This year’s Egyptological Colloquium, held in the British Museum‘s fantastic BP Lecture Theatre, was roundly applauded as a great success. No fewer than eighteen gifted minds took to the lectern, as a glut of opinions, theories, excavations and discoveries were explored to a large audience’s enthralment. Some of the speeches were incredibly specialist; others not so. But what is certain is that the past week has seen some of the most compelling and intriguing axioms on one of Ancient Egypt’s greatest pieces of iconography, the Book of the Dead. From colours to kingdoms, magic bricks to evil demons; the colloquium…
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The Egyptological Colloquium 2009, held on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, saw a glut of eager experts propose dozens of theories on the making, scribing and significance of the Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead. Some were more in-depth than others; some were downright inaccessible to all but the longest-serving Egyptologists. But one lecture that really caught the eye was the British Museum‘s very own Richard Parkinson and Bridget Leach‘s talk, on the colours and pigments which went into making the Book of the Dead such a technicolour masterpiece. In particular, the pair and their BM collegues have researched their…
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Although traces of nicotine and even of cocaine have been found on Egyptian mummies that date as long as 3000 years back -French scientists examining the stomach of the Egyptian Pharaoh Rameses II‘s mummy found fragments of tobacco leaves most likely used in the embalming process – and discussion is still ongoing on how these plants exactly got to Egypt without the help of the Spanish conquistadores – a 1997 Discovery Channel show suggests ancient international trade: a Pacific crossing and then delivery via the Silk Route. Regardless if the Pharaohs were junkies or not, we doubt if Queen Nefertiti…
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Lord Carnarvon, the man who funded the discovery of KV-62 – the tomb of Tutankhamun – and died five months later in mysterious circumstances before he could actually see the mummy’s face, was a superstitious man who wore the same lucky bow tie all his life. Such anecdotes are part of the ‘Egyptian Exhibition’ at Highclere Castle. Rising in the Berkshire Hampshire countryside south of Newbury, England, the castle kept many secrets on its own. As the old Earl did not want to talk about Egypt, the collection was hidden away until 1987. But the long-hidden collection of Egyptian antiquities…
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I think my mind’s had just enough time to recover from this year’s two day-long Egyptological Colloquium. No less than 18 top experts lent their latest opinions and discoveries to the audience at the British Museum; more than enough for me to cope with. Though I’d like to think of myself as an avid fan of the ancient world, I could never for a second hope to pass myself off as a resident Book of the Dead buff – so there was plenty of new material for my mediocre mind to cope with. So, a good sleep and some brainless…
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In my ever-long quest to be innovative and interactive with how Heritage Key presents information, I thought I’d take a moment out to have a little fun and games! So using mapping software from umapper,I’ve devised a little map quiz. Here’s how it works – you’re presented with a map and asked to find a location (which appears at the top of the screen). You then use your mouse cursor and click where you think that particular location is on the map. Simple, huh? Not exactly, as I’m using a physical map. So there’s no country borders or landmarks to…
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An article on Spiegel Online on Sunday made a shocking claim the bust of Hatshepsut, in Berlin Museum, may in fact be a fake. IOL reports: The bust in brown granite of female Pharaoh Hatshepsut, who ruled Egypt for 22 years, is one of the draws at the German capital’s Egyptian Museum and is only outshone by the limestone bust of exquisite Queen Nefertiti. Scientists at the Technical University of Berlin have discovered the Hatshepsut stone is rich in the minerals magnesite and siderite. No other bust from the Nile region is made of such rock, suggesting that the 16.5cm…
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When recently the mummy formerly known as ‘Lady Hor’ underwent a scan, researchers were surprised to find that it should have been ‘Sir Hor’ from the start. Yet, this case of ‘gender confusion’ is not a unique one. The same happened to ‘The Daughter of Amunkhau’ – actually a son – from the Birmingham Museum Collection and according to curator Edward Bleiberg on the Brooklyn Museum’s blog, no less than three of the five male mummies from that museum – including Lady Hor – that were CT-scanned in the last eighteen months were at one time thought to be women.…
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Now, this must be the dream of every starting archaeologist: no longer hot – or worse, rainy – dig seasons, no more spending ages meticulously noting down every find’s smallest detail and never again being send to locations where they won’t even serve you a decent chilled pint. This is your chance to escape them all, as History Channel is looking for the next Top Archaeologist (or an anthropologist will do too). Regardless if you crawl out of a dig somewhere in Egypt, toss aside those recently finished final papers or want a break away from your students, this is…
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Part of the Nubian Monuments, Abu Simbel is an ancient site home to two rock temples in the south of Egypt. A beautiful tribute build by Pharoah Ramesses II to his queen Nefertari, they had the alterior motive of commemorating the Battle of Kadesh, as well as the added bonus of intimidating the neighbours!Nothing like a massive temple or two to show the region who’s boss! The beauty of this monumental structure is depicted perfectly in gh0stdot’s photograph. Choosing to portray the two ancient statues at an angle which captures them from below, and results in a picture including the…