Guidebook to the Ancient Egyptian afterlife

In ancient Egypt, the end of life marked the start of a challenging journey – one that could be smoothed using the spells compiled in a Book of the Dead. Rob Attar explores how these books were used to ensure a speedy and successful path through the next world.

Wearing clean clothes and white sandals, you stand in a long hall supported by columns. On a throne at the far end of the room you see the figure of Osiris, the god of the underworld. You are surrounded by 42 gods, terrifying mummified figures including the Swallower of shades, the Bone-breaker and the Eater of entrails.

In front of you is the god Thoth in the form of a baboon. He sits atop a pair of scales that will very shortly decide your eternal fate. This is judgment day and, should you fail the test, you will experience the agonising second death. But you show no fear because you are a possessor of the Book of the Dead – a tome that contains within its texts the secrets to surviving the afterlife.

You turn to the first of the gods and begin to speak: “O Far-strider who came forth from Heliopolis, I have done no falsehood.” Then you turn to the second: “O Fire-embracer who came forth from Kheraha, I have not robbed...”

Coming forth by day

For ancient Egyptians, life on earth could be very short, so the rituals surrounding death were an integral part of their culture. Many of the best-known relics from Egypt – pyramids, tombs and mummies – reveal the time and resources that the people of the Nile were prepared to spend to ensure a successful afterlife. Spells or formulae that could aid your path through the next world first appeared on the walls of pyramids during the Egyptian Fifth Dynasty, around 2350 BC. Some 400 years later, in the time of Egypt’s Middle Kingdom, these Pyramid Texts evolved into Coffin Texts that were inscribed on coffins, tomb walls and, sometimes, sheets of papyrus.

Wednesday Weekly # 102

Welcome to the Wednesday Weekly, your weekly dose of links to Egyptology news, articles, blogs, events and more!

Photocredit: Imalqata.wordpress.com

THE INDEPENDENT

Transforming the Body in Ancient Egypt looks beyond the Pharaohs and shines a light on ordinary citizens
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/new-exhibition-transforming-the-body-in-ancient-egypt-looks-beyond-the-pharaohs-and-shines-a-light-a6828166.html

LUXOR TIMES

Exclusive: Official statement on photography in the Egyptian museum
http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.nl/2016/01/exclusive-official-statement-on.html

IMALQATA

Ebony but no Ivory (yet!)
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/20/ebony-but-no-ivory-yet/

Shereen, our Antiquities Inspector for 2016
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/21/shereen-our-antiquities-inspector-for-2016/

A Site Visit on our Day Off
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/22/a-site-visit-on-our-day-off/

There Is a Now, But There Was Also a Before
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/23/there-is-a-now-but-there-was-also-a-before/

Planning the Palace
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/24/planning-the-palace-2/

An Ancient Egyptian Aphrodisiac
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/25/an-ancient-egyptian-aphrodisiac/

101 Years Ago at Malqata
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/26/101-years-ago-at-malqata/

IN THE ARTIFACT LAB

Report from the field: Conservation in the burial chamber of king Woseribre-Senebkay
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2016/01/25/report-from-the-field-conservation-in-the-burial-chamber-of-king-woseribre-senebkay/

EGYPT CENTRE, SWANSEA

Thank you Griffith Institute -it's amazing what you can find out online!
http://egyptcentre.blogspot.nl/2016/01/thank-you-griffith-institute-its.html

ACROSSBORDERS

A scarab, lots of schist, pottery and stone tools: good progress in the New Kingdom town of Sai
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/a-scarab-lots-of-schist-pottery-and-stone-tools-good-progress-in-the-new-kingdom-town-of-sai/

Special mid-season thanks
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/special-mid-season-thanks/

AL-AHRAM WEEKLY

Faith and the Pharaohs
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/News/15262/47/Faith-and-the-Pharaohs.aspx

AMARA WEST PROJECT BLOG

Amara West 2016: Commodity and trade – imported pottery at Amara West
http://blog.amarawest.britishmuseum.org/2016/01/24/amara-west-2016-commodity-and-trade-imported-pottery-at-amara-west/

