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Egypt Today
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Egypt Today
'Sound and Light' shows start on Sunday at Giza Pyramids using VR
Sound and Light shows at the Giza Pyramids - file CAIRO - 24 May 2025: The chairman of the Sound and Light Company, an affiliate of the Holding Company for Tourism and Hotels, announced that new Sound and Light shows using Virtual Reality (VR) technology will begin at the Giza Pyramids starting Sunday. Speaking to Extra News TV channel, Mohamed Abdel Aziz said that this step comes within the framework of developing traditional shows and combining culture with entertainment. Visitors will be able to explore Ancient Egyptian civilization and history in an interactive and immersive way through advanced VR headsets, he said. The goal is to enhance the appeal of the archaeological site and increase tourism, offering a modernized, high-quality experience, he added. This development is in line with directives from the minister of public business sector, in cooperation with the Holding Company for Tourism and Hotels, according to him.
Hindustan Times
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
What came before the UN?: In Egypt, China, ancient bids to administer the world
We've been trying to work around borders more or less since we first invented them. Often, this wish came from a drive for power. Ancient kingdoms, over and over, imagined they would 'rule everything under the heavens'. A bid to prosper and endure drove such campaigns too, since prospering and enduring have always been difficult to do alone. Here are three of the earliest attempts at a unified world order. A first effort: Akkadian Empire, Mesopotamia (2300 BCE) This is the earliest known multinational empire. At its peak, it consisted of a range of city-states that stretched from parts of Iran in the east to the Levant (modern-day Syria and Israel) in the west, and from Anatolia in modern-day Turkey in the north to parts of the Arabian desert. Called the Akkadian Empire, it was set up by King Sargon (2334-2279 BCE), who ascended the throne in an unusual way. Unlike his predecessors, he did not claim to represent the gods. Instead, he projected himself as a self-made leader. In a sense, he had to. He was not born of 'royal' blood. In fact, it was said, in the contemporary lore about him, that Sargon was an orphan who was set adrift in a reed basket along the Euphrates, before being discovered and raised by a gardener. (Isn't it interesting how so many of our legends and myths echo and back and forth through time?) He was, at some point, appointed cup-bearer to the Mesopotamian king Ur-Zababa. He rose, over time, to the position of general in his army. Then he overthrew his king. Using anti-incumbency to his benefit, he spread word that he was as distanced from the lineage of kings as could be, and could do things differently as a result, and usher in a golden age. As kingdom after kingdom pledged fealty to what was now becoming the Mesopotamian Empire, he conducted military campaigns as shows of strength, and to annex the unwilling. Sargon's sons Rimush and Manishtushu held the vast kingdom together after his death. The empire grew to be so vast that it is believed to have birthed one of the earliest bureaucracies. Hundreds of surviving seals and tablets show how the administrators documented state affairs, preserved blueprints of major structures, drew maps of canals, and kept meticulous accounts of livestock, fish, barley, cloth, gems and beer. All-in-all, it lasted about a century. Most records attribute the fall to in-fighting between the Sumerian city-states, and the lack of a dominant central leader. Gains and loss: Ancient Egypt (2613-1425 BCE) The key to this majestic empire lay in a single word: maat. In Ancient Egyptian belief, this was a term for cosmic order and a state of harmony between gods and the world. It was the Egyptian king Sneferu (2613–2589 BCE) who first associated maat with politics. Governance, in this period, became linked to the welfare of the soul. Pharaohs, their ministers and bureaucrats prioritised the building of temples, offerings to gods, and the expansion and protection of the borders. That last bit soon took on a dominant role. Egypt began a phase of furious annexation, until the kingdom stretched from Nubia (parts of Egypt and Sudan along the Nile Valley) into the Sinai Peninsula, encompassing Syria and the Euphrates. These borders would fluctuate, under successive pharaohs. Yet, for all its grandeur, this land would eventually come to be ruled by a succession of foreign powers for over 2,500 years, starting with the Assyrians from Ancient Mesopotamia in the 7th century BCE, followed by the Persians, Greeks, Romans, Ottomans and the British. When Gamal Abdel Nasser took over as the second President of Egypt in 1954, he was the first Egyptian to rule Egypt since the pharaohs. (The first president of the modern republic was Mohamed Naguib, originally of Sudan.) All under heaven: China, 221 BCE-220 CE In China, an ambitious king united