northwestern façade from which reached the enclosure of the southwestern façade. The Barracks (Qushlaq) of the Gabkhana It was once reached through two entrances; one inside the Gabkhana while the other is outside. The first lies outside the Gabkhana from the northwestern side. An entrance was existed leading to the interior of the barracks. Although it turned into



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ruins, parts of it are now existed, and its entrance was leading to an extension of 33m long. The second entrance that lies in the Gabkhana is in the western part of the southwestern enclosure. It has a rectangular door overture leads to a rectangular corridor 20m long and 5m wide. It is built of stone and burnt brick as for now, it has no ceiling, but most probably it was a vaulted ceiling. Regarding the barracks, they are a rectangular space 15m long and 41.5m wide while the entire space is 622.5meter square. The whole barracks are built of gravels, and burnt brick. It is divided into two main sections; the first lies in the southwestern side, while the second lies in the northeastern side. Each section has six rectangular chambers; each one is 5m long and 3.50m wide, and the entire space is 17.50 square meters. A long corridor is separating the two sections, it is 39m long and 2,5m wide.( Plates nos 37,38) In spite of the importance of these barracks as the third barracks or qushlaq after those in the citadel of Salah el-Din El-Ayyoubi at Muqattam, but unfortunately, great part of them are damaged as only the outermost walls still survived. Moreover the barracks turned to an awful space of garbage in the outskirt of Istabl Antar which is dangerous not only for the barracks but also for the district and it would catch fire and threaten the people living there.

Conclusion There is no doubt that Gabkhana of Mohammed Ali at Stabl Antar is one of the most important military buildings, not only in Egypt, but all over the world. It is known for many of its integrated parts, which, tell the most important military industries that Muhammad Ali started to manufacture, namely the gunpowder to make weapons for his army to protect his country and expand it, besides preventing other big powers from controlling it. Muhammad Ali began to be independent and strong. He showed this when he stopped importing a lot of industries, including the heavy ones. He issued decrees for the establishment of a lot of sites to manufacture these materials to provide supplies to meet the needs of the army in its expansions and wars, and to achieve his goals, ambitions and independence. The Gabkhana is characterized by its wide area. It produced tremendous quantities of gunpowder, especially the white gunpowder, known as solar powder. The Gabkhana at Ezbet Khairalla has a unique site, as it is far away from populated areas, as the Pasha of Egypt issued decrees for moving it to a remote area. He also ordered that it should be reconstructed to avoid the harms that badly affected other Gabkhanas. The building of Gabkhana is one of the most important historic places. The Egyptian cinema used it to embody important historic scenes collected from different historical eras. It was built in the modern era and had scenes from


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the pre-Islamic era as in the film "Antara Ben Shaddad" and the Islamic Ayoubi era as in Al-Nasser Salah al-Din. This building and these walls have had witnessed the most important industries that defeated the great colonial powers. It had also witnessed panoramas of the most important cinematic scenes of different important periods in the history of Egypt, namely, the resistance of Salah al Din against the Crusaders. The Gabkhana of Mohammad Ali represents a great historic building characterized by its wide courtyard. Besides it lies on the highest plateau known as the Zahra Plateau. It overlooks an amazing archeological panorama of civilization. Despite all these unique features, it is completely closed. We can say that it defeated the enemy, yet it was defeated by negligence.

It is a must and an ought that all governmental and non-governmental organizations should cooperate to save this building from neglect and sabotage and use it for purposes that suit the nature of the site and to satisfy the needs of the surrounding urban environment and include it in the tourism programs. Therefore, the General Administration of the Egyptian Armed Forces should give a hand to the concerned authorities for the reconstruction and enhancement of that great building. Since it is under the supervision of the classification of military architecture. It is suggested that an open museum should be established to display the fighting tools and the war machinery that dates back to the period of Muhammad Ali and his family, to complement the panorama of the Egyptian military history in the modern times and the evolution of the military industries from guns and weapons that were identical to those in Europe. This necessitates documenting this period and highlighting it to become a commemoration and glorification of the great ancient civilization of Egypt.



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The plates

1)

2)

Map showing the location of the Gabkhana. Scale: 1-50000

The measures and the entire space of the Gabkhana

3)

4)

The main Façade of the Gabkhana The main entrance of Gabkhana

5)

6)

The Controlling room on the top of the main entrance resting on 4 stone corbles

7) T

8)

The recesses on the each side of the main façade of the Gabkhana

The cornices known as the frinsh carve


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9)

10)

The ceiling of the main entrance with a shallow dome resting on four sperical triangular pendentives

11)

The ceiling of the small rectangular chamber which flanked the hall of the main entrance

12)

13)

The remains of the modern buildings on the Sothern part of the Gabkhana but now vanished

14)

The small trap door which known as khawkha with semi circular arch

15)

16)



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17)

18)

19)

20)

21)

22)

15-22: the internal recesses on the enclosure walls of the Gabkhana

23)

24)

The Gunpowder depository in the middle of the courtyard of Gabkhana

The depository of the gun power from the exterior with the staircase which leading to

the long corridor

25)

26)

The long corridor with three windows opening with the rectangular basin


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27)

28)

The gunpowder store with 4 arcades by square piers with semi circular arches by shallow dome

29)

30)

The courtyard of the cistern with 2 stone buildings; the spout of the cistern and the

doulab

The spout of the cistern with square shape of solid stone

31)

32)

The Doulab building The Doulab building and its clear

which attached to the spout of the cistern

33)

34)

The recesses inside of the body of the

well which leads to the cistern

The cistern from down



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35)

36)

The staircases which leading to the 1st

floor of the Gabkhana but now destroyed

The first floor of the Gabkhana

37)

38)

The barracks of the soldiers (Qushlaq)

(The photos taken by the researcher)

References المراجع الاجنبیة

1. Afaf Lutfi Al – Sayed Morsot, A Short History Of Modern Egypt, Royal

institute of international affairs, 1944, Vol. 62, No. 1, 1985, 1998. 2. Andrew Mc Gregor, A military history of modern Egypt: from the

Ottoman conquest to the Ramadan war, praeger security international west port Connecticut, London, 2006.

3. Dodwell, H., The Founder of Modern Egypt, A Study of Mohammed Ali, Cambridge, 1931 .

4. Menjin Felix, Histoire de L’Egypte sous Le gouvernment du Muhammed Ali, Paris, 1823.

5. Weygend, General, Histoire Militaire de Mohamed Ali et ses fils, London, 1936.

المراجع العربیة:

أحمد السعید سلیمان، تأصیل ما ورد في الجبرتى من الدخیل، .١ .المصطلحات المعماریة في الوثائق المملوكیةحمد أمین، لیلى إبراھیم ، أ .٢، تحقیق حسین نصار، الھیئة ٢، جمعجم تیمور الكبیر في الألفاظ العامیةأحمد تیمور، .٣

.١٩٧٨المصریة العامة للكتاب،


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-١٨٠٥، العمائر الحربیة في عصر محمد على بمدینة القاھرةظ أحمد جمعة، أمل محفو .٤ .١٩٩٩م، رسالة ماجستیر، كلیة الآثار، جامعة القاھرة، قسم الآثار الاسلامیة، ١٨٤٨

، ، الھیئة المصریة العام تاریخ ووصف قلعة القاھرةبول كازانوفا، ترجمة أحمد دارج، .٥ .١٩٧٤للكتاب، القاھرة،

م.١٨٣٠-٢٩ه / ١٢٤٥سنة –صفر ٢٧الخمیس – ٤٧العدد –ائع المصریة جریدة الوق .٦ . وصف مدینة القاھرة وقلعة الجبلجومار، ترجمة أیمن فؤاد سید، .٧، تاریخ محمد على مؤسس مصر الحدیثةشارلس مرى، تعریب سلیم حسن وطھ السباعى، .٨

.١٩١٨مطبعة المعارف ، القاھرة ، م.١٨٦٢ه/١٢٨٢، كتاب حربي، في الاستحكامات الحقیقیةالمطالب المنیفة صالح مجدي، .٩

، كتاب عسكري، رسالة میادین الحصون والقلاع ورمي القنابر بالید والمقلاعصالح مجدي، .١٠ .م١٨٥٨ه/١٢٧٥

.م١٨٧٢ه/١٢٨٩، كتاب عسكري، مذكرة لطیفة في الاستحكامات الخفیفةمحمد لاظ، .١١، دار المعارف ، القاھرة مد علىالحرف والصناعات في عھد محصلاح أحمد ھریدى، .١٢

،١٩٨٥. ، مطبعة السعادة، القاھرة، الرسالة الفنیة في تاریخ الآلات الحربیةعبد الرازق بركات، .١٣

.م١٩٣٢ه/١٣٢٢ .١٩٥٠، دار المعارف، التاریخ الحربي لعصر محمد عليعبد الرحمن زكي، .١٤ .م١٩٤٩ه/١٣٦٨مجلة الجیش، العدد الرابع والأربعون، المجلد الحادي عشر، .١٥، تاریخ الصناعة في مصر في النصف الأول من القرن التاسع عشرعلى الجریتلى ، .١٦

.١٩٥٢الجمعیة الملكیة للدراسات التاریخیة ، دار المعارف ، القاھرة ، ، الطبعة الثالثة، مطبعة الصنائع والمدارس الحربیة في عھد محمد علي باشاطوسون، عمر .١٧

.م١٩٣٥العدل، القاھرة، ..م١٢٨٥/١٨٦٨، مخطوط حربي، المطلع القمریة في الابنیة العسكریةد فھمي، محمو .١٨ م، بدون مؤلف. ١٨٤٩ه/١٢٦٦، مخطوط حربىملخص في فن الطوبجیة، .١٩، ١ط، تطور الصناعة المصریة منذ عھد محمد على حتى عھد عبد الناصرنوال قاسم، .٢٠

١٩٨٧.


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Egyptian Beverages: A Journey through Ancient to

Modern Times

Mona M. Raafat El-Sayed1 and Mahinor A. Fouad2

Abstract There is a strong line of continuity linking the history of Egyptian beverages since early history till our present time. The ancient Egyptians thrived on drinking beer, wine and fresh milk beside their usual water intake. Nowadays in Egypt, locally manufactured beer and wine still exist but their consumption is limited due to religious beliefs. Beverages in ancient Egypt were normally served during celebrations, funerals or banquets which is still the case. This article attempts to explore the journey of manufacturing and consuming Egyptian beverages through history with the aim of assessing the possible sustainability. It is concluded that the outcome of the manufacturing techniques of beer, wine and milk have considerably changed. The methodology used was based on observing ancient artifacts/tomb paintings in addition to reviewing compiled literature from previous studies.

Keywords Ancient Egypt, Modern Egypt, Beverages, Wine, Beer, Milk, Būẓa Introduction Beverages are an integral part of all humans lives. There is a strong line of continuity linking the history of Egyptian beverages since early history till our present time. The ancient Egyptians thrived on drinking beer, wine and fresh milk beside their usual water intake. Nowadays in Egypt, locally manufactured beer and wine still exist but their consumption is limited due to religious beliefs. Beverages in ancient Egypt were normally served during celebrations, funerals or banquets which is still the case.

1 Assistant Professor, Tourism Guidance Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotel Management, Helwan University, Egypt. Email address: [email protected] 2 Assistant Professor, Hotel Management Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotel Management, Helwan University, Egypt. Email address: [email protected]

Raafat, M Fouad, M ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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Accounts made by travellers to Egypt throughout the ages provided valuable descriptions of ancient Egyptians’ eating habits with special reference to their food and beverage. Diodorus Siculus3 is quoted saying: “And it was the custom for the kings to partake of delicate food, eating no other meat than veal and duck, and drinking only a prescribed amount of wine, which was not enough to make them unreasonably surfeited or drunken. And, speaking generally, their whole diet was ordered with such continence that it had the appearance of having been drawn up, not by a lawgiver, but by the most skilled of their physicians, with only their health in view.”

Serving Beverages in ancient Egypt Beverages were normally served during celebrations, funerals or banquets besides the regular household consumption. A big number of feasts4 were celebrated by the ancient Egyptians. One can imagine all these feasts accompanied by lavish banquets including all sorts of food and drinks as a typical Egyptian tradition. However, Beer was most probably regularly offered in the household accompanying breakfast, with a slice of bread or meat or a piece of pie, as well as in modest banquets. On the other hand, wine was mostly served during more luxurious festivities and celebrations.5 Wisdom Instructions, since the Old Kingdom, were given by fathers to their sons advising them on how to behave when attending banquets. Kagemni’s father instructed him “When you sit with a glutton, eat when his greed has passed. When you drink with a drunkard, take when his heart is content”. Thus setting the rules for being polite and considerate to other people.6

3 LIBRARY OF HISTORY, Book 1, Chapter 70, p. 245-247 http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/1D*.html Accessed on 27/10/2018 4 These included several types, e.g.: Formal (these were celebrated throughout the country, for example the Feast of Inundation, the beginning of the seasons and the New Year), Local (these were region- or city-specific, like those held in honour of a specific god), Personal (folk feasts connected to a certain event or a group of people), Religious (these were in honour of the principal deities), Agricultural (these included the feasts of the Nile, harvest, ploughing, and the Renenutet, goddess of the harvest), and Funerary (these included the feasts of the dead in which families visited the tombs and graveyards of the deceased to offer them food). 5 Mehdawy, M. and Hussein A. (2010) The Pharaoh’s Kitchen: Recipes from Ancient Egypt’s Enduring Food Traditions, The American University in Cairo press, Cairo New York, p. 12, 14 6 The Instruction addressed to Kagemni, Papyrus Prisse, pp. 1-2. Lichtheim, M. (1975) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms, University of California Press, p. 59-60.

