How did the concept for Consigned to Oblivion: Heritage Crafts in Egypt<\/em> crystallize, and what compelled you to champion these traditional trades?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The book originally began as a series of standalone feature articles tracing Egyptian crafts through the Islamic era, published via the Facebook page of the Historic Cairo Archaeological Awareness Department. However, the text was repeatedly plagiarized and stripped of attribution. That intellectual theft sparked my determination to find a permanent, codified vessel to document my writing, which led to compiling them into a book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of restricting the scope to the Islamic era, I chose to excavate the roots of each trade within ancient Egyptian history, culminating in the first volume. The second volume was born when I realized I needed to push past the history books and look at these crafts entirely through the eyes of the practitioners themselves, specifically interrogating why these art forms are actively vanishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Do you believe the primary threat facing these heritage crafts today is literal oblivion, or are there deeper, more insidious dangers at play?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Oblivion is undoubtedly a profound threat, but the far greater peril is the systemic stripping of these crafts from their cultural roots, seeing them claimed by other nations, and watching them plundered of their Egyptian identity. If one interrogates the histories of those countries, it becomes undeniably clear that they did not even exist during the epochs when the ancient Egyptian first innovated and perfected these masterworks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During your historical excavation of these trades, did you uncover anything that truly startled you regarding how deeply entwined they remain with Egypt\u2019s contemporary identity?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, that realization struck me with absolute clarity inside a hand-weaving workshop in the city of Naqada. There, I witnessed contemporary textiles woven with such breathtaking precision and masterful execution that if you placed them side-by-side with the ancient fragments preserved in our museums, you would find no difference between them. The lineage remains unbroken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this volume, your lens shifts from pure history to the human being from the craft to the craftsman. Why was it vital to grant these artisans the space to speak in their own unfiltered words?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Because archival sources that document heritage crafts are notoriously scarce. When you do find them, they focus strictly on chronological timelines and technical mechanics, utterly devoid of the human voice of the master artisan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Therefore, it was paramount to offer these creators the stage to speak on the vocations to which they have surrendered their entire lives. It was equally crucial to document their precise methodologies and uncover why the younger generation is abandoning these workshops, even though these very hands shape the intangible heritage that anchors our collective Egyptian soul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What was the reality of your fieldwork among these artisans, and is there a particular encounter that remains permanently etched in your memory?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Fieldwork was never a mere academic exercise to collect data; it was a profound human and intellectual pilgrimage that fundamentally reshaped who I am. It granted me the rare privilege to sit with the true sentinels of our heritage, building deep, soulful connections. I listened intensely, absorbing their generational wisdom and the philosophy embedded in their hands. This immersion forced me to see the world through their eyes and feel the weight of their daily burdens in a visceral way, far removed from the cold comfort of theoretical research or detached academic observation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for what remains etched in my mind, the truth is I cannot reduce this journey to a single encounter or a passing anecdote. Every story bared to me by an artisan, every deep furrow on a craftsman’s hand, and every note of pride or quiet anxiety in their voices remains vibrant and pulsing within my conscience today. These narratives have woven themselves into my fabric; they are no longer just research topics, but a sacred trust and a deeply personal crusade that I am fiercely passionate to defend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You documented crafts currently facing extinction, such as alabaster carving, Faraka<\/em> (traditional hand-loom weaving), pottery, and Chereed (palm-frond furniture crate making). Why do certain crafts vanish while others manage to endure?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The survival or demise of any craft hinges entirely on its elasticity\u2014its capacity to evolve alongside the shifts of modernity and meet changing human needs. Continuity is not achieved through a stubborn collision with time, but through adaptation. Certain ancient industries, like hand-weaving and pottery, possess an innate fluidity that allows them to constantly reinvent their form and function, seamlessly embedding themselves into contemporary daily life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Conversely, other trades suffer a cruel decline due to forces entirely beyond the artisan’s control. Take alabaster, for instance; its survival is shackled to the scarcity of the raw stone and the immense peril of extracting it from its specialized quarries. Then, there are crafts where time itself dictates the final curtain due to shifting social landscapes. The Tarboush<\/em> (traditional fez) industry is a prime example; it collapsed and evaporated the moment it ceased to be a social necessity or a statement of modern style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Compounding these structural issues is a critical human variable: the sheer physical toll of the labor. A vast number of heritage crafts are hemorrhaging apprentices because the younger generation flees the grueling physical demands and the immense time required to finish a single piece. Young workers seek swifter, easier modern alternatives, leaving the craft vulnerable to extinction the moment the elder masters pass away. Thus, the curtain falls, and the craft slips behind the veil of history once the ecosystem that sustained it disappears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Through documenting the physical steps of these trades, what did you discover about the unspoken relationship between the artisan and their tools?