Ancient Egypt by Train - First Season

I'm Alice Roberts and I'm on an adventure

to look at the world's oldest and greatest civilisation.

I'm going to be travelling the length and breadth of Egypt by train

to discover its ancient past.

I want to understand how the tombs, temples and pyramids came to be made

and dig even deeper to understand what life was like

for the ordinary people who made them.

Along the way, I'll be meeting archaeologists

who are still working to uncover the story of ancient Egypt.

I'll be looking at some familiar sights...

..but also learning about new discoveries.

I'm now on the railway line

that hugs the Nile

all the way to Aswan via Luxor.

In Luxor, I find out

why it's known as the world's greatest open-air museum.

In Aswan, I visit the land of the temples.

Today, I'll be making my base in Cairo.

I'll visit the great Egyptian Museum...

..get up close with the Pyramids...

..even going inside.

Down in the souk, I'll find a hidden gem...

..and off the beaten track,

the hillside graveyard

where the elite are buried alongside the commoners...

..as I travel ancient Egypt by train.

My first stop is

the country's capital city.

I started my journey in Alexandria,

140 miles away from Cairo.

After a quick stop in Tanta,

I'm now getting close to the Egyptian capital.

I've been intrigued by ancient Egypt since I was a child

and it's down to one particular woman.

In my local churchyard was the grave of the pioneering Egyptologist,

Amelia Edwards.

Amelia travelled to Luxor and Aswan, starting her journey in Cairo.

I'm sad to be saying goodbye to Alexandria and the Mediterranean Sea,

but my journey now lies to the south.

I'm also leaving behind that more recent history,

the Mamluk rulers, the Greeks, the Romans,

and I'm going in search of the Pharaohs.

I'm heading towards the Pyramids.

This is the book that Amelia penned as she made her journey up the Nile.

Amelia Edwards wrote that

the first glimpse that many travellers would have of the Pyramids

was on this train ride from Alexandria to Cairo,

so I'm hoping I might see them myself,

and, of course, they're the most famous landmarks in Egypt

and surrounded in myth and mystery still.

Some people say that they are the relics of

an ancient, technologically advanced civilisation,

others that they were built by aliens,

but the archaeological truth is much more interesting

and I'm going to meet the experts who are delving into those secrets.

I'm also hoping to uncover

the origins of the great city of Cairo itself.

As I pass through the city,

it becomes clear that the Pyramids can't be seen from the train anymore.

Cairo has grown dramatically since Amelia was here

over 100 years ago.

Egypt was the second country in the world after Britain

to have a railway.

It was built by British pioneer and designer Robert Stephenson.

Stephenson was also contracted to make the trains.

Cairo is the hub of the whole rail network

with hundreds of trains passing through it every day.

Cairo station was renovated in 2014 and it is splendid.

As the nation's main station, this was a no-expense-spared revamp

demonstrating just how proud the Egyptians are of their railways.

The station also has its own museum

dedicated to the nation's railway history.

Oh, look, there's the plate of Robert Stephenson.

Newcastle on Tyne.

And just when I thought I'd finished with trains today...

..along comes Diane from the museum to distract me.

This to make it move. There it is.

Diane, when did the railways first open in Egypt

and where did it travel from and to?

It started from Alexandria in 1852.

From Alexandria, it reached to Cairo in stages

in 1856.

With an engine built by Robert Stephenson.

Yes.

Today, the Egyptian railway spans over 4,000 miles

and, every year,

more than 270 million journeys are taken by passengers.

Cairo and its sister city, Giza, directly across the Nile,

form Greater Cairo.

With a population of around 21 million,

this isn't just the biggest city in Egypt.

It's the biggest city in Africa

and, yet, it's not big enough.

The city's traffic is congested 24/7,

making travelling anywhere quickly impossible,

so the Egyptian solution is build a brand-new capital, New Cairo,

just 30 miles away.

This is a nation that isn't afraid to think big.