ANCIENT EGYPTIAN ANIMAL BIO BANK

A (Very Early) Visit to Oxford
https://ancientegyptbiobank.wordpress.com/2016/01/25/a-very-early-visit-to-oxford/

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Ancient Egyptian Diseases: Oldest Case of Scurvy?
http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-near-eastern-world/ancient-egyptian-diseases-oldest-case-of-scurvy/

BROOKLYN MUSEUM

Dig Diary, Jan. 24
http://brooklynmuseum.tumblr.com/post/137947904702/dig-diary-jan-24-sunset-on-january-21-the-end

DEMON BLOG

Heroes & Villains from Ancient Egypt at the Ashmolean
http://www.demonthings.com/heroes-villains/

AHRAM ONLINE

Eight museum employees to face trial for botched restoration of King Tut mask
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/0/185717/Heritage/Eight-museum-employees-to-face-trial-for-botched-r.aspx

NILE MAGAZINE

What Is Inside The Great Pyramids?
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/22/what-is-inside-the-great-pyramids

The King's Bodyguard
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/25/the-kings-bodyguard

It's Official. Photography Is Back At The Museum.
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/26/its-official-photography-is-back-at-the-museum

ANCIENT ORIGINS

Unraveling History: The Final Fates of the Children of Cleopatra VII?
http://www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/unraveling-history-final-fates-children-cleopatra-vii-005230

Queen of Pyramids: The Powerful Hetepheres I and her Magnificent Tomb
http://www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/queen-pyramids-powerful-hetepheres-i-and-her-magnificent-tomb-005234

ERIC'S GUIDE TO ANCIENT EGYPT

EPISODE 018: Ramesses The Great Warrior And The Battle Of Kadesh
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=152

BM INTERNATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAMME

ITP Reports 2015 – Part 2: Egypt!
https://bmtrainingprog.wordpress.com/2016/01/25/itp-reports-2015-part-2-egypt/

EGYPTIANS

Tuesdays Egyptian: Looking for Amenia
http://tim-theegyptians.blogspot.nl/2016/01/tuesdays-egyptian-looking-for-amenia_26.html

ABOUT.COM

We Spoke to Legendary Archaeologist Zahi Hawass About All Things Egypt
http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/egyptology/fl/We-Spoke-to-Legendary-Archaeologist-Zahi-Hawass-About-All-Things-Egypt.htm

Pharaoh Amenhotep III and Queen Tiye
http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/pharaohs/fl/Pharaoh-Amenhotep-III-and-Queen-Tiye.htm

Ancient Egyptian Diseases: Oldest Case of Scurvy?

Infant skeleton sheds light on ancient Egyptian diseases

By Robin Ngo  •  01/22/2016

Despite its notoriety as a historical disease commonly associated with sailors, scurvy—a nutritional deficiency disease caused by a severe lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid)—is still present in developed countries. For example, it was recently reported that a baby in Spain developed scurvy, possibly due to an almond milk-only diet.

How long has scurvy been around? According to a new study published in the International Journal of Paleopathology, the skeleton of an infant from the ancient Egyptian settlement of Nag el-Qarmila (c. 3800–3600 B.C.E.) may provide the earliest attested evidence of scurvy, thus helping researchers better understand ancient Egyptian diseases.

Bioarchaeologists Mindy Pitre and Robert Stark examined the skeleton of an infant who was about one year old. The researchers observed that the infant suffered from a deficiency in ascorbic acid (vitamin C), as demonstrated by tell-tale changes to different parts of the skeleton.

“While the cause of this infant’s probable scorbutic [i.e., related to scurvy] state is unknown, various circumstances such as diet and cultural behaviors may have contributed to the condition,” the researchers said in their study. “Given the current lack of evidence of scurvy from ancient Egyptian contexts, this case study informs on the antiquity of ascorbic acid deficiency in the Old World.”

The infant had been discovered during excavations at the Predynastic settlement of Nag el-Qarmila by the Aswan-Kom Ombo Archaeological Project, directed by Maria Carmela Gatto and Antonio Curci.

