Newsgroup: it.arti.musica
Titolo: [Rock e Piramidi /Sting e Grateful Dead] momumenti a rischio

http://www.guardians.net/hawass/Sting_and_the_Pyramids.htm
Sting and the Pyramids
Zahi Hawass 
The Pyramids of Giza are sacred and divine.  This is a site that
we visit to learn about history, about a great people and their
achievements.  But when a concert is performed in front of the
Pyramids and the Sphinx, I call this destruction and site
pollution.    
A few years ago I said these exact words when an Egyptian living
in New York wanted to bring famous singers to perform in front of
the Sphinx.  At that time, many people agreed with me, but those
who work in tourism argued that these famous singers would
promote Egypt abroad and stimulate tourism as a result of the
publicity they would generate. However, I believe that tourism is
the greatest enemy to archaeology.  Mass tourism causes damage to
ancient monuments, monuments that have weathered thousands of
years only to witness their greatest decay this last century. 
 UNESCO has organized many conferences in many countries to
heighten awareness of what can happen in the future to
archaeological sites as a result of mass tourism.  It has been
stated that, unless there are drastic changes, we can expect that
within 200 years, these sites will be irrevocably destroyed.    
I still remember in 1977 when I was a young archaeologist and I
attended a Grateful Dead concert in front of the Sphinx.  There
was a huge crowd of 10,000 young people standing, shouting,
screaming, drinking beer, and I even saw some foreigners smoking.
The sound of their music was so loud that I could feel the stones
of the pyramids trembling with the vibration, and the delicate
rock of the Sphinx crumbling.  
I felt that day that the Sphinx was sad, and I imagined that he
was appalled that his descendents would do such a thing.  He kept
it inside and did not speak, but ten years later, a big chunk
from his right shoulder fell off.  The world was shocked and
media from all over the world descended upon Egypt to comment on
it.  Many experts argued that it was the water table and the rain
that caused this damage, but I was the only one who knew the
truth: he could not stand what we have been doing to him. People
built their houses only fifteen meters away from him; water and
sewage runoff seeped into his body from below.  An Antiquities
Director who is now retired gave permission to some amateurs from
the streets of nowhere to knock on the Sphinx’s body, and the
Grateful Dead gave a concert right at his feet.  
We never learn.  Two decades later, a letter came to my office
asking for permission for Sting to sing in front of the Sphinx.
We sent a letter to Dr. Gaballa A. Gaballa, the Secretary General
of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, and we said no, giving our
reasons as mentioned above.  The man respected our opinion and
also refused. 
Since the organizer couldn’t get permission to do it on
Antiquities land, he decided to hold the show in front of the
Sound and Light Theater that belongs to the Sound and Light
Company.  The organizer sold 15,000 tickets, and it was only then
that security investigated and found that the theater, filled to
capacity, holds only 3,000 people.  The overflow, decided the
concert organizers, would have to be accommodated on Antiquities
land located to the north of the Sound and Light building. 
Negotiations took place for days and days.  The Egyptian Tourist
Authority wanted the concert to happen, while the Egyptian
Antiquities authorities continued to refuse.  A few hours before
the time of the concert, Antiquities had to give permission.  
About fifteen thousand, most of the young people in their teens
and twenties, packed the area.  Many of them could not even enter
the plateau because it was so crowded, and there was no crowd
control.  Sting started to sing, and the vibrations of the music
coming from the gigantic speakers shook the ground.  The fifteen
thousand spectators jumped around with the beat of the music; the
sound from both sources shook every stone of the pyramids, not to
mention the Sphinx.  At midnight, Marwa Naeem, one of my students
called me and said, “Dr. Zahi, you taught us to preserve the
monuments, and I cannot understand how you gave them permission
to do this.”
I was glad to hear that the concert finished at midnight.  I did
not attend.  I will never forget that first scene that, two
decades ago, had transformed this magical and divine site into an
anthropoid zoo.  I had no desire to repeat the experience. 
 The next day, I went to the Sphinx and walked around the statue
to see if anything had happened to him.  I searched his face for
anger; I was afraid that what happened in 1988 could happen
again, and another large section of the ancient monument could
fall down.
I agree to Antiquities sites being used for cultural
performances, such as Aida, that are in keeping with the dignity
of this sacred site.  They are also much easier to manage than an
overcrowded rock concert.  We have selected a site to the west of
the pyramids for these kinds of performances.  What is done is
done, but we should think carefully before something like this is
allowed to happen again.  I am afraid that I will hear the Sphinx
crying again, but I hope that this time he will forgive us.
 

 The Pyramids of Giza are sacred and divine.  
le piramidi di Giza sono un mucchio di sassi;
Er Rama Corrige
-- 
le charme inattendu d'un bijou rose et noir.
[Lola di Valenza]
http://digilander.iol.it/charlesbaudelaire/
http://www.fantascienza.net/sfcity/crono.sf

le piramidi di Giza sono un mucchio di sassi;
Come sei materialista.
Ip.

 Come sei materialista.
lo spiritualismo è l'ultimo rifugio delle canaglie;
Citorama
-- 
eh-ho!
[Alan Sorrenti: Come un vecchio incensiere all'alba di un villaggio
deserto]
http://digilander.iol.it/ramapage/
http://www.fantascienza.net/sfcity/crono.sf