Hansjoachim von der Esch
Encyclopedia
Hansjoachim von der Esch (1899–1976) was a German explorer in Egypt
and Libya
.
Esch had the academic degree of engineer. From 1929 to 1939 he worked representing a German enterprise in Egypt. During this time he made several expeditions into the Libyan Desert
and from 1934 to 1935 he accompanied the Hungarian explorer Laszlo Almasy
on his motorized expeditions, who called him his "navigator
". In 1934, he led a section of Almásy's expedition in the Gilf Kebir
to the Uweinat mountain. Somewhat before, he discovered in Wadi Halfa
the Magyarab
tribe, which is supposed to be of Hungarian origin.
Esch undertook also several expeditions on his own, both by car and by camel train
. His interest focussed not only on geographical measurements and cartography, but also on archaeology. North of Wadi Halfa he discovered ancient amethyst
mines and interpreted some strange rock carvings nearby and series of ancient stone heaps as traces of the use of a dioptra
for geodetics. Howard Carter
acknowledged the discoveries but disagreed with Esch's interpretation of early geodetics.
Later on, Esch tried to trace the route taken by the Persian king Kambyses during his attempt to conquer the oasis of Siwa
. He discovered a series of big stone heaps which he attributed to the Persian army and interpreted the remains of thousands of jars at the "pottery hill" of Abu Ballas, discovered in 1917, as a water depot for the army. Somewhat later, he tried to explore the zone with a camel train. After a successful test expedition with Senussi
nomads, accompanied by the English explorer E. E. Evans-Pritchard
, he learned that the British authorities of Egypt, in the wake of growing tensions between the UK and Germany, had issued orders to the Senussi not to put camels at the disposal of foreigners. That put an end to his expeditions in Egypt. In 1941 he published his experiences as an explorer and his archaeological findings and theories in the book Weenak - die Karawane ruft (Leipzig, 1941). The title, a combination of Arabic and German, means, "Wherever You Are, The Caravan Calls." He also edited Almásy's books for publication in Germany.
He created the Egyptian Sidewinder
From 1952 to 1957, Esch was the German ambassador in Syria and from 1957 to 1960, he was ambassador in Morocco. He died in 1976.
From September 1983 to February 1984, Gary S. Chafetz, an American journalist and author, led an expedition—sponsored by Harvard University, The National Geographic Society, the Egyptian Geological Survey and Mining Authority, and the Ligabue Research Institute—that searched for the Lost Army of Cambyses. Chafetz—who is apparently the first person to translate the obscure book by von der Esch—based the location of his search on the six large cairns that von der Esch reported finding in April 1939. Chafetz's six-month search was conducted along the Egyptian-Libyan border in a remote 100-square-kilometer area of complex dunes immediately north northwest of the six von der Esch cairns, south west of the uninhabited Bahrein Oasis, and approximately 100 miles south east of Siwa (Amon) Oasis. The $250,000 expedition had at its disposal 20 Egyptian geologists and laborers, a National Geographic photographer, two Harvard Film Studies documentary filmmakers, three camels, an ultra-light aircraft, and ground-penetrating radar. The expedition discovered approximately 500 tumuli (Zoroastrian-style graves) but no artifacts. Several tumuli contained bone fragments. Thermoluminence later dated these fragments to 1,500 BCE, approximately 1000 years earlier than the Lost Army. A recumbent winged sphinx carved in oolitic limestone was also discovered in a cave in the uninhabited Sitra Oasis (between Bahrein and Siwa Oases), whose provenance appeared to be Persian. Chafetz was arrested when he returned to Cairo in February 1984 for "smuggling an airplane into Egypt," even though he had the written permission of the Egyptian Geological Survey and Mining Authority to bring the aircraft into the country. He was interrogated for 24 hours. The charges were dropped after he promised to donate the ultra-light to the Egyptian Government. The aircraft now sits in the Egyptian War Museum in Cairo. {See Cambyses, for references.]
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
.
Esch had the academic degree of engineer. From 1929 to 1939 he worked representing a German enterprise in Egypt. During this time he made several expeditions into the Libyan Desert
Libyan Desert
The Libyan Desert covers an area of approximately 1,100,000 km2, it extends approximately 1100 km from east to west, and 1,000 km from north to south, in about the shape of a rectangle...
and from 1934 to 1935 he accompanied the Hungarian explorer Laszlo Almasy
László Almásy
László Ede Almásy de Zsadány et Törökszentmiklós was a Hungarian aristocrat, motorist, desert researcher, aviator, Scout-leader and soldier who also served as the basis for the protagonist in Michael Ondaatje's 1992 novel The English Patient and the movie based on it.-Biography:Almásy was born in...
on his motorized expeditions, who called him his "navigator
Navigator
A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...
". In 1934, he led a section of Almásy's expedition in the Gilf Kebir
Gilf Kebir
Gilf Kebir is a plateau in the New Valley Governorate of the remote southwest corner of Egypt, and southeast Libya. Its name translates as "the Great Barrier"...
to the Uweinat mountain. Somewhat before, he discovered in Wadi Halfa
Wadi Halfa
Wadi Halfa is a city in the state of Northern, in northern Sudan, on the shores of Lake Nubia . It is the terminus of a rail line from Khartoum and the point where goods are transferred from rail to ferries going down the Lake Nasser...
the Magyarab
Magyarab
The Magyarab are a people living along the Nile River in Egypt and Sudan. They are of Hungarian ancestry, probably dating back to the late 16th century.- Name :The name "Magyarab" is not a combination of the words "Magyar" and "Arab" as is commonly assumed...
tribe, which is supposed to be of Hungarian origin.