warring kingdoms in 221 BCE by promoting the Chinese ideal of tianxia, literally, 'all under heaven'. As Qin Shi Huang (259-210 BCE) crafted the first Chinese imperial dynasty, he had a little help from the long-gone-but-rather-immortal Confucius (who lived in the 5th and 6th centuries BCE). Closely linked to the idea of tianxia was an idea that philosopher had espoused, called Da Tong, or the Great Unity. This belief system envisioned a world government that ruled not by force but by attraction. This would be a government so selfless in its service to the people that the world would simply coalesce around it. Using this ideal of 'stability in unity' as a propaganda tool, the Qin launched massive military campaigns to expand into parts of Central Asia and Vietnam. The Qin dynasty was followed by the Han, which ruled for over 400 years, from 206 BCE to 220 CE. They continued the military expansion, eventually dividing the empire into inner and outer realms. Inner territories came under direct control of the Son of Heaven, the emperor. The outer realms were controlled via tributes and alliances. Bonus: The Perpetual Peace doctrine of Immanuel Kant (1795) In his essay Perpetual Peace, the Prussian philosopher Immanuel Kant proposed a radical idea: a federation of free, self-governing republics bound not by conquest but by a shared commitment to autonomy and peace. Kant was 71 at the time. Europe was living through the bloody horrors of the French Revolution (1789-99), and the wars that followed between Revolutionary France and the monarchies of Austria and Prussia. Against this violent backdrop, Kant imagined a world in which peace wasn't just a pause to war but a permanent condition that nations committed to uphold. The six 'preliminary articles' he laid out were a mix of prescience and idealism. In order for there to be peace, he said, diplomacy would need to be transparent; standing armies should be gradually abolished; national debt should not be raised in order to fund wars; states must not interfere in each other's internal affairs; acts of hostility that destroy trust must be banned; and peace treaties must be designed to end wars permanently, not merely defer them. Some of these ideas remain at the heart of international relations, and are echoed in the framework of the United Nations. What they run up against, of course, is a world underpinned by ancient fears and insecurities. As the philosopher Thomas Hobbes put it, more than a century before Kant: The natural state of man is war.
National Geographic
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- National Geographic
7 of the best new museums to visit this year
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK). Whether it's getting in touch with different cultures, finding creative inspiration or even sinking your teeth into the history of a specific subject, museums can be intimate and interactive spaces that conjure new trains of thought while transporting visitors into other worlds — even if just for a brief moment. And 2025 is a great year to wander collection-filled halls, get lost in exhibitions and stimulate the senses with new interactive experiences — here's where to do it. 1. Grand Egyptian Museum, Egypt A massive 11-metre, 3,200-year-old statue of Ramses II greets visitors at the long-awaited Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo, the largest archaeological museum in the world. This highly anticipated space dedicated to Ancient Egyptian civilisation has been in the works for over a decade, with multiple pushbacks due to rising costs and the pandemic, but the first galleries finally opened in late 2024. The grand staircase that leads to the main galleries is a statue-stacked celebration of Egypt's gods and kings, holding over 60 significant pieces from the museum's collection. Once upstairs, visitors can peer through the floor-to-ceiling windows that face the Pyramids of Giza before admiring the museum's 100,000-strong collection. Tours are offered every hour in Arabic and English and last 90 minutes, but that's not nearly enough to cover the entire museum. This July will finally see the museum's official grand opening, when the King Tutankhamun collection will be unveiled. An old-school jukebox, curated by DJ and activist Honey Dijon, plays inspirational hits that capture the Stonewall community's rebellious spirit and joy. Photograph by Stephen Kent Johnson 2. Stonewall National Monument Visitor Centre, US Last June — on the anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion on the 28th of the month — marked the opening of New York City's Stonewall National Monument Visitor Centre, a cultural hub dedicated to all things LGBTQ+. It's set in what was one half of the original Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village, which was raided by police in 1969, sparking a series of protests. The visitor centre plays host to a variety of talks, live performances, on-site tours and exhibitions highlighting LGBTQ+ history while a modern revival of the original bar occupies the other half of the building next door. A rainbow-coloured Wall of Solidarity greets guests and unveils Stonewall's global legacy while highlighting the voices of revolutionary hope while an old-school jukebox, curated by DJ and activist Honey Dijon, plays inspirational hits that capture the Stonewall community's rebellious spirit and joy. Entry to the visitor centre is free of charge. 