She approaches a sarcophagus and suddenly a mummified, partially-wrapped body sits up, scaring her. Yes, Imhotep existed, but we have to go back to the ancient Pyramid builders before we find him. A densely-inhabited urban neighborhood exists east of the Imam al-Shafi'i complex and is generally known by the same name, while another urban bloc, al-Qadiriya, exists directly south of the Sayyida Aisha Mosque and the former gate of Bab al-Qarafa. [1] Starting in 1265, Sultan Baybars turned the area into a large hippodrome for equestrian games, training, and military parades, and it became known as Maydan al-Qabaq. Will. Shortly after, Imhotep attempts to bring Anck-su-namun back to life and brings her remains to Hamunaptra. In the motion picture the city of the dead could only be located on specific times. They extend to the north and to the south of the Cairo Citadel, below the Mokattam Hills and outside the historic city walls, covering an area roughly 4 miles long. As Evelyn makes her way to the prison to free Rick, she has to haggle for Ricks release with a corrupt Egyptian prison warden (Omid Djalili). Probably just normal people like us. We have always known about them. [1] This period marked the height of Cairo's wealth and power, and in turn probably marked the high point of the Qarafa in terms of prestige and splendor. In 1923, an excavation of the ruins begun and the body of Imhotep was located near the Statue of Anubis, along with the Book of the Dead and the Book of Amun-Ra. An international team of archaeologists has found a massive statue of the god Horus, according to the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities. Siwa Oasis is situated around 850 kilometers to the North East of Cairo, more than 1500 kilometers to the North West of Aswan, 1146 kilometers to the North West of Hurghada, around 500 kilometers to the North West of the Fayoum Oasis, and around 250 kilometers to the South West of Marsa Matrouh, the nearest city to . [3] Moreover, the cemeteries were already filled with structures built to house family tombs some of them quite sumptuous which were well-suited to provide improvised housing for the homeless and displaced. [16], The southern tip of the Northern Cemetery zone is also referred to as the Bab al-Wazir Cemetery, named after the former Bab al-Wazir city gate nearby. During his life, Imhotep was an Egyptian chancellor to the Pharaoh Djoser and high priest of the sun god Ra at Heliopolis. [7][1][11] The population of the cemetery in the mid-15th century is estimated to have been around four thousand people. He was not an evil priest, I would say the very opposite. you are right in that they are dead, now. Sincerely, [7] Due to the importance the Sayyida Nafisa shrine, the area is also referred to as the "As-Sayyidah Nafisah Necropolis" (by UNESCO[2]) or "Sayyida Nafisa Cemetery". Most of the movies are fiction in some sense, yet it is well mixed with real people from ancient Egypt, but they are not portrayed in the correct manner. Check out books by Elizabeth Peters (set in Egypt), and also a trilogy by Paul Boherty. The book of the dead is not a real book, they are lists of spells written on papyri scrolls to ensure the deceased would make it to the Duat. 170 likes, 2 comments - Explorando Egipto con Saladino (@saladino_guia_egipto) on Instagram: "Has puesto egipto dentro de tus planes de viaje? Most of the movie was Hollywood, there was an Imhotep and he was the Pharaoh's high sem and an architect during the reign of Djoser in the 3rd dynasty. Was there an evil priest named Imhotep and did he go against the Pharaoh (king)? The Fatimids even built three shrines which were intended to house the remains of Muhammad and of the first two Shi'a caliphs/imams, but the remains were never moved here. But you dont have to worry if you cant swim because it is impossible to drown. While the priests then place the lid on top, the scarab beetles begin to ravage and consume Imhotep alive. The 1999 film stars protagonist Rick OConnell (Brendan Fraser) as the maverick, streetsmart adventurer, Evelyn Carnahan (Rachel Weisz), a book-smart scholar, and Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), the films antagonist. [1] The funerary complex of Sultan Qaytbay, for example, considered a masterpiece of Mamluk architecture, is often described as a "royal suburb", since it included a host of services and establishments to serve both short-term stays and long-term residents. Have a great day! The cemeteries are filled with a vast number of tombs dating from various periods up to the modern day. [1], The Qarafa received new attention under the Ayyubid dynasty (established by Salah ad-Din after the Fatimid Caliphate was abolished in 1171), who repaired some monuments and aqueducts and re-initiated urbanization in parts of the cemeteries (despite also destroying Fatimid monuments). The 1999 release of The Mummy directed by Stephen Sommers is yet another instalment in the mummy genre following Boris Karloffs famous 1932 version The Mummy. [1], The cemeteries are registered as part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Historic