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The bond between the artisan, their trade, and their tools transcends the boundaries of labor or economic survival; it is a profound spiritual and existential marriage. An artisan treats their tools as an irreplaceable member of their own family. In their absence, they feel utterly stripped of identity, as if they cease to exist. They cling to these objects, guarding them until their very last breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The object an artisan births cannot be reduced to a material commodity or a product manufactured for profit; it is an literal extension of their soul, forged from their time, physical vitality, and creative mind. From this devotion arises an unbreakable emotional symmetry where man and craft fuse into a singular, living energy manifested in every meticulous detail shaped by hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your book goes beyond mere documentation to map the systemic suffering of these creators. What are the most urgent challenges shared across these different workshops?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The universal crises threatening the survival of these industries converge on a few stark challenges. Foremost is the refusal of the youth to learn these trades, repelled by the grueling, slow nature of the work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To make matters worse, the plague of TikTok has spread like wildfire, luring young workers away from the workshops. They abandon their apprenticeships for the platform, chasing fast, effortless financial gain rather than enduring the patience required to master a discipline that demands years of sweat. This is compounded by the brutal, unfair competition of markets flooded with cheap, machine-made foreign imports sold at a fraction of the cost of a handmade piece\u2014pieces that actually reflect the true value of human artistry and bone-deep effort. These economic and social pressures threaten the very livelihood of these artisans and the survival of their hearths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why did you explicitly select the city of Naqada as your primary case study, and what sets its narrative apart?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My choice of Naqada was deliberate. It stands as a living, breathing monument a city whose civilization dates back more than 7,000 years before Christ. It witnessed the Paleolithic and Neolithic eras, predating Dynastic history, serving as the cradle where these crafts first sparked to life before spreading across the provinces of Egypt. The miracle of Naqada is that it retains its raw, ancient heritage character today; its people remain fiercely devoted to their traditional industries, passing them down as an inheritance from one generation to the next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This presents us with an extraordinary opportunity to transform this city into an international cultural tourism destination, independent of whether it possesses massive monumental architecture. While 90 percent of the antiquities excavated there consist of prehistoric pottery much of which we can no longer access due to historical looting and the illicit antiquities trade that smuggled them out of Egypt long ago\u2014Naqada\u2019s true wealth is its living, intangible culture. We can completely revitalize Naqada by illuminating its surviving heritage crafts, celebrating a hand-woven legacy that serves as a direct pipeline to our ancient identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How can we genuinely engage the youth in traditional crafts, shifting their perspective so they view them as a living future rather than a dead past?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Capturing the imagination of the new generation requires a radical overhaul in how we present this legacy, abandoning archaic, dry methodologies. We must strip away the academic stiffness and translate the history of the craft into compelling, emotionally resonant narratives. When a young person or a foreign visitor purchases a piece of pottery or a textile, we must never present it as a static object. Instead, we must tell them the story of that piece how it was born, how it evolved through the centuries, delivered through a captivating tale free from tedious institutional jargon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This storytelling is precisely what captures their attention, ignites a love for the trade, and anchors them to it intellectually and patriotically. This is how we cultivate a deep national consciousness, teaching them that these manual arts are an authentic cornerstone of our roots. Traditional crafts, with all their human, historical, and artistic weight, are no less valuable than the Pyramids or our grand temples; they are two sides of the same coin, both documenting the sheer genius of the Egyptian mind across time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After publishing two volumes on this subject, how has this odyssey transformed your own understanding of heritage?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This journey forced me to look at heritage with a depth I never anticipated. Though I have always understood its importance, my fieldwork revealed a stark reality: a massive segment of society remains completely blind to the true value of this inheritance and how it shapes our collective psyche.