Egyptian Art and Archaeology

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities have been collaborating on the Grand Egyptian Museum Joint Conservation Project (GEM-JC), and since 2016 this team carried out the scientific research of the ‘second state chariot’ (JE61990). In the course of the detailed  condition survey of the chariot, localized surface damage from where material had been anciently torn away from the corners and near the rear of the exterior sides of the chariot’s body was observed. Carter’s assistant Arthur Mace had noted this and assumed some metal elements had been wrenched off from these locations. Recently, the late Edwin C. Brock concluded that these remnants were fitting places of the four support poles of the canopy frame hitherto dubbed by Carter as Tutankhamun’s ‘travelling canopy’ (JE60705). Detailed measurements of both the chariot and canopy have now proved Brock’s hypothesis that the two items indeed made a canopied chariot. This paper also presents new discoveries and offers a tentative virtual reconstruction as support for the inclusion of virtual museum displays in galleries.

Colossal stone temples are one of the most immediately recognisable products of ancient Egyptian civilisation: distinctive in appearance, striking in sheer size and impressive in the skill shown in the carving and painting of their walls. This book looks at what is known about Egyptian temples, their chronological development, and the range of different religious structures referred to under the general heading of temples. Different chapters explain, with illustrations, the nature of Egyptian gods and why they needed temples to built for them, what went on within the buildings, and how priests, acting on behalf of the king, served the god on a daily basis and in regular festivals which involved the population as a whole. It explains the underlying ideas which result in Egyptian temples developing such a particular and peculiar appearance and why both architecture and decoration in Egyptian temples reflect different periods of temple building and different types of temple.

Textbooks
Quirke, Stephen.  Ancient Egyptian Religion.  London:  British Museum, 1992.
Lichtheim, Miriam, trans.  Ancient Egyptian Literature, vol. 1: the Old and Middle Kingdoms.  Paperback ed.  Berkeley:  University of California Press, 1975.
________.  Ancient Egyptian Literature, vol. 2:  the New Kingdom.  Paperback ed.  Berkeley:  U. of California Press, 1978.

Lectures and readings
Readings are listed before the lecture (and discussion) to which they relate.  Some of the texts in Lichtheim appear more than once, since they are relevant to more than one lecture (e.g., obelisk inscriptions that relate to the cult of Amun and to divine kingship).  Reading ahead, particularly in Ancient Egyptian Religion, may be helpful; note that I have reversed chapters 4 and 5 in the reading list.  The student may wish to read the chapters in the original order, then review Chapter 4 before we talk about magic and medicine.

Examinations (2) will consist of short identifications and a choice of essay questions.

Week 1.  Introduction.  Outline of Egyptian history; Egyptian geography and resources; introducing the gods.  Defining terms:  religion, divinity, monotheism, polytheism, immanence and transcendence, syncretism. 

Readings.  Quirke, Introduction and Chapter 1:  "Power in Heaven."

Week 2.  Temple, town, nome, and nation:  theological geography of ancient Egypt.  Archaeological evidence for prehistoric and early dynastic religion.  The earliest shrines and temples; unification of Egypt.  Development of religious iconography.

Readings.  Quirke, Ch. 2:  "Power on Earth."
Lichtheim, vol. 1, "The Memphite Theology," pp. 51-57.  "A spell from the Coffin Texts," pp.131-133
Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "Two Hymns to the Sun God," by Suti and Hor, pp. 86-89.  "The Destruction of Mankind," pp. 197-199.

Week 3.  Cosmogonies.  Heliopolitan cosmogony; the "Memphite theology"; myth of the destruction of mankind.  Images of creation in temple design.  Ideas of time, eternity, and everlastingness.

Readings.  Quirke, Ch. 3:  "Preserving the Universe."

Week 4.  What is an Egyptian temple?  The temple as the god's earthly mansion, model of the universe, "power station", administrative center.  Daily cult; priestly duties through the day and night; offerings and reversions thereof.  Festivals:  the New Year's Festival, the Beautiful Festival of the Desert Valley, Feast of Lights, Opet Festival, royal jubilee, Sokar festival.