Egyptian Beverages: A Journey through Ancient to Modern Times ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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On contrast, some ancient Egyptians often drank till intoxication. Alcoholic drinks i.e. beer, wine and Shedeh (A fermented pomegranate drink), were plentiful at banquets. Specific kings were even mentioned to have been drunk, for example Mycerinus was the first king to be accused of exceeding the limits in drinking. Also, from the Late Period, Amasis’s name was referred to.7 As for private individuals, several tomb paintings showing banquet scenes from the New Kingdom where guests are depicted throwing up after what seems like a case of excessive drinking. Theban tombs such as TT 38 (Tomb of Djeserkaraseneb) display scenes of overindulgence, where both genders are shown vomiting or even passing out after an excess of alcohol.8 Even earlier scenes from Middle Kingdom tombs at Beni Hasan such as the Tomb of Khety; show some people being carried by servants after, probably getting drunk and passing out.9 People normally drank big amounts of alcoholic beverages during religious festivities e.g. at Busiris, Sais, Buto, Heliopolis, and especially at Bubastis as described by the Classical historian, Herodotus10. Drinking in excess, supposedly, broke the barriers between the human mortals and the mighty deities.11 However, it should be mentioned that intoxication was frowned upon by ancient Egyptian sages. For example, the scribe Ani, advised his son to avoid the state of getting drunk. He said: “Take not upon thyself. Boast not that ye can drink to drink a jug of beer. Thou speakest, and an unintelligible utterance issueth from thy mouth. If thou fallest down and thy limbs break there is no one to hold out a hand to thee. Thy companions in drink stand up and say ‘Away from that sot’. If there cometh one to seek thee in order to question thee, thou art found lying on the ground and thou art like a child.”12 The most commonly consumed beverages in ancient Egypt were: beer, wine and milk.13It is hard to stipulate that the ancient Egyptians knew distilled alcoholic beverages like what we call now brandies or liquors; for the art of

7 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 582 8 Ikram, S. (2001) “Banquet” in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 1, Oxford University Press, p. 164. 9 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 583-4 10 Herodotus II, 60. “After proceeding in this way all along the river course, they reach Bubastis, where they celebrate the feast with abundant sacrifices. More grape-wine is consumed at this festival than in all the rest of the year besides.” 11 Manniche, L. (1999) Egyptian Luxuries: Fragrance, Aromatherapy, and Cosmetics in Pharaonic Times, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, p. 94. 12 Erman, A. (1927) The Literature of the ancient Egyptians, translated by A. M. Blackmann, London. Also Hassan,S. (2000) Aladab al-misri al-kadim, Mawsooaa misr al-kadima, Part 17, Nahda Misr Publication, Cairo, p.222-223 13 The authors excluded water as it was naturally the most commonly consumed beverage.


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distillation was unknown, and the production of alcohol with high concentration rather than produced by natural fermentation was highly improbable.14

I. Beer: Ancient Egyptian name: Hnq.t 15 Beer was largely known to be made out of barley, just like bread16 the other staple of the ancient Egyptian diet.17 According to Erman, it had long been cited as ancient Egypt’s national drink as well as a metaphor for the good life.18 Both bread and beer-making were generally performed at the same location. Egyptian beer had a slightly thick texture, and was highly nutritious, this is the reason why it was almost included with every meal for all categories.19 As a matter of fact, beer had a primary role in ancient Egypt as a daily food stuff, being a vitamin- and protein-rich caloric staple. Togethe with bread - as mentioned before- it was distributed as staple rations, i.e. wages in kind, to workers and soldiers.20

Mythology Hathor was the mistress of drunkenness and inventor of beer, par excellence: A Roman emperor in the temple of Isis at Philae sang to her: “Mistress of Both Lands, Mistress of Bread, who made beer with what her heart created, and her hands prepared, She is the Lady of Drunkenness, rich in Feasts, Lady of Music, fond of Dances”21

14 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L.(1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 613 15 Wb III, 117. Hieroglyphs: Rosmorduc, Serge. (2014). JSesh Documentation. [online] Available at: http://jseshdoc.qenherkhopeshef.org [Accessed 26 Dec. 2018]. 16 Bread is still considered till our present time the main staple of the Egyptian diet. It is actually the main ingredient in every meal. Egyptians eat food with bread, not bread with food. 17 Herodot. ii,77, Diodor. i, 34 , Strabo, xvii, Pliny xxii.25 18 Erman, A. (1894) Life in Ancient Egypt, Macmillan, New York, p.196. 19 Ikram, S. (2001) “Diet”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 1, Oxford University Press, p. 392. 20 Geller, J. (1992) “From Prehistory to history: Beer in Egypt”, in: Friedman, R. and Adams, B. (eds.). The Followers of Horus: Studies dedicated to Michael Allen Hoffman, Egyptian Studies Association Publication No. 2, Oxbow Monograph 20, p. 20. 21 Junker, H. and Winter, E. (1965) Das Geburthaus des Tempels der Isis in Phila. Wien: Herman Boehlaus, p. 271


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Another poem, “The Hymn of the Seven Hathors", exalted the happiness she brought: “Our hearts exult on seeing the Majesty, for thou art the Mistress of Wreathes, The Lady of Dance, and Drunkenness without end”22 Egyptians consumed a lot of beer in honour of Hathor during the “Beautiful Feast of the Valley”, whereas it also prevented Sekhmet/Hathor to destruct mankind as per the famous legend of the “Destruction of Mankind” which was recorded in the “Book of the Heavenly Cow”23, from the New Kingdom. One scholar had suggested that this story might have been improvised to justify the excessive drinking that accompanied the yearly feast of Hathor. 24

and tnmj.t : Mnq.t 25 was particularly a beer Mnq.t goddess. The name of Mnq.t 26 could have been a pun, as the jars where beer was stored were known as mnq.t jars the same as with tnmj.t 27 whose name might also be a punning deification of a beverage jar.

History According to Diodorus28 (IV, 2), the invention of beer is attributed to Dionysus whom the Greeks identified with Osiris (Her.,II, 42)29 thus Greeks believed that the Egyptians are given the credit for creating beer. However, Sumero-Akkadians may also share the claim. Simply, beer could have been

22 Junker, H. (1906). “Poesie aus der Spaetzeit.”, Zeitschrift fur altegyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde, 43,101-127 23 “The Book of the Heavenly Cow” or “The book of the Cow of Heaven” was inscribed in five Theban Royal tombs of the New Kingdom: Tutankhamun, Seti I, Ramesses II, Ramesses III and Ramesses VI. Lichtheim, M. (1976) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol II: The New Kingdom, University of California Press, p. 197-199. 24 Armour, R. A. (2001) Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, second edition, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, p. 88 - 89. 25 For more information about Mnq.t, refer to Leitz, C. Lexikon Der Agyptischen Gotter und Gotterbezeichungen, Band III, Leuven 2002, p. 317-318. (LGG III, 317-318) 26 Wb II, 90. Hieroglyphs: Rosmorduc, Serge. (2014). JSesh Documentation. [online] Available at: http://jseshdoc.qenherkhopeshef.org [Accessed 26 Dec. 2018]. 27 Wb V, 312. Hieroglyphs: Rosmorduc, Serge. (2014). JSesh Documentation. [online] Available at: http://jseshdoc.qenherkhopeshef.org [Accessed 26 Dec. 2018]. For more information about tnmj.t refer to Leitz, C. Lexikon Der Agyptischen Gotter und Gotterbezeichungen, Band VII, Leuven 2002, p. 474. (LGG VII, 474) 28 Diodorus Siculus. Library of History, Translated by C.H. Oldfather, C. Sherman, C.B. Welles, R.M. Geer and F.R. Walton, 12 Vols, New York 1933-1967. G.P. Putnam’s Sons. 29 Herodotus. Translated by George Rawlinson, 4 Vols. New York 1885: D Appleton and Co. Herodotus. Translated by A.D. Godley, 4 Vols. New York 1920-30: G.P. Putnam’s Sons. Herodotus. Translated by A. Barguet and D. Roussel (in French). Bibliotheques de la Pleiade. Paris1964: Editions Gallimard.


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invented accidentally by the left-overs of dough for bread-making left to ferment in household bakeries.30 Prehistoric jars examined by Petrie in the early Nineteenth Century, e.g. the jars from Abadiyeh, were found to contain residues of beer.31 A few centuries later, the drink was mentioned in texts as early as the Third Dynasty, e.g. the Offering list on the Stela of Seker-kha-bau from his tomb at Saqqara, referred to as (Hnqt nDmt) sweet beer.32 Offering formulae (Htp di nisw) since the Fifth Dynasty onwards readily mentioned bread and beer. This typical example is from the Stela of Tjetji (BM 614): “An offering which the king gives and Osiris, lord of Busiris, Foremost of the Westerners, lord of Abydos in all his shrines. Invocation offering of one thousand loaves of bread and beer, one thousand flesh of cattle, one thousand of fowl, one thousand of alabaster vessels and linen garments, one thousand of all things beautiful and pure.”33 Pyramid texts, although only appeared in the late Fifth Dynasty, contained archaic spells mentioning several varieties of beer, e.g. deshret, khnem.s and Nubian.34

Beer the “National Beverage” Although beer was an extremely popular beverage, as it was the usual drink of the commoners and the staple of the Egyptian diet (together with bread), wine was the beverage of the rich, par excellence. Athenaeus35 indicated this difference in the tale of its invention:“The Egyptian [nobility]became fond of wine and bibulous; and so a way was found among them to help those who could not afford wine, namely, to drink that made from barley; they who took it were so elated that they sang, danced and acted in every way like persons filled with wine.” (Deipnos., I, 61) The previously cited quotation could help in understanding the reason for the scarcity of data about beer in ancient Egypt, as it was customary to mention

30Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 530-1. 31 Petrie, W.M.F. (1901) Diospolis Parva. The Cemeteries of Abadiyeh and Hu, 1898-9, Egypt Exploration Fund 20, London, p. 32. 32 Murray, M. A. (1905) Saqqara Mastabas, Part 1, London, p. 34. 33 Nunn, J. F. (1996) Ancient Egyptian Medicine, University of Oklahoma press, Avon, p.13. 34 For more information about the mention of “Beer” in Pyramid Texts, refer to T.G. Allen. (2005) The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts, Society of Biblical Literature, Atlanta. 35 Athenaeus, The Deipnosophists (i.e., The Learned Banqueters). http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/Literature/Literature-idx?type=turn&entity=Literature.AthV1.p0062&id=Literature.AthV1&isize=M&pview=hide. Accessed on 20/11/2018


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the customs and food habits of the rich rather than the poor during that era. The Greek and Roman travellers equated beer with poverty.36 On the other hand, beer was considerably cheaper due to the abundance of grain, as well as the ease of its production in comparison to the extensive technology and care required for the production of wine and the vinification process. Beer was thus next in preference to water, the most popular beverage in ancient Egypt. Beer recurs in many ancient Egyptian tales passed through all generations but wine is only mentioned in selected texts.37 A famous tale in which beer had an important role is the “Tale of the Two Brothers: Inpw and Bata”38. It is said that Anubis knew that something wrong happened to his brother when he saw froth of fermentation appearing in his beer, so he knew that this meant a bad omen. We later learn that he found the body of his brother.39 “The book of Thoth”, as described in one papyrus, was found by a prince named Neferkaptah. Directly, after he found it, he wrote down the magical words of the book, then washed the ink off with beer. He drank the beer and so he had the wise words of Thoth within him and knew them by heart.40 Wisdom texts also refer to drinking beer, when discussing the proper food habits. The wiseman Duauf son of Khety, from the Eighteenth dynasty, presents this advice to his son Pepy: “be content if you are satisfied with three loaves of bread, and two cups of beer. If your stomach still feels hunger, resist it.” 41

Ancient Beer-making Techniques A brewery dating back to 3500 - 3400 BC was identified as the earliest known in the Predynastic site of Hierakonpolis (HK 24A) in 1989 by Jeremy Geller, after examining the charred residue of some contents of a vat. Barley and wheat were recognised as undergone all phases of biosynthetic fermentation. The brewery contained at least six coarse ceramic vats in two

36 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 532 37 Lefebvre, G. (1949) Romans et Contes Egyptians de l’Epoque pharaonique, Paris: Adrien-Maisonneuve, p. 11 38 Papyrus D’Orbiney (British Museum 10183). After Lichtheim, M. (2001) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol II: The New Kingdom, University of California Press 1976, p. 204. Also see: Armour, R. A. Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, second edition, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, p. 142 - 148. 39 Simpson, W.K. (2003) The Literature of Ancient Egypt: An Anthology of Stories, Instructions, Stelae, Autobiographies and Poetry, Third Edition, Yale University Press, p.87. Also, Armour, R. A. Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, second edition, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo 2001, p. 146 40Armour, R. A. (2001) Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, second edition, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, p. 130-131. 41 Hassan, S. (2000) Al-adab al-misri al-kadim, Mawsooa’a misr al-kadima, Part 17, Nahda Misr Publication, Cairo, p. 215


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parallel rows, four of which are still in situ. The combined volume of the beverage produced would have mounted up to 390 litres, which is undoubtedly exceeding the household needs, thus supporting the assumption that this site was a brewery.42 It could also be speculated that beer was normally made in houses particularly in outdoor structures similar to silos, as evident in wooden models from the Middle Kingdom.43 For example: Tomb of Meketre (TT280) at Thebes, dating to the reign of Amenemhat I, Twelfth Dynasty, incorporates a wooden model of a combined bakery and brewery (Fig 1).44 Another model was recovered from the tomb of Wepwawetemhat at Asyut, also dating back to the Middle Kingdom. It is kept now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no 04.1782 45(Fig 2). A scene depicting the act of baking and brewing is from the tomb of Ti46 from the Old Kingdom at Saqqara. (Fig 3) Similar scenes are also available from Middle Kingdom tombs e.g. tomb of Intefiqer (TT60) at Thebes (Fig 4). New Kingdom examples are also noted but less frequent, for example from the tomb of Ken Amun at Thebes.47 Several statues depict brewing beer are available since the Old Kingdom, for

42 Geller, J. (1992) “From Prehistory to history: Beer in Egypt”, in: Friedman, R. and Adams, B. (eds.). The Followers of Horus: Studies dedicated to Michael Allen Hoffman, Egyptian Studies Association Publication No. 2, Oxbow Monograph 20, p. 21. For further information refer to the website: http://www.hierakonpolis-online.org/index.php/explore-the-predynastic-settlement/hk24-breweries-by-the-cultivation 43 Mehdawy, M. and Hussein A. (2010) The Pharaoh’s Kitchen: Recipes from Ancient Egypt’s Enduring Food Traditions, The American University in Cairo press, Cairo New York, p. 3. 44 Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession no: 20.3.12. Rogers Fund and Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1920. Twenty-four well-preserved wooden models were recovered during the excavations of the Metropolitan Museum in 1920 by Herbert Winlock from the serdab of the tomb of Meketre,reign of Amenemhat, 12th dynasty. Half of the collection is kept in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo while the rest are kept in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Retrieved from the website of the Metropolitan Museum of Art https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/20.3.12/ Accessed on 10/11/2018 45From Asyut, tomb 14 (Wepwawetemhat); from the excavations carried out by M. Chassinat for the Louvre. 1904: purchased from Kyticas in Cairo by Albert M. Lythgoe for the MFA as part of a group for £617/16/6. Purchased with funds from the Emily Esther Sears Fund. (Accession Date: January 1, 1904). Retrieved from https://www.mfa.org/collections/object/model-of-a-brewery-45322 Accessed on 10/11/2018. 46 Daumas, F. and Goyon, G. (1939) Le Tombeau de Ti. Memoire de l’Institut Francais d’Archeologie Orientale (MIFAO), no 65. Cairo, Institut Francais d’Archeologie Orientale, plate LXVII .Scene on the wall facing the entrance of the storeroom, showing bread and beer-making. 47 Norman de G. (1930) The tomb of Ken-Amun at Thebes, Vol. 1, Egyptian Expedition Publication no. 5. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art.


