Dame Nawal Shafiq-Barclay was a shipping magnate and philanthropist of Anglo-Egyptian descent.
Biography[]
Nawal Shafiq-Barclay was born in Egypt around 1895[2] to Layla Shafiq, a famous nightclub singer from the country, and a wealthy high-ranking British officer. When her father passed away, Nawal invested her inheritance into a small shipping business out of which grew successful ventures such as SBS and Nawal Shafiq-Barclay Trading. She also dedicated part of her fortune into supporting the Cairo Museum and, at some point, acquired a damehood.[1]
Dame Nawal eventually became intimate with Doctor Laura Lombardi, a languages specialist she met on a dig sponsored by Nawal in Saqqara. The pair cohabited in Berlin, Germany for a time but the relationship had come undone despite their feelings for each other with Nawal frustrated that her partner was so work-orientated. She felt like she was living with a ghost and second to Laura's true passion. On one occasion, she reached out to Laura only to be told that she was busy. Nevertheless, Nawal was still on friendly terms with Laura's sister, Gina, and she later served as a contact for American archaeologist Indiana Jones during his 1937 investigation into the Great Circle. Based out of Giza, Nawal used her influence to embed spies within the Emmerich Voss's excavations and helped Jones undermine their efforts. During their time together, Jones realized that Nawal was a potential source of funding for his own expeditions.[1]
She and Gina later rescued Jones from the desert when the archaeologist was buried by sand following his successful retrieval of the Sunsparker Relic from under the Great Pyramids. Although Voss captured the stone, one of the seventeen Great Circle artifacts, with Jones incapacitated, Dame Nawal gave the American and Gina the use of her vessel, The Scarlet Arrow, so they could intercept the Nazis' recovery of the Earthsplitter from the Himalayas in an effort to keep Voss' collection incomplete.[1]
Personality and traits[]
Nawal Shafiq-Barclay kept a pet snake named Osiris and was a fan of the reptile. She had a grasp of the German language but had fallen out of practice with it by October 1937.[1]
Behind the scenes[]
Nawal Shafiq-Barclay was performed by Necar Zadegan in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.[1]
Appearances[]
- Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (First appearance)
Sources[]
- The Faces & Places of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle™ on Bethesda.net
- Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Digital Art Book