Readings.  Quirke, Ch. 5:  "Surviving Death."
Lichtheim, vol. 1:  Excerpts from the Pyramid Texts, pp. 29-50.
Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "The Prayers of Paheri," pp.15-21.
"A Harper's Song from the Tomb of Neferhotep," pp.115-116.
"From the Book of the Dead," pp. 119-132.

Week 5.  Funerary beliefs.  Osiris and other divine patrons of the necropolis; aspects of the human personality; preservation of the body; judgement of the dead.  Tomb paintings and funerary texts.

Week 6.  Funerary beliefs, part II.  The royal afterlife; the underworld books in the Valley of the Kings.

Readings.  Lichtheim, vol. 1:  "The Instruction of Ptahhotep," pp. 61-80
"The Instruction addressed to King Merikare," pp. 97-109.
Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "Chapter 125:  the Judgement of the Dead," 124-132.
"Instructions," 135-163.

Week 7.  Moral and ethical content of Egyptian religion.  Ma'at (truth, right order, and justice); wisdom literature; the virtuous person.  Personal piety.

Readings.  Lichtheim, vol. 1:  Stelae of Intef, Ikhernofret, and Sehetepibre, pp.120-129.
Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "The Great Hymn to Osiris," pp. 81-86.
"Horus and Seth," pp. 214-223.

Week 8.  Exam (90 min.)  Abydos, a holy city.  Elephantine, a border town:  its temples from the archaic period to Graeco-Roman times.  Memphis, the ancient capital:  temples to Ptah and Hathor; deities of the Memphite necropolis.

Readings.  Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "Obelisk inscriptions of Queen Hatshepsut,"  25-29.  "The Poetical Stela of Thutmose III," 35-39.  "Stela of Amenhotep III," 43-48.  "Three penitential hymns from Deir el-Medina," pp. 104-110.  Prayers to Amun and Amun-Re, pp. 111-112.

Week 9.  The gods of Thebes.  Theban temples:  the Karnak complex, largest religious structure in the world.  Temple of Mut in Asheru.  The "Southern Sanctuary" of Amun at Luxor.  "The West, She-Who-Is-Opposite-Her-Lord."  Deities of the Theban necropolis:  Hathor, Meretseger, Amenhotep I and Queen Ahmose-Nefertari.  Royal mortuary temples of Mentuhotep II, Queen Hatshepsut, Seti I, Ramesses II, and Ramesses III. 

Readings.  Lichtheim, vol. 1:  "The Instruction addressed to King Merikare," 97-109.  "A cycle of hymns to King Sesostris III," 198-201.
Quirke, ch. 3:  "Preserving the universe." 
Lichtheim, vol. 2.  "Inscriptions from royal monuments," 25-78.

Week 10.  Divine kingship.  Old Kingdom:  ruler as incarnation of the sun-god.  Changing views on kingship during the First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom.  Religious restoration under the Thutmosid kings of the New Kingdom.  The son of Amun-Re as warrior, sportsman, and priest.  Amenhotep III and his deification.  Ramesses II; Ramesside cults of royal ancestors.  Decline of royal prestige after the New Kingdom.

Readings.  Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "The later boundary stelae of Amenhotep IV/Akhenaten", pp. 48-51.  "Hymns and prayers from el-Amarna," 89-100.
Quirke on Akhenaten, passim.

Week 11  The Amarna crisis.  Akhenaten's theology:  was the "heretic king" really a heretic?  Was he really a monotheist?  Temples to the Aten; the role of Queen Nefertiti in Amarna theology; Amarna art; private house-shrines; recent discoveries at the workmen's village.

Readings.  Lichtheim, vol. 2:  "Horus and Seth," pp. 214-223. "Hymns, prayers, and a harper's song," pp. 100-116. 

Week 12.  Evolution of solar religion in the New Kingdom.  Ramesside reactions to Amarna theology; personal piety in Ramesside Egypt; religious life in the workmen's village of Deir el-Medina.

Readings:  Quirke, ch. 4, "Preserving life."  Handout:  oracular decisions of Amenhotep I from Deir el-Medina.

Week 13.  Oracles and divination.  Oracles and the king; consultation of oracles by commoners; classical accounts of Egyptian oracles; Ammon of Siwa and Alexander the Great.  Magic and medicine.  Dreams and their interpretation.

