European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 10, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                An archaeological dig continues in a cemetery next to the Cheops Pyramid near Cairo Egypt c As Quot v. A Quot a Quot a few or z a egyptology its dig for knowledge As Well As wealth by Mimi Mann the associated press there s a certain kind of Day in the egyptian desert when the Sun is High the sky a deep Blue the wind whistling As it skips along Sand dunes. It s a Digger s Day the kind of Day that for 170 years has lured the curious to explore the remnants of history that the desert hides. Englishman Howard Carter Egypt s most famous Digger knew Well this kind of Day. For years he meticulously scoured the Valley of the Kings across the Nile from Luxor. Five years were in search of one Tomb of one King tutankhamen. He turned tons of dirt before he hit Bedrock. And pay dirt. Nov. 2.i, 1922, brought him Tut s Tomb and so much treasure it took 10 years to record. The find blew up a political storm that not Only deprived Carter of his share of the riches but also ended archaeological treasure Hunts in Egypt. Vet diggers still tame. Why because ancient Egypt is so glamorous. Because an estimated to percent of what was buried still is. Because ancient Egypt s history poses so Many questions crying for answers. When Napoleon entered Egypt in i 79b, the Sands of the Sahara and the history they hid were As mysterious As the Depths of the seas and the vastness til outer space Are today. Egypt s Panorama was littered with t Lues to a forgotten world a people and culture As old As time a civilization Long on legend but Short on history. Early diggers came Lor treasure and hauled it away few paused to Ponder what it All meant stymied by a language Lead for More than 2,0 10 years. When in 1822, Frenchman lean Francois Champollion decoded the curious symbolism of the dead language and created egyptology the science of ancient Egypt. Today s diggers not Only Hae added sounds to hieroglyphic symbols but Are programming computers to read it in a quest Lor another kind of treasure knowledge. What did the ancients eat for breakfast what Birds flew overhead what wig was appropriate in pharaoh s presence did ancient egyptians have aids Zahi harass is antiquities director at Egypt s greatest archaeological playground the Giza pyramids even 20 years ago when he was a Young Egypt Logist he and his colleagues wondered whether anything remained to be found. Quot now we know there s something under every step Quot he said. Quot we be changed from adventurers to scientists people who understand that wheat seeds can be More of a treasure than  two Days before his death last december antiquities chairman Sayed Tawfik spoke of what makes an Egypt Logist dig. His life a Masterwork was an excavation in Sankara a ruin Rich wilderness 1 7 Miles South of Cairo that reshaped the history of the court of Ramses the great. Quot if you went Bac k 150 years you could t write a Good Book about Egypt Zawlik said. Quot excavation has opened up new chapters in culture philosophy Art history religion. Egyptology has made ancient Egypt wonderful for people. It s Given the monuments a  Tawfik said Quot each time we go Down we make history. We re discoverers. It would be difficult to imagine a world without King Tut. He s a household word but without excavation we would t even know he  King Tut. A Blessing or a curse Many egyptology its consider Carter s discovery a curse because what s been found since pales in comparison. And although diggers see treasure in ancient wheat seeds financial Bac kers prefer Glitz. But Nicholas Reeves author of the Complete tutankhamen said Tut s Tomb was a godsend to the1 science. Quot at Llu time Egv Lologo was in Low ebb a Reeves said irom his Tolice in the British museum. Quot it w As impossible to finance a dig or raise an interest in archaeology Quot the Tai t is. Without Tut. An Hae ology would still be of Little interest to the masses. Tut put egyptology and archaeology on the map. It s their yardstick in every  Geoffrey Martin of the London based Egypt exploration society has been digging in Sankara for 28 years. He too found a Tomb that of Maya tutankhamen s treasurer. He tells of his search in his Book the hidden tombs of Memphis. Martin his Scarf blowing in the wind outside Maya s Tomb said today s diggers Don t go searching for a Quot Beautiful Tomb. Quot if we find one of but it s not what we re after a Martin said. Quot we re searching for people. And no civilization has made such an Impact on the world As the ancient  egyptology gave them a history but each dig adds insights details. Martin Longs to know what remains buried in the Memphis Sankara area but he said digging it up would t be fair to future excavators. Quot they la have different questions a Martin said. A a would t it be a Dull place if we had to mull Over the same ones a in the Early 19th Century ancient Egypt s history began with Blank pages. Diggers added pharaohs names spells curses weaponry games How to perform brain surgery How to Mumm Ify. How much is known it s hard to Tell said Reeves. Quot the longer one studies the subject the less confident he becomes that he understands the ancients Quot Reeves said. Some answers May never come. Egyptology builds on the past and Many Puzzle pieces Are missing. Luxor formerly the ancient capital Thebes in Southern Egypt is said to have housed the world s greatest concentration of history. But Many of its monuments have disappeared. Others still not understood Are crumbling. Egypt s new antiquities chairman Ibrahim Bakr built his career As a Digger but realizes digging is no longer the main thing. Quot our greatest Challenge is to maintain and preserve the world s richest heritage a he says Quot to keep it alive Tor coming generations and their generations to  24 stripes Magazine october 10, 1991 a