G.Fanfoni  - Training activity and restoration at the “Italian-Egyptian Centre” in Cairo

The cultural and monumental heritage of Egypt spans the widest historical period in the Mediterranean area and, thanks to its vastness and variety, constitutes the second economic resource of the country, through the tourism. In fact it ranges, particularly in Cairo, from the pharaonic age, at dawn of the mediterranean civilization, as far as the coptic and islamic cultures, which have finally developed also in connection with european artistic movements, like liberty and contemporary arts.

The quantity of building technics and of heterogeneous handicrafts, which were utilised in its monuments, involves, in consequence, quite peculiar problems of cognition for their conservation. Moreover, it requires particular technological researches and investigations because of the interaction among the geologic, climatic and environmental aspects, which are proper to Egypt in general, and especially to Cairo.

The "Italian-Egyptian Center for Restoration and Archaeology", which is placed in a large monumental area of islamic Cairo, whose recovery is carrying on since many years, is engaged in fronting these problems both in their complexity and in the environmental specificity. The restoration of the Sama'khana (the so-called theatre), where the recovery operation started from, which was built by the Mewlewi Derwishes, an islamic religious order of turkish origin, is an example of the method which has been applied since the beginning of the restoration program; in fact it was carried on by the conservation of ancient structures with innovative systems when necessary, but in the respect of ancient techniques and even materials as far as possible.

Since the theatre had been built on a pre-existing madrasa (a coranic school), the recovery of the under-lying ancient remains, which required archaeological excavations, was carried out after hanging the over-imposed building on a steel modern structure, and replacing the decayed foundations.
But, in the same time, the restoration of the damaged dome and walls of the theatre was accomplished in the respect of the original techniques and materials, and after appropriate analyses: the wood structural elements were kept by strengthening them with an anti-seismic system of iron brackets and tie bars; the collapsing dome was fastened by a particular gear of metallic belts, and some parts of the dome with lacking wooden laths were integrated according with the ancient Turkish artisanal technique. Even the mortars included the same original components, as resulted from analyses, and wood fibers, although appropriately mixed with resins and chemical additives, in order to grant a better bond and durability time.

The effectiveness of this operative methodology, which provides the study and the research of the technical solutions during the restoration itself, is granted by the organization of the work-site school (cantiere-scuola) which offers a direct approach to actual problems with a positive training to finding, realising and verifying the specific technique.

The Italian-Egyptian Center was founded in 1988 under the patronage of the italian and egyptian governments in the presence of the then italian ambassador in Cairo, G.Migliuolo, and of the egyptian minister of culture on the occasion of opening the Sama'Khana to visitors, after ten years of complex restoration works. Since then, it has been carrying on a training activity at all the levels, from the handicraft to the university, and has also promoted, outside its seat, the institution of new restoration courses in important egyptian universities, like Cairo, Helwan, Qena, Alexandria, etc.
 

In the sight of the co-operation spirit with the egyptian authorities, which marks the Center activity, the italian experts have particularly focused the attention on the solution of the most dangerous problem and decay cause for monuments, which concerns the Egyptian Antiquities Organization: that is the presence of a great quantity of salts in the building materials, linked to its geological origin, and the interaction with the rising dampness by capillarity, which is increasing more and more, because of the current geographical and environmental changes. The phenomenon, which has notably been augmented by the rising of the nap after the raising of the high Assuan Dam, is much worsened in Cairo by the water flowing from the decayed pipes and the old sewer system, and forms the most serious danger for the conservation of egyptian monuments, at present.

The Italian-Egyptian Center has utilized, for the first time in the country, particular machinery, which were partly built in Italy and partly in Egypt, which allowed to cut at the ground-level the huge walls of an important mausoleum placed in the monumental area, where the Center is placed (the Hasan Sadaqa Mausoleum). The insulating system, which has consisted in the insertion, while cutting walls (which were more thick than three ms. in some points), of a water-proofing layer, has resulted mostly effective; and the study of this restoration methodology, in view of a wider and more generalised application, is in course, according with a research program supported by C.N.R.-SMED.
In fact, it will be possible applying it on other egyptian monuments in danger because of the same dampness problems, when a sufficient ‚quipe of experts and craftsmen will be prepared for fronting the delicate intervention on ancient and decayed walls and structures.

The various and complex problems of technical experiences and of their knowledge, which have been faced by the Italian-Egyptian Restoration Center in the course of its long activity, cover the whole historical period of old Cairo, which is rich of archaeological remains, monuments and buildings, since the foundation of the arab town to the current days. In particular, the wide area whose recovery has been relied to the Italian-Egyptian Center, is engaged by the Qusun-Yazbak-Aqbardi Palace, which is the most imposing example of Mamluk architecture in Cairo, the great Hasan Sadaqa Mausoleum (1315 a. C.), and the Sunqur Sa'di Madrasa, which was built on remains of Tulunide houses, and was partly utilised for building the Sama'khana of the Mewlewi Derwishes (1.800 a.C.).

The architectural and artistic interest of the last oversaid building, which hadn't even been included in the list of the monuments to keep, has emerged in the course of the historical study linked with the restorative intervention: this particular cultual structure of Turkish origin has resulted the highest architectural expression of the philosophical Mewlewi thought and of the complex cosmic symbolism of the mystic dance performed by the Mewlewi Derwishes every friday at sunset. The importance of the rescue from the impending loss of this unique masterpiece was efficaciously pointed out, during its inauguration, by the words of the Egyptian Minister of Culture, Faruk Hosni: "The Cairo Sama'khana, owing to its perfect fusion of the artistic and architectural ideal with the religious thought has greatly enriched the national prestige of our archaeological heritage".

Since then, the restoration yard has been enlarged and the works  extended to other buildings of the area in concession to the Center, so that currently the recovery of the Sunqur Sa'di Madrasa and of the Hasan Sadaqa Mausoleum is near the end; the restoration methodology and philosophy which consist in a gradual advancing of the research, historical and technical, beside the operative intervention, have saved important monuments without traumatic or spectacular operations on the environmental and urban context of the ancient Cairo.

The educational character of the Italian-Egyptian Restoration Center, which has been planned as a work-site school (cantiere-scuola) for training, has allowed to transfer that philosophy of prudence and respect for the monumental heritage to the egyptian as well as to the italian restorers.