Readings.  Quirke, Epilogue:  "Egyptian Deities Abroad."

Week 14.  Egyptian religion and the larger world.  Foreign cults in Egypt and Egyptian gods abroad; Isis and Serapis in the classical world.  Religion in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt; the recluses of the Serapeum and other temples; letters to the gods; Ptolemaic relations with Egyptian priesthoods; the Hermetic tradition.

Week 15.  Final exam (90 min.)  The influence of Egyptian thought on the Old Testament and on Christian iconography and belief.  Renaissance images of Egyptian religion.

Temples were nearly ubiquitous across the ancient Near East. Rather than serving as a gathering place for a worshipping congregation, a temple served as a terrestrial divine abode. In it, the god(s) lived amid society, yet carefully sequestered from it behind walls and doors. While primarily a residence, the temple also granted people limited access, usually for the purpose of divine service. The people believed that gods dwelt outside of the realm of human experience. Temples bridged the gap between human and divine, allowing regulated access to the deity, usually present in the form of a cult statue, and giving people the opportunity to influence the gods. Through this mutually beneficial interchange, the gods received the service they desired, while the people hoped their service would elicit divine protection and blessing. Protection and blessing, though, were conditional. The gods would remain and stay favorably disposed only if they were satisfied with their accommodation and service. Temples then, at least in theory, were lavishly and fastidiously constructed and maintained in order to keep the gods happy. This article focuses on the major temples, especially those from 1500–500 BCE, in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Hittite Anatolia, and Syria-Palestine. The article also focuses on the structure and ideology of the temples, not the rituals performed within them. For the most part, biblical and Israelite references will be kept to a minimum, as they are numerous enough to warrant their own article. Too numerous to include, archaeological reports generally have been excluded, yet they are referenced in the works cited and may be found with a Google web search.

Shabtis, the small figures from Egyptian tombs which do the unpleasant work in place of the deceased persons in the hereafter, have a special charm because they are funny and often also very beautifully crafted works of art. The introduction gives a brief overview of the typology and dating, including shabtis of famous persons like Tutankhamun, Sety I. Merenptah, Siptah, Juya, Sennedjem…

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. . Egypt Exploration Society is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. following abbreviations are employed: Gk. -Greek; Dem. -Demotic; s. = son of; d. = daughter of; f.father of; fil. =-filiation; Al. Priest of Alexander and the deified Ptolemies; Athl. = Athlophoros of Berenike Euergetis; Kan. = Kanephoros of Arsinoe Philadelphos; Pss.A.P. = Priestess of Arsinoe Philopator; Yr.year.] NFARLY fifty years have elapsed since the first list of eponymous priesthoods of the Ptolemaic period was published by Walther Otto in his Priester und Tempel im hellenistischen Aegypten, I, 1905, 175-96. In the very next year the list was largely augmented, so far as the reigns of Ptolemy II and III were concerned, by the publication of the Hibeh Papyri, and in I912 a revised and comprehensive catalogue was included by Plaumann in his article Hiereis in Pauly-Wissowa. Plaumann's work still ranks as a primary authority, since the article, 'Eponymous Priests under the Ptolemies', which Sir Herbert Thompson contributed to the volume of Griffith Studies (1932, pp.i6-29), claimed to do no more (so far as Alexandria was concerned) than register the additional evidence which had accumulated since Plaumann's day. Actually this statement should be read in the light of Sir Herbert's characteristic modesty, since his article in fact includes, in addition to the new material, many invaluable corrections and revisions of the Dem. evidence utilized by Plaumann.

From prehistoric figurines and graffiti to modern digital photographs, human beings repeatedly produced images, transforming the world itself into a relentless fabric of images. This volume presents the proceedings of the international conference held at the UCL Institute of Archaeology in 2014 inside the framework of the European project 'EPOCHS', with the aim to explore the fertile imaginary world of Middle Bronze Age Egypt (2000-1500 BC).

Images do not exist in their ontological isolation, as atomic unity, but they form a complex agency network with other images and with the society that produced them, hence the title "Company of Images". Eighteen papers focus on this intricate web, tackling the topic from different perspectives: material culture, archaeological finds, anthropological and social relations, iconographic representations, and analysis of the written sources, including linguistic approaches. The final goal is to highlight theoretical and methodological issues in order to explore connections between the images and their society, people who created images and who were recursively affected by the images they created.

