The Nubia campaign: when UNESCO moves mountains
This is the story of one the greatest archeological rescue operations of all times. Under the aegis of UNESCO, over fifty countries put their differences aside in the midst of the Cold War to save temples and sites of ancient Egypt from drowning. Under threat from the rising waters of the Aswan Dam built in Egypt’s drive for modernization, they were in danger of being irrevocably lost.
The campaign to save the monuments of Nubia, launched at the UNESCO Headquarters in 1960, led to the relocation of over twenty architectural complexes. Among the monuments saved by this colossal project are the emblematic temples of Abu Simbel and Philae.
Today, the Nubia campaign is seen as a defining example of international solidarity. Moreover, this campaign of unprecedented scale gave rise to the concept of heritage belonging to everyone. This idea took shape a few years later with the adoption of the 1972 UNESCO World Heritage Convention.
A story told through the voices of prominent figures from the late 1950s to the present day, and The UNESCO Courier archives.
Featuring in this episode:
Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt, French archeologist specializing in Egyptology
Lazare Eloundou, director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Zahi Hawass, Egyptian archaeologist, and former Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs
Rex Keating, director of the Mission Radio and Television of UNESCO (1956-1971)
Bénédicte Lhoyer, French archaeologist and scientific adviser to the exhibition Ramsès et l’or des Pharaons (Paris, 2023)
André Malraux, French writer and politician
Vittorino Veronese, Director-General of UNESCO 1958-1961
An episode by Katerina Markelova and Anuliina Savolainen, production by Emmanuel Rudowski.
With the voices of François Wibaux, Ma'aly Hazzaz, Dov Lynch, Anuliina Savolainen, Katharine Lovatt, Julian Barbière, Tariq Talal Mosaad
English adaptation Gina Doubleday and Daniel Brown.
© Photo UNESCO / Nenadovic
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The Nubia campaign: when UNESCO moves mountains
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