Source: http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-near-eastern-world/ancient-egyptian-diseases-oldest-case-of-scurvy/

Early Egyptian Queen Revealed in 5,000-Year-Old Hieroglyphs

by Owen Jarus, Live Science Contributor   |   January 19, 2016

About 60 drawings and hieroglyphic inscriptions, dating back around 5,000 years, have been discovered at a site called Wadi Ameyra in Egypt’s Sinai Desert. Carved in stone, they were created by mining expeditions sent out by early Egyptian pharaohs, archaeologists say.

They reveal new information on the early pharaohs. For instance, one inscription the researchers found tells of a queen named Neith-Hotep who ruled Egypt 5,000 years ago as regent to a young pharaoh named Djer.

Archaeologists estimate that the earliest carvings at Wadi Ameyra date back around 5,200 years, while the most recent date to the reign of a pharaoh named Nebre, who ruled about 4,800 years ago. 

The "inscriptions are probably a way to proclaim that the Egyptian state owned the area," team leader Pierre Tallet, a professor at Université Paris-Sorbonne, told Live Science.

He explained that south of Wadi Ameyra, the ancient expeditions would have mined turquoise and copper. Sometime after Nebre's rule, the route of the expeditions changed, bypassing Wadi Ameyra, he said.

X-Rays Reveal The Secrets of Egyptian Scrolls

By Megan Gannon ON 1/17/16

“Usually, in this area, no visitor gets in,” Verena Lepper tells me on a gray Friday morning in Berlin. She gently closed a set of double doors behind us, careful not to create any vibrations in the walls. We were standing in a room that was white from floor to ceiling, without a single scuff. It felt more like an airlock on a spaceship than a vestibule in the city’s Archaeological Center, completed just four years ago. There, I would sign my third guestbook of the day.

The procedure was not just a German reflex for meticulous record-keeping but also a security policy: Inside was the nation’s largest collection of papyri, among the four largest in the world, two floors crammed with scrolls that were pressed between glass and tucked away in metal drawers. Although academics hesitate to put a price tag on research material they consider priceless, any one of these scraps of paper would sell for thousands of dollars on the antiquities market.

Among the manuscripts was a section of The Ahiqar, a proverb-loaded narrative about a betrayed chancellor of the Assyrian King Sennacherib. The 2,500-year-old text was written in Aramaic, the language Jesus spoke, and one of the 15 that Lepper, a curator at the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection in Berlin, knows herself. “Literary studies people claim this is the first novel ever to be written,” she says. But for Lepper what is most interesting about this first copy of The Ahiqar is where it came from: Elephantine Island, a narrow patch of land less than a square mile large in the middle of the Nile River, opposite Aswan in southern Egypt.

The hundreds of documents that have turned up at Elephantine include 10 different languages and range four continuous millennia, from Egypt’s Old Kingdom around 2500 B.C. to the Middle Ages. “I’m not aware of any other place in the world where you have 4,000 years covered by textural resources from one single place,” Lepper says. And yet most of the texts from the island haven’t been studied or published—and many haven’t even been unfurled because they're so delicate.

Wednesday Weekly # 101

Welcome to the Wednesday Weekly, your weekly dose of links to Egyptology news, articles, blogs, events and more!

Photocredit: National Museums Scotland

THE ANCIENT WORLD ONLINE

Open Access Journal: Ostrakon, Norsk egyptologisk selskaps bulletin
http://ancientworldonline.blogspot.nl/2016/01/open-access-journal-ostrakon-norsk.html

Open Access Monograph Series: Birmingham Egyptology Journal Occasional Publications
http://ancientworldonline.blogspot.nl/2016/01/open-access-monograph-series-birmingham.html

LUXOR TIMES

Scan pyramids results so far. "We have something new" Ministerannounced.
http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.nl/2016/01/scan-pyramids-results-so-far-have.html

Exclusive: Minister of Antiquities speaks to Luxor Times on ScanPyramids project
http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.nl/2016/01/exclusive-minister-of-antiquities.html

IMALQATA

Preserving the Architecture of the King’s Palace Continues
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/13/preserving-the-architecture-of-the-kings-palace-continues/

Close Encounters with an Archaeologist
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/close-encounters-with-an-archaeologist/

