History of the Tourist Guide in Egypt Heba Magdy Khalil
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JFTH Vol. 18, Issue 1 (2021) ISSN: 2314-7024 E-ISSN: 2682-2180 History of the Tourist Guide in Egypt Heba Magdy Khalil Associate Professor- Tourist Guiding Department Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Alexandria University, Egypt Abstract Egypt is a very well-known tourist destination 1. Introduction: starting from the Graeco-Roman period till Egypt is a very well-known tourist destination; nowadays. The Tourist guide is the most whose monuments attracted the visitors since a influential person the visitor will meet in his long time ago. This is confirmed by the graffiti journey. The researcher tries here to trace back and the papyri, which prove that this tourist this profession in Egypt starting from the activity was known since the Pharaonic period ancient times and spot the light on its and continued during the Graeco-Roman era. development throughout the ages. During the The first known foreign visitors, who visited ancient times, it seems that the role of the the ancient monuments and engraved graffiti guide was played by the priests precisely on them, were a party of Greek mercenary inside the temples (religious and therapeutic soldiers, who visited Egypt early in the sixth tourism), while the bilingual persons used to century BC. They went up to Elephantine guide the tourists in the archaeological sites. during the reign of Psammetichus II; they The travelers' writings that dates to the journeyed on to the second cataract, and at medieval period have no reference to the Abu-Simbel carved their names on the colossal tourist guides. It was not until the seventeenth statues in front of the rock-temple. However, century that the tourist guide started to appear the real flood of foreign people to see the in the travelers' writings. During the reign of ancient monuments of Egypt began after Mohamed Ali and his successors, the Alexander's conquest and continued till the dragomans used to accompany the tourists in end of the Roman period. Those visitors were their travels, till they were replaced later by either the Greeks and Romans who lived in professional tour guides. The research also Egypt or those who came from their countries referred to the effort made by the state to for sightseeing in Egypt. The most faraway organize this job through issuing regulations travelers who visited Egypt during the Graeco- and establishing an academic study to enhance Roman period are from Marseille in France the skills of the tourist guides. (Magdy H., 2006). Keywords: Tourism, interpreter, dragoman, tourist guide. The Scientific Journal of the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Alexandria University, Vol. 18, Issue 1 (2021) 121 History of the Tourist guide in Egypt Heba Magdy Khalil The most important tourist destinations for the temple of Isis at the island of Philae captured cultural tourism in Egypt during the Graeco- the imagination of countless travelers to Egypt Roman period are: the tomb of Alexander the from the early times. These visitors flew to the Great at Alexandria, the ancient lighthouse of island starting from the Ptolemaic period. The Alexandria, the sphinx and pyramids at Giza island of Philae continued to attract the plateau, the region of El-Fayoum, the colossi pilgrims for so long till the sixth century AD. of Memnon at Thebes, and the Valley of the (Magdy H, 2006). Kings at Thebes. Egypt also knew the therapeutic tourism, as The tomb of Alexander the Great in many temples were very famous for being Alexandria was visited important personalities, healing-centers, such as: the Asklepion of such as: Julius Caesar, who visited Memphis, Temple of Seti I at Abydos, the Alexandria in 45 B.C. and paid his respects to Temple of Deir el-Bahari, and the sanatorium the legend that he idolized. Emperor August: of Dendara. During the Graeco-Roman Period, his visit is described by Suetonius and Lucian. Egypt preserved her role as an educational He dedicated a wreath to the body of center of the ancient world, therefore many Alexander. It was reported also that he bent Greek eager to come to Egypt, particularly to over to kiss the great conqueror, Augustus Alexandria, to recieve their education. The accidentally broke Alexander's nose. fame of the library and its Mouseion was the Augustus's guides offered to take him next to reason that made the scientists and students of the tombs of the Ptolemaic dynasty which all nationalities flow to Alexandria in order to were located nearby. To that Augustus instruct themselves in all areas of sciences. answered that he came to see a king and not Some of those scientists stayed at Alexandria, dead people. Caligula: he paid a visit to the and held positions at the library, others came Sema and left with Alexander's