Cairo and contain numerous historic mausoleums and religious sites from a wide range of periods. It lies near the Libyan frontier, 350 miles (560 km) west-southwest of Cairo. Is there a real City of the Dead in Egypt? The Mummy also created new meanings for these historical items, twisting the artifacts and figures into a plot device for a blockbuster story. After killing the Pharaoh, Imhotep's tongue was cut out, and he was buried alive with flesh-eating scarab beetles and locked in a sarcophagus during his mummification. [1] During the plague years in the 15th century, the authorities at one point officially banned people from living in the Qarafa, which left many structures unguarded and vulnerable to looting. There was no single or canonical Book of the Dead. Yes, that is right! Today, the cemeteries are also crossed and split by rail lines and major roads such as the ring-roads of Shari'a Salah Salem and Kobri Al Ebageah, thus creating prominent barriers between parts of the necropolis that were once contiguous with each other. as semi-nomadic people who were warriors. [5] Only a small number of them left any monument attesting to their time in Egypt, and only six such monuments were in the Qarafa. [1], The necropolis that makes up "the City of the Dead" has been developed over many centuries and contains both the graves of Cairo's common population as well as the elaborate mausoleums of many of its historical rulers and elites. The city of Hamunaptra was created for the action-adventure movie and wasn't a real city. [1] The regime also taxed waqfs, the legal trust agreements that governed many of the mausoleums and religious buildings, which reduced the ability of those who managed them to pay for the upkeep of the monuments. Some areas of dense urban housing have developed at several sites within the boundaries of the historic necropolis, forming their own city neighborhoods. Tombs from the same family are often grouped together and enclosed in a walled structure or courtyard known as a hawsh or hosh (Arabic: ; which also has a generic architectural meaning). The question is, (3). However, the legends included in The Mummy have never been associated with the city. How does this movie rate in historical accuracy? [1]:123, The beginnings of Cairo's necropolis date back to the foundation and subsequent growth of the city of Fustat, founded in 642 CE by 'Amr ibn al-'As, the Arab Muslim commander who led the conquest of Egypt. There is also another smaller cemetery north of Bab al-Nasr. Some people resorted to squatting within the mausoleums and tomb enclosures and turning them into improvised housing; however, these "tomb-dwellers" remained a small fraction of the overall population in the area. This may help reduce pain. Since mummification was a sacred part of their belief system, the process was complex and routine. The body has no agency as it is simply a prop, which Jonathan uses to prank his sister. Subsequent excavations revealed that the mounds contain the remains of what was once the largest city of the Indus civilization. During the following three centuries Egypt was ruled by pashas, governors appointed by the Ottoman sultan. Did Hamunaptra really exist? I would personally say, that we have no real education in today's world.. In 1907, the neighbourhood of Imam al-Shafi'i was connected to the rest of Cairo by a streetcar line which stretched from here to the Pyramids in Giza (though it no longer exists today). I am not sure what the person meant (other blog comments) about the stuff making them sick, I hope he/she meant "dizzy." It does not take long for one scarab to come alive and burr itself into his brain, killing him. [17] ("Al-Khalifa" is also the name of the wider administrative district or qism in the Cairo Governorate which contains the Southern Cemetery today. 'Cairo' of 1925 is Marrakech, and the lost city of 'Hamunaptra' was a vast set built at an old fort inside a dormant volcano crater about 12 miles southwest of Erfoud, in the southeast of the country. Imhoteps mystical revival also provides him with magical powers, and he uses them to attack the adventurers in an attempt to resurrect his lost love. Unfortunately, ethnic Egyptian actors are not represented in any of the major roles of the film. [1] It contains another cluster of monuments in various states of preservation, such as the restored Mausoleum of Tarabay al-Sharifi and the distinctive tall narrow dome of the Mausoleum of Yunus al-Dawadar. To read more about Imhotep, check out this article Things found inside Djosers Step Pyramid. Cause [1], In the later 14th century Cairo's population declined significantly due to the arrival of the plague. It is also claimed that he was an architect of one of the most renowned pyramids, the step pyramid of Djoser. Scarabs are not flesh eaters, they are in fact dung beetles. actual history, a city called Hamunaptra (City of the Dead Man) was found in India in the 1850s when British engineers, trying to build a railroad, pillaged the area for bricks. As you realise there are many temples in Egypt which the designers could have used as