3. Nintendo Museum, Japan Giant brick blocks and green pipes decorate the courtyard of the Nintendo Museum, which opened last October in Kyoto, Japan, conjuring up the imaginary world of the global entertainment brand. The museum, spread across three buildings, is dedicated to the history of Nintendo, from its humble roots — founded in 1889 as a maker of hanafuda ('flower cards', traditional Japanese playing cards) — to the company's latest games and consoles, including special editions and concepts that were never publicly released. The main attraction, as expected, is the collection of interactive games, featuring Nintendo's famous characters, from Kirby to Super Mario. End the nostalgia with a visit to the museum gift shop for Nintendo memorabilia, followed by the Hatena Burger restaurant, where visitors can choose from over 270,000 possible ways to build a burger. Tickets are made available by lottery and must be bought at least three months in advance through the museum's website. The striking brutalist building in Kristiansand in southern Norway houses the largest collection of Nordic modern art. Photograph by Alan Williams 4. Kunstsilo, Norway The sleek, white brutalist building that houses Kunstsilo, Norway's latest museum of contemporary Nordic art, might seem like a recent construction, but it's actually a repurposed flour mill built in 1935. Recognised for its modern, functionalist architecture, the silo is now home to prestigious collections that showcase 8,000 pieces of Nordic art. The Tangen Collection, the largest collection of Nordic modern art, gathers work from Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland from the late 1890s to present-day. Kunstsilo also offers digital contemporary art and temporary exhibitions, along with lectures, concerts and workshops. There's also a brasserie on the ground floor and the Panorama bar on the ninth, for views of the fjord and archipelago outside the southern port city of Kristiansand. 5. Women Artists of the Mougins Museum, France British collector Christian Levett closed his museum of antiquity in Mougins on the French Riviera and reopened it as a dedicated space to art created entirely by women of the 19th to 21st centuries. Femmes Artistes du Musée de Mougins, or Women Artists of the Mougins Museum, holds Levett's personal collection of over 100 paintings and sculptures created by more than 80 artists such as Frida Kahlo, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet (stepdaughter of Claude Monet), Joan Mitchell, Jenna Gribbon, Leonora Carrington and dozens more. The ground floor is dedicated to painters of the impressionist and surrealist movements, while the first floor showcases abstract work from the 20th century. The second floor embodies figurative art and various depictions and expressions of the human body while the basement level is dedicated to 21st-century women artists and their legacies in the art world. The museum is open daily and tickets can be purchased in advance online. Visitors to the Museum of BBQ can dive into a ball pit resembling a can of BBQ beans at the end of their visit. 6. Museum of BBQ, US A museum dedicated entirely to flavour, the Museum of BBQ allows guests to get lost in the sauces of America's four main barbecue regions: Kansas City, Memphis, Texas and the Carolinas. Opened by food writer and BBQ judge Jonathan Bender, this Kansas City-based museum dives deep into every step of the sizzling practice, from meat cuts and dry rubs to how smoke, wood and fire affect the final result. Visitors can also soak up the history of the craft while enjoying some 'rib ticklers' (BBQ-themed dad jokes) and photos with the championship mustard belt — an ode to South Carolina's famous mustard-based sauce. After the culinary history, it's time to dive into a can of beans — or at least into the giant ball pit that resembles one. 7. Saka Museum, Indonesia Shining a light on often-overlooked Balinese culture and history, the Saka Museum in Bali weaves the island's intimate connection to nature into its state-of-the-art architecture and design. Opened in 2024 by Ayana Bali, a destination resort with four award-winning hotels, the Saka Museum is free for hotel guests and open to others for a small fee. Named after the Hindu solar calendar, the museum showcases preserved ancient texts, gamelan instrument ensembles, stone statues and ogoh-ogoh sculptures from local Balinese communities as well as offers a deep dive behind Nyepi, Bali's annual, island-wide Day of Silence. Saka offers tours, seminars and exhibitions, along with vast indoor and outdoor spaces for weddings and special events. To subscribe to National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine click here. (Available in select countries only).