The 10th Annual Archaeologists’ Day
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/15/the-10th-annual-archaeologists-day/

Special Sherds
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/16/special-sherds/

Sometimes You Feel Like a Nut
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/17/sometimes-you-feel-like-a-nut/

The Archaeology of Thebes and The Met
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/18/the-archaeology-of-thebes-and-the-met/

Paint Chips
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/19/paint-chips/

IN THE ARTIFACT LAB

APPEAR Project – Multispectral Imaging on the Fayum Mummy Portraits
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2016/01/15/appear-project-multispectral-imaging-on-the-fayum-mummy-portraits/

Initial treatment of the wooden boat model
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2016/01/18/initial-treatment-of-the-wooden-boat-model/

EGYPT CENTRE, SWANSEA

A bit of a shrine with an unknown king
http://egyptcentre.blogspot.nl/2016/01/a-bit-of-shrine-with-unknown-king.html

ACROSSBORDERS

Finally: a schist floor found in situ at SAV1 East
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/finally-a-schist-floor-found-in-situ-at-sav1-east/

New insights at the end of week 2
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/new-insights-at-the-end-of-week-2/

A Day in the Life of AcrossBorders Registrars
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/a-day-in-the-life-of-acrossborders-registrars/

AL-AHRAM WEEKLY

Egypt’s sunken mysteries
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/News/15244/47/Egypt%E2%80%99s-sunken-mysteries.aspx

Underwater museum back on track
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/News/15243/47/Underwater-museum-back-on-track.aspx

AMARA WEST PROJECT BLOG

Amara West 2016: Into the tombs at last!
http://blog.amarawest.britishmuseum.org/2016/01/15/amara-west-2016-into-the-tombs-at-last/

AMARNA PROJECT

ARCE (Cairo) lecture on Great Aten Temple
http://amarna-project.blogspot.nl/2016/01/arce-cairo-lecture-on-great-aten-temple.html

BENTO

Powerballs
http://bento.si.edu/from-the-collections/ancient-near-east/untitled/

BROOKLYN MUSEUM

Dig Diary, Jan. 17:
http://brooklynmuseum.tumblr.com/post/137478699806/dig-diary-jan-17-we-arrived-in-luxor-one-of

CALGARY SSEA

Lecture: Nefertiti Rising – A Biography
http://www.calgaryssea.ca/2016/01/10/lecture-nefertiti-rising-a-biography/

UNIVERSITEIT LEIDEN

Week 1 - 10 januari - 16 januari
http://www.instituten.leidenuniv.nl/nvic/onderwijs/egyptisch/archeojournaal-nvic.html#week-1--10-januari--16-januari

DEMON BLOG

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: John Wyatt

John Wyatt
A Demonic and Angelic Bestiary?
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-john-wyatt/

STORIES FROM THE MUSEUM FLOOR

The Gods and Their Makers
https://storiesfromthemuseumfloor.wordpress.com/2016/01/15/the-gods-and-their-makers/

NICKY VAN DE BEEK

Carnarvon and the search for Tutankhamun
http://nickyvandebeek.com/2016/01/carnarvon-and-the-search-for-tutankhamun/

NILE MAGAZINE

Robbing Peter To Pay Paul
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/15/robbing-peter-to-pay-paul

Ancient Egypt Transformed: The Middle Kingdom
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/16/ancient-egypt-transformed-the-middle-kingdom

NOW AT THE MET

My Early Life with the Middle Kingdom
http://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-museum/now-at-the-met/2016/dorothea-arnold-early-life-with-the-middle-kingdom

THE ELOQUENT PEASANT

Ancient Egypt Transformed: Middle Kingdom Egyptian Objects on Loan from National Museums Scotland to the Metropolitan Museum of Art
http://www.eloquentpeasant.com/2016/01/18/ancient-egypt-transformed/

AMERICAN RESEARCH CENTER IN EGYPT

AEF Grant Opportunities 2016
http://www.arce.org/grants/aef

ANCIENT ORIGINS

DB320 - Uncovering the Impressive Cache of Hidden Pharaohs
http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-africa/db320-uncovering-impressive-cache-hidden-pharaohs-005190