their inspiration. But anyway you have a nice blog. The horror-adventure franchise featured several figures with foundations in history, including the Medjay, the army in Hamunaptra, and the main antagonist Imhotep. [1] Most significantly, Salah ad-Din built the first Sunni madrasa in Egypt (to counter Fatimid Shi'a influence), based on the Shafi'i madhhab, right next to the tomb of Imam al-Shafi'i, while in 1211 Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil built the mausoleum and enormous dome over al-Shafi'i's tomb which remains one of the most impressive in Cairo to this day. Ancient Egyptians, contrary to the film, only used four jars. It does not correspond to one administrative district (qism) in the Egyptian census but stretches across several, with some cemeteries blending into the main urban fabric of Cairo without presenting a clear border between city and necropolis. His tomb became one of the most important sites in the cemeteries even up to the present day, attracting many pilgrims and spurring development in the area at different periods.[1][7]. By the end of Abbasid rule in Egypt in the 10th century, the necropolis is reported to have covered an enormous area stretching several kilometers from the southern edge of al-Qata'i (close to the Mosque of Ibn Tulun and the later Citadel of Salah ad-Din) to the former lake of Birkat al-Habash (just south of the modern Ring Road today in the Basatin district). The development of the necropolis thus moved northeast, mirroring these new centers of power. The name is a toponym derived from the Banu Qarafa ibn Ghusn ibn Wali clan, a Yemeni clan descended from the Banu Ma'afir tribe, which once had a plot of land in the city of Fustat (the predecessor of Cairo). [1][8] Along with their palaces, the Fatimids also built mosques, madrasas, and ribats for religious instruction and activities, all of which required the creation of infrastructure for water and other necessities. [16], Arguably the most important site in the Southern Cemetery is the Mausoleum of Imam al-Shafi'i and its adjoining mosque. More success in 2010. Development took years, with multiple screenplays and directors attached. But this blog post was only to show some fact vs. fiction. I never seen that movie yet. In the motion picture "the city of the dead" could only be located on specific times. She was an immigrant to Fustat and acquired a strong reputation for baraka before her death in 824 CE, and her tomb is still highly important and popular today. Since its release in 1999, The Mummy has become a cult classic. Its venom, however, is lethal in less than 10 percent of untreated victims, but the snakes aggressiveness means it bites early and often. [1] The tomb enclosures, typically walled structures built to house the tombs of one extended family (also known as a hawsh), are nonetheless considered better, in some respects, than poor-quality housing elsewhere in the city. The same place became the villain's desert hideout in Bond movie Spectre. Passionate about all things Egypt, Thomas is currently completing his doctorate at the University of Toronto. Here is a breakdown of how much is actually based on historical fact in The Mummy. It is divided into two parts by the Citadel of Cairo: the "Southern" Cemetery and "Northern" Cemetery, referring to the regions south and north of the Citadel. Africa He was a loyal and dear friend of the Pharaoh (king) Djoser/Zoser. However, here they were able to build much larger complexes spread over a wider area. Related: The Mummy Franchise Did Hollywood's Latest Action Movie Trend 20 Years Early. Actually there is a king scorpion in anciant Egypt. Official hunting seasons exist in Egypt for bird hunting by tourists and quail hunting in North Sinai. These phrases match the Ancient Egyptian spoken by Imhotep and his followers throughout the film a nod to the consulting work of Egyptologist Stuart Tyson Smith. Hamunaptra, or "The City of the Dead," was a lost city where pharaohs were laid to rest in The Mummy. Imhotep, the pharoahs high priest, meets Anck-su-namun, mistress of the pharaoh. Children of Ancient Egyptian royalty (deceased)Imhotep (deceased)Imhotep's priests (deceased)Warrior priests [7][1] The mosque contains the tomb of Sayyida Nafisa, a granddaughter of Hasan, the second Shi'i Imam and grandson of Muhammad. In my guide book A magical guide to Luxor temple its revealed where one was found, and where most of the objects from this treasure can be found. [1] North of this, the cemeteries around the Sayyida Nafisa Mosque are separated from the rest of the necropolis by the modern Salah Salem ring road, and form the neighbourhood of al-Khalifa which blends into the main urban fabric of Cairo at this point. This tragic of water and hunger, and no one doing anything (only 1-4% of people are really involved with these situations) it always makes me speechless and very angry. Off course I know that there was a scorpion king. [1][3] This phenomenon led to much media commentary and popular imagination about the condition of those living in the necropolises, linking them symbolically to Cairo's