Lecture at Egyptian Assembly Describes Conservation Effort at the Monastery of St. Paul

On April 26, 2005, Michael Jones, Project Manager for the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) on the implementation of USAID funded conservation projects, presented a lecture entitled "ARCE's Conservation Project at the Monastery of St. Paul beside the Red Sea” at the Egyptian Embassy. The lecture, co-sponsored by the Washington, DC chapter of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE-DC), drew around 100 people. Mr. Jones lecture described ARCE’s completion of completed a project to conserve and preserve the architecture and artistic treasures of this important ancient church, the church where St. Paul "the First Hermit" spent his long and solitary life as an ascetic hermit in the desert, and where St. Anthony and St. Paul met.

Dr. Rushdie Said Gives Lecture and Book Signing to Enthusiastic Audience at Johns Hopkins

On Friday evening, May 13, 2005, an enthusiastic group of 100 invitees of the United States-Egypt Friendship Society (USEF), the Egyptian American Cultural Association (EACA) and the American Research Center in Egypt, Washington, DC Chapter (ARCE-DC) attended Dr. Rushdi Said’s lecture and book signing based on his book Science and Politics in Egypt: A Life’s Journey. Joining Dr. Said in a panel discussion at the Benjamin T. Rome Auditorium of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, DC, were Dr. Hosam Mahmoud, a Professor at George Washington University, and Nagwa Riad, advisor to the executive director of the International Monetary Fund. Centered on the recent release of Dr. Said’s personal memoirs, the lecture and panel discussion focused on Dr. Said’s involvement in Egypt’s geological surveys and mining projects under President Nasser, his analysis of Nasser’s policy of industrialization and his scrutiny of President Sadat’s Open Door Policy. Dr. Said also commented on his personal history and on current political developments. This is the first event sponsored by ARCE-DC with USEF and EACA and it was a huge success. With our common goal of promoting good relations between the U.S. and Egypt, ARCE-DC, USEF and EACA intend to co-sponsor additional events in the future.

Johns Hopkins Lecture Commemorates Ancient Egyptian Tombs and Cemeteries

Violaine Chauvet presented a lecture to almost 50 people at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, DC on May 20, 2005, entitled ‘All for One and One for All’: Family Tombs in the Old Kingdom. Part of the American Research Center in Egypt Washington, DC Chapter’s lecture series, she noted that in the course of the Old Kingdom, an increasing tendency towards preparing monuments which could accommodate the burial and funerary cult of several members of a household. By looking at the architecture and decoration of some family complexes, one can follow the development of the monuments over time and therefore gain a better understanding of the economy of tomb construction. Dedications and commemorative inscriptions complement this documentation by delineating family dynamics and provide insight into the overt or hidden motivations behind building a joint tomb for a father, a son or a spouse.