Analysis Begins on Cosmic Particles in the Egyptian Bent Pyramid – Will This Help Explain How the Pyramids Were Built?
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/analysis-begins-cosmic-particles-egyptian-bent-pyramid-will-help-explain-020705

Discovery of 5,000-year-old Hieroglyphs Change the Story of a Queen, a Pharaoh, and an Ancient City
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/discovery-5000-year-old-hieroglyphs-change-story-queen-pharaoh-and-ancient-020707

ERIC'S GUIDE TO ANCIENT EGYPT

EPISODE 017: Ramesses The Great, Part 1.
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=139

AHRAM ONLINE

Work underway to uncover secrets of Egypt's Dahshur and Khufu pyramids
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/181240/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/Work-underway-to-uncover-secrets-of-Egypts-Dahshur.aspx

EGYPTIANS

Ancient Egypt: Kingdom of the Pharaohs
http://tim-theegyptians.blogspot.nl/2016/01/ancient-egypt-kingdom-of-pharaohs.html

LIVESCIENCE

Before Hatshepsut: Early Egyptian Queen Revealed in Hieroglyphs
http://www.livescience.com/53406-early-egyptian-queen-revealed-in-hieroglyphs.html

DISCOVERY NEWS

Egyptian Pyramid Scans Reveal New Anomalies
http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/egyptian-pyramid-scans-reveal-new-anomalies-160119.htm

Egypt’s sunken mysteries

There is still time to catch the Egypt’s Sunken Mysteries exhibition before it leaves the Institut du monde arabe in Paris for the British Museum in London, writes David Tresilian

For the past three months the Institut du Monde arabe in Paris has been hosting Osiris, Egypt’s Sunken Mysteries, an exhibition of finds made by marine archaeologist Franck Goddio off Egypt’s northern coast in the remains of the ancient cities of Thonis-Heracleion and Canope. The exhibition closes at the end of January and then makes its way to the British Museum in May, giving visitors to the French capital a few final weeks to catch it before its new incarnation in London.

A pair of vast stone statues parked outside the Institut on the left bank of the Seine give a taste of what is to be found within. Discovered during Goddio’s excavations of Thonis-Heracleion, submerged since the 8th century CE beneath the waves of the Gulf of Aboukir east of Alexandria, these colossal statues of a king and queen made in the Ptolemaic period once stood in the Temple of Amun in the ancient city. Together with a fragmented stele of the pharaoh Ptolemy VIII dating to 118 to 116 BCE they have now found the new function of ushering visitors towards the Sunken Mysteries exhibition.

Opened by French president François Hollande and Egyptian Minister of Culture Mamdouh Eldamaty in September (reported in Al-Ahram Weekly by Nevine El-Aref on 17 September), the exhibition presents objects found by Goddio and his team in the remains of the underwater cities as well as items from various Egyptian museums exhibited for the first time in France.

Wednesday Weekly # 100

Welcome to the Wednesday Weekly, your weekly dose of links to Egyptology news, articles, blogs, events and more!

Photocredit: The Washington Post

THE ANCIENT WORLD ONLINE

Open Access Journal: Nekhen News
http://ancientworldonline.blogspot.nl/2010/07/open-access-journal-nekhen-news.html

IMALQATA

Back in Egypt
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/back-in-egypt/

The Work Begins
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/09/the-work-begins-2/

Welcome Visitors!
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/10/welcome-visitors/

Back to Ballas
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/11/back-to-ballas/

Back to the Ghost Town
https://imalqata.wordpress.com/2016/01/12/back-to-the-ghost-town/

IN THE ARTIFACT LAB

Report from the field: week 1 in Abydos
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2016/01/09/report-from-the-field-week-1-in-abydos/

ACROSSBORDERS

Déjà-vu at SAV1 East: more negative walls?
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/deja-vu-at-sav1-east-more-negative-walls/

First results of week 1
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/first-results-of-week-1/

AL-AHRAM WEEKLY

Tutankhamun’s mask back on show
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/News/15169/47/Tutankhamun%E2%80%99s-mask-back-on-show.aspx