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example the statue 48of Meret from the tomb of Nikauinpu, probably from Giza, Old Kingdom (Fifth or Sixth Dynasty). (Fig 5) The basis of all beer production is the fermentation/brewing of starch in amylaceous cereals. Grain always contains a small quantity of directly fermentable sugar, but this is inadequate in amount to produce an alcoholic drink.49 As starch, itself, cannot ferment unless first split into fermentable sugar, so it is usually first subjected to malting; i.e. letting grain germinate, a process during which starch is converted into maltose, and considerable amounts of diastase are developed. In modern processes, sprouted grains of malt are then heated and dried to stop germination, then boiled with water, strained and incubated with yeast. In antiquity, however, malt was immediately worked into a dough and processed.50 Whether yeast was known in ancient Egypt or not, is a matter of debate. Gruss51 found material from beer jars and residue of mashing from various periods, to consist of grains of Emmer starch, yeasts, moulds and bacteria. The yeast consisted of a previously unknown species, and was accordingly named Saccharomyces winlocki, after Winlock who provided the material. Moreover, specimens from the Eighteenth Dynasty show uniform and pure form which suggests that yeast could have been prepared since that time. During Ptolemaic Era, yeast was well-known, and the profession of yeast maker, the Zymourghos, is sufficiently recognised.52 Nearly all Greek classical writers agreed on the fact that beer was made of barley during the Ancient Egyptian Era (Her., II, 77; Deipnos., I, 34; Diod., I, 3; Strabo, 17, 2, 5). The only exception was Pliny who stipulated that it was made out of corn (wheat). [N.H.53, XIX, XXIX]. Helck, after studying the daily supplies to the Court as listed in several papyri, and assuming that these constituted the basic materials of brewing, found out that malt (bS a), dates, and wheat were utilized in the proportion

48 Statue made out of coloured limestone. Kept at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, No OIC_E_10635. For more details: http://giza.fas.harvard.edu/objects/66334/intro/ 49Samuel, D. “Beer” in Redford,D. (editor) (2001): The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 1, Oxford University Press, p. 171 50Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 534 51 Gruess, J.. (1932) Untersuchung von Broten aus der Ägyptischen Sammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin, Zeitschrift fur Ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde (ZÄS), 68, 79-80. 52 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 535-6 53 Pliny, Natural History.


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2:2:1 in certain papyrus, on the contrary, proportions were different in other texts, one giving a ratio of dates to (bS a) equal to 2:1.54 Harris, after examining three specimens from Deir El Medina, concluded that the brewing residues are of barley.55 Also, a pottery vase from Deir El Medina, filled with barley remnants of beer straining is kept at the Agriculture Museum at Dokki, Cairo56. Hops were unknown for the ancient Egyptians, so they reverted to the use of other plants to give it the right flavour, therefore the lupin, skirret, and the root of an Assyrian plant were used.57 The actual process, as carried out in the third to fourth centuries A.D. was described in a text attributed to Zosimos of Panapolis in Upper Egypt. Though it dates back to the Late Period, there is a possibility that it describes earlier techniques58. One method is described as follows: barley is soaked in water for a day, then it was spread and well aerated. Then it was re-moistened, ground, worked into a dough and yeast was added. It was then left till the fermentation process was judged to be completed sufficiently, later the whole mass was strained through a cloth or a sieve. The beverage was hence filtered. Another method utilised dried bread, soaked in water, left to ferment in a warm place.59 The beer making process represented in the tomb of Ti at Saqqara, as interpreted by Wild (1966), is explained as follows: “In the lowest register, to the left, grain is being withdrawn from the stores, measured (second man in lower half, as indicated by a legend) and registered (first man in upper half). Two men at the other end of the panel hold pole-like pestles with which they alternately pound grain (zH) in a mortar. The remaining workmen are composed of groups, each made of a kneeling woman grinding grain on a hollow stone and realistically spilling it onto the floor, facing a squatting

54 Helck, W. (1971). Das Bier im Alten Ägypten. Berlin: Gesellschaft fur die Geschichte und Bibliographie des Brauwesens. E.V. Institut fur Garungsgewerbe und Biotechnologie. 55 Lucas, A. (1962). Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries. 4th edition. Edited by J.R. Harris. London: Edward Arnold. 56 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 537 57 Romant, B. (1986) (translated by J. Smith). Life in Egypt in Ancient Times, Editions Minerva, S.A. Geneve, p. 64 58 Wild, H.(1966) “Brasserie et Panification au tombeau de Ti”, BIFAO,64, pp. 95-120 59 For more information see Montet, (1958), p. 253; Lucas, (1962) p. 14. Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 538


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companion holding a rounded object that, from the legend, may be identified as a cribble (nk (r) bS a). The grain in all these scenes is bS a. “In the middle register, to the right, grain (called zwt) is moistened by a standing workman plunging his arm in a reclining ovoid jar. Below him, to his right, a kneeling man is kneading into dough a mass of t-wAD) green bread, possibly malt from the jar above. The third man is working a batter into an oblong loaf called in the legend (pzn). The fourth carries to the brewer and to the baker pzn, and loaves of other shapes on a tray. From left to right, moulds are being heated; a worker is pouring a liquid or semi-liquid preparation (? malt) into a jar; and the third is macerating bread, probably with water, into a basket that filters into an earthenware jar. Finally, the uppermost register illustrates addition of a substance called (sgnn) (Possibly an aromat), supervision by a scribe, brewing, filtering and filling and sealing the jars.” Comparing the previously described method with New Kingdom representations e.g. tomb of Ken-Amon, shows minimal difference, especially in the shape of the loaves and jars, the loaves being broader and fatter after baking moulds had been replaced by ovens; and the jars being of many different shapes.60 Filtering beer is noted in the Ebers papyrus in prescription (Eb., LIII, 311) which recommends straining a mixture “as is done for beer”; confirming some of the above interpretation are many models of strainers found in ancient tombs. An Old Kingdom limestone model of a perforated basket superimposed on a receiving jar is on view at the Dokki Agricultural Museum, Cairo; and two strainers, made of gesso-covered wood, with a central disk of perforated copper, were found in the tomb of Tutankhamen.61

Modern Beer-Making Techniques “Birra Stella kabira” is probably the most recalled by earlier modern Egyptian generations. It was a European-style lager in big brown bottles. Apparently, this was not the oldest in town but an older, more crude, version is the Egyptian “Būẓa”. This beverage was definitely not for the elite. It was mostly consumed by those who could not afford bottled beer. Būẓa was described by Morcos62 as “a thick pale yellow beverage with a yeasty or alcoholic odour and agreeable taste” or as “thin gruel…contain[ing] much yeast,…in a state of active fermentation and made from coarsely ground

60 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 538-9 61 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 538-9 62 Morcos, S. R., S. M. Hegazi and S. T. El-Damhougy.(1973) “Fermented Foods in Common Use in Egypt II. The Chemical Composition of Bouza and its ingredients”, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 24,, p. 1157


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wheat”. Lucas and Harris described its manufacture as follows: “It is made by partially baking loaves of coarsely ground grain, generally wheat or barley in Egypt but also millet or sorghum in Nubia. The loaves are then broken up and soaked in water with sprouted grain (malt), a source of enzymes that convert complex carbohydrates to simple sugars, which are then available for fermentation. A new batch may be inoculated (“primed”) with the remnants of an old one. The infusion is sometimes heated and sustained at a warm temperature for up to several hours, which can enhance enzyme action without killing the fermenting agents. The mixture is left to ferment for a day or more, its alcoholic content increasing for up to several days. Should it become stronger than desired it is diluted with water”.63 Hops are not added to Būẓa, so it lacks the bitterness familiar to European-style beers and ales, instead a variety of fruits or even greens may be added as sources of additional simple sugars for fermentation or as preservatives. Egyptian Būẓa as well as some other African traditional beers were consumed either sieved or unsieved, this is the reason why some describe them as a beverage while other prefer to call them a thin gruel64. Morcos, notes that the caloric and nutritive value of unsieved Būẓa is greater than that of the sieved variety. It might help to correct some nutritional deficiencies , as the live yeast concentration (in the second-day Būẓa) accords a higher protein content than that of bread made from the same wheat, and is also regarded as a supplement of B Vitamins.65 It is worth-mentioning that during the reign of the Fatimid Caliph Hakim Bi-amrillah (early Eleventh Century), he forbade the consumption of beer along with wine, raisins, honey and molokheya. Later on, in the Thirteenth Century, the Mamluk Sultan Beybers also forbade beer, wine and hashish, although the loss of taxes levied on wine hardly helped him to sustain his powerful military activities.66

63 Lucas, A. and J. R. Harris. (1962). Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries, Fourth Edition, Edward Arnold, London, p. 11. 64 Geller, J. (1992) “From Prehistory to history: Beer in Egypt”, in: Friedman, R. and Adams, B. (eds.). The Followers of Horus: Studies dedicated to Michael Allen Hoffman, Egyptian Studies Association Publication No. 2, Oxbow Monograph 20, p. 19. 65Morcos, S. R., S. M. Hegazi and S. T. El-Damhougy. (1973) “Fermented Foods in Common Use in Egypt II. The Chemical Composition of Bouza and its ingredients”, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 24, p. 1159-61. 66 Geller, J. (1992) “From Prehistory to history: Beer in Egypt”, in: Friedman, R. and Adams, B. (eds.). The Followers of Horus: Studies dedicated to Michael Allen Hoffman, Egyptian Studies Association Publication No. 2, Oxbow Monograph 20, p. 19-20.


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Contemporary Beer Production Techniques The history of alcoholic beverages production in Egypt till almost 1880 could be co-related with Būẓa, as previously mentioned, which is a traditional Turkish beverage that appeared after the Ottomans' arrival to Egypt in 1517. It was defined as "a drink closer to a solid than a liquid, resembling nothing more than cool, slightly fermented farina, with a sort of fizzy tingle imparted by the carbon dioxide, as well as the tell-tale yeasty-sour smell and taste of the stuff leaves little doubt that it contains some, though probably very little alcohol”.67 The previously mentioned definition focused on the main characteristics of the ancient drink which were semi-solidity, carbonation, and alcoholic nature as it had no standardisation for being produced from barley, sorghum, millet, or any other available ingredient and thus Būẓa consistency, taste, and alcohol content varied widely from one recipe to another as it had a milk-like appearance.68 Būẓa was the popular drink among the working class and the humble society as it was cheap and alcoholic as it was considered as a food for containing protein, iron, and other nutrients. Egyptologists have proofed that būẓa was similar in its preparation, composition and consumption to beer in ancient Egypt. Consequently, the straw was essential with drinking Būẓa as it worked as a filter preventing a mouthful of particulates.69 Būẓa was an important part of the Egyptian community, as it was served and enjoyed in their houses for privacy and in social gatherings like shops and taverns but it was not recommended for the upper class and leaders. It was connected to the humble associations thus it was recorded as a short shrift in the history of the Egyptian beverages. The most popular historical stating of Būẓa is in Edward Lane’s seminal 1836 work, An Account of the Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians, in which Lane referred to Būẓa as the beverage of Nile boatmen “and other persons of the lower orders.” 70

In the Sixteenth Century, Būẓa used to have different names that indicated that there were a number of different cereal-based alcoholic drinks without realising their similarities, names like Mizr and Merīssa. For example ‘Awn al-Sharif Qasim’s dictionary of colloquial Sudanese, summarised Merīssa as

67 Foda, O. D. (2015). Grand Plans in Glass Bottles: The Economic, Social, and Technological History of Beer in Egypt 1880-1970. Unpublished PhD Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, pp 25-64. 68 Fuhrmann, M. (2014). “Beer, the Drink of a Changing World:Beer Consumption and Production on the Shores of the Aegean in the 19th Century”. Turcica, 45, pp. 79 -123. 69 Georgeon, F. (2002). “Ottomans and Drinkers: The Consumption of Alcohol in Istanbul in the Nineteenth century”, Journal of Turkish Studies, 26, pp. 58-63. 70 Hattox, R. (2013). Coffee and Coffeehouses: The Origins of a Social Beverage in the Medieval Near East. University of California Press, p. 123.


