19th Century manuscript and drawings provide clues to the past

Heritage Key (Owen Jarus)

An unpublished manuscript, written by 19th century Egypt explorer Frédéric Caillaud, has been discovered – and it points the way to a 3,500 year old tomb of an Egyptian official.

It is called Arts and Crafts of the Ancient Egyptians, Nubians and Ethiopians. It is written in French and illustrated with drawings. The American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) is in the process of translating and publishing it. The work is being led by Dr. Andrew Bednarski. He gave a lecture and interview recently in Toronto, and provided me with snippets from the book and pictures of three of the drawings.

Frédéric Caillaud was one of the first Europeans to reach the ancient city of Meroe, far up the Nile and inside modern day Sudan. He also explored sites in Thebes and the Kharga Oasis, and re-discovered the ancient emerald mines of Mount Zabarah.