Egyptian author reclaims women’s stories in Alexandria

In Egypt, writer Yasmine Abdullah began a research project in Alexandria centered on small clay figures called “Tanagra” from the Hellenistic period.

These figurines, depicting women in Greek attire, sparked a new way for Abdullah to view her city. Rather than focusing on grand historical narratives, she imagined these women walking the streets of Alexandria, allowing her to explore the city’s layers of history and culture through their imagined experiences.

Abdullah’s journey started with a visit to the recently reopened Greco-Roman Museum in Alexandria, where she encountered the Tanagra figurines. These statues, originally found in large numbers in a region of Greece called Boeotia during the 19th century, offered a glimpse into the lives and limitations placed upon women in ancient Greek society. Seeing them, Abdullah felt a connection, both to the figures’ constraints and to her own limited engagement with the city.

The author expanded her investigation to include the “agora,” or public square, in ancient Alexandria, considering it a central space for daily life. She also examined bathhouses, markets, and homes, looking for traces of women’s lives within these spaces. Through this approach, Abdullah sought to understand not only the physical layout of the ancient city but also the social rules and freedoms available to its inhabitants, ultimately aiming to redraw the map of Alexandria from a female perspective.

She also connected the city’s past to its present through references to poets like Callimachus and the intellectual life of the ancient Library of Alexandria.