Photo by Melody Saunders Brenna

The story of Hercules is on the side of the Arch of Septimus Severius.

No Stone Unturned

Amarillo firm hopes to restore Libyan ruins

By George Schwarz
The Amarillo Independent

An Amarillo company already known for architectural stonework has bid a $4.6 million contract to restore deteriorating ancient ruins and provide other services in Libya.

Photo by Melody Saunders Brenna Stonework: The Arch of Emperor Septimus Severius at Lepsis Magna is part of a World Heritage site. The arch is made from limestone brought from Greece, Italy and Egypt.

Milestone Architectural Ornamentation Inc. joined an American business delegation that included such firms as Lockheed-Martin and Motorola in an early December trip to the Middle East.

"I was invited to go by the National US-Arab Chamber of Commerce," said Melody Saunders Brenna, Milestone's chief executive in an exclusive and wide-ranging interview with The Amarillo Independent. "I was the only one who had to do with restoration."

She said restoring ruins from the era of occupation in North Africa by the Romans, Carthaginians and other ancients is a "hot-button" issue for the Libyans. Milestone's invitation grew out of the firm's study of Roman ruins for restoration and the work of Dr. Konstantin Sobolev, who pioneered high-performance nano-cements.

And, her membership in the District Export Councils of Texas didn't hurt, she added.

Libya has been isolated for about 40 years, with most of the business interests focusing on oil and aircraft. But things have changed, and part of the drive to restore the ruins is to foster tourism, she said.

Photo by Melody Saunders Brenna Eagle: The Roman eagle is seen inside the arch, said to be there because everyone going through it had to recognize there were under Roman rule.

The isolation resulted from ruler Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-Qadhafi's ambitions in the region, according to the CIA.

United Nations and U.S. sanctions, in part because of the country's role in the downing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland, had isolated Libya for many years, but those sanctions were lifted in 2003 when settlements were made, according to the CIA.

Qadhafi's concessions open relationships with the West, the CIA states, with the United States resuming full diplomatic relations in 2006.

In visiting the sites, Brenna said, she learned that at least half of the ruins are still buried and unexcavated — and are plentiful.

"They have more ruins than anywhere in Rome or anywhere in Italy," she said.

The isolation of the ruins and the condition lend a certain aura, and standing near one set of ruins at a harbor was a form of time travel, she said. "You really thought Cleopatra would pull up."

The sites are away from the cities, with no hotels or any other amenities nearby, so the potential for development is wide open, she said.

"You have a gold mine and it's not oil."

The restoration process, part of which is proprietary, will involve making molds of the ruins. With those and pictures, the factory here will use a software program to make a three-dimensional reconstruction of the ruin and then process the product back in Amarillo. The contract goes beyond the restoration activities. The proposed contract will include consulting on a building code for the Housing and Infrastructure Board and developing a laboratory similar to that at West Texas A&M University, she said.

As of Tuesday evening, the contract remained under review, with an Arabic translation having been sent back to Libya.

E-mail comments about this story
to the publisher of The Amarillo Independent.

Posted: January 31, 2008