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"a drink made from an infusion of sorghum or millet... It is steeped in the liquid of the dates or something else and worked by hand until it dissolves into its constituent parts.” That method was similar to the preparation of Būẓa. 71 As previously mentioned, Būẓa was valued as moonshine by the lower classes whether Egyptians or Sudani for its cheapness and also serving it in its unfiltered form made it play the role of a supplier of the different nutrients like fat, protein, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins which were lacked in the diets of those classes. 72 Al-Sanhuri efficiently captured the preparation of Būẓa as grains of durra (sorghum), millet, rice or the like are soaked in a covered hole for around two nights till it sprouted . The sprouts are removed, dried or baked, and crushed up and then there was a paste out of the flour of the grain ready to fermentation.73 It is noticeable in its preparation that the main and only components were grain and water. The absence of hops and yeast which are the two key ingredients in the production of the modern beer as will be mentioned later, makes a huge difference between Būẓa and modern beer. It was concluded that būẓa production was distinguished in Egypt from Pharaonic times to the 1880s, (Pharaonic, Hellenistic/Roman, Islamic, and Ottoman) as the culture extended its borders to Sudan.74 Būẓa had to be drunk shortly after production as it lacked the benefits of ageing that was found in beer for the presence of hops that in addition to giving beer its recognised flavour, it acts as a preservative and that was the main reason for its introduction in the recipe from the beginning.75 Būẓa had a different character than beer that appeared in Egypt in the 1880s, simply it contains both hops that provides beer its distinguished flavour and

71 Sikainga, A. A. (2010). Slavery and Social Life in Turco-Egyptian Khartoum in Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in Nineteenth Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean, American University of Cairo Press, p. 154. 72 Reynolds, N. Y. (2003). Commodity Communities: Interweavings of Market Cultures, Consumption Practices, and Social Power in Egypt, 1907-1961. PhD dissertation, Stanford University, pp. 16-28. 73 Al-Sanhuri, M.A. F. (1978). Al-Muskirat. Dar al-Nahda al-Arabiyya, Cairo, p. 46. 74 Crawford, D. J. (1979). “Food: Tradition and Change in Hellenistic Egypt.”, World Archaeology, 11, p. 136. 75 Manton, E. (2015). “Historical and Cross-cultural Changes in Taxation of Different Alcoholic Beverages.”, Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education, pp. 24-33.


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yeast which is an important factor in the process of fermentation, that organism is in charge of converting sugars to ethanol and CO2.76 Although the pioneers in the alcoholic beverage industry were Europeans the success of that industry returned to the mix of efficient use of local resources eventually served as the base of the modern Egyptian alcoholic beverage industry. This history of beer in Egypt passed through four economic eras, from the Pre-Colonial Era (pre-1880), to the Colonial/Semi-Colonial Era (1880–1930), to the Economic Nationalist Era (1930–1960), and finally to the Arab Socialist Era (1960–1970).77 Beer production started by using the imported malted barley, the Egyptian breweries started the process, which included crushing, mashing, boiling, lautering, cooling, fermenting (brewing), and storing. First, crushing the malted barley separated the outside of the barley, then, mashing broke down the starch in the barley into fermentable sugars. After mashing, lautering removed the husks of the malted barley separated out by crushing. This step was very important as it highlighted one of the major differences between beer and Būẓa, as the husk was what gave Būẓa its gruel-like texture. Then the sugary mixture known as wort , was then boiled for around an hour and then hops was added. 78 Addition of hops to the wort was another major difference between beer and būẓa, and it had a significant impact on the beer’s distinctive bitterness taste and extending its shelf life and then adding the yeast, as choosing a good strain had a significant impact on the beer. The breweries had to cool the product to a temperature of either 7°C (40°F) or 15°C (60°F) as the temperature also had a significant impact on the product. Simply, beer is the result of the fermentation of especially barley, corn, rye, wheat, or blend of several grains in addition to yeast and usually flavoured with hops. It contains 4–8% alcohol and its energy value ranges between 28 and 73 kcal per 100 ml. Finalisation of the product required the injection of CO2 in barrels or cans.79

76Aynur, H. and Schmidt, J. (2007). “A Debate between Opium, Berş, Hasish, Boza, Wine and Coffee.” Journal of Turkish Studies, 31, p. 53. Also Morcos, S. R., S. M. Hegazi and S. T. El-Damhougy. (1973) “Fermented Foods in Common Use in Egypt II. The Chemical Composition of Bouza and its ingredients”, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 24, p. 1160. 77 Reynolds, N. Y. (2012). A City Consumed: Urban Commerce, the Cairo Fire, and the Politics of Decolonization in Egypt, Stanford University Press, pp. 84-93. 78 Alba-Lois, L. and Kischinevzky, S. (2010). “Beer & Wine Makers.”, Nature Education, 3(9), p.17. 79 Lyumugabe, F., Gros, J., Nzungize, J., Bajyana, E., and Thonart, P. (2012). “Characteristics of African Traditional Beers Brewed with Sorghum Malt: A Review.”, International Journal of Food Microbiol. 132, pp. 509–530. Also Mayo, B., Ammor, M. S., Delgado, S., and Alegría, A. (2010). Fermented Foods and Beverages of the World. CRC Press, Taylor and Francis Group, pp. 263–288.


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Focusing on the Egyptian beverage industry since Pharaonic times till the Nineteenth- and Twentieth centuries, a mixture of foreign ideas and concepts for example brewing and distilling, refrigeration, and transport with the traditional and cultural taste same as the Egyptian environment, plentiful water sources, inexpensive labor and huge population.80 Louis Pasteur in the 1860s discovered the important role of the cells of yeast in alcohol formation, his discovery went beyond in the process of beer fermentation as brewers had optimal control on the brewing process.81 He concluded that spoilage of beverages as wine, beer and milk were resulted from the presence of micro-organisms which went in during whether production or storing processes, so he developed the pasteurisation method that is defined as '' heating a beverage to a certain temperature in order to remove the unwanted microorganisms that caused spoilage and illness.82 In 1897, a group of Belgian investors built a factory in the Ibrahimia District of Alexandria, where the Crown and Pyramid breweries were founded. The imported malted barley from Czechoslovakia was firstly crushed in order to take off the outside of the barley then mashed to break down the starch to fermentable sugar.83 The years 1897 and 1898 were turning point in the history of beer in Egypt. That was when a set of Belgian capitalists established Crown Brewery in Alexandria and Pyramid Brewery in Cairo facing local and foreign competitors.. During the pre-World War I period, the two breweries resisted among Greeks, Italians, Britons, and others who had come to Egypt looking for new economic opportunities especially after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, to build up their clientele. Those Europeans had a fundamental role that “total control brewing” allows them to solve any problem in Egypt, as that industry only succeeded after it had adjusted itself to the environment of Egypt. Standardisation, efficiency, and reproducibility

80Homan, M. (2004). “Beer and Its Drinkers: An Ancient Near Eastern Love Story.”, Near Eastern Archaeology, 67, pp. 85-86. Also Lane, E. W. (2003). An Account of the Manners and of the Customs of the Modern Egyptians. American University of Cairo Press, p. 335. 81 Manton, E. (2015). “Historical and cross-cultural changes in taxation of different alcoholic beverages.”, Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education, pp. 24-33. Also Hayashida, F. M. (2008). “Ancient Beer and Modern Brewers: Ethno-archaeological Observations of Chicha Production in Two Regions of the North Coast of Peru.”, Archaeol. 27, pp. 161–174 82 Dolci, P., Alessandria, V., Rantsiou, K., and Cocolin, L. (2015). “Advanced Methods for the Identification, Enumeration, and Characterization of Microorganisms in Fermented Foods.”, Advances in Fermented Foods and Beverages. Elsevier, pp. 157–176. 83 Fonder, N. (2013). Pleasure, Leisure, or Vice? Public Morality in Imperial Cairo, 1882—1949. PhD Dissertation. Harvard University, pp. 4-10.


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with the local advantages of the Egyptian market: primarily inexpensive labor, plentiful water, a hot and dry climate, and a thirsty population that was willing for a refrigerated product.84 Stella and Egypt have always been connected together, if not through its recognised green bottle it can be recalled from the presence of the different related stuff such as coaster, mug, ashtray or flyers. That is the case in Egypt, Stella is widely known among Egyptians whether being consumed or not for religious or personal taste reasons.85 Stella’s beginnings was in the 1920s, as a joint Pyramid and Crown venture, and it took only thirty years to become the dominant local brand and achieved the crucial goal of any brand and had a cultural penetration. Stella is the beer of Egypt, the popular drink among young Egyptians need to have fun, in other words leisure culture.86 The period between1923 to 1935, beer consumption was significant among foreign soldiers, educated middle class and elite Egyptians . Stella advertisements which highlighted the healthful beer's aspects resulted in increasing the consumption patterns but the Islamophobic movement produced a powerful quarrel against beer.87 Nowadays Heineken Brewing Company is considered one of the major players in the Egyptian beverage industry, it actually started since the 1930s as a main stockholder in the biggest two Egyptian beer companies, Al-Ahram (Pyramid) Brewery and Crown Brewery. The business was terminated in 1963 when the Egyptian government nationalized these companies, after four decades, actually in 2003, Heineken returned back and acquired al-Ahram Beverage Company the replacement of the Pyramid and Crown Breweries.88 The history of beer in Egypt had an important social, cultural, economic and political extents that were linked to the Egyptian identity among people and organisations. Alexandria and Cairo are the basis of all later beer-selling operations in Egypt. However, the most important and most worldwide of the

84 Reynolds, N. Y. (2012). A City Consumed: Urban Commerce, the Cairo Fire, and the Politics of Decolonization in Egypt. Stanford University Press, pp. 84-93. Also Sikainga, A. A. (2010). Slavery and Social Life in Turco-Egyptian Khartoum in Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in Nineteenth Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean, American University of Cairo Press, p. 154. 85 Reynolds, N. Y. (2012). A City Consumed: Urban Commerce, the Cairo Fire, and the Politics of Decolonization in Egypt. Stanford University Press, pp. 84-93. 86 Tignor, R. L. (1984). State, Private Enterprise and Economic Change in Egypt, 1918–1952. Princeton University Press, p. 184. 87 Reynolds, N. Y. (2012). A City Consumed: Urban Commerce, the Cairo Fire, and the Politics of Decolonization in Egypt. Stanford University Press, pp. 84-93. Also Kutyauripo, J., Parawira, W., Tinofa, S., Kudita, I., and Ndengu, C. (2009). “Investigation of Shelf-life Extension of Sorghum Beer (Chibuku) byRemoving the Second Conversion of Malt.”, International Journal of Food Microbiol. 129, pp. 271–276. 88 Hornsey SI. (2012). Brewing. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry, pp. 221-2.


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players into the Egyptian beer business was Heineken. Its highest techniques of brewing had added Egypt to its growing multinational beer empire. So it was noticed the interaction between “total control brewing” and the reality of the Egyptian environment.89 During the Twenty-first Century, many attempts have been made to re-inact the ancient Egyptian beer. A trial was noted in 1996 by Dr Delwn Samuel, Cambridge University, with the Scottish and New Castle Breweries. Barry Kemp with his team were investigating beer brewing as per finds from the workmen’s village at Deir el Medina, where they found residue in some pottery jars. They isolated several ingredients especially barley or emmer, together with other flavouring herbs. Ultimately a beer was reconstructed and produced carrying the name of Tutankhamun’s Ale. The first bottle was sold for an astounding $ 7 686 in 1996 and later sold in Harrods for about £50 a bottle90. In 2011, a more recent attempt to brew beer following the ancient methods was conducted by the Bio-molecular Archaeologist at the University of Pennsylvania Museum, Patrick McGovern in collaboration with an American ale company known as “Dogfish Head Craft Brewery”. They managed to produce a beer, a similar as possible to the ancient Egyptian beer. They even named it: “Ta Henket”.91 (Fig 6 shows the label)

II. Wine: Ancient Egyptian name: irp 92 Wine was commonly known to be made out of grapes in ancient Egypt. However, wine was also made out of dates, pomegranates, courgettes, figs, etc… as will be discussed later. 89 Mahgoub, S., A. (2018). Fermented Food in Egypt: A Sustainable Bio-preservation to Improve the Safety of Food. PhD dissertation. Zagazig University, Egypt, pp. 33-59. 90Dickinson, S. “Reconstructing the Ale of Ancient Egypt”, http://www.worldofbeer.co.za/news/reconstructing-the-ale-of-ancient-egypt. Accessed on 10/11/2018 91 For more information about the trial, refer to the article of Daniel Fromson in the Washington Post published on 23rd of November 2011. https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/historic-brews-being-poured-once-more/2011/11/23/gIQAEHNA9N_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4b6b5e79aa7c. Also from the brewery website: https://www.dogfish.com/brewery/beer/ta-henket. Accessed on 10/11/2018 92 Wb I, 11 Hieroglyphs: Rosmorduc, Serge. (2014). JSesh Documentation. [online] Available at: http://jseshdoc.qenherkhopeshef.org [Accessed 26 Dec. 2018].


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Mythology Hathor had a special connection with wine. She was often referred to as “Lady of Drunkenness”. A special festival for “the Drunkenness of Hathor” was celebrated at Dendera.93 Osiris, long before being a god, was a ruling king. He was thought to be the first man to drink wine and showed his people how to plant vines to provide grapes for this remarkable new beverage, as beer was thought to be a fore-runner. He was also the one who, earlier, was responsible for teaching them how to make beer from barley. 94 According to the Pyramid Texts, Osiris was nominated as “Lord of the Wine”95. Most probably the reason for this title was that the annual flood of the Nile was considered as the seasonal revival of vegetation in general, and vine in particular. Moreover, the colour of wine was linked with the Nile flood, as it showed a similar hue to the mud-rich waters that flowed from the source of the Nile south in Atbara, during the flood season.96 However, according to Diodorus, Dionysus was the inventor of wine. “…… and the discovery of the vine, they say, was made by him Dionysus near Nysa, and that, having further devised the proper treatment of its fruit, he was the first to drink wine and taught mankind to large the culture of the vine and the use of wine, as well as the way to harvest the grape and to store the wine….”97 Nevertheless, Dionysus has long been assimilated with Osiris, as per his connection with agriculture.98 Nonetheless, the hieroglyph for the wine-press Ssm.w is attested as early as the Pyramid age,i.e. mentioned in the Pyramid Texts99. Shesmu Ssm.w 100 was “the god of the Wine, of the oil-press and of cellars”. An interesting link between Shesmu

93 Poo, M.-C. (2001) “Wine”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 3, Oxford University Press, p. 502. 94 Armour, R. A. (2001) Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, second edition, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, p. 55 95 Utterance no 442 on the West Wall of the Sarcophagus chamber of the Pyramid of Pepi I. Lichtheim, M.(1975) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms, University of California Press, p. 45 96 Poo, M.-C. ( 2001)“Wine”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 3, Oxford University Press, p. 502. 97 Diodorus., I, 15, 8. Diodorus Siculus (1933-1967). Library of History, Translated by C.H. Oldfather, C. Sherman, C.B. Welles, R.M. Geer and F.R. Walton, 12 Vols, New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons. 98 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 555 99 Utterances no 273 - 274 on the East Wall of the antechamber of the Pyramid of Unas. Lichtheim, M. (1975) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms, University of California Press, p. 37-38. 100

Wb IV, 537.