An increase of cross-cultural learning as a consequence of increased travel and migration between Egypt and the Levant during the Iron Age occurred after millennia of migration in earlier times. The result was an Egyptian-Levantine koine, often not recognized as relevant by historians due to an uncritical reproduction of ancient myths of separation. However, the cultural exchange triggered by migration is attested in the language, in the iconography of the region, in the history of the alphabet, in literary motifs, in the characterization of central characters of the Hebrew Bible and, last but not least, in the rise of new religions, which integrated the experience of otherness in a new ethos.

In hindsight some of the conclusions in this thesis are somewhat naive (particularly regarding Egyptian seafaring), but in my estimation the paper still makes two important contributions:

- Supporting evidence for J. Janick's (2007) conclusion that the aromatic substance referred to in ancient Egyptian sources as "anti", is not Myrrh (as is the prevailing assumption in current literature), but more likely derives from the Boswellia genus of trees.

- The first full reconstruction of the relief depicting Queen Hatshepsut's Punt Expedition, found at her funerary complex in Deir el-Bahari. The reconstruction in this paper combines extensive drawings of the relief by Howard Carter and Percy Brown made during Édouard Naville's expedition to Deir el-Bahari (1898), with hieroglyphic texts recovered by Kurt Sethe (1905), a missing fragment published by Nicholas Millet (1962) and a reconstruction of the damaged southern sidewall by William Smith (1962).

Please download the PDF in order to see the reassembled relief in full resolution (last page), or download the full image here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/32memsu6dP9uGYGs8.

The Twentieth Dynasty tomb of Ramesses VI (KV9) includes
two copies of the cosmological treatise known to modern scholarship as the Book of the Night. Both versions of the book in KV9 include a cryptographic annotation to the twelfth hour, which is unique to that tomb. This annotation accompanies a file of jackals, the “bas of the westerners,” who tow the solar barque through the Underworld, toward the moment of sunrise. The content of this “Jackal Hymn” overlaps partially with cryptographic annotations to the baboon-, ibis-, and ram-headed bas of the east, north, and south, found in the Book of the Day. The present study offers a new translation and analysis of the Jackal Hymn, discarding numerous readings proposed in earlier studies, which had been based upon the phantom “principle” of acrophony, while taking into consideration orthographic, grammatical, and thematic parallels from the broader cosmological corpus. A careful reading of the cryptographic signs, utilizing only well attested substitution mechanisms (e.g., reduction of weak consonants), demonstrates clearly that the two versions of the text agree in every major respect and that divergences presumed in earlier studies are largely illusory. In addition, analysis of the grammatical structure of the text itself and identification of its thematic divisions help to clarify the meaning of several otherwise obscure passages.

Note that this paper is to be read in conjunction with THE DECORATED NORTH WALL IN THE TOMB OF TUTANKHAMUN (KV 62) (THE BURIAL OF NEFERTITI? II) (2019) (https://www.academia.edu/39903971/The_Decorated_North_Wall_in_the_Tomb_of_Tutankhamun_KV_62_The_Burial_of_Nefertiti_II_2019_) and THE TOMB OF TUTANKHAMUN (KV 62): SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES (THE BURIAL OF NEFERTITI? III) (2020)(https://www.academia.edu/44309046/The_Tomb_of_Tutankhamun_KV_62_Supplementary_Notes_The_Burial_of_Nefertiti_III_2020_). THE BURIAL OF NEFERTITI? ANIMATIONS may be accessed separately at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD-SFAqqGpS603n_o7CORky6pUvB061X5

The imposing copper figure of the god Seth in the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek (Copenhagen) was discovered in the late nineteenth century near Saqqara, in the company of statuary considerably later in date. Retaining the characteristic snout of the Seth-animal, the statue was altered in antiquity by the removal of its upright ears and the addition of ram’s horns. Seth’s transformation to the god Amun relates to changing political conditions: traditionally associated with foreign gods and foreign lands, Seth was favored during the Second Intermediate Period by kings descended from the Hyksos. The Glyptotek figure dates most assuredly to late New Kingdom, when Seth attained great prominence under the Ramessides.
During the Third Intermediate Period, the god and his foreign relatives gradually fell from grace and many existing images of Seth were altered or destroyed.