much-discussed overpopulation problems and sometimes leading to exaggerated estimates of the number of people squatting in the mausoleums. God bless, hello, please support me to help FIGHT GLOBAL HUNGER program, all in need is your VOTE, pls visit my blog for more details. [1] The area is also the site of other monuments: notably, the Hosh al-Basha, the lavish 19th-century mausoleum of Muhammad Ali's family, is just west of Imam al-Shafi'i's mausoleum. Greedily, he accepts Evelyns proposition of getting 25% of the treasure and frees Rick. [1][7] Most of the region, however, turned into an extension of Cairo's necropolis, and is now densely filled with tombs. [7], The Bab al-Wazir Cemetery, just north of the Citadel walls and south of the main Northern Cemetery, also dates from the Mamluk period. According to the films, Hamunaptra is a hidden city in the desert which is the resting place of Imhotep, the 3,000-year-old mummy that will revisit the Earth as a curse if released. [7] However, these estimates are argued to be unreliable as they do not match the current population trends in Cairo and they may be based on previous exaggerations of the cemetery population. Points of interest Not only was The Mummy a dark, horror-based movie like The City of the Dead, but they also had some similarities in the plot. This movie is one of my favorites, I am not so keen on the last one, because it isnt in Egypt. When kings were being judged by Osiris, Anubis placed their hearts on one side of a scale and a feather (representing Maat) on the other. [6] Importantly, that area also became the site of many important tombs belonging to a number of the Prophet's descendants who emigrated to Egypt in this period, some of which, like those of Sayyida Ruqayya, Sayyida Nafisa and Sayyida Aisha, are still present today. This movie starring Brendan Frasier and Rachel Weisz takes place in Egypt. Scorpion was a king in southern Egypt that was buried in a very spectacular way. I followed you, can you follow mine too? Unfortunately, this is a fictional city as the name did not exist in Ancient Egypt. He also described how the scorpion tastes, describing it to taste like chicken. Although sensational, the Hom-Dai ritual as shown in the film is completely fictional. [13] The intensified urbanization of Cairo itself, and the exclusion of the poorest from government initiatives, resulted in a more urgent need for informal or improvised housing. [12]) By 1947, the census had calculated the population of the districts including the cemeteries at 69,367, with population density having increased by a large factor. Karima, I will indeed do that! Hamunaptra (also known as City of the Dead) is a fictional Egyptian city that first made its appearance in the 1999 film The Mummy. He and his successors, as Khedives, strove to modernize Egypt and enacted many reforms. [1], The Mamluk sultans (1250 to 1517) were prolific builders, but most of the sultans and Mamluk elites preferred to be buried in monumental mausoleums attached to mosques and madrasas built in the city rather than in the Qarafa. The Greek went so fare as to raise his to the level of a God. There was actually a person by the name of Imhotep, who lived in the Third Dynasty (c. 2,667-2,648 BC). His army finds the city of Hamunaptra, which is guarded by the curse of a mummy. [8], These developments and practices during the Fatimid era led to the emergence, or resurgence, of the popular traditions of visiting the graves of family members and ancestors for holidays and vacations. The vast necropolis contained precious artifacts and antiquities from the wealthiest of Egypt's Pharaohic totality, as well as their remains, and was . It is a vast area of tombs stretching from the foot of the Cairo Citadel in the north to the densely-inhabited modern district of al-Basatin to the south. [1] The UNESCO World Heritage Site entry for Historic Cairo lists the area as the "Al-Imam ash-Shaf'i Necropolis". At its center, the area around the mosque of Qaitbay and north of it is an urbanized neighborhood with multistory apartment blocs. Hamunaptra, or The City of the Dead, was a lost city where pharaohs were laid to rest in The Mummy. Votes: 442,312 | Gross: $155.25M Furthermore, "City of the Dead" must refer to the Valley of the Kings and the memorial temples on the Theban West Bank. [5] However, governors were typically appointed for a few years before being recalled because the sultans were afraid of them accumulating power. In many movies, the Book of the Dead is often romanticized and dramatized as a pseudo-religious plot device, and this is the same for The Mummy. Karima. The Mummy labels Hamunaptra as the City of the Dead and as the burial place of the pharaohs. [1] A commonly cited estimate puts the current population at half a million or more people,[18][19] and some put it even as high as two million. The road grew in importance during the Mamluk period as the Mamluks' military dominance in the region ensured the safety of the pilgrimage route. [1], The authorities have been historically ambivalent as to how to deal with the growing population in the