Does Egypt need museum to save film set props?
After a fire destroyed many of the iconic props of Egyptian cinema, prop master Abbas Saber appeals to Cairo to help put what remains in a museum.
CAIRO — Can a fire that destroyed many of the props that are iconic for the Egyptian cinema pave the way for the creation of a film museum displaying props and set decorations in Egypt? Abbas Saber, Egyptian prop master who lost thousands of dollars worth of merchandise in a fire this spring, certainly hopes so.
The props and decorations in Saber’s store in 6th of October City, 20 miles from Cairo, have featured in Egyptian cinema and TV series since the first half of the 20th century. In an interview with Al-Monitor, Saber said that he followed in the footsteps of his father, who had started the business in 1934, in supplying props and furniture for films.
The company, Props Egypt, provided props for the legendary Egyptian films of the late 1950s and 1960s, such as award-winning films “The Land” and “The Nightingales’ Prayer.” Saber joined his father in 1959 and their business expanded with the start of Egyptian television in the early 1960s.
The 1960s were a transition period in terms of decor and accessories used in films, accompanied by the gradual development of TV dramas, a trend that further developed in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In 1984, the TV series "One Thousand and One Nights" was first produced, for which Saber's company provided the bed of Sherazade.