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and assumption that the colour of wine was red is explained by Poo as follows: “Mythological and literary allusions indicate that the colour of wine was considered red. The wine-press god Shesmu for example was depicted as a slaughterer who pressed human heads in the wine press. Undoubtedly, this was an allusion to a scene where grapes juice was extracted from the wine press, and the red juice was linked to human blood”.101

History It is worth mentioning that the term irp specifically refers to grape-based wine., which already existed in ancient Egypt since the Predynastic Era. This is proved by the recovery of wine jars found in sites of this particular era.102 As early as the First dynasty; Den called his vineyard “The Enclosure of the Beverage of the Body of Horus”. Khasekhemwy, last king of the Second dynasty, named his “Praised be the souls of Horus”. Zoser, founder of the Third dynasty, called it “Praised Horus who is in the Front of Heaven”.103 Around 700 jars were recovered from tomb no (U-j) at Abydos, dating back to around 3150 BC (probably Scorpion King). If each one of those jars were filled with wine, the capacity would have mounted up to 1,200 gallons, which is a pretty big amount. This could be regarded as an evidence of the presence of wine-making industry since the early ages, also it refers to the importance of wine as a beverage, whether in the ancient Egyptian’s daily life or the afterlife.104 Emery discovered many sealed jars of (evaporated) wine among the remains of a meal in a second dynasty tomb.105 Wine-making scenes106 cover the walls of most tombs form the Old Kingdom, at Saqqara and Giza, as well as, tombs of the Middle and New Kingdoms, which add more depth and colour

Hieroglyphs: Rosmorduc, Serge. (2014). JSesh Documentation. [online] Available at: http://jseshdoc.qenherkhopeshef.org [Accessed 26 Dec. 2018]. 101 Poo, M.-C. (2001) “Wine”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 3, Oxford University Press, p. 502. 102 Poo, M.-C. (2001) “Wine”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 3, Oxford University Press, p. 502. 103 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 555-6 104 McGovern, P. (July/August1998)“Wine for Eternity”, Archaeology,Vol 15, No 4, p. 28-9. 105 Emery, W. B. (1962) A Funerary Repast in an Egyptian Tomb of the Archaic Period. Leiden: Nederlands Institut voor het Nabije Osten. 106 It is said that these wine-making scenes were intended to supply the deceased with plenty of wine to cover at least eternity, upon recitation of certain spells or religious formulae.


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to the production.107 Most vineyards were located in the Nile Delta and the oases. Wine containers (amphorae) have been recovered in settlement sites such as Tell El Amarna and Malqata, most probably used as tomb offerings.108 Although Egyptians produced wine from locally grown vineyards dotted around the Egyptian lands from lower and upper Egypt, it also held a high place on the list of imports due to its high consumption. It was mainly imported from Greece, Syria and Palestine.109

Ancient Wine-making Techniques As for manufacturing techniques, Montet wrote that the grapes were individually picked, which could be considered as a laborious and time-consuming act, although this might be practised for some high quality wines.110 Grapes are then transferred in baskets to the treading vats, of which unfortunately, none survived, although they are illustrated in most of the scenes. The grapes are then squeezed by treading, as still practiced in some wineries in Europe. In some scenes, the workers are shown maintaining their balance while treading the slippery plane by holding onto ropes hanging from the ceiling using a cross-beam that forms a frame with two vertical poles attached at each end of the vat. In other cases, the workers take support on each others’ hips, the first and last of the row leaning on two sticks outside the vat. Occasionally, the act is accompanied by music and the clapping of the people watching. 111 After tredding, the remaining fruits were transferred to a cloth bag for extra squeezing. In one technique, one end of the bag was tied to a fixed support, and the other end was fixed to a pole which was twisted by several men. Expressing the juice of grapes in a bag tied at one end, and twisted at the other. In another, both ends of the bag were tied to poles, and the two groups of men wrung the bag by turning the poles in opposite directions In between the two groups, a man was busy with hands and feet keeping the poles apart. In a similar, more humorous scene, this man is replaced by a baboon112. The

107 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 556. 108 Ikram, S. (2001) “Diet”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 1, Oxford University Press, p. 392. 109 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, (1977) L. Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 597-612 110 Montet, P. (1958) Everyday Life in Egypt in the Days of Ramesses the Great. Translated by A.R. Maxwell-Hyslop and M.S. Drower. London: Edward Arnold, p.106 111 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 560. 112 The artist, no doubt a humorist, replaced the man holding the poles apart with a big baboon. Tomb of Nefer. Saqqara. Old Kingdom. Moussa, A. M. and Altenmuller, H. (1971) The Tomb of Nefer and Ka-Hay, Mainz-am-Rhein: P. von Zabern.


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aforementioned method of pressing was particularly practised in Lower Egypt, while wine-pressing in Upper Egypt was normally performed by pressing with bare feet.113 The extracted juice was then strained through cloth into fermentation jars. In some cases the process was quickened by warming; and when it was over, the product was poured gradually into special containers, which were small and circular for religious of funerary use, larger for domestic consumption.114 Some scholars such as Lutz, for instance, believed that the inside of the jars was coated with a layer of an impermeable substance such as bitumen or resin.115 This habit could have survived since the start of wine-making when they used to keep it in leather bags so the had to insulate the bags by means of resin. It seems that the acquired taste appealed to the Egyptians so they kept on using the same technique even after starting to use earthenware jars for keeping the wine.116 However, other Egyptologists, such as Montet, have argued that the description of Egyptian wine as “very sweet” and “tends to spoil early” as described by Strabo (17, 1, 35) disagrees with the former assumption. Especially that the heavily resinated Greek wines were said to withstand better the acidic change because of the coating.117 Lucas, also, confirmed this conclusion for, in the large number of wine jars that he examined, he found no evidence of coating before the Greek period.118 Finally, when the fermentation period was over, the wine vessels were sealed with a lid of straw and clay, in which the official stamps were impressed, with the year of the king’s rule, the district, the name of the wine and, sometimes the name of the gardener.119 In many of the jars, safety holes were drilled either in the stopper caps or the necks, to prevent bursting by accumulation of gases. These were plugged by straw or wax, or with a plug of clay stamped with the owner’s seal e.g. one of the wine jars recovered from the tomb of Tutankhamen. Under normal conditions and at room

113 Wilkinson, J. G. (1854) Manners and Customs of the Egyptians, London, Vol 2, p. 152-5 114Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977 ) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 560-1 115 Lutz, H. F. (1922) Viticulture and Brewing. Leipzig: Hinrichs, p. 56-7. 116 Wilkinson, J. G. (1854) Manners and Customs of the ancient Egyptians, Vol 2, London, p. 158 117 Montet, P. (1958) Everyday Life in Egypt in the Days of Ramesses the Great. Translated by A.R. Maxwell-Hyslop and M.S. Drower. London: Edward Arnold, p.88 118 Lucas, A. (1962) Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries. 4th edition. Edited by J.R. Harris. London: Edward Arnold, p. 20 119 Kees, H. (1961) Ancient Egypt. A Cultural Topography. Translated by Ian F. E. Morrow. Edited by T.G.H. James. London: Faber and Faber, p. 82.


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temperature, the natural yeast formed on grape skins quickly ferments juice to wine. Slow-pressing methods, practiced by the ancient Egyptian, combined with the hot weather contributed to the rapid fermentation, which probably even began before the juice went into jars. Jars were then sealed with clay sealings with rim and string impressions, pressed onto leather or cloth covers tied over the mouths with string. These covers would have been particularly suitable for a young wine, from which fermentation gases still need to be released.120 Flavourings were known to be added to wine, for example, from the tomb no (U-j) at Abydos, dating back to around 3150 BC (probably Scorpion King), 47 jars contained grape pips and several complete grapes. Also 11 vessels had remains of sliced figs, which had been perforated, strung together and probably hung in the liquid. Both whole grapes and figs are thought to have been used to sweeten or add flavour the wine.121 The colour of grapes ranged in ancient Egyptian illustrations from white, through pink, green, red, blue and black. Similarly, we can assume that there was a variety of colours used for wine, but could not be confirmed. There is a mention of “irp dSr” which means red wine but, the word desher could be interpreted in different ways.122 Wine was available in Egypt within different varieties e.g date wine123, palm wine124, fig wine125, pomegranate wine126. There is evidence that vintages (type and year of production) were marked on the jar or on the seal, bearing the name of the vineyard owner and the vineyard of origin. The quality of wine was also indicated on the label. Descriptive terms like “good”, “very good”, or “very very good” were found on the jars from Malta, Tell el Amarna and the tomb of Tutankhamen (KV 62). The date of production was also recorded, this piece of information is particularly important, since Egyptian wine did not endure/last for long and had to be consumed within a year of production.127It had been suggested that, at some point of the final stage of processing, wine was tasted and its quality assessed.128

120 McGovern, P. (July/August 1998) “Wine for Eternity”, Archaeology, Vol 15, No 4, p. 29. 121 McGovern, P. (July/August 1998) “Wine for Eternity”, Archaeology,, Vol 15, No 4, p. 29. 122 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L.(1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 556-7. 123 Ebers Papyrus, X, 28. After Grapow and Westendorf (1958,) Vol. IV, 1, p. 121 124 Herodotus (II, 86), Diodorus (1, 91, 5) 125 Pyramid Texts (Pyr., 146a, T117a, N454a, Pepi II) and Papyrus Anastase (3, 3, 5) 126 Pliny (XIV, XIX, 103), Dioscorides (V, 34), Song of Solomon (8, 2) 127 Ikram, S. (2001) “Diet”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 1, Oxford University Press, p. 392. 128 Athenaeus, The Deipnosophists (i.e., The Learned Banqueters). http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/Literature/Literature-idx?type=turn&entity=Literature.AthV1.p0062&id=Literature.AthV1&isize=M&pview=hide. Accessed on 20/11/2018


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The best wine known was the Teniotic, which was produced in a place called Tenia. Its colour was pale and white, and it boosted a degree of richness that it was often mixed with water to be diluted.129 Next in line in quality and popularity was the Mareotis. According to Athenaeus, “The Mareotic grape was remarkable for its sweetness” and the wine is described by him as, “Its colour is white, its quality excellent, and it is sweet and light, with a fragrant bouquet; it is by no means astringent, nor does it affect the head.”130

Modern and Contemporary Wine-making Techniques During the period between 1798 and 1801, accompanying Napoleon expedition to Egypt, there was an introduction to both araq and wine. Araq was a liquor made from dates which are emerged in water for forty days in winter, and for ten to fifteen in the summer then mixed with anise and boiled then the distillation process. It is white in colour and the anise flavour is very well distinguished. 131 Wine is a beverage which is popular to the French, so normally it was known then in Egypt, it was prepared simply as "Having trod the grapes for one hour in a jar of cylindrical earth in the shape of a small chest, they are put into a large bag made of a very thick woolen cloth, which is wrung out and the juice of the grapes is placed into another jar that is similar to the first. The liquid is then allowed to ferment for eight to fifteen days. The liquid is then transferred to one of those great amphorae, which are used to transport oils of the Berbers, and this earthenware vase is buried almost to the neck and closed with a wooden plug sealed with plaster." Regardless this precaution, the wine was expired in a few months the case as in an ordinary vinegar.132 Fruits are vital for the humans' diet as they are full of vitamins and minerals that are essential for their overall health. Wines are made from different types of fruits such as grapes, peaches, plums or apricots, banana, berries…etc but the most common is from grapes as for its natural chemical balance of the

129 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 556-7 130 Romant, B. (1986 )(translated by J. Smith). Life in Egypt in Ancient Times, Editions Minerva, S.A. Geneve, p. 63-64. 131 Foda, O. D. (2015). Grand Plans in Glass Bottles: The Economic, Social, and Technological History of Beer in Egypt 1880-1970. Unpublished PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, pp. 25-64. 132 Saranraj, P., Sivasakthivelan, P. and Naveen, M. (2017). “Fermentation of Fruit Wine and its Quality Analysis: A Review”. Australian Journal of Science and Technology, 1(2), pp. 85-97.


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grape juice which helps in the fermentation process with no need to add sugars, acids, enzymes, or any other nutrients then they pass the process of fermentation and ageing. 133 In the early ages of wine production, wine producers traditionally used their feet to crush and soften the grapes before leaving the mixture to be stored in buckets. Doing this, they relocated microorganisms from their feet to the grapes' mixture. At that time, no one knew that the secret behind alcohol production during fermentation was because of one of these microorganisms, a tiny, one-celled eukaryotic fungus that is undistinguishable by the bare eye: yeast. It took more than hundreds of years before the science revolution and researchers observe these microorganisms by microscopes.134 Wines are undistilled alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content which ranges between 10 and 14% and 2–3% sugar with energy value ranging between 70 and 90 kcal per 100 ml as the fermentation process increases both the nutritional value as it freedoms the amino acids and the other nutrients and the sensory qualities, especially flavour.135 Wines come out in different colours (red, white, and rose) and have several types, which dry and sweet, still and sparkling, and wines fortified with grape spirit (brandy). That gave the chance for the product to be served in a large scale of individual tastes, go along with different dishes and in diverse life occasions and events from birth to death due to its purifier and profound mind-altering effects .136 Industrial fermentation procedures are directed with chosen microorganisms under certain conditions with carefully known nutrient concentrations. In other words, nourishing sugars and nutrients in a solution with yeast and the result will be carbon dioxide gas and alcohol. The products of fermentation are as follows: Alcohol, glycerol, and carbon dioxide are obtained from yeast fermentation of various sugars; Butyl alcohol, acetone, lactic acid, monosodium glutamate, and acetic acid are products of bacteria action; and citric acid, gluconic acid, antibiotics, Vitamin B12, and riboflavin are some of the products obtained from mould fermentation.137

133 Adams, M. R. (2010). “Fermented Meat Products”, in: Fermented Foods and Beverages of the World. CRC Press, Taylor and Francis Group, pp. 309–322. 134 Tamang, J. P., Watanabe, K. and Holzapfel, H.(2016). “Review: Diversity of Microorganisms in Global Fermented Foods and Beverages.”, Frontiers in Microbiology, 7 (377), pp. 1-28. 135 Jacobs, J. (2006). “Ethanol from Sugar: What are the Prospects for US Sugar Crops?”, Rural Cooperatives, 73(5), pp. 23-34. 136 Plaza E., Munoz R., Roca J., Cutillas A. and Fernandez J. (2015). “Phenolic Compounds and Color Stability of Red Wines: Effect of Skin Maceration Time.”, International Journal of Food Microbiol, 135, pp. 266-70. 137 Bokulich, N.A. (2014) “Microbial Biogeography of Wine Grapes is Conditioned by Cultivar, Vintage, and Climate.”, Journal of National Acadamic Science, 111, pp.139–148.