Technical study of the statue was carried out using visual examination, gamma radiography, and elemental analysis, focusing on the manufacture of the figure, which is solid
cast and with several separately produced elements in addition to the horns. The statue is of great interest because of its size, atypical alloy composition, unusual subject, burial context, elaborate decoration, and relatively early date in the production of Egyptian cupreous statuary. Furthermore, exploration of the figure’s history in antiquity in view of
physical alterations it has undergone and the unequivocal terminus post quem for its final deposition, contributes significantly to an understanding of temple ritual and political
history of the late New Kingdom and Third Intermediate Period in Egypt.

The early Naqada III Period is of great importance for the relative chronology of Predynastic and Early Egypt because it includes the final phase of state formation in Egypt, just before the commencement of the First Dynasty. In Kaiser’s fundamental revision of Petrie’s Sequence Dating, the Stufen IIIA and IIIB are not very well defined due to the paucity of available data at the time. The revision of Kaiser’s work allowed a better description of the archaeological characteristics of the Naqada IIIA-B periods. In addition, the chronological position of two important tombs is discussed, tomb 32 at Abu Zeidan and tomb U-j at Abydos.

Although the economy of the Predynastic Naqada culture (Egypt, 4th millennium BC) is based on agriculture and animal husbandry, hunting scenes are remarkably important in contemporaneous iconography. The semantic relationship between representations of hunting and military triumph shows that hunting is a remarkable part of a social ritual with religious and political aspects. Hunting is an important element of the elite manner of living and as such a major source of information on the development of social complexity leading to the pharaonic culture in Egypt.

This article stresses the fact that religion in ancient Egypt is not limited to the great temples, secluded from the outside world. The case-study of the cult of Renenutet, the «lady of the granary», shows that buildings meant for economic activities also left room for piety. Through epigraphy, iconography and scarce archaeological remains, this paper reviews the evidence for the presence of Renenutet in granaries throughout Egypt (but mostly in the Theban area). It also analyses the material conditions of her worship: situation and appearance of the chapel and cult statues, specific offerings, and staff members of the granary attached to the goddess’ service.

The pillar tombs, dated back from 2nd century BC to 1st century, are the most characteristic monuments of the city from the Hellenistic Roman
period excavated on the site of modern Marina El-Alamein in Egypt. Despite relatively small sizes, they achieved exceptionally strong expression thanks to the particular architectural concept. It is based on presentation of a complete architectural order in the form of a single pillar or column. Its analogues are rare. Forms of the tombs decoration are Hellenistic; they are of Alexandrian origin and should be associated to the initial period of the development of the ancient city. Their particular simplification and geometric stylization enhance the architectural expression. Among few discovered in the years 1987–1994 by the Polish Archaeological Mission of the University of Warsaw and unearthed as completely collapsed, five have been reconstructed by the anastylosis by successive Polish-Egyptian conservation missions. Thanks to their monumentality they are considered today to be the main monuments of the archaeological site. The article presents the history of the discovery of monuments, the idea of their architectural form, and attempts to find its origin. Questions of anastylosis of the monuments were discussed.

First published in Buzzle on 16th August 2006

Republished on the same day here:
http://sudaneseonline.com/en2/publish/Articles_and_Analysies_12/Sudan_s_Beja_Blemmyes_and_their_Right_to_Freedom_a_929.shtml

Republished on 23rd August 2006 and discussed in the forum below:
http://www.politicsforum.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=62793
At the moment the misinformed international community plans to spend so easily US $ 3 billion for Lebanon's reconstruction, it is essential to highlight that much less money would be enough to bring peace in the strategically crucial area of Eastern Sudan where the Blemmyes / Beja have started their struggle for self-determination and independence. Support to historically indigenous Beja would bring the Khartoum tyrants at the brink of collapse, opening the path of independence for the oppressed peoples of Sudan, and at the same time it would reshape the entire area of the Red Sea where historical nations demand international recognition.