Egypt’s Giza Pyramids Host Fan-less Eid Concerts

Tamer Hosni performs at a concert at the Giza Pyramids, Egypt.
Tamer Hosni performs at a concert at the Giza Pyramids, Egypt.
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Egypt’s Giza Pyramids Host Fan-less Eid Concerts

Tamer Hosni performs at a concert at the Giza Pyramids, Egypt.
Tamer Hosni performs at a concert at the Giza Pyramids, Egypt.

Egypt’s United Company for Media Services organized a number of fan-less concerts during Eid al-Fitr near the Giza Pyramids to help mitigate the effects of the lockdown imposed during the coronavirus pandemic.

Famous Egyptian stars, such as Angham, Tamer Hosni, Hamid el-Shaery, Hisham Abbas, Medhat Saleh, Alaa Abdel-Khaleq and Hanan recorded their concerts during the holy month of Ramadan at the Sound and Light Theater at the Great Pyramids of Giza and al-Azhar Park.

Egyptian artist Hisham Abbas told Asharq Al-Awsat that when the Company first approached him with the idea, he instantly agreed and did not hesitate in participating.

“We are all living in exceptional days because of the pandemic and we must all stand together to overcome them. My role as an artist is to bring joy to the people,” he said.

He explained that filming the concerts was carried out amid strict precautions where everyone adhered to the measures by wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.

The artist pointed out that during rehearsals before the actual filming, he used the least possible number of musicians to avoid crowding on the stage.

Since “Sham Ennessim” festival, various artists in Egypt have been holding concerts without an audience.

Maestro Hani Farhat, who leads Angham’s music band, revealed that the singer has a large number of surprises for her Egyptian and Arab fans.

Speaking to Asharq al-Awsat, Farhat said that Angham performed a number of her famous songs, including: “Yaretak Fahemni” and “Akteblak Taahod”, and a number of songs from her latest album “Hala Khasa Gedan”. Fans on social media requested a number of songs which she included in her setlist.

The Eid concerts began with a performance by Tamer Hosni who sang 12 of his most famous songs. He surprised his fans with a new music video, “Wa enta Maayia”, which was postponed for two years for remixing after it was recorded with Algerian artist Cheb Khaled.



A Gold Pocket Watch Given to the Captain Who Rescued Titanic Survivors Sells for Record Price

This undated photo made available by Henry Aldridge and Son shows a gold pocket watch that was given to Capt. Arthur Rostron, captain of RMS Carpathia that rescued 700 survivors of the Titanic. The watch sold at auction on Saturday Nov. 16, 2024 for nearly $2 million. (Andrew Aldridge/Henry Aldridge and Son via AP)
This undated photo made available by Henry Aldridge and Son shows a gold pocket watch that was given to Capt. Arthur Rostron, captain of RMS Carpathia that rescued 700 survivors of the Titanic. The watch sold at auction on Saturday Nov. 16, 2024 for nearly $2 million. (Andrew Aldridge/Henry Aldridge and Son via AP)
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A Gold Pocket Watch Given to the Captain Who Rescued Titanic Survivors Sells for Record Price

This undated photo made available by Henry Aldridge and Son shows a gold pocket watch that was given to Capt. Arthur Rostron, captain of RMS Carpathia that rescued 700 survivors of the Titanic. The watch sold at auction on Saturday Nov. 16, 2024 for nearly $2 million. (Andrew Aldridge/Henry Aldridge and Son via AP)
This undated photo made available by Henry Aldridge and Son shows a gold pocket watch that was given to Capt. Arthur Rostron, captain of RMS Carpathia that rescued 700 survivors of the Titanic. The watch sold at auction on Saturday Nov. 16, 2024 for nearly $2 million. (Andrew Aldridge/Henry Aldridge and Son via AP)

A gold pocket watch given to the ship captain who rescued 700 survivors from the Titanic sold at auction for nearly $2 million, setting a record for memorabilia from the ship wreck.

The 18-carat Tiffany & Co. watch was given by three women survivors to Capt. Arthur Rostron for diverting his passenger ship, the RMS Carpathia, to save them and others after the Titanic struck an iceberg and sank in the north Atlantic on its maiden voyage in 1912.

Auctioneers Henry Aldridge and Son, who sold the watch to a private collector in the United States on Saturday for 1.56 million British pounds, said it’s the most paid for a piece of Titanic memorabilia. The price includes taxes and fees paid by the buyer.

The watch was given to Rostron by the widow of John Jacob Astor, the richest man to die in the disaster, and the widows of two other wealthy businessmen who went down with the ship, The AP reported.

Astor's pocket watch, which was on his body when it was recovered seven days after the ship sank, had previously set the record for the highest price paid for a Titanic keepsake, fetching nearly $1.5 million (1.17 million pounds) from the same auction house in April.

Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said the fact that Titanic memorabilia has set two records this year demonstrates the enduring fascination with the story and the value of the dwindling supply and high demand for ship artifacts.

“Every man, woman and child had a story to tell, and those stories are told over a century later through the memorabilia," he said.

Rostron was hailed a hero for his actions the night the Titanic sank and his crew was recognized for their bravery.

The Carpathia was sailing from New York to the Mediterranean Sea when a radio operator heard a distress call from the Titanic in the early hours of April 15, 1912 and woke Rostron in his cabin. He turned his boat around and headed at full steam toward the doomed vessel, navigating through ice bergs to get there.

By the time the Carpathia arrived, the Titanic had sunk and 1,500 people perished. But the crew located 20 lifeboats and rescued more than 700 passengers and took them back to New York.

Rostron was awarded the US Congressional Gold Medal by President William Howard Taft and was later knighted by King George V.

Madeleine Astor, who had been helped into a lifeboat by her husband, presented the watch to Rostron at a luncheon at her mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York.

The inscription says it was given “with the heartfelt gratitude and appreciation of three survivors.” It lists Mrs. John B. Thayer and Mrs. George D. Widener alongside Astor's married name.

“It was presented principally in gratitude for Rostron’s bravery in saving those lives,” Aldridge said. "Without Mr. Rostron, those 700 people wouldn’t have made it.”