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Different yeasts end to different results and to different tolerance levels. Fermentation process extends the shelf life of the final products as it declines the need for any form of food preservation technology such as refrigeration, thus suitable technique for developing countries and remote areas where availability of refined equipment is inadequate. Fermented fruit wines are commonly consumed worldwide as it shares as an important role in the diet of millions of people.138 Fermentation can be done in stainless steel tanks, which is popular with many white wines, inside a wooden wine barrel or inside the wine bottle itself as in the manufacture of many sparkling wines like champagne for example.The method of winemaking or actually wine fermentation is one of the most ancient human experiences as it is known since the dawn of civilisation.139 Winemaking contains generally three categories of operations, namely, pre-fermentation, fermentation, and post-fermentation processes. In the case of wines made from grapes, pre-fermentation includes crushing the fruit and freeing juice. In case of white wine, juice is parted from the skin, whereas in red wine, the skins, pulp, and seeds of grapes are kept together and not separated from the juice as it contains the colour and flavour so in order to be extracted in the juice itself. Then, the selected yeast is added to the juice to start the fermentation process.140 It is concluded that the major difference between red and white wines is the early subtraction of grape skins in white wine production. The distinguished flavour of grape wine originates from the grapes as raw material give the final product the unique fruity character. White wine is fermented between 64°F and 68°F (18°C–20°C) the most popular Egyptian white wine is called “bosolay" while the red wine is typically fermented at higher temperatures up to 85°F (29°C).141

138 Freidberg, S. (2009). A Perishable History : Machines are Frozen Spirit. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, pp. 26-35. Also McGovern, P. E. (2009). Uncorking the Past: The Quest for Wine, Beer, and Other Alcoholic Beverages. University of California Press, pp. 96-103. Also Pretorius I. and Hoj P. (2005). “Grape and Wine Biotechnology: Challenges, Opportunities and Potential Benefits.”, Aust J Grape Wine Res ,11, pp. 83-108. 139 Bartowsky, E. (2017). “Microbiology of winemaking.”, Microbiology Australia, 16, pp. 76-79. 140 Robinson J. (2016). The Oxford Companion to Wine. 3rd ed. USA: Oxford University Press, pp. 779-87. Also Bokulich, N.A. (2016). “Associations among Wine Grape Microbiome, Metabolome, and Fermentation Behavior Suggest Microbial Contribution to Regional Wine Characteristics.”, Journal of National Academic Science, 113, pp. 59–71. 141 Kunkee R.E., and Vilas M. R. (2014). “Towards the Understanding of the Relationship between Yeast Strains and Flavour Production during Vinification: Flavour Effect in


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After fermentation was accomplished, the wine is filtered by using fining agents such as gelatin, pectin, or casein which are mixed with the wine. The wine was then pasteurised at 50°C–60°C. The temperature should be controlled, so as not to heat it to above 60°C, since its alcohol content would evaporate at a temperature of 75°C–78°C. It is then stored in the different containers which have been mentioned earlier in order to be ready for the ageing process to get rid of undesirable traces and for enhancing the taste, aroma, and preservative properties of the wine.142 Early in the Nineteenth Century, for the sparkling wines, they were made in one of three ways: through the injection of wines with carbon dioxide under pressure but unluckily, the sparkle of these wines quickly vanishes, and the product was considered low-grade to the other two sparkling wines one by adding sugar to the wine so the carbon dioxide produced by fermentation of the added sugar gives the wine its sparkle or the original champagne method, is by adding grape juice which contains sugar with other juice components which will helps in enhancing the wine characteristics in closed strong bottles or tanks of special specifications in order to bare the pressure of the re-fermentation process.143 Although sugar is the key component for fermentation, to produce ethanol, lactic acid, and carbon dioxide the higher sugar concentration stops the growth of microorganisms. Most yeast strains can allow an alcohol concentration of 10–15% before being killed. This is the reason that the percentage of alcohol in wines and beers is classically in this concentration range.144 Nowadays, brewers and wine makers can choose different strains of yeast to produce different contents of alcohol which can exceed the limit of even 20 percent of alcohol by volume, as higher concentrations of alcohol (like liquors), the fermented products must be distilled.145 Today's wines, however, are not weak; their alcoholic content is increased artificially. According to average ancient dilution ratios, modern wine is

Vinification of a Nondistinct Variety of Grape by Several Strains of Wine Yeast.”, International Journal of Food Microbiol 134, pp. 46-50. 142 Audu, J. (2010). “Comparative Studies of Wine Produced by Spontaneous and Controlled Fermentation of Preserved Cashew.”,.Journal of Biological Science, 5, pp. 460-4. 143 Chilaka C.A., Uchechukwu, N., Obidiegwu, J. and Akpor O. (2017). “Evaluation of the Efficiency of Yeast Isolates from Palm Wine in Diverse Fruit Wine Production.”, African Journal of Food Science, 4, pp. 764-74. 144 Swiegers, J.H. (2005). “Yeast and Bacterial Modulation of Wine Aroma and Flavour.”, Aust. J. Grape Wine Res. 11, 139–173. 145 Barrett, D.M. and Lloyd B. (2012). “Advanced Preservation Methods and Nutrient Retention in Fruits and Vegetables.”, Journal of Science Food Agriculture, 92, pp. 7-22.


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easily five to ten times stronger in its alcoholic content, even the modern beer is stronger than the ancient wine.146 Another dissimilarity is that ancient wine drinking was characterised by limitation and wisdom, while modern drinking is characterised by excess and drunkenness.147 In 1928, Ganklies beverage company was founded in Alexandria and it was nationalised in 1952, Heinken bought it in 2002. Egypt is the 57th-largest wine-producing country in the world (5,000 tonnes). Omar El Kayam and Layaly are some of the most popular Egyptian wines.148

Other Alcoholic Fruit Juices (?) A great variety of fruits (approximately 14 types) was available for the consumption of the ancient Egyptian.149 There is a strong possibility that other fruit-based alcoholic beverages were consumed by the ancient Egyptian population. Interestingly, they are also referred to as “wines”. These included date wine, made from the fruit of Phoenix dactylifera, the date palm tree. Palm wine, was probably made from the fermented sap of the same tree. It was obtained by incising the top of the tree at the base of the fronds. There was also fig wine, made from the Ficus Carica. There is still some controversy about whether the Egyptian term Shedeh meant pomegranate wine or pomegranate juice (genus Punica).150

146 Tamang, J. P., Watanabe, K. and Holzapfel, H.(2016). “Review: Diversity of Microorganisms in Global Fermented Foods and Beverages.”, Frontiers in Microbiology, 7 (377), pp. 1-28. 147 Ashenfelter, O. (2007). “Predicting the Quality and Prices of Bordeaux Wines.”, The Economic Journal, 118, (529), pp. 174-184. 148 Mahgoub, S., A. (2018). Fermented Food in Egypt: A Sustainable Bio-preservation to Improve the Safety of Food. PhD dissertation, Zagazig University, Egypt, pp. 35-59. 149 Among these fruits are recorded: apples (Malus sylvestris), carob (Ceratonia siliqua), cherries (Prunus avium, Prunus cerasus), Christ’s thorn (Zizyphus spina-Christi), lemons (Citrus medica), plums (Cordia myxa), figs (Ficus carica), grapes ((Vitis vinifera), hegelig (Balanites aegyptiaca), juniper (Oxycedrus macrocarpa), melons (Cucurbitaceae), water-melons (Citrullus vulgaris), olives (Olea europea), peaches (Prunus persica), pears (Pyrus Communis), persea (Mimusops schimperi), pomegranate (Punica granatum) and sycamore figs (Ficus sycomorus). Interestingly, Ghalioungui did not mention any juice that was produced from all these fruits. After P., Darby, W., Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, Chapter 18, p. 697- 756 150 Ikram, S. (2001) “Diet”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egypt, Vol 1, Oxford University Press, p. 392.


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III. Milk Ancient Egyptian name: irT.t 151 Milk was an extremely important and a highly valued beverage for the ancient Egyptians. The reason for this is that it had many religious significances such as the association with goddesses milk with the legitimacy of ruling Egypt. The heir to the throne should be breast-fed by Isis and/or Hathor to be accepted as a lawful successor. There was a special goddess who was given the title of the goddess of milk. Her name was Iat.152 Spells as early as the Old Kingdom Pyramid Texts confirm this idea: “Whiter art thou come, my son, O King? …… He is come to these his two mothers, the two vultures, they of the long hair and the pendulous breasts….. They draw their breasts to his mouth, and never more do they wean him”.153 On nearly every ancient Egyptian monument, young princes are depicted being nursed by goddesses; Isis offers her breast to Horus as noted in innumerable statuettes. This is considered as a clear sign of them being direct descendants of the gods. It had been hypothesised that these scenes/statues were inspiration for the early christians in the depictions of Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus.154 On many occasions, kings and royalties were shown making ritual offerings of milk or wine to the gods, especially in a specific form of jars, namely the nw-jars. For the public, milk was freely given to children. In a tomb of the Eighteenth Dynasty at El-Kab, it is recorded that 60 children consumed the milk of 3 cows, 52 goats and 9 she-asses.155 Also for adults, it seems that milk was consumed on regular basis. We read in the “Tale of the Two Brothers: Inpw and Bata”, which was written during the New Kingdom, that the younger brother came back every evening with the products of the field of which milk was one, although there were no children in the household156. Earlier, during the Middle Kingdom, as recounted in the “Tale of Sinuhe”, at some point after his flight from Egypt, Sinuhe was “parched” thirsty and was happy to

151 Wb I, 117. Hieroglyphs: Rosmorduc, Serge. (2014). JSesh Documentation. [online] Available at: http://jseshdoc.qenherkhopeshef.org [Accessed 26 Dec. 2018]. 152 Armour, R. A. (2001) Gods and Myths of Ancient Egypt, second edition, The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo, p. 165-166. 153 Pyramid Text No. 508; After Erman, (1966), n.9 154 Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W. and Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press, London, p. 760 155 Ruffer, M. A. (1919) Food in Egypt. Memoire presente a l’Institut Egyptien I, Imprimerie de l’Institut Francais d’Archeologie Oriental, Le Caire, p. 25. 156 Papyrus D’Orbiney (British Museum 10183). After Lichtheim, M. (1976) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol II: The New Kingdom, University of California Press, p. 204.


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be offered boiled milk by a Beduin chief.157 Later when he lived in Retenu (Syria, nowadays), he boasted that there was milk in everything cooked.158 Milk was also mixed with medicines159. Nowadays, fermented milk products are classified into two major groups on the basis of microorganisms: yogurt, buttermilk, natural fermented milk, cultured milk, cultured cream, cultured buttermilk; Natural fermentation is one of the oldest methods of milk processing using raw and boiled milk to ferment spontaneously, or of using the back-slopping method where a part of the previous batch of a fermented product is used to inoculate the new batch.160 Cheese and cheese products derived from the fermentation of milk are of major nutritional and commercial importance throughout the world.161

Everyday Modern Egyptian Beverages Egyptians nowadays consume a wide variety of drinks and beverages in considerable amounts during the hot summer months as an important component of the food system. Many of the traditional drinks are based on natural products (e.g. karkadeh and fenugreek) as well as being known to have a beneficial effect on health. (Table 1) However, some have been replaced by commercially produced carbonated drinks, other soft drinks and fruit nectars. This change has entailed a significant increase in the daily sugar intake apart from depriving the body of the health benefits of the natural beverages. An extremely popular traditional Egyptian habit is consuming small glasses of sweetened black tea. It is an important source of ready calories for workers during the long interval between the waking up drink and the next meal. While tea drinking can be labelled as a national habit, coffee drinking is less popular. In general, coffee is rarely consumed among

157 Lichtheim, M. (1973) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms, University of California Press, p. 224. 158 Lichtheim, M. (1973) Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms, University of California Press, p. 227. 159 For more information about milk usage in medicine, refer to Nunn, J. (1996) Ancient Egyptian Medicine, University of Oklahoma Press, London, p. 148 160 Ali, A. (2010). “Beneficial Role of Lactic Acid Bacteria in Food Preservation and Human Health.”, Journal of Microbiol Research, 5(12), pp. 1213-1221. Also Ayad, E., Nashat, S., El Sedek, N.,Metwaly, H. and El Soda, M. (2004). “Selection of Wild Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Traditional Egyptian Dairy Products According to Production and Technological Criteria.”, Food Microbiol, 21, pp. 15-25. 161 Hamdan, Z.M.R. Ahkamanidan, H. M. and Hossein, A.A. (2014). “Milk Proteins Consideration in some Interactions.”, Journal of Scientific Research and Development 1 (2), pp. 38-43. Also Gemechu, T. (2015). “Review on Lactic Acid Bacteria Function in Milk Fermentation and Preservation.”, African Journal of Food Science, 9(4) pp. 170-175.


