Egypt - 1. Chapter 1

Dr. David C. McLavic, Dean of the Archeology Department of North Western University was reviewing an article on an expedition to Egypt by Dr. Ashraf of the University of Cranfield, England. Dr. Ashraf had been on several expeditions to Egypt. He has an intimate knowledge of Egypt as he had lived there most of his life, only leaving Egypt to assume his current position at Cranfield University.

David took note that Ashraf had a contact in the Egyptian Department of Antiquities by the name of Dr. Mostafa Atef.

It brought back memories of his first and only trip to Egypt. He was a student at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of a group that went to Egypt. He also remembers he had to return earlier due to a family death. Now, a family crisis wouldn’t be an issue. David, his oldest, is doing well. His daughter, Beth Ann is married and has three children of which the oldest is a student at the University, the middle son is in High School and her youngest, a clone, is in grade school. His oldest daughter, Mary Lou, is married and works as a nurse in a New York hospital. She has two children. He now regards himself as a free man, able and can do what he loves, live and teach archeology

“Dr. McClavic, have you seen these reports?”

“Yes, Steven, I was just reading them and wondering if we should take a trip. Most of our work has been in Central and South America. I was in Egypt once, a long time ago.”

“Do you think we could go this year?”

“Yes, but we will need a lot of work, and money. I’ll check the University to see if they will back us.”

Steven is my only student working on his Doctorate Degree. And I have two students working on their Master’s Degrees. I am sure they will be interested in going as well. These three were on my latest trip to Peru where we discovered a hidden road in the jungle leading to a ceremonial site. Dr. Caban, from the University of Peru was quite pleased and by the notes he has been sending, it appears the site is more than a ceremonial site.

For the next few days, I began to develop plans for an expedition to Egypt.

When Uncle Joe left, a young man from his tribe arrived. Jimmy was his name and he said The Great White Father said he was to come and watch over me as Uncle Joe did. In the back of my mind I knew this young man would want to go with us. He knew most of my students, meeting them at one time or another in my home.

I spent a few hours writing to my son, David, bringing him up to date and, of course, telling him about the possibility of going to Egypt on an expedition. When I had finished the letter, Jimmy walked into my garage office.

“What are you doing?”

“I just finished writing a letter to David telling him about the possibility of an expedition to Egypt.”

“Is the same team that went to Peru going on this expedition?”

I laughed to myself. This was Jimmy’s way of asking if he is going as part of the team.

On Monday morning, I met with the President of the University to brief him on my consideration of an Egyptian Expedition. He told me he was all for it as we had established the University as a leader in South American expeditions.

“I guess you have earned it David. Your work in South America has brought not only a museum of artifacts but a reputation concerning expeditions in Peru. I will discuss it with the Board.”

I knew of only one man on the Board who would support anything I asked for. So I went to see him, Dr. James Bennett. Jim joined us from a University in England when I started working in Peru. He brings an historical approach and after the second expedition he suggested that the University create a Museum with the understanding that any article displayed will be considered on loan from Peru. The museum was a success and when we opened it to the public, we had TV coverage. Now it is a money generator, and a small percentage goes to the University in Peru.

Walking into his office is always fun.

“David, sit.” Then he goes and prepares tea with some cookies that one must have. I suppose English traditions are strong in his family. “What can I do for you?”

“I am planning on an expedition to Egypt this summer and I need financing. I spoke to Bill and he said he would bring it up at the Board meeting. I was hoping you, being a Board member, would support my expedition.”

“Egypt? When I worked in England, we had a lot of Egyptian historical items on display. There was a time when we just took artifacts. There was a backlash from the Egyptians and now we pay a fee, like a rental fee, for having those artifacts. Should I plan on expanding the museum?”

“Jim, I can only guarantee artifacts for your museum if we go.” That was all I needed to say. Jim knew that anything we brought back with us would be displayed in his museum. Now I had to wait. My only problem was my team didn’t like waiting.