Friday, March 29, 2024 | Ramadan 18, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

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Nehal El Sherif -


Look, look, Rameses is here, chanted the dozens of young men, dancing and clapping under the sun. Although cordoned off by security forces, the residents of Al Matariya neighbourhood in eastern Cairo were sure to make their presence known at the site, as they celebrated the sudden attention their poor area has received since last week.


The discovery of an 8-metre-long statue, submerged in ground water, has been described by Egyptian officials and foreign archaeologists as the biggest find in recent years.


Media, officials and security personnel gathered in an empty area where the statue was found.


Surrounded by red-brick buildings, a team of Egyptian and German archaeologists pulled out parts of a massive statue, believed to depict Rameses II, one of ancient Egypt’s most powerful pharaohs.


Al Matariya was once part of the ancient city of Heliopolis, or the city of the sun.


Archaeologists believe the statue depicts Rameses II because ruins of one of his temples had been previously found there.


According to Dietrich Raue, head of the German team, Al Matariya is where the world was created in ancient Egyptian myth.


“It is where the sun god rises from a hill. It was the first sunrise in the world and the moment the world unfolds,” he said.


“Al Matariya is so important for the ancient Egyptian culture, it is the beginning of everything, and I am sure there is much more to be discovered here,” added Raue, who has been working in Egypt since the late 1980s.


His words are interrupted by chants of residents standing on the side as they shout “Matariya, Matariya” to the rhythm of plastic containers that they use as drums.


Raue hopes to continue excavations in Al Matariya. “It’s a matter of time and money; that is always the same story.”


Some parts of the statue were left on the ground after being lifted last week.


Pictures of children playing around the monuments and men covering some parts with a Spiderman blanket stirred heated debates in the country, as many accused officials of negligence.


Minister of Antiquities Khaled el Enany admitted that it was a mistake to leave the artefacts, and said measures had been taken not to repeat it.


“We all know there is lack of awareness regarding the importance of such monuments,” the minister said. — dpa


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