Meretseger: She Who Loves Silence. The Cobra Deity at Deir el-Medina
In the Western world the cobra rarely inspires sentiments of benevolence, warmth or good intentions. It is not a cuddly beast. Matters were more ambivalent in ancient Egypt where a range of wild animals were identified with deities imbued with admired values of physical strength, protection and courage, as well as less obviously admirable qualities like aggression, retribution, vengeance and retaliation. Like Sobek, the crocodile deity, and Sekhmet the lioness, the cobra deities comprised a mixture of attributes that centred on their fierce ability to defend themselves and to strike, hissing and spitting poison, to annihilate their aggressors. [more…]
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Dorset Study Day: Kingston Lacy, Dorchester and Bournemouth
Over one weekend in February 2014 the Egyptian Exploration Society and ASTENE (The Association for the Study of Travel in Egypt and the Near East) combined forces to provide a two days of amazing insights into this man’s life. Three of us, all members of the Sussex Egyptology Society made a mini holiday of this opportunity, staying in Poole. Transport to the various sites including Windborne Minster, Dorchester and Bournemouth was provided for all including the lecturers. The main speakers were Dr Patricia Usick, Dr Aidan Dodson, Dr Daniele Salvoldi and Dr Robert Morkot who all stayed with the group, and it was a good opportunity to meet up with old acquaintances. [more…]
Marianne Brocklehurst and the West Park Museum, Macclesfield. Part 2
In part 1 I looked at how Marianne Brocklehurst acquired a collection of some 500 Ancient Egyptian objects during the three trips to Egypt that she records in her diary, cartoons, sketches and watercolours. In this section I look at the museum and the collection that Marianne and her brother Francis built for the benefit of the residents of Macclesfield in northwest England. [more…]
Edition - March, 2012
Documentary Overview: The Vanished Capital of the Pharaoh
By Andrea Byrnes, published on In Brief, Egyptological, 18th March 2012 The Vanished Capital of the Pharaoh (In the series ‘Lost Cities of the Ancients’) BBC4, March 15th 2012. 2000-2100. Narrator, Mark Halliley, Series Producer, Dan Clifton Writer, Mark Everest Featuring Manfred Bietak, Edgar Pusch, Aidan Dodson Introduction Figure 1. Map of the […] [more…]
A Context for Nehmes-Bastet (KV64): A Birds Eye View of the Early Third Intermediate Period – Part 1
In January 2012, thanks to the discovery of a new tomb in the Valley of the Kings, named KV64, the 22nd Dynasty was catapulted into the spotlight. At the moment, apart from a couple of tantalising photographs and a video released by the University of Basel (Switzerland) all we know is that the mummified woman was called Nehmes-Bastet; she was a chantress; and her father was a priest at the Temple of Karnak [more…]
A Context for Nehmes-Bastet (KV64): A Birds Eye View of the Early Third Intermediate Period – Part 2
In Part 1 the political background to and development of the Third Intermediate Period was described, emphasizing the way in which power became divided, both within the Delta and between the Delta and the south, where the Theban high priests became increasingly powerful. Part 2 looks at the blending of Libyan and Egyptian traditions, with new ideas expressed in funerary practices and in the role of religious institutions. [more…]
Edition - January, 2012
Paneb – “The All Round Bad Guy”
In Joyce Tyldesley’s Judgment of the Pharaohs, Tyldesley makes several references to an individual at Deir el-Medineh named Paneb, whom she describes evocatively as “the all round bad guy” (2000, p.127). In this short article, I have brought together some of the misdemeanours outlined in a letter known as Papyrus Salt 124 (BM 10055) for a closer look at this colourful character. [more…]
Edition - April, 2011
What was on this platform at Medinet Habu?
James Whitfield would like to know if the platform in the photo was the site where a statue might have been located, or even perhaps the location of a throne of Ramses III. It is adjacent to the place that John Romer described as the royal bath. You can click the image to see the […] [more…]
Book Review: House of Eternity – The Tomb of Nefertari
House of Eternity – The Tomb of Nefertari by John K. McDonald Thames and Hudson 1996 ISBN: 9780500279243. The tomb of Nefertari, wife of Ramesses II, is arguably the most beautiful of the New Kingdom tombs in Egypt, with its glorious scenes painted in vivid and vibrant colours on a pure white background. The lovely […] [more…]