I start this new chapter of my journey into the deep past

in the Egyptian Museum...

..right in the heart of Cairo's city centre.

I'm meeting Yossra Ibrahim...

It's very, very nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.

..an Egyptologist from the city

who now works at the University of Mainz in Germany.

So, tell me about this, then. I mean, this is extraordinary.

When does it date to? It dates from about Dynasty I.

It marks the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt.

So, this is the very beginning of that pharaonic period.

Yes, it's the beginning of a unified kingdom.

Yeah.

We have the pharaoh Narmer, or the pharaoh Menes.

He's the tallest one?

Yes, it's the biggest character to denote his importance

and his power as well.

And who are these headless bodies over here?

So, these people are supposed to be the enemies

who were against Narmer or were against unification.

When are we talking about? Fourth millennium BC?

Yes, possibly. Yeah, yeah.

A very interesting detail in the middle here,

you see the circle.

This is where the make-up palette would be prepared.

It's a make-up palette?

It's supposed to be, but we're not sure if it was used or not.

I'm drawn towards a face I'm familiar with.

It bears a striking resemblance to the bust of Queen Nefertiti,

which resides in the Neues Museum in Berlin.

She's one of the most copied works of ancient Egyptian art.

This is Nefertiti, is it?

This is an unfinished bust of Nefertiti.

So, the famous bust of Nefertiti currently in the Berlin Museum.

It's recognisably the same face. Yes, yes.

Yeah. It's the same technique.

The facial features are prominent.

And she is, you know... She's chin up, looking out.

Now, that's really naturalistic...

It's very naturalistic.

..compared to these statues, which are quite bizarre.

They are quite unique with reference to the Egyptian art

'cause it's quite strange to see the pharaoh depicted in this manner.

The museum's collection is spellbinding.

They have artefacts from ancient Egypt spanning thousands of years.

Both large and small.

But the treasures of one pharaoh in particular

draw in visitors in their millions -

Tutankhamun.

Here we have the mummy mask.

Oh, do you know, I've seen so many pictures of this,

but nothing quite prepares you for the real thing.

It's exquisite!

It's absolutely beautiful.

It's made of gold and you can see a lot of details.

You can see a fake beard denoting the death of the pharaoh.

You can also see the cobra and vulture at the top

or at the head in order to protect it.

There's layers and layers of symbolism...

Yes.

..and, you know, the symbolism of the wealth that is poured into this tomb

and almost saying, "We can afford to just lose this.

"We can afford to put all this gold away..."

Yeah.

"..and we're still rich and we're still powerful

"and this dynasty will continue."

Exactly.

Now, can we see his name anywhere here?

I don't see a name.

You can see it on a number of objects.

So, this is a mummy case belonging to Tutankhamun

and here, you can find his name, Tut-Ankh-Amun, or Tutankhamun.

And what's giving you the sound of Tut?

So, Tut is composed of these two semicircles, or the sound T...

Yeah.

..and then the W, the quail, that's the W, so "Tut".

The top one is the sound for the M and the zigzag is the N

and the one on the right is the E or the I.

That's a feather. That's a feather, yes.

Isn't it incredible? Yes.

You're making a living language again.

Yeah. Honestly, it's wonderful.

Would you like to see the sarcophagus of Tutankhamun?

Yes, I would like to see the sarcophagus.

Of course. Please.

Is this his sarcophagus as well?

Yes, this one was placed inside this.

How many sarcophagi? How many cases were there?

Well, these were several cases.

There were about four on the inside

and then there were two surrounding,

or two enboxing, the coffins.

And, again, you've got these ornate patterns,

but you've also got hieroglyphs and these hieroglyphs are inlaid.

Yes.

And even at his feet, you've got that extraordinary detail.

This is the goddess Isis stretching her wings

in order to aid the protection of the deceased, of Tutankhamun.

And in the pantheon of Egyptian gods and goddesses,

what was the division of power?

How important were the goddesses compared with the gods?

I would say they assumed equal importance