19th Century Manuscript and Drawings by Egypt Explorer Frédéric Caillaud Discovered

An unpublished manuscript, written by 19th century Egypt explorer Frédéric Caillaud, has been discovered – and it points the way to a 3,500 year old tomb of an Egyptian official.

It is called Arts and Crafts of the Ancient Egyptians, Nubians and Ethiopians. It is written in French and illustrated with drawings. The American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) is in the process of translating and publishing it. The work is being led by Dr. Andrew Bednarski. He gave a lecture and interview recently in Toronto, and provided me with snippets from the book and pictures of three of the drawings.

Frédéric Caillaud was one of the first Europeans to reach the ancient city of Meroe, far up the Nile and inside modern day Sudan. He also explored sites in Thebes and the Kharga Oasis, and re-discovered the ancient emerald mines of Mount Zabarah. His published books include Voyage to Meroe and Voyage to the Oasis of Thebes (both originally written in French). The expeditions he undertook happened between 1815 and 1822.

The newly discovered manuscript includes four drafts of the book, plus notes – about 1,000 pages in total. The focus of the work isn’t so much on the adventures Caillaud had – rather it’s on his efforts to make sense of the things that he saw.

Work on the book did not go smoothly. “To say that there were problems with publication is a bit of an understatement,” said Dr. Bednarski. Half of the image plates were lost when the house they were in was destroyed. “It actually collapsed.” Some of these drawings later appeared in other works. Despite the setback Caillaud kept working on the text, reaching the fourth draft before he passed away in 1869. 

At that point his son got the documents and they vanish from the historical record. It’s not until 2002 that they re-surfaced at an auction house in the southern United States, where it was purchased by Christine Thomson and Rupert Halliwell. In 2005 it came up for auction again, this time at Christies in London, and long-time ARCE member Dr. W. Benson Harer Jr. made the purchase. In 2008 ARCE initiated the publishing and translation project. 

Readers may note that one of the drawings, shown above, is particularly interesting. It appears to depict two dogs that are both wearing collars. The drawing is from the tomb of Neferhotep (an Egyptian official). The tomb's location is unknown to present day archaeologists and, until it is found, it cannot be confirmed that Caillaud's drawings are accurate.

Directions to the tomb of Neferhotep

Neferhotep was an Egyptian official who was buried in Thebes. “He was an overseer of the granary,” said Dr. Bednarski, probably during the reigns of Amenhotep II and/or Thutmose III. This makes the tomb about 3,500 years old.

“We just have no idea where that tomb is all together,” said Bednarski.

That’s where the book comes in. “In the manuscript there’s a plan (of the tomb), of which I’ve just found,” said Bednarski. “My focus is to go back this summer to the Theban west bank." 

Once there "I’m going to try to find it based on the references that he makes in his manuscript, but based primarily off of a plan that he’s drawn of the tomb itself."

So how is it that this tomb became lost after Caillaud discovered it?

“Any number of things could have obscured the entrance,” said Bednarski, including landslides. “One of the other possibilities is that simply all the decoration had fallen off the walls, or been robbed out, and as a result there’s no way of identifying it as having been there.”

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Exploring the Pyramids of Meroe

The book includes accounts of exploring the pyramids at Meroe and elsewhere in Sudan.

Take a look:

In April 1821, Mr. Letorzec and I were climbing…[a]…pyramid...Prince Ismail expressly forbid us from all excavations, not wanting to be treated, he said, as impious by the natives, in violating the sepulchres.  In any case, we could not destroy one of the most beautiful monuments of ancient Meroe.

[Arts and Crafts, chapter 14]'

Here’s another account:

We regretted not being able to penetrate the tombs of Meroe and Napata where we might have found, as in those of Egypt, scenes of private life for the ancient people.  We said…that at the time of my discovery of these monuments in April 1821, Ismail, son of Mohammed Ali, fearing to pass before the eyes of the natives for authorizing the violation of the tombs, expressly forbade us from any attempt to penetrate them.

