Dr. Yasser Mahgoub – Doctoral Dissertaion –University of Michigan - 1990 - 183
and a luxury. It was never fully accounted for as an important element that allowed for the newly married couple to start their independent life.
Changes Made to the Environment
As soon as they reached the new villages, the Nubians started to apply changes to the houses and environment around them. The Nubians applied changes to the houses in order to make them suit their cultural and social values. In his report on the Initial Adaptations to Resettlement, Fernea wrote: Among the most obvious transformations wrought by the Nubians in the new resettlement project is in the appearance and even the structure of the mass-produced dwellings. There is scarcely a neighborhood in New Nubia in which some houses have not been radically altered through the mounting of china plates above the doors, as in Old Nubia, and by plastering the exterior with mud to create a facade upon which traditional Nubian designs may be painted. Mastabas, the low clay benches running along the front of all Old Nubian houses, have also been added by many people. Frequently, one man sets a standard soon emulated by owners of other homes along the same street. 82 Changes were also applied in order to make the houses easily identifiable; plastering the walls with mud mixture and decorating the facades were some of the techniques used. The low exterior walls of the houses were heightened by adding several layers of stone to them. The madiafas were covered with palm tree reeds and mud mixture. The small courtyards were enlarged by placing the toilet behind the madiafa, in place of the animals' entrance and building a stable outside the house. Ventilation openings between neighboring houses were blocked in order to prevent sounds from transmitting between houses. The entrance gates were decorated with brick work and drawings. Mastabas, a low sitting bench made of brick and sand, were added to the facades of the houses. There were two types of mastabas: a small one for sitting and a
82 Fernea, A. Robert, and John G, Kennedy, Initial Adaptation to Resettlement: A new life for Egyptian Nubians, Current Anthropology, Vol.7, No. 3, June 1966, p. 349-354.