AMARA WEST PROJECT BLOG

Amara West 2016: season 9 begins
http://blog.amarawest.britishmuseum.org/2016/01/08/amara-west-2016-season-9-begins/

AMARNA PROJECT

Barry Kemp lecture in Brighton
http://amarna-project.blogspot.nl/2016/01/barry-kemp-lecture-in-brighton.html

BROOKLYN MUSEUM

What does a dusty receipt dated 1918 have to do with an ancient Egyptian party queen?
http://brooklynmuseum.tumblr.com/post/136812528907/what-does-a-dusty-receipt-dated-1918-have-to-do

DEMON BLOG

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Kasia Szpakowska

Kasia Szpakowska, Swansea University and Director of the Ancient Egyptian Demonology Project: Second Millennium BCE
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-kasia-szpakowska/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: John Richard Ward

John Richard Ward
Akephalos: a Demon’s Origins and Transformation into ‘the Headless One’
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-john-richard-ward/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Felicitas Weber

Felicitas Weber, Swansea University
The Demon Code
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-felicitas-weber/

GEBEL EL SILSILA SURVEY PROJECT

Returning after the holidays
http://gebelelsilsilaepigraphicsurveyproject.blogspot.nl/2016/01/returning-after-holidays.html

AHRAM ONLINE

Antiquities minister set to inaugurate exhibition for recovered artefacts on Thursday
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/180801/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/Antiquities-minister-set-to-inaugurate-exhibition-.aspx

KELSEY MUSEUM

Ugly Object of the Month – January
https://kelseymuseum.wordpress.com/2016/01/12/ugly-object-of-the-month-january/

STORIES FROM THE MUSEUM FLOOR

Animal Mummies #3: Giving Gifts To The Gods In Ancient Egypt
https://storiesfromthemuseumfloor.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/animal-mummies-3-giving-gifts-to-the-gods-in-ancient-egypt/

NILE MAGAZINE

The Maia-Meritaten Mystery
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/5/the-maia-meritaten-mystery

Meet Karnak Temple's Great Hypostyle Hall
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/9/meet-karnak-temples-great-hypostyle-hall

NOW AT THE MET

Jewelry from the Haraga Treasure, United at the Met
http://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-museum/now-at-the-met/2016/haraga-treasure-jewelry

ANCIENT ORIGINS

Archaeologists Find Hieroglyphics That Shed New Light on the Golden Age of the Meroitic Civilization
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/archaeologists-find-hieroglyphics-shed-new-light-golden-age-meroitic-020696

ERIC'S GUIDE TO ANCIENT EGYPT

Episode 016: Nefertiti, Akhenaten, And Incest, With Kara Cooney
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=132

LIVESCIENCE

Big-Eared Statues Reveal Ancient Egyptian Power Couple
http://www.livescience.com/53296-statues-reveal-ancient-egyptian-power-couple.html

THE WASHINGTON POST

Met exhibit shatters 19th-century myths about ancient Egypt
https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/museums/met-exhibit-shatters-19th-century-myths-about-ancient-egypt/2016/01/07/0ee3d356-b49d-11e5-a842-0feb51d1d124_story.html?postshare=9131452404124764&tid=ss_tw

EGYPTIANS

The Royal Tombs of Egypt
http://tim-theegyptians.blogspot.nl/2016/01/the-royal-tombs-of-egypt.html

Wednesday Weekly # 99

Welcome to the Wednesday Weekly, your weekly dose of links to Egyptology news, articles, blogs, events and more!