Esch undertook also several expeditions on his own, both by car and by camel train
Camel train
A camel train is a series of camels carrying goods or passengers in a group as part of a regular or semi-regular service between two points. Although they rarely travelled faster than the walking speed of a man, camels' ability to handle harsh conditions made camel trains a vital part of...
. His interest focussed not only on geographical measurements and cartography, but also on archaeology. North of Wadi Halfa he discovered ancient amethyst
Amethyst
Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz often used in jewelry. The name comes from the Ancient Greek ἀ a- and μέθυστος methustos , a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness; the ancient Greeks and Romans wore amethyst and made drinking vessels of it in the belief...
mines and interpreted some strange rock carvings nearby and series of ancient stone heaps as traces of the use of a dioptra
Dioptra
A dioptra is a classical astronomical and surveying instrument, dating from the 3rd century BCE. The dioptra was a sighting tube or, alternatively, a rod with a sight at both ends, attached to a stand...
for geodetics. Howard Carter
Howard Carter (archaeologist)
Howard Carter was an English archaeologist and Egyptologist, noted as a primary discoverer of the tomb of Tutankhamun.-Beginning of career:...
acknowledged the discoveries but disagreed with Esch's interpretation of early geodetics.
Later on, Esch tried to trace the route taken by the Persian king Kambyses during his attempt to conquer the oasis of Siwa
Siwa
Siwa may refer to:* 140 Siwa, an asteroid* Siwa, Indonesian pronunciation of the Hindu god Shiva* Siwa , spider genus in the Araneidae family* Siwa Oasis, an oasis in Egypt* Siwa, Panchthar, a Village Development Committee in Nepal...
. He discovered a series of big stone heaps which he attributed to the Persian army and interpreted the remains of thousands of jars at the "pottery hill" of Abu Ballas, discovered in 1917, as a water depot for the army. Somewhat later, he tried to explore the zone with a camel train. After a successful test expedition with Senussi
Senussi
The Senussi or Sanussi refers to a Muslim political-religious order in Libya and the Sudan region founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Senussi, Sayyid Muhammad ibn Ali as-Senussi. Senussi was concerned with both the decline of Islamic thought and spirituality and the weakening of Muslim political...
nomads, accompanied by the English explorer E. E. Evans-Pritchard
E. E. Evans-Pritchard
Sir Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard was an English anthropologist who was instrumental in the development of social anthropology...
, he learned that the British authorities of Egypt, in the wake of growing tensions between the UK and Germany, had issued orders to the Senussi not to put camels at the disposal of foreigners. That put an end to his expeditions in Egypt. In 1941 he published his experiences as an explorer and his archaeological findings and theories in the book Weenak - die Karawane ruft (Leipzig, 1941). The title, a combination of Arabic and German, means, "Wherever You Are, The Caravan Calls." He also edited Almásy's books for publication in Germany.
He created the Egyptian Sidewinder
From 1952 to 1957, Esch was the German ambassador in Syria and from 1957 to 1960, he was ambassador in Morocco. He died in 1976.
From September 1983 to February 1984, Gary S. Chafetz, an American journalist and author, led an expedition—sponsored by Harvard University, The National Geographic Society, the Egyptian Geological Survey and Mining Authority, and the Ligabue Research Institute—that searched for the Lost Army of Cambyses. Chafetz—who is apparently the first person to translate the obscure book by von der Esch—based the location of his search on the six large cairns that von der Esch reported finding in April 1939. Chafetz's six-month search was conducted along the Egyptian-Libyan border in a remote 100-square-kilometer area of complex dunes immediately north northwest of the six von der Esch cairns, south west of the uninhabited Bahrein Oasis, and approximately 100 miles south east of Siwa (Amon) Oasis. The $250,000 expedition had at its disposal 20 Egyptian geologists and laborers, a National Geographic photographer, two Harvard Film Studies documentary filmmakers, three camels, an ultra-light aircraft, and ground-penetrating radar. The expedition discovered approximately 500 tumuli (Zoroastrian-style graves) but no artifacts. Several tumuli contained bone fragments. Thermoluminence later dated these fragments to 1,500 BCE, approximately 1000 years earlier than the Lost Army. A recumbent winged sphinx carved in oolitic limestone was also discovered in a cave in the uninhabited Sitra Oasis (between Bahrein and Siwa Oases), whose provenance appeared to be Persian. Chafetz was arrested when he returned to Cairo in February 1984 for "smuggling an airplane into Egypt," even though he had the written permission of the Egyptian Geological Survey and Mining Authority to bring the aircraft into the country. He was interrogated for 24 hours. The charges were dropped after he promised to donate the ultra-light to the Egyptian Government. The aircraft now sits in the Egyptian War Museum in Cairo. {See Cambyses, for references.]