Zhang Zian carefully observed the photo that Lazart had shown him. From the furry woven surface, he could tell that the target of the photo was either a carpet or a tapestry. From the size, the latter was more likely.
The tapestry was surrounded by a circle of red decorative lace, which could be ignored.
This was a picture narrated from a first-person perspective.
Most of the tapestry was occupied by rolling yellow sand. The dark yellow sun hung overhead, and the sky was badly faded, but traces of yellow could still be seen.
Yellow sand, yellow sun, yellow sky.
A cat walked in the middle, leaving a series of paw marks on the yellow sand. It looked back, as if it was impatiently urging the person behind it to hurry up.
As the main point of view of the narrative, a hand stretched forward, as if desperately following the cat in the desert.
In the distant horizon, where the desert and the sky met, there were a few black branch-like objects that looked like palm trees and bristles swaying. There was also a dark green lake, which probably represented an oasis.
The theme of the whole tapestry was very clear. It was about a cat taking a person who was about to die of thirst in the desert to an oasis.
One of the details caught Zhang Zian's attention. On the wrist that was half buried in the yellow sand, there was a pattern tattooed. Limited by the level of weaving, the pattern was relatively blurred, but it could still be seen that it was a cross.
Lazart smiled and stretched out his wrist. There was a similar cross tattooed on the inside of his wrist, which represented their Christian faith.
After looking at the picture, Zhang Zian looked at Fina again. He more or less guessed what Lazart meant, but he still confirmed, "You mean …"
If Lazart wanted to say that Fina was the cat in the picture, Zhang Zian would definitely deny it, because Fina lived in the decades before Christ. At that time, Jesus had not yet been born, and it was even more impossible to give a religious meaning to the cross.
Lazart laughed. "I saw this tapestry from an acquaintance. I thought it was very interesting, so I took a few photos. It is said that this tapestry was woven by the acquaintance's ancestors based on an earlier family legend. Today, I saw Fina and thought it was very similar to the cat in the tapestry, so I wanted to show it to you. "
This statement had some credibility. It was not a tapestry woven by the people who had experienced the event, but a later generation based on an earlier legend to commemorate their ancestors. The descendants who believed in Christianity had tattooed the cross out of pride for their family history.
"Can you send me these photos?" Zhang Zian asked.
"Sure."
Lazart sent the photo to Zhang Zian.
When no one was paying attention, Zhang Zian quietly showed the picture to Fina and asked, "Is that you in this picture?"
Fei Na stared at it for a while and shook his head impatiently, "I've long forgotten. Who would remember such trivial matters?"
This answer was also very stylish.
Zhang Zian thought for a moment, then walked up to Lazart and asked, "Does your acquaintance know where the incident in the tapestry happened?"
"Where is this place …" Lazart tried hard to recall. The legends of his family only mentioned that this was the desert in the west, but did not specify the specific location. Moreover, the names of the ancient places were definitely different from the modern ones. Even if it was explained, it would be meaningless.
"It seems to be the desert in the west," he answered.
"The desert in the west …"
Zhang Zian vaguely felt that this might be a clue to find the original Egyptian cat. If it was not Fina in this picture, but Fina's kind, perhaps it had once inhabited the desert in the west. As for whether it was still there now, it could only be known after a field trip, but the hope was certainly slim.
Ninety-five percent of Egypt's territory was desert. There was the Eastern Desert in the east, the Nubian Desert in the south, and the Western Desert in the west. To find a creature that existed two thousand years ago in the desert was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
The oasis in the tapestry might be a clue, but after two thousand years, the oasis might have evaporated and disappeared.
Zhang Zian discussed his thoughts with Gao Ke and the others. Although Gao Ke and the others felt that the hope was slim, they also agreed that this was a clue. Having a clue was better than not having a clue. At least for the time being, the target was temporarily locked in the Western Desert.
He He did not participate in their discussion. Instead, she was attracted by the dazzling and exotic gold and silver jewelry. She pulled Kate and asked her to help introduce some jewelry to her. She planned to buy a few pieces of jewelry to bring back to China. Not only could she keep them as a souvenir, but she could also give them as gifts to her friends and relatives. The most important thing was that the price of gold here was cheaper than in China, and 18K gold was even cheaper. It did not cost much to get a gift with Egyptian characteristics. Wasn't that great?
After Zhang Zian and the others finished their discussion, they thought that the staff and friends in China had repeatedly told them to bring back gifts before they left. It was better to take care of Lazart's business as a way of thanking him for his help.
They told Lazart their intentions to buy, and Lazart readily agreed. He personally introduced them to the various categories of jewelry in the shop.
There were many types of jewelry in the shop, but since Zhang Zian and the others wanted to buy jewelry with Egyptian characteristics, they could exclude the ordinary jewelry that was beautifully crafted and popular with local women but had no special meaning.
Lazart introduced that jewelry with Egyptian characteristics and popular with foreign tourists could be roughly divided into three categories — famous cultural relics replicas, famous character statues, and amulets.
Famous cultural relics replicas were more representative. The pendant of the Rosetta Stone was miniaturized according to the scale of the real thing and artistically processed. It could be used as a key pendant or as a necklace to hang around the neck. It was also good as an ornament at home.
As the key to deciphering the hieroglyphics, the significance of the Rosetta Stone was self-evident. Such pendants were very popular with foreign male tourists.
Gao Ke and the others each bought two or three Rosetta Stone pendants and Tutankhamun's golden mask pendants.
Among the statues of famous people, the most popular were, of course, the three famous beauties of ancient Egypt — Nefertari, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra VII. The most popular and common jewelry was carved with Nefertiti's head.
Compared to famous cultural relics replicas, foreign female tourists usually preferred pendants with the heads of the three beauties, and He He was no exception. She knew that Nefertari and Nefertiti were more beautiful than Cleopatra, but since they were going to be given to their best friends in China, they had to be well-known. How many people in China knew who Nefertari and Nefertiti were?
However, the reason why she hesitated for a long time was that the crown of Cleopatra's pendant was also carved with a fierce cobra.
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