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I began, my approach to heritage was simpler, perhaps more superficial. But after immersing myself in the world of traditional artisans, my vision expanded. The vast majority of researchers fixate almost exclusively on tangible heritage\u2014the physical buildings and stone monuments\u2014while rarely glancing at the intangible, living heritage: the skills, the oral rituals, and the manual crafts. My absolute conviction now is that intangible heritage demands the exact same reverence, funding, and preservation as architectural monuments, because it is the living soul that animates those ancient tools and industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You founded the “Pulse of Civilization” initiative to cultivate public awareness around antiquities and heritage. How was that concept conceived?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The spark for “Pulse of Civilization” was struck during my internship at the Friends of the Egyptian Museum Association in Tahrir. I envisioned a digital space to write deeply about the histories of the artifacts on display, illuminating their significance through historical features about Egypt\u2019s diverse archaeological sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The objective was to create a free, alternative educational window for those who lack the means or opportunity to visit these monuments, allowing them to see and understand them intimately. Simultaneously, I targeted tourists who visit these sacred sites merely to snap a souvenir photograph next to an ancient stone without the slightest inkling of what it represents. I wanted them to comprehend the history standing right in front of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Over time, this individual writing project transcended digital essays. We began organizing real-world fieldwork and educational tours. The scope widened further into producing visual documentaries to capture those who lack a passion for reading or prefer swift, visual media\u2014such as children, who find long, complex articles inaccessible. By doing this, we ensure that accurate, rigorously verified history reaches every demographic in an engaging format.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The foundational mission of the initiative is to anchor the rising generation to their identity, history, and national roots. I want this generation to know with absolute certainty that no matter how desperately outsiders attempt to distort our history, dilute our heritage, or fracture our identity, the living Egyptian soul\u2014carried through our ancestral DNA\u2014will endure. It cannot be eradicated unless this populace is entirely wiped out, which is an absolute impossibility; the Egyptian nation is eternal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the eminent French egyptologist Gaston Maspero famously observed: “The Egyptian nation is an immortal nation; the very nature of its people, like its monuments, testifies to immortality.” This is a clear, Western validation that our authenticity is a continuous line that has never been broken. Every systematic movement throughout history to forge or distort Egyptian civilization, or to attribute it to outsiders, collapses under the weight of a singular truth: we are the only people who remained permanently wedded to our land, defending it to the last drop of blood, never leaving it as displaced persons or refugees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Through the lens of your initiative, how do you evaluate the contemporary youth’s awareness of heritage issues? Have you observed a genuine shift in their engagement?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n There is an undeniable transformation occurring. We are witnessing a massive surge of interest among young Egyptians regarding their own history. Awareness of cultural identity and the preservation of historical legacy has taken center stage in public discourse, particularly across social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This awareness crystallizes in how fiercely the youth mobilize to debate issues surrounding ancient Egypt, most notably in their sophisticated, widespread pushback against the historical distortions of the Afrocentric movement. They have taken it upon themselves to dismantle these claims using specialized, thoroughly documented historical sources. The true significance of this phenomenon is that it proves heritage protection does not happen solely within the walls of museums; it happens by weaponizing accurate knowledge. History belongs to humanity, but preserving its accuracy requires rigorous research and unwavering respect for scientific facts. This awakening is a massive step toward safeguarding Egypt\u2019s cultural memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What are the primary obstacles facing a grassroots, independent initiative operating within the heritage awareness sector, and how do you navigate them?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The most glaring challenge we face is that “Pulse of Civilization” is an entirely independent, self-funded endeavor. We receive zero financial or logistical backing from any governmental or institutional body. This places the entire financial burden of travel, accommodation, free public tours, and educational workshops squarely on our own shoulders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, we conquer these hurdles by replacing a lack of funding with absolute, unwavering faith in our mission. We rely on self-reliance and the raw passion of a team that views this documentation as an invaluable national duty. My hope for the near future is that initiatives like ours receive dedicated sponsorship from the state and institutions overseeing culture and antiquities. This would allow us to scale our impact, reach a broader audience, and secure the continuity of this educational crusade to protect a legacy that befits Egypt’s historical stature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How did your partnership with the Gayer-Anderson Museum come to fruition, and what dictated your choice of the name “Sarmad” for the exhibition?