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the fellaheen and manual labourers; it is more common in urban populations as a reviving beverage especially shortly after waking up.162

Conclusions It could be deduced that fine wines have remained throughout history the favourite drink of the high end of society, while beer and cheaper wines have been of more use to the common Egyptian. It is noticeable that alcoholic drinks, especially beer and wine, were not used as medications but they were considered as an important vehicle, together with honey, milk and oil, for preparing ancient Egyptian medicines. Hops was unknown for the ancient Egyptians, so they reverted to the use of other plants to give it the right flavour, therefore the lupin, skirret, and the root of an Assyrian plant were used. Today, beer brewing and wine making and milk products are huge, extremely profitable agricultural industries..These industries have been developed from ancient and empirical knowledge from many different cultures around the world. Nowadays, the ancient knowledge has been combined with basic scientific knowledge and applied toward modern production methods. However, the manufacturing techniques have changed considerably, For example, the percentage of alcohol in both beer and wine have increased, also there are new varieties that have been added to wine e.g. sparkling wine. Concerning milk production, it is not limited to fresh milk nowadays but includes fermented milk, which is known for its benefits for a healthy lifestyle.

162 Hassan-Wassef, H. (2004) “ Food habits of the Egyptians: newly emerging trends”, Mediterranean Health Journal, Vol. 10, No. 6, p. 8.


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Figures

Fig (1) A wooden model of a combined bakery and brewery. From the serdab of the tomb of Meketre,12th dynasty. Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession no: 20.3.12. Rogers Fund and Edward S. Harkness

Gift, 1920. Retrieved from the website of the Metropolitan Museum of Art

https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/20.3.12/ Accessed on 10/11/2018.

Fig (2) A model for a brewery. Tomb of Wepwawetemhat. Asyut. Middle Kingdom.

Retrieved from https://www.mfa.org/collections/object/model-of-a-brewery-45322 Accessed on 10/11/2018.


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Fig (3) A scene on the wall facing the entrance of the storeroom, depicting the act of baking

and brewing. Tomb of Ti. 5th Dynasty. Saqqara. After Daumas, F. and Goyon, G. (1939) Le Tombeau de Ti. Memoire de l’Institut Francais d’Archeologie Orientale (MIFAO), no 65. Cairo, Institut Francais d’Archeologie Orientale,

plate LXVII .


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Fig (4) A scene depicting the act of baking and brewing. Middle Kingdom. Tomb of Intefiqer. Thebes (TT60) .

After Ghalioungui,P., Darby, W., Grivetti, L. (1977) Food: Gift of Osiris, Vol 2, Academic Press,London, p. 536

Fig (5) Statue of a Female Brewer. Probably from Giza. Old Kingdom. It is made out of coloured limestone. Kept at the Oriental Institute of the University of

Chicago, No OIC_E_10635. Retrieved from: http://giza.fas.harvard.edu/objects/66334/intro/ Accessed on 10/11/2018


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Fig (6) Label for newly re-make of ancient Egyptian Beer. Retrieved from the website of the “Dogfish Head Craft Brewery”:

https://www.dogfish.com/brewery/beer/ta-henket. Accessed on 10/11/2018

Fig (7) Bottom two registers of a wall painting from the tomb of Nakht at Thebes (New

Kingdom) shows grape-harvesting and wine-making. After McGovern, P. (July/August1998)“Wine for Eternity”, Archaeology,Vol 15, No 4, p. 29


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Fig (8) Scene from a Theban tomb depicting winemaking, from the New Kingdom. On the top right is a small temple to the goddess of the harvest, Renenutet, before whom is placed an offering table of grapes and wine. On the left, workers crush the grapes by foot. On the lower

right, workers use jugs to fill large wine jars. After Poo, M.-C. “Wine”, in Redford, D.B. (ed): The Oxford Encyclopaedia of Ancient

Egypt, Vol 3, Oxford University Press 2001, p. 502.


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Tables Table (1) A List of Traditional Beverages consumed by the Egyptians nowadays.

After Hassan-Wassef, H. “ Food habits of the Egyptians: newly emerging trends”, Mediterranean Health Journal, Vol. 10, No. 6, 2004, p. 8.

Cold Infusions Hot Infusions Juice (Freshly Pressed)

Composite Receipes Sherbets and Syrups

(Now Mostly Commercialised)

Other (Salted)

Red sorrel (karkadeh) Hibiscus sabdariffa

Tea (black) Sugar cane Moghat (traditionally given to parturient

mothers, with ground wild pomegranate root as the basic ingredient)

Rose petal syrup Pickling water of turnips

Tamarind Coffee Bananas with milk Sahlab (a milk drink made with ground

orchis root as the main

ingredient)

Violet petal syrup

Seasoned Chickpeas in

water (Humus el sham)

Carob (kharrub) Fenugreek (whole)

Other fruits in season e.g.

pomegranate, mango,

strawberries, etc…

Fruit-based syrups e.g

Strawberries, berries, mango,

etc…

Licorice drink (erq’soos)

Ginger (ground)

Syrups made from

concentrated extracts of

tamarind and carob

Dom Hyphaene thebaica

Hibiscus (karkadeh)

Reconstituted sun-dried sheets

of fruit pulp Apricot

(qamareddin)

Cinnamon (ground)

Mint leaves

Cumin seeds, fennel seeds

Caraway seeds

Aniseed

Barley


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Cultural Heritage and Identity: The Case Study of Luxor City, Egypt

Mahmoud Abdou1

Faculty of Architecture, Urban Planning, and Civil Engineering Heritage Studies Programme

Abstract This paper aims to investigate and broaden our concept of the critical relationship between cultural heritage and identity. To uncover this relationship, it is important to clearly describe the meanings attached to the concept of heritage, as the nature of the term is elastic with multiple definitions. In theory, this mutual relationship is well-established and analysed. However, in practical theory, this relationship needs further investigation to illustrate how heritage can be a crucial tool in maintaining the identities of local communities. Therefore, the research selected Luxor as the main case study due its cumulative heritage that definitely helps to discover how this heritage would shape and enhance the feeling of identity of the local community of Luxor.

Keywords: cultural heritage, identity, memorisation, sense of belonging.

The Dilemma of Heritage Definition The world is actually full of heritage (Throsby, 2010), and heritage itself comprises multiple forms of cultural capital where it embodies different values for communities, varying from social and cultural values to historical (Benhamou, 2003). There are multiple definitions of the term ‘heritage’, as there are many heritage practitioners; most commentators leave the definition of heritage as broad and elastic as possible (Harvey, 2011). Heritage, according to the International Charter of Venice, is defined as ‘Imbued with a message from the past’. Therefore, a common responsibility is necessary to protect and convey this heritage to future generations (ICOMOS, 1964). Meanwhile, the Convention Concerning the

1 Mahmoud Abdou got his joint Master Degree in Heritage Conservation and Site Management from Helwan University, Egypt and BTU University, Germany, in 2015. Currently, he is a Ph.D. candidate in BTU where his research focuses on the increasing role of the seeking-for-profit private sector in heritage conservation.

Cultural Heritage and Identity: The Case Study of Luxor City, Egypt ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage defined cultural heritage as follows,

monuments: architectural works, works of monumental sculpture and painting, elements or structures of an archaeological nature, inscriptions, cave dwellings and combinations of features, which are of outstanding universal value from the point of view of history, art or science;

groups of buildings: groups of separate or connected buildings which, because of their architecture, their homogeneity or their place in the landscape, are of outstanding universal value from the point of view of history, art or science;

sites: works of man or the combined works of nature and of man, and areas including archaeological sites which are of outstanding universal value from the historical, aesthetic, ethnological or anthropological points of view (UNESCO, 1972; Edson, 2004; Ahmad, 2006).

However, Smith referred to another premise for understanding heritage in her text, Uses of Heritage, which is based on heritage itself as neither a ‘thing’ nor a ‘site’. Rather, heritage cannot be expressed as mere material objects or buildings. Although these buildings are highly appreciated and crucial things, they are not heritage in themselves. Heritage, however, describes the practices related to these sites, but without contradicting how the sense of a physical place or site is crucial for these practices and often plays a role in them. This physical place rarely provides the full picture of what heritage can be (Smith, 2006). Graham (1994) and Ashworth et al. (2007), followed similar idea when they assumed that the significance of the heritage item arises from the interpretations, the representations created from them, and the meanings placed upon them–not from the artefact itself.

The Notion of Identity The past is undoubtedly a crucial part of our sense of self; as Lowenthal stated: ‘I was requisite to being sure that I am’. Places are not required to be impressive to be ‘memorable’, their significance is in the tenacity of their users rather than architecture (2015). Cuno saw identity as ‘a set of currents, flowing currents, rather than a fixed place or a stable set of objects’ (Cuno, 2008). Maalouf presumed identity made people different from each other (2011). Thus, rootless groups–as Lowenthal stated–are like orphaned children (2015). The notion of identity employed in this research

Abdou, M ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

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refers to the ways in which identifiers–including heritage, ethnicity, nationalism, religion, language, and shared interpretations of the past–are used to shape the aspects of inclusion and exclusion that play a role in defining communities (Ashworth et al. 2007; Graham and Howard, 2008). A number of approaches have been used to reinforce identity, such as pride for achievements in the form of rituals, memorising events, and monuments are the most popular. Memories and stories are transferred from one generation to another; thus, they become common patrimonies, legacies, and indispensable baggage that are never forgotten (Even-Zohar, 2011). Identity is not only about inclusion, but it is also about exclusion; people to identify with some, must dis-identify with others. Consequently, identity is not all about identification; rather, it also refers to similarities and differences (Anico and Peralta, 2008). Furthermore, identity is attached to terms such as ‘sameness’ and ‘group membership’, where a core point of its perception is linked to the discourse of ‘other’ groups with competing and even conflicting values, beliefs, and aspirations. Many pasts have transformed into a variety of identities through many heritages where only a few of which are connected to place (Ashworth et al. 2007; Graham and Howard, 2008).

Cultural Heritage and Identity Pasts, heritages, and identities–as Ashworth et al. (2007) presumed–should be understood as plurals. This conception results from not only the multiple uses of heritage, but from, the different producers of heritage, ranging from the official–non-official, public–private, and insider–outsider perspectives, with various and different objectives related to the creation and management of heritage. Similarly, Smith stated that no individual, group, or community is attached to a singular identity. Individuals have multiple layers of identity without belonging to a certain community; additionally, a community itself may have a variety of sub-community identities. These identities need no monumental aspect to be symbolised or constituted, and even the great identities–including those of nation and class–can be seemingly shaped by the commonplace or banal (2006). The relationship between heritage and identity is well constructed in the literature, as tangible heritage is assumed to provide a physical imagination and reality for the fragile perception of identity. Like history, heritage enhances the feelings of belonging and continuity, and tangibility representation lends these feelings an added sense of physical reality (Smith, 2006). The connectedness between the two concepts is


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distinguished by being multifaceted and changing spatially and temporally, resulting from the conceptual complexities of both terms (Graham and Howard, 2008). The use of the past to forge different conceptions of individual and group identities has considerable history, and similarly, the use of heritage remnants to construct identity, power, and authority is precisely documented (He and Zhang, 2016) Every society or community forms a special social space. Thus, space–and the discourses linked to it–are major keys to maintaining cultural identity and transferring cultural value from one generation to another. A considerable connection is recognisable between places and memory. On an individual level, people can be deeply connected with places that are significant to their well-being. These places, whether preserved, transformed, or even destructed, can be a critical issue in maintaining a sense of identity and memorise. . On a group level, some places are significant because they boost social memory, and these places are seen as ‘storehouses of memory’ (Kenworthy and Shing Chow, 2003). Lowenthal argued the followings:

A place consists of everything that has happened there; it is a reservoir of memories and…a menu of possibilities…Any place that people have loved is…drenched both is belonging and in longing to belong.” Some need the tangibility to feel belonging, for others, the intangible feel is sufficient. The survival of unrecognizable relics can maintain identity where there are many of the unvisited historic and symbolic places by its inhabitants, however; their existence is crucial in sustaining sense of security and continuity (2015).

A site–whether it is identified as a country or a city–is ‘socialised’ by its ascribed groups. Heritage, equally, is one of the major determinants of the individual features of places (Ashworth, 1994). The literature holds that heritage is a symbolic representation of the notion ‘identity’. Tangible heritage or structure presents a physical representation of things from the past, embodying some of the intangible representations, including the feelings of belonging, place, self, and community (Smith, 2006). Heritage is the stimulus in a process that aims to construct and preserve a common identity. Additionally, it is the factor that typically allows the community to explore its steady anchor in the past and symbolically outlines its frames and borders. (Kocój and Gaweł, 2015). Referring to this point, Edson (2004), stated ‘Things [heritage] stabilise our sense of who we are; they give a permanent shape to our views of ourselves that otherwise would quickly dissolve in the flux of consciousness’. The tendency to demonstrate memory by identifying a place is a recognised movement in all modern societies, especially after a conflict or a traumatic event. Places create important sites, which are invested with meaning and often demonstrate the


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heritage of a society, community, or individual. People can be emotionally or physically associated with these places and, in turn, maintain a sense of belonging and identity (McDowell, 2008).

Methodology This research was part of a master’s thesis submitted in 2015. The research intended to investigate to investigate the increasing role of cultural heritage in shaping and enhancing the feeling of identity and belonging in a local community. The research held in-depth interviews with 10 people from the local community of Luxor, to explain and understand how such an enriched city with significant heritage fosters a feeling of identity in its community. The samples varied from people working in tourism offices to local industries, and/or having their own businesses, such as bazars. The length of each interview was between 30-45 minutes. Content analysis was the second method used in the research with the intent to create a more interpretive and meaningful text.

