40th anniversary of the rescue of the monuments of Philae.
Philae saved from the water. The archives of an extraordinary enterprise
Categories: Archaeology and Heritage
On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the rescue of the monuments of Philae in Egypt, the Embassy of Italy in Cairo, together with the University of Milan, organized the event ‘Philae saved from the water. The archives of an extraordinary enterprise at the University of Milan‘ (Milan, 21 September 2021).
As was highlighted during the event, the Italian rescue operation, part of a UNESCO Campaign (1960-1980), was an important moment in the history of Italian-Egyptian collaboration and was performed in Philae by the Società Italiana per Condotte d’Acqua SpA and Mazzi Estero.
The purpose of the operation was to transfer and preserve the monuments of Philae and other areas of Nubia, such as Abu Simbel, which were threatened by the rising waters caused by the construction of the Aswan Dam.
For the event, the University of Milan also celebrated the acquisition of the archive on Philae donated by the Società Italiana per Condotte d’Acqua SpA and represented for the occasion by Special Commissioner Matteo Uggetti.
The importance of this acquisition and the research that will result from the archive was underlined in the speech by the Rector of the University, Prof. Elio Franzini, while Prof. Maria Pia Abbracchio, Vice-Rector, took the opportunity to highlight Italy’s role in the field of international cooperation.
The Ambassador of Italy in Cairo, Giampaolo Cantini, spoke online in more detail of the primacy of Italy’s role in international cooperation, historically placing Italian-Egyptian collaboration in the broader context of Italy’s capacity to relate to the emerging African nations of the time. The sector of conservation and protection of cultural heritage, with the challenges of the UNESCO sites of Philae and Abu Simbel, well represents Italy’s ability to collaborate internationally, so much so that, even today, there are numerous Italian archaeological projects in Egypt, many of which co-financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and testimony of the ancient tradition of Italian activities in the country.
The event was also an opportunity to present the volume ‘File, la Perla del Nilo salvata dalle acque. Il contributo dell’Italia’ (Philae, the Pearl of the Nile saved from the waters. Italy’s contribution) published by the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (State Mint and Polygraphic Institute), represented by the President Antonio Palma, and edited by the Embassy of Italy. The work was introduced by Prof. Giuseppina Capriotti Vittozzi, expert of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation at the Archaeological Centre of the Italian Cultural Institute in Cairo, who scientifically edited the publication by collecting contributions from Italian and Egyptian specialists. and publishing a wide range of as yet unseen documents with numerous images of the time from the archive of the Società Italiana per Condotte d’Acqua SpA and from other institutional and private collections.
The event concluded with the screening of a short edition of the video ‘Egyptian-Italian Cooperation for the Preservation of the Egyptian Cultural Heritage’ produced by the Italian Embassy for the 40th anniversary of Philae.