CairoScene
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
Azza Fahmy Eye Of Horus Bustier On Display at the Young V&A in London
Fahmy's 2023 collaboration with Balmain is now enshrined in the London art museum as part of the 'Making Egypt' exhibition. May 05, 2025 The Eye of Horus Bustier, designed by Azza Fahmy in collaboration with Balmain for their 2023 Resort Collection, is now on display at the Young Victoria & Albert Museum in London. The piece is being exhibited as part of the 'Making Egypt' exhibition which explores the enduring creativity of Ancient Egypt on the modern art, design, and cultural landscape. Azza Fahmy's golden Eye of Horus takes its form from the Ancient Egyptian symbol of protection. Shaped like modern armour, and completed with a clasp on the back which reads the Ancient Egyptian hieroglyph for protection, this piece embodies the transhistorical dialogue of the exhibition. Founded in 1969, Azza Fahmy has carved out a global presence as a brand which translates Egyptian culture into wearable art. Her latest retail expansion in London, alongside her presence among the Young V&A's display items, demonstrate a growing global presence.
Egypt Independent
22-04-2025
- Egypt Independent
Ancient Egyptian inscription uncovered in Jordan
Jordan's Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Lina Annab, in the presence of Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, on Saturday announced a new archaeological discovery in the area southeast of Wadi Rum Nature Reserve in southern Jordan. The discovery consists of a royal pharaonic hieroglyphic inscription bearing a royal seal (cartouche) dating back to the Egyptian King Ramses III (1186–1155 BC). The minister emphasized the importance of this discovery, as it is the first Ancient Egyptian inscription to be discovered on Jordanian soil. This finding therefore exhibits great significance and constitutes material evidence of the historical ties between ancient Egypt, Jordan, and the Arabian Peninsula in general, she explained – providing new evidence for the depth of civilizational accumulation in Jordan. She also expressed the great honor of Hawass' presence, noting the importance of cultural and scientific cooperation between the two sides. Annab affirmed the commitment of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and the Department of Antiquities to continue their efforts to highlight national heritage and pass it on to future generations. Hawass expressed his happiness to participate in the announcement by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of this important archaeological discovery. He explained that the archaeological discovery revealed the presence of two cartouches bearing the name of King Ramses III. The first cartouche refers to his birth name, and the second to his throne name, declaring him the king of Upper and Lower Egypt. Hawass said that this discovery calls for more organized excavations at the site. According to Hawass, discovering the name of King Ramses III in southern Jordan is very significant, and it is possible that more objects will be uncovered that reveal the historical relations between Jordan and Egypt dating back more than 3,000 years. He explained the importance of cooperation between the Jordanian and Egyptian sides in this field, saying, 'This discovery gives us great responsibility, and it is a wonderful thing to be participating with archaeologists in Jordan in these excavations, marking the first time such joint cooperation has taken place in antiquities and archaeological excavations.' Minister Annab explained that the final announcement of the discovery will be made after the completion of all studies that will allow for a full description of the finding. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
