Khaled El-Enany, Egypt’s Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, and Zahi Hawass, a renowned Egyptologist and a former government minister, were each handed the Officer’s Cross of the Polish Order of Merit at a recent ceremony in the gardens of the Polish embassy in Cairo.
The decorations were presented by Michał Łabenda, the Polish ambassador to Egypt.
Those in attendance included "representatives of Egyptian antiquities authorities and the archaeological community in Cairo," according to a report.
Also present was Prof. Anna Wodzińska, director of a research station run in Cairo by the University of Warsaw’s Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology (PCMA UW), as well as the directors of Polish expeditions currently working in Egypt.
Cooperation between Egypt and Poland in archaeology started more than 80 years ago. Since then, Polish expeditions have worked at dozens of archaeological sites in that country.
Many of these projects were made possible by the establishment of a permanent Polish research institute in Cairo, which has been operating there since 1959.
In 2019, to mark the 60th anniversary of the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology’s research station in Cairo, a special exhibition was held at the city’s Egyptian Museum.
“Many generations of Polish scientists, as well as students, have taken part in research on the archaeology and history of this unique country,” said the research station’s Wodzińska, as quoted by the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology.
She added: “We have been able to work in Egypt for many decades thanks to the cooperation with Egyptian archaeologists."
During Sunday’s ceremony, Egypt's El-Enany praised the discoveries and conservation work of Polish archaeologists, while also emphasizing the importance of Poland as a partner for Egypt in tourism, according to the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology.
The Polish Order of Merit, established in 1992, is awarded to foreigners and Polish citizens permanently residing abroad who have made an outstanding contribution to international cooperation and Poland’s ties with other nations.
For more information about the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology, go to pcma.uw.edu.pl.
(gs/pk)
Source: pcma.uw.edu.pl, gov.pl