cemeteries. Anck-su-namun wears a scanty fishnet dress upon her golden body and a ornately-decorated pectoral is visible below her neck. The Mummy ignores their original purpose of aiding the deceased to get to and maintain their existence in the afterlife. [1] Among other measures, the Aqueduct of Ibn Tulun, built to provide water to al-Qata'i and passing through this area, was repaired. Scorpion II (Ancient Egyptian: possibly Selk or Weha), also known as King Scorpion, was a ruler during the Protodynastic Period of Upper Egypt (c. 32003000 BCE). The two would later merge again as development spread to other areas. The mummy is accidentally awakened and starts searching for his reincarnated love. The tradition of building domed mausoleums only evolved from the Fatimid period onward. Several necropoleis existed in Egypt, most notably at Saqqara, Giza, Amarna and Thebes, but these were associated with living cities (Memphis, Akhetaten, and Thebes, respectively), and their locations were, at least in ancient times, public knowledge. I truly appreciate your thoughts, Stephen Sommers directed the Mummy, he was also the director of the movie Catch me if you can with Leonardo DiCaprio, another good one. When she isnt keeping up with Disney, Star Wars and comic book movies, she is watching musical theater, exploring Las Vegas and visiting family in New York City. [7] It lies close to the Citadel walls, adjoining the district of al-Darb al-Ahmar, and is cut off from the rest of the cemeteries by the modern Salah Salem road. [1] Today, many Egyptians avoid the area at night and believe that the cemeteries are predominantly inhabited by social outcasts and are places of greater criminal activity. Furthermore, City of the Dead must refer to the Valley of the Kings and the memorial temples on the Theban West Bank. Clean the wound with mild soap and water. If you visit Siwas oasis make sure you pack your swimming suit with you. . [3], While the "City of the Dead" is a designation frequently used in English, the Arabic name is "al-Qarafa" (Arabic: , romanized:al-Qarafa). For example, the mythical creature Ammit devours all those who do not pass the famous judgment in the Hall of Two Truths (2). *by RichaRie*, You should check it out, it is good! [1], Behind (east of) the Sayyida Nafisa Mosque stand the Tombs of the Abbasid Caliphs, a mausoleum which holds the remains of the successors of the Abbasid Caliphs of Baghdad. Destroyed and abandoned upon finding artifacts, Ardeth Bay's description of the City of the Dead., The Mummy. [1] Some historians believe that the necropolis zone was divided into two cemeteries: the Qarafat al-Sughra, or "Smaller Qarafa", located further north, and the Qarafat al-Kubra, or "Greater Qarafa", spreading over a large area further south. The movie, the Mummy, has taken many people on a journey into ancient Egypt. According to the films, Hamunaptra is a hidden city in the desert which is the resting place of Imhotep, the 3,000-year-old mummy that will revisit the Earth as a curse if released. [3] These squatters were still a very small fraction of the total population of the cemetery zones: around 3% of nearly 180,000 people at that time. [1][15] That being said, for those living in "unofficial" or improvised housing in the tombs the situation is generally worse. A part of the Mamluk Aqueduct which once provided water to the Citadel runs through the northern areas of the cemetery, partly along the path of the old Ayyubid city walls and running parallel to Salah Salem road. The wealth and monumentality of Egypt comes out strong in the grandeur of the royal palace, located next to the pyramids. Scholars have two theories: His tomb could be somewhere in Djosers burial complex because he was member of the royal family. The film presents Ardeth Bey and the Medjay as men skilled in combat and wholly devoted to preventing the return of Imhotep. Though the Book of the Dead is often associated with the gods, it doesnt give any power to resurrect a person from the dead and did not claim to, as it merely gave instructions for those entering the afterlife. Some of their projects appear to have been designed to urbanize the area, and an estimated population of 4,000 may have already lived here by the mid-15th century. Though movies arent known for being historically accurate, the action-adventure franchise introduces the audience to gods and artifacts ripped from the history books. I am sorry to hear what is happening in Greece these days . In spell 43 of The Book of Coming Forth by Day, Ani stands before three deities, hoping to avoid decapitatio by reciting a spell: I am a Great One, the son of a Great One, I am a flame, the son of a flame, to whom was given his head after it had been cut off. In one scene, we see five jars containing her various organs. [7] The most significant foundation here appears to have been the Zawiya of Shaykh Zayn al-Din Yusuf in 1299, which attracted pilgrims and formed the core of a new habitable district which later became the neighbourhood of al-Qadiriya. What was Imhotep curse?
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