Sunday, October 11, 2015

Where have those old lamps gone !?

Thanks to an auction in Christie’s, we would have known that old Islamic lamps were stolen from the Old El-Rifa’I Mosque
While in London,  conservation architect Dr. Omneya Abdel Barr found out that Christie’s was going to a put an old Islamic glass lamp from Rifai Mosque for an auction on Friday.
The old Islamic glass lamp got the name of Khedive Abbas Helmi II inscribed on it.
The renowned heritage activist had doubts that that the glass lamp was stolen from Al-Rifai Mosque in Cairo. According to the data available.
The lamp
"Christie's"
According to Christie’s, 1910s the Enameled glass mosque lamp got the name of Khedive Abbas Helmi II pasha.
You find old lamps like that in Al-Rifai Mosque as far as I know.
Dr. Abdel Barr contacted a friend back in Cairo and asked him to check Al-Rifai Mosque and its lamps because they looked similar and her friend found out a disaster.
Not less than 98 old Islamic glass lamps were missing or rather stolen from the old Mosque that includes a cemetery of the Mohamed Ali Royal Family.
The lamps were replaced with cheap energy saving bulbs !!!!



The cheap bulbs at Rifai Mosque in Cairo "Al-Basara"
The cheap bulbs "Al-Basara" 
Not less than 98 old lamps stolen from a well known old mosque in Cairo and yet no one paid attention and somehow one of those lamps reached to Christie’s.
Of course, the officials denied that they were stolen claiming the original lamps of the mosque were kept safe away from the public !! 
Okay, I will believe that they took the original lamps away from the public display but did they check if they are in their safe place lately !!?
Already it is true that some of the Islamic Mosque lamps are replicas, it is obvious from the shape as they look like the one below but what about the 98 lamps !?
Sultan Hassan and Al-Rifai Mosque (11)
By Osama Mabrouk 
Despite she had a short time, Omneya Abdel Barr managed to suspend the sale of the lamp in Christie’s after reporting that the lamp could be stolen illegally from Egypt.

This is not the first time last week, Dr. Abdel Barr manages to save our heritage.
She also managed to suspend the sale of an ancient Egyptian manuscript at Sotheby’s.

That manuscript belongs to Egypt’s Religious endowment ministry.
The manuscript at Sotheby's
By Dr. Abdel Barr
I do not have anything more to say, I have just three questions.
Now Where have those old lamps gone ??
How did this beautiful and old manuscript reach the London auction house ?
Also when will we have a new minister of antiquities ??
God bless Dr. Omneya Abdel Barr.

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