Photocredit: Ahram Online

LUXOR TIMES

Exclusive footage: As good as new. King Tut's golden mask is back on display
http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.nl/2015/12/exclusive-footage-as-good-as-new-king.html

Another King Tut's related discovery would change chapters in history books. This time in Sakkara
http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.nl/2015/12/another-king-tuts-related-discovery.html

6 rock-cut statues discovered in Gebel Silsila
http://luxortimesmagazine.blogspot.nl/2015/12/6-rock-cut-statues-discovered-in-gebel.html

ACROSSBORDERS

End of the 2015 season on Elephantine Island
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/end-of-the-2015-season-on-elephantine-island/

AcrossBorders 2016: the upcoming fieldwork season
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/acrossborders-2016-the-upcoming-fieldwork-season/

Looking back: 2015 papers and reports
http://acrossborders.oeaw.ac.at/looking-back-2015-papers-and-reports/

AERA

Watch “Secrets: Great Pyramid” featuring Mark Lehner
http://www.aeraweb.org/news/watch-secrets-great-pyramid-featuring-mark-lehner/

BROOKLYN MUSEUM

The Brooklyn Museum’s archaeological expedition to the temple precinct of the goddess Mut
http://brooklynmuseum.tumblr.com/post/136534258227/the-brooklyn-museums-archaeological-expedition-to

DEMON BLOG

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Jiří Janák and Renata Landgráfová

Guardians of Gates: an Unusual Assemblage of Demons in Menekhibnekau‘s Book of the Dead Chapter 144
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-jiri-janak-and-renata-landgrafova/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Jay Johnston

Drawing Demons: Iconography and Ontology in the Heidelberg Coptic Papyri
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-jay-johnston/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Aris Legowski

What is the Evil within Demons? Exploring the Egyptian semantic field of the Evil
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-aris-legowski/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: El Zahraa Megahed and Laure Pantalacci

The Demoniacal Manifestations of Winds in Calendars of Lucky and Unlucky Days
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-el-zahraa-megahed-and-laure-pantalacci/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Maria Nilsson

Symbolae sacrae – symbolic formulae for protection and adoration within the sandstone quarries of Gebel el Silsila
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-maria-nilsson/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Wael Sherbiny

Between Texts and Images: representations of the supernatural entities in the so-called Book of Two Ways
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-wael-sherbiny/

‘Demon Things’ conference 2016 abstract: Tony Spalinger

Demonizing the Enemy: The Ramesside Libyans
http://www.demonthings.com/demon-things-conference-2016-abstract-tony-spalinger/

IN THE ARTIFACT LAB

Examination of Wooden Tomb Models
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2015/12/04/examination-of-wooden-tomb-models/

Progress update on the stola coffin treatment
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2015/12/17/progress-update-on-the-stola-coffin-treatment/

Egypt-bound
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2015/12/26/egypt-bound/

APPEAR Project – Fayum Mummy Portraits
http://www.penn.museum/sites/artifactlab/2015/12/29/appear-project-fayum-mummy-portraits/

EGYPT AT THE MANCHESTER MUSEUM

Object Biography # 19: The Book of the Dead of Padiusir
https://egyptmanchester.wordpress.com/2015/12/14/object-biography-19-the-book-of-the-dead-of-padiusir/

Study Day 13 Feb 2016: ‘Meeting the Gods: Interactions between mortals & the divine’
https://egyptmanchester.wordpress.com/2015/12/17/study-day-13-feb-2016-meeting-the-gods-interactions-between-mortals-7-the-d/

Animal Mummies #8: Secrecy, wrapping and revealing
https://egyptmanchester.wordpress.com/2015/12/18/animal-mummies-8-secrecy-wrapping-and-revealing/

THE ART NEWSPAPER

One God to rule them all: Garry Shaw on Faith After the Pharaohs at the British Museum
http://theartnewspaper.com/comment/reviews/exhibitions/one-god-to-rule-them-all-garry-shaw-on-faith-after-the-pharaohs-at-the-british-museum/

GEBEL EL SILSILA SURVEY PROJECT

Six NK Statues and Intact Relief Scenes Discovered in Gebel el Silsila!
http://gebelelsilsilaepigraphicsurveyproject.blogspot.nl/2015/12/six-nk-statues-and-intact-relief-scenes.html

AHRAM ONLINE

Tomb of Tutankhamun’s wet nurse in Egypt's Saqqara opened to public
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/174009/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/Tomb-of-Tutankhamun%E2%80%99s-wet-nurse-in-Egypts-Saqqara-.aspx

King Amenhotep III statue accidently recovered in Edfu
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/178839/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/King-Amenhotep-III-statue-accidently-recovered-in-.aspx