The Case Study of Luxor Luxor–also known as Thebes–is one of the richest, largest and most well-known archaeological sites across the world. It is widely recognised by its significant ancient monuments (Fig. 1) and as one of the foremost cities of ancient Egypt, staring in the Middle Kingdom (1980-1630 B-C-E) until the end of the Roman period (Toonen et al., 2018). The city was the capital of Egypt during the New Kingdom (1550-1070 B.C.E), and the centre of the Theban warrior clans is assumed to be on the eastern bank of the Nile about 400 miles south of the current capital, Cairo (Bunson, 2002; Weeks et al., 2006). Ancient Thebes and its necropolis are one of six Egyptian sites on the UNESCO World heritage List (WHL). This text focuses on the eastern part of the world heritage site in the city of Luxor. This eastern part includes the magnificent Luxor Temple, Karnak Temples, and Avenue of Sphinx that connects the two temples together. The world heritage site covers a large area, approximately 12.5 km², including the buffer zone on the Eastern side and a currently populated area of about 211,000 residents (Fig. 2) (Hesham and Baller, 2018). Thebes was inscribed on the UNESCO WHL as ‘the city of god Amon2 and it was the capital of Egypt during the Middle and New

2 For more information about the different gods in ancient Egypt please check, Bunson (2002).


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Kingdom. With the temples and palaces of Karnak and Luxor and the necropolises of the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of Queens, Thebes is a striking testimony to Egyptian civilisation and its height’. The city was included on the WHL in 1979 under Criteria I, III, and VI (Fitzner et al., 2003; Bruns, 2008). Currently, there is a publication3 available about the outstanding universal value of the site. However, the selection criteria refer to selected attributes that must be maintained. Criterion I indicates a need to ‘represent a masterpiece of human creative genius’, which can be recognised in Luxor as the Luxor Temple and Karnak Temples and the processional way that links them, consequently creating a historic landscape. Furthermore, Criterion III requires the site to ‘bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilisation which is living or which has disappeared’. Finally, Criterion VI argues the site must ‘be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance’. This criterion can be expressed in Luxor through the excellence of the craftsmanship associated with the construction and decoration of the temples and tombs on both the east and west bank of the city (UNESCO, 2017; Hesham and Baller, 2018).

3 For further discussion, please check Hesham, 2018.

Figure 2: The location of some of the archaeological sites available in Luxor city in both eastern and western bank. Toonen et al.

(2018).

Figure 1: The western and eastern banks of Luxor City with the world heritage site on the

east side. Hesham and Baller (2008).


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Discussion As briefly stated above, this research intended to investigate and understand the relationship between cultural heritage and its remarkable growing role in supporting the social identity and cohesion of the local community. Furthermore, it studied how cultural heritage can be a crucial means in shaping identity and social cohesion. This research also intended to investigate the role of the available cultural programmes in enriching the identity of the community with their inherited heritage. Finally, the research attempted to explain the different policies and legislation adopted, which are assumed to be critical tools for encouraging local community participation in the different cultural programmes and, in turn, undoubtedly optimising their identity. Unsurprisingly, nearly all the respondents stressed the importance of living in a city enriched with a cultural heritage–such as Luxor–which undoubtedly enhances their feelings of identity and social cohesion. Interviewees indicated that the city of Luxor possesses innumerable monuments and that these inheritances are an underlying tool in strengthening the bonds of community with a location. Considering Luxor and its many monuments, the city creates and fosters the feeling of identity and cohesion amongst the community, particularly for those who are regularly associated with and involved in heritage-related activities. As some interviewees argued, the magnificent cultural heritage available in the city has an important role in shaping and consolidating the feeling of identity amongst the local community and families by transmitting traditions and values from one generation to another, keeping them alive. These transmitted traditions are the intangible values acquired from living in Luxor, distinguishing them from other communities in Egypt. These statements agree with McDowell’s argument that places comprised of important sites with highly invested processes of meanings often uncover the heritage of individuals, groups, or communities. People connect deeply with these sites, either in an emotional or physical way and, involving the concepts of belonging (or not belonging), ownership, and thus, identity. One way that identity can be linked to a place/site is experienced through the feeling of belonging to that place. It is a location where a person experiences the feeling of being at home or comfortable, as some characteristics of how a person defines himself / herself are simply reflected by specific qualities of that place. Additionally, a sense of place is


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firmly attached to the socially constructed beliefs and perceptions that individuals or groups hold about a specific location (2008). These values and traditions–transformed from one generation to another–support the argument of Smith (2006) and Ashworth et al (2007): heritage is less about tangible artefacts or intangible forms of the past, but instead the meanings related to and representations generated from them. Thus, it is the meanings that arouse cultural or economic value and reveal why artefacts, memories, and traditions have been specifically selected. One of the interviewees mentioned the following:

The city of Luxor is not a mere city like another governorate in Egypt. It has been one of the most important cities from the Pharaonic times till the current times. It was the capital of Egypt where great rulers ruled Egypt from here [Luxor] and was one of the most important religious centres in the old times. Almost all people, especially the young ones, are aware of the significance of the city resulting from its long history, starting from the Pharaonic period, and with its accumulated archaeological site.

Some interviewees also responded to the author’s question about how a connection does exist between the community and the city:

Our ancestors lived here, we have grown up here, our sons and grandsons will live here too. It is the city that shaped our past and shapes our present and future. Luxor is an important part of our lives. We have not only inherited heritage sites, but also traditions, meanings, and values that have shaped our feeling of identity and belonging. The city is not only important because of its touristic and economic significance, but also since we have the feeling of belonging to here and only to here.

These statements reveal the deep relationships between heritage, place, belonging, and identity. They refer to how places play an important role in shaping and fostering the identity of people. Locations and what they include from heritage sites have a major part in increasing the feeling of belonging and pride in the people, which therefore maximise identity. This feeling of belonging and identity is generated from a continued process of events and activities that took place in that place. These events create memories that connect people to a place or city in a physical or emotional way. Regarding this point, Smith stated, that a place provokes a sense of belonging. The idea of a place constitutes a set of cultural characteristics and demonstrates where a person lives, comes from, and who he/she is. A place represents the backbone of shared experiences within the community and a physical demonstration of continuity over time (2006). McDowell argued that without memory, the sense of identity, culture, and heritage can be lost. Thus, through remembering, we create cultures and traditions while restraining others as memories are ‘conflated’ and ‘embellished’ (2008). If we pay close attention to the quotations above, we can recognise that some specific words and expressions are used for example, Pharaonic times, a long history, the capital of Egypt, etc. From


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these expressions it is apparent that the history of the city plays a major role in shaping current feelings of belonging and identity. As the city has a long history of different political and social activities and events, it has worked on connecting people to the city. Generation after generation has witnessed cumulative traditions, meanings, and values. When such events are provoked, memories are generated, and the act of remembering comes to the surface. From this point, memories are key in consolidating the sense of belonging and identity. Smith (2006) also shared this idea when she stated that sites and cities are much more than a checklist for what they include; rather, they can be treated as ‘theatres of memories’. It is interesting that for many interviewees, the well-recognised, long oral history of the city can be considered their heritage. Almost everyone in the city can smoothly recite its history–the core of their identity–like a historian, without any exaggeration. This transmitted oral history from one generation to another significantly helps to foster and deepen the sense of belonging and identity in the local community. So, in passing on history, the acquired values and tradition can be suggested as the researcher calls them–‘the real assets and acquisitions’ of the local community. It is remarkably clear that the majority of the local community in the city of Luxor is highly aware of the significant role of cultural heritage has played in shaping their own identity and the need to protect that heritage for future generations. However, they also referred to a need for a wide range of cultural programmes and activities to promote and increase awareness amongst the community about the significance of these archaeological sites, which are a major source of the economic industry in the city. One of the interviewees suddenly noted an important point that can be no longer neglected, considerably linked to the urgent need for an academic strategy to maximise awareness amongst the community about their heritage. This strategy should be inseparable from a comprehensive national strategy to educate people about the importance of their heritage and the role it holds in reinforcing the feeling of identity. Further, he added, there should be a special focus giving to students in schools. This new generation of young people should also be able to receive a full picture of their identity by ensuring the transmission of traditions and values from the elder generation. This younger generation is more susceptible to the international movement that weakens national identity and threatens the cultural diversity of local communities.

Of course, there are some cultural programs and activities available in the city–represented in the form of events, symposiums, and galleries–that aim to increase the awareness of the local community about their heritage and


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seek to involve them in cultural programs. However, and frankly speaking, there are some struggles and constraints related to these programs and make them implemented ineffectively. For instance, they are few in number and in turn, there is no real opportunity for everyone to involve. Secondly, the dates of these cultural programs are inappropriate since they mainly take place during the studying times of students which in turn, offers no great benefits for students to participate. Thirdly, the participation in these cultural activities is almost restricted and limited to specific figures who are directly associated with archaeology due to their position.

From these statements cultural programmes face major challenges that leave them unable to deliver their message at the expected and necessary level. Consequently, the competent authorities should consider the importance of these cultural programmes in increasing the awareness of heritage. The cultural programmes particularly when they feature an efficient implementation can become a major vehicle for strongly associating the local communities with their heritage and, consequently, reinforcing their own identity. A respondent indicated that some of these cultural activities are often offered by the ‘palace of culture and the library of family’, which hold a remarkable role in increasing awareness amongst the local community about their culture heritage, their identity associated with the place/city, the inherited traditions and values related to their association with that heritage, and the need to protect and transform this cultural heritage to the next generation. The availability of some workshops and events, especially for young people, is an urgent need for increasing the awareness of new generations about the city. However, these workshops and events should be offered on a regular and adequate schedule to match with many different people’s schedules. These awareness programmes are important for the present and future alike as we face the growing danger to the feeling of identity and belonging, resulting from the increasing tourism industry in the city. Lie et al. reasoned that cultural commercialisation has been diffused globally, and it threatens national culture and history of humanity (2010). Therefore, the continued implementation of cultural events and workshops is a critical tool in preserving the oral history and identity of people, which are vulnerable to cultural commercialisation and can be easily lost without conscious preservation. The local community of Luxor should be involved in cultural events and activities regularly, as without real involvement and empowerment, these activities could not deliver their messages effectively. These workshops should teach people about the notion of heritage, in forms not limited to the heritage sites and buildings, but also the intangible forms that provide the material ones meaning and a fuller picture. Further, the workshops should illustrate the transmitted traditions and values, establishing tools to preserve and transmit them to the new generation.


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Finally, these workshops must develop strategies to face cultural commercialisation resulting from increasing tourism in the city. The degree of significance and awareness amongst the community about their heritage was clearly recognisable during the political instability in the state of Egypt in 2011. An interviewee stressed the critical point when clarifying to what extent this heritage is important to the community. He stated the following:

Almost all the governorates of Egypt have archaeological sites, however; none of them look like those belonging to the city of Luxor. Moreover, almost nobody appreciates the cultural heritage existed in Luxor as its local community does. During the revolution of 2010 Egypt was politically unstable and this time was a tough situation to the local community of Luxor who showed what their cultural heritage means to them and to what degree it is significant to them. These archaeological sites are not just mere stones rather; they proudly refer to the history of the city being the capital of Egypt during the Pharaonic times. The local community of Luxor during that revolution featured with hazardous political and security situations protected these archaeological sites when they shaped human chains to protect them from any potential destruction.

It is also true that other cities formed human chains during the political instability in Egypt to preserve the heritage sites Cairo especially witnessed large human chains to protect the Egyptian museum. However, it is unfair to compare Cairo–with its unlimited resources and awareness programmes–to such small yet important city like Luxor. Instead, it is necessary to note that big cities like Cairo have well designed programmes to educate people about the importance of these heritage sites. So, when people in Luxor formed human chains to protect their sites, it was not an innate or accidental action; it was totally a conscious one. These conscious actions regarding the significance of heritage sites does not appear unexpectedly; rather, they emerge and evolve from the transmitted oral history of the city and the accumulated and new values and traditions. People gain values and traditions from elder generations while, they experience new traditions by living in Luxor themselves.

Conclusion This paper attempts to discover the reciprocal relationship between two elastic concepts–heritage and identity–while the changing nature and borders of heritage have increased the complexity of the two notions. The


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relationships between heritage and identity seem to be well established in that when heritage is found, identity can be shaped and vice versa. Heritage and identity cannot be addressed separately from other aspects. However there are some notions for example, place, memory, and history that are underlying tools in understanding the nature of the two concepts. As Smith argued heritage has the ability to provide human existence with meanings by transmitting the ideas of imperishable values thorough continued lineages that undoubtedly maintain identity (2006). Commonly, people who live in a heritage-rich city or a place are able to experience a sense of belonging and, consequently, identity through their connectedness with the history and memory around them. As McDowell stated memories–with all their typologies–are linked to a place making the cultural environment fundamental to understanding the different meanings and relationships they constitute. Therefore, cultural heritage provokes our memories and maintains our connectedness with a city or place. Commemorating and remembering the past is a significant part of the present for various reasons. In addition to being strongly and undeniably linked to our sense of identity, it is also assumed to be an inherent part of heritagisation, as we remember our past according to our needed desires and aspirations (2008). In light of this research, heritage holds a fundamental role in shaping the identity of the local community of Luxor by stressing their pride for living in such a city and conveying the different inherited social values and traditions to the next generation, which undoubtedly strengthens the feeling of identity and its continuity. However, this identity–as Graham and Howard perceived–is linked to ‘a sense of time’; thus it is unsecured by a lifelong guarantee (2008). A stone that shapes an element of a heritage building can be a mere stone for some people, creating architectural or aesthetic value. However, this stone can be highly significant to other people according to their interpretations. These interpretations and the oral history of a heritage site increase the sense of identity and belonging by provoking memories and events. Memory and oral history are key facets in enhancing the sense of identity and belonging, not just the heritage assets. Considering that a heritage site/place can be unconsciously destroyed by human or nature, oral history and remembrance are efficient tools with the capacity to transmit the significance of a place and its attached knowledge and values. These in turn, shape and strengthen identity. Consequently, heritage and identity are two notions in a circle full of other concepts. If we do not preserve our oral history and memory, identity can be threatened by other global phenomenon that decrease cultural diversity between people around the world or bring different traditions and values–for example, the tourism movement. Considering the negative effects of cultural commercialisation, it is important that the city witnesses a number of events and workshops on


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regular dates, increasing the feeling of identity and belonging of the local community. The cultural commercialisation process can be one of the most dangerous phenomenon affecting the firm values and traditions of younger generations. Therefore, effective initiatives should be directed to ensure vulnerable traditions are preserved. Workshops would be more beneficial if they took place during the summer vacation, when many young people have free time to participate. Participants should also be given adequate space for discussion and brainstorming strategies to increase awareness and address cultural commercialization. The role of competent authorities is critical in supporting these activities, ensuring they occur on a regular basis and all people are involved. Some initiatives can handle oral history and story-telling about the traditions and values of the city with the intention of educating people–especially, young people and students–on their city.

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