cuirass. only to study and attend what we call today Septimus Severus: He eventually closed the "Conferences" or "Somposiums", and returned tomb to the public because he was nervous home, such as: Euclid1, Apollonius of Perga2, about its safety under the hoards of tourists Philitas3, Aristophanes4, Aristarchus5, who rushed to visit. Caracalla: He visited the tomb in the third century A.D, as he believed 1 Euclid is the most prominent mathematician of that he was Alexander's reincarnation. This antiquity, who is best known for his treatise on emperor reportedly dedicated a treasure of mathematics The Elements. Little is known about his life except that he was taught at Alexandria in Egypt, offerings to the body of Alexander, among worked under the reign of Ptolemy I and founded a which was a mantle, rings, and other jewellery school at Alexandria. 2 (Magdy H., 2006). Appolonius of Perga was born in the second half of the third century B.C (about 262 BC) in Perga, Pamphylia, Greek Ionia (now Murtina, Antalya, The Colossi of Memnon were the most Turkey). He studied at Alexandria with the students of important tourist attraction in Egypt during the Euclid. He became very famous during the reign of Roman period. On which travelers used to Ptolemy III, as he was called "the greatest geometry scientist". Little is known of his life but his works have engrave their names as a memory of their visit, had a very great influence on the development of starting from the time of Nero and on. The mathematics, in particular his famous book Conics introduced terms which are familiar to us today such as most important visit was the one made by parabola, ellipse and hyperbola. Emperor Hadrian. There was also the religious 3 Philetas was originally from the island of Cos. tourism in which the visitors came to pay He was the author of a miscellaneous glossary, called "Glossai Atoktoi". He played an important role in the homage to the gods in their temples. The field of poetry, as we can say that he was the founder of The Scientific Journal of the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Alexandria University, Vol. 18, Issue 1 (2021) 122 History of the Tourist guide in Egypt Heba Magdy Khalil Memnon of Side6, and Galian7 (Magdy H., A letter (CXIV) from Cleander to Hydaspes 2006). about a journey to Delphi, in the sixth year of the Peloponnesian War, mentioned: As long as there were tourist activities in "In the morning one of the Periegetai, whose ancient Egypt, there must have been tour profession is to show the antiquities of the guides. In ancient Greece, which was place, made us an offer of his service, which considered also a tourist destination in ancient they do to all strangers immediately after their times, the travelers mentioned the presence of arrival" (York P., 1800). the guides. These travelers used two words to refer to the guides: ἐσζεγεηὲ (exegetes), and But what about ancient Egypt? πεπιεγεηαι (periegetai). Rarely, we find the word exegetes, as it was only mentioned by 2. Literature review: Pausanias in Pausanias journey to Greece and Although there are some books that dealt with in an inscription from Olympia (SIG 1021.20) (Pretzler M., 2004). The most common word is tourism in Egypt during the different ages, periegetes. In epigraphy the richest source for there wasn't a specified study dealt with the such term happens to be from Olympia (3rd BC tour guides. There is only one article that dealt nd with the history of tour guides in Egypt: – 2 AD). Elsewhere than in Olympia, epigraphic periegetai are rare. In literature the Khattab M. et al (2018), "The historical best evidence for the periegetai is from development of the tourist guidance Plutarch. Lucian wrote: a character says: profession", International Journal of Heritage, Tourism, and hospitality, vol. 12 (2). "I was going around the colonnades in the sanctuary of Dionysius, examining each one of However, it is not satisfactory nor the painting, and right away two or three comprehensive, specially in the concern of the people ran up to tell me all about them for a development of this proffession in Egypt during the ancient periods and during the era small fee". (Pausanias, 2001). before the nineteenth century. The mentioned article also misses some information that could lead to a more interpretation to the the "Alexandrian Poetry School". He was tutor to the development of this profession. son of Ptolemy I of Egypt, and also taught Theocritus and the grammarian Zenodotus. 4 Aristophanes came from Byzantium. He was 3. Tourist Guides in Ancient Egypt: specialist of the Attic comedies and a pupil of Callimachus. Concerning the two Greek words that appeared 5 Aristarchus came from the island of in Greece refering to the guides: εξεγεηαι Samothrace and was born in 310 BC. He was the most eminent grammarian, who was known as "The Prophet".