[Arts and Crafts, chapter 2 footnote]'

A discovery in Thebes

The book also includes this account of a discovery in Thebes:

Finding ourselves in 1816 in the ruins of the Theban Necropolis with Consul Drovetti, we collected a large, wooden statuette with a height of 60 centimetres, representing Osiris.  It was fixed to its base with a dowel which we had the curiosity to remove.  The idol separated thusly from its base and, to our great surprise, we found in the body itself a magnificent roll of papyrus, measuring 3 metres 50 centimetres in length.  The thickness of the bottom of the legs of the statuette had caught our attention.  We might believe this beautiful funerary ritual was thusly hidden, forever and a day, in the body of the great god Osiris.  We give notice to the directors of the Egyptian Museum who might not have known this.

[Arts and Crafts, chapter 17 footnote]'

A 19th century encyclopaedia

In general the book is written “in the style of a 19th century encyclopaedia,” said Dr. Bednarski, with individual sections for each topic. However Caillaud didn’t understand Egyptian hieroglyphs so he had to make his interpretations without them.

In the entry below he describes what funerary papyri, buried with the deceased, are for:

They represent the transmigration of the soul at its return to the divine, judgment scenes, etc, in which good or bad actions are weighed under the eyes of Osiris, the god of the Amenti, who declares judgment.  The souls of the guilty take the form of a trout, a wolf, or other animals known to be impure, to be thusly returned to earth.

[Arts and Crafts, chapter 17]'

19th century analogies

Caillaud also uses 19th century analogies to try to explain things he sees in Egypt. In this excerpt he notes that the Egyptian custom, of balancing a pole on a person’s shoulders, is also seen in Holland: 

We have noted that this custom is much appreciated in Amsterdam, principally during the period where ice overruns the canals which, as we know, become in this circumstance the roads for the country.  The milkmaid on her skates has a balancing pole on her shoulders from which her containers or her baskets of vegetables are suspended.  They follow each movement of the courageous Dutchwoman, who sometimes on one foot, sometimes on the other, indulges in the full dash of her skates.  For foreigners (and we remember) this fact is one of the curiosities of this country.

[Arts and Crafts, chapter 5]

Click To Watch Video

The Lost Tombs of Thebes (Featuring Dr Zahi Hawass and Dr Janice Kamrin)

On a journey through the Tombs of Thebes, Dr Zahi Hawass and Dr Janice Karmin explain the ongoing discoveries being made in the area, and how there are thousands upon thousands of "Lost Tombs" just waiting to be found!

CLICK TO WATCH

The last discovery of Frédéric Caillaud

If all goes well we should know soon whether the manuscript leads the way to the tomb of Neferhotep. While the tomb won’t be as large as one built for a pharaoh or prince – the potential of re-discovering the artwork inside is a tantalizing one.

Caillaud’s life suggests that he was a man who loved discovery and wasn’t afraid to announce it. When he encountered a temple in the Kharga Oasis he could not resist the urge to write an inscription commemorating the find. He wrote that “Caillaud was the first European who learned of this temple year 1818.”

Now, in the year 2010, the noted explorer is set to make one last find.

Check out Dr. Zahi Hawass and Dr. Janice Karmin talking about Lost Tombs of Thebes in this Heritage Key video.

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About The Author

Owen Jarus (follow me: e-mail or )

Last three pieces by this author:

19 New Objects from King Tutankhamun's Tomb Discovered in New York | 'Unique' astronomical object reveals Ancient Egyptians kept close tabs on the Big Dipper | King Tut suffered 'massive' chest injury, new research reveals

Owen Jarus is a freelance writer based in Toronto ,Canada. He has written articles on archaeology for a variety of media outlets including The Canadian Press newswire (CP), U of T Magazine, The Mississauga News and The Guelph Mercury. Education: BA from the University of Toronto in History, Geography and Near & Middle Eastern Civilizations.