New discovery in Qantara West suggests date of origin of Tel Al-Dafna site
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/177760/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/New-discovery-in-Qantara-West-suggests-date-of-ori.aspx

SCIENCE & SCHOLARSHIP IN POLAND

Launch of the world's largest study of Egyptian mummies
http://scienceinpoland.pap.pl/en/news/news,407875,launch-of-the-worlds-largest-study-of-egyptian-mummies.html

NILE MAGAZINE

Ah, The 'Good Old Days ...'
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2015-december/2015/12/14/ah-the-good-old-days-

The First Hi-Res Photo Of Tutankhaumn's Restored Golden Mask
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2015-december/2015/12/29/the-first-hi-res-photo-of-tutankhamuns-restored-golden-mask

Philae. The Last Temple
http://www.nilemagazine.com.au/2016-january/2016/1/2/the-last-temple

NOW AT THE MET

Creating Virtual and Physical Models of the Pyramid Complex of Senwosret III
http://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-museum/now-at-the-met/2015/pyramid-complex-of-senwosret-iii

PAIDES

Theon, an Angry Boy from Roman Egypt (P. Oxy. I 119)
https://paidesblog.wordpress.com/2015/12/13/theon-an-angry-boy-p-oxy-i-119/

THE EGYPTIAN HISTORY PODCAST

Episode 56-B: Restoring Splendour

Second Intermediate Period (End).
http://egyptianhistory.libsyn.com/episode-56-b-restoring-splendour

Episode 56-C: A Royal Funeral

How to Bury an Egyptian King.
http://egyptianhistory.libsyn.com/episode-56-c-a-royal-funeral

ANCIENT ORIGINS

Unearthing the Ancient Port of Naukratis, a Bridge between Egyptian and Greek Civilization
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/unearthing-ancient-port-naukratis-bridge-between-egyptian-and-greek-020681

Kiya - The Most Mysterious Woman of Amarna
http://www.ancient-origins.net/history/kiya-most-mysterious-woman-amarna-005092

BM INTERNATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAMME

Discovering Senenmut: An Exciting Egyptian Find At Manchester Museum
https://bmtrainingprog.wordpress.com/2015/12/17/discovering-senenmut-an-exciting-egyptian-find-at-manchester-museum/

Scanning Sobek: A Challenge For Room 3
https://bmtrainingprog.wordpress.com/2015/12/20/scanning-sobek-a-challenge-for-room-3/

ERIC'S GUIDE TO ANCIENT EGYPT

EPISODE 011: How Old Is The Sphinx
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=114

EPISODE 012: Egyptology 101 With Kara Cooney And Emily Cole
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=117

EPISODE 013: The Horus-Jesus Connection
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=121

EPISODE 014: The Festival Of Drunkenness And The Destruction Of Mankind
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=124

EPISODE 015: The Ancient Egyptian Calendar
http://ericsguidetoancientegypt.com/?p=128

EGYPTIANS

Egyptology in 2015
http://tim-theegyptians.blogspot.nl/2015/12/egyptology-in-2015.html

A Must Read Document for 2016
http://tim-theegyptians.blogspot.nl/2015/12/a-must-read-document-for-2016.html

The Truth in the Search for Nefertiti
http://tim-theegyptians.blogspot.nl/2015/12/the-truth-in-search-for-nefertiti.html

MARÍA ROSA VALDESOGO

Juxtaposition in Ancient Egypt. Isis and Nephthys justaposed.
http://www.mariarosavaldesogo.com/juxtaposition-in-ancient-egypt-isis-and-nephthys-justaposed/

DW.COM

What the world might discover from the King Tut mask restoration
http://www.dw.com/en/what-the-world-might-discover-from-the-king-tut-mask-restoration/a-18902096

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

Did Egypt’s Old Kingdom Die—or Simply Fade Away?
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/12/151224-egypt-climate-change-old-kingdom-archaeology/

SCI-NEWS.COM

3,200-Year-Old Papyrus Contains Astrophysical Information about Variable Star Algol
http://www.sci-news.com/astronomy/papyrus-cairo-calendar-astrophysical-information-variable-star-algol-03533.html