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The partnership with the Gayer-Anderson Museum grew from a profound realization I had as an author and researcher: simply writing or speaking about heritage crafts is an incomplete step. It offers no tangible salvation to the artisans on the ground. They cannot feed their families on academic theories and rhetoric if there are no marketing mechanisms supporting their survival. I knew I had to pivot from words to direct action, organizing a comprehensive exhibition designed to support them and spotlight their brilliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most fitting, historically resonant sanctuary for this vision was the Gayer-Anderson Museum. It is an archaeological marvel that houses handmade treasures from every corner of the world. Furthermore, the symbolism of the house\u2019s founder\u2014the British officer who fell in love with Egypt, curated its heritage, and bequeathed his entire estate to the Ministry of Antiquities\u2014is incredibly inspiring. My motivation was to demonstrate that we, as Egyptians, possess a love for our country and heritage that burns just as brightly. It is our national duty to elevate these masters, helping them refine their industries so the exhibition reaches beyond local audiences to international tourists, forcing them to marvel at the grandeur of these handmade creations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our success was propelled by the tireless dedication of several key figures who championed our integration into the museum. This includes Dr. Wisam Taha, Director of Marketing and Training at the Gayer-Anderson Museum; Mervat Izzat, Director of the Museum; Dr. Yasmin Hussein, Director of the Egyptus Foundation; Dr. Khaled Saad, Director of Prehistoric Antiquities at the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities; and Dr. Budour Osman, Training Officer at the Merit Amun Entity. They worked alongside core members of the “Pulse of Civilization” team, including Salma Sayed and Amani Hamed, ensuring our vision became a reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The foundational thesis of the exhibition was to present these heritage crafts to the public not as commercial commodities, but as breathing works of art pulsing with history. The participating crafts spanned a rich tapestry: handmade carpets, artisanal bags woven from specialized threads, fine linen stamped with iconography inspired by ancient Egyptian art, alongside intricate macram\u00e9 and beadwork. As for the name, Sarmad<\/em> was chosen from the depths of classical Arabic lexicons; it signifies that which is eternal, continuous, and infinite. It is the most precise, profound linguistic expression for a heritage and civilization that will forever endure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How did you ensure this exhibition broke away from the traditional, stagnant format of typical heritage markets?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Our departure from standard, uninspired exhibitions lay in our deliberate fusion of professional education with presentation. We curated bilingual explanatory placards in both Arabic and English to accompany each of the five participating crafts. These cards did not merely name the object; they offered a concise, verified historical text tracing the roots of the craft, providing vivid examples of its presence in ancient Egypt and its evolution into its contemporary form. This allowed every visitor\u2014Egyptian and foreign alike\u2014to forge an instant intellectual bridge between the physical masterpiece before their eyes and a civilization spanning thousands of years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking toward the horizon, what are the critical issues that you believe demand urgent focus and active mobilization?<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Whether through my academic research or via “Pulse of Civilization,” my absolute focus now is diving deeper into the specialized defense of intangible cultural heritage. I am entirely consumed by the unquantifiable elements of Egyptian history. Egypt is not a collection of silent walls or dead monuments; it is a living spirit breathing through our customs, rituals, and inherited craftsmanship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To translate this philosophy into immediate action, our next step within the initiative will be the launch of a series of interactive, hands-on workshops dedicated entirely to teaching heritage crafts. We are targeting children and young adults, encouraging them to get their hands dirty and experience the labor themselves. Our goal is to plant the seeds of passion in the hearts of the younger generation from an early age, transferring the sacred secrets of the trade to ensure its sustainability and shield it from extinction. This grassroots mobilization will run parallel to a new book project that illuminates this human treasure, documenting the sheer depth of the Egyptian cultural genome. Our initiative will remain a living bridge, binding the sons of this era to their deepest roots and to the ancient architects of our collective dream.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Egyptian author Hager Adel discusses her book Consigned to Oblivion, that focuses on heritage crafts from the perspective of the artisans themselves. A writer and researcher operating at the intersection of narrative and history, Hager Adel, founder of the “Pulse of Civilization” initiative, unearths what remains of Egypt’s ancestral legacy. In her book, Consigned to …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":6680,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[96],"tags":[4497,4496,1331,3421,4498],"class_list":["post-6678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-greater-cairo","tag-ancient-craftsmanship","tag-artisan-traditions","tag-cultural-identity","tag-egyptian-heritage","tag-vanishing-trades"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"1000126265\"](\"https:\/\/d312rsy2t5cgen.cloudfront.net\/2026\/06\/1000126265.jpg\")
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