Edition - November, 2012
TV Review of “Find My Past: Tutankhamun”
The two main themes of the show Find My Past: Tutankhamun are the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62), and the curiosity of descendents of three of the individuals who attended the opening of the tomb about their ancestors. [more…]
By 
The Egyptian items at the Lady Lever Art Gallery, Merseyside
To call William Hesketh Lever an entrepreneur or a visionary would be to pin him down, to imply a limit to the scope and depth both of his personality and his achievements. Lever was both these things, but he was so much else besides. He was a philanthropist, an innovator, a skilful salesman, a marketing genius, politician, eccentric, fanatic, occasionally a tyrant, even on occasion an inventor, a supporter of the rights of women, factory workers and the elderly, an enthusiastic ballroom dancer and always a family man. He made some grim mistakes, particularly with respect to his Pacific and African ventures, but his astonishing contributions to social progress in England are spectacularly praiseworthy, and he was knighted for them. Amongst his various extra-curricular obsessions, which included architecture, ferns and gymnastics, the 1st Viscount Leverhulme was a dedicated collector. [more…]
Overview: The Gurob Harem Palace Project Conference
The Gurob Harem Palace Project (http://www.gurob.org.uk), directed by Dr Ian Shaw from the University of Liverpool is collaborative, led by the University of Liverpool, University of Copenhagen and University College London. The conference took place on July 29th 2012 in Liverpool. Originally named Mer-Wer, today’s name derives from the nearby Medinet el-Gurab. It was investigated by a number of previous excavators including Flinders Petrie, William Loat and Guy Brunton before coming, for many years, under military control. The Gurob Harem Palace Project started work at the site in 2005, and their work is ongoing. [more…]
Book Review: Life Everlasting
Life Everlasting: National Museums Scotland Collection of Ancient Egyptian Coffins Bill Manley and Aidan Dodson 2010 National Museums Scotland ISBN 978-1-905267-17-0 176 pages Introduction Having recently read an excellent paper by Julie Ann Morgan about the way in which Third Intermediate Period mummies can be analysed and understood, I was in just the […] [more…]
Book Review: Grand Hotels of Egypt in the Golden Age of Travel
Grand Hotels of Egypt is essentially a book about the influx of western visitors into Egypt after Napoleon had departed and Anglo-American style infrastructure had arrived in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Using contemporary accounts and photographs, cartoons and some remarkable marketing material in full colour, Andrew Humphreys explores the role of the grand hotels of the day in the constant swirl of people as they experienced Egypt’s towns and cities. [more…]
Edition - July, 2012
Babi: Bull of the Baboons
By Andrea Byrnes. Published on Egyptological, In Brief, 26th July 2012 Ferocious and alarming, baboons are amongst nature’s aggressive species. With vast teeth, which they are all too willing to display, brightly coloured rear quarters and loud, screeching voices, they make an impression. They are also sociable animals, at least amongst themselves, forming tight […] [more…]
Book and CD Review: Ancient Egyptian Designs and Motifs
By Andrea Byrnes. Published in In Brief, on Egyptological. 18th July 2012. Ancient Egyptian Designs and Motifs CD-Rom and Book (451 Royalty Free Designs) Dover Publications 2006 ISBN-9780486997612 Introduction I saw this for sale on special offer in a bookshop and bought it out of curiosity, not for any specific purpose, […] [more…]
Edition - June, 2012
An Offering to Henut-Mestjet
All Ancient Egyptian lion deities share the same basic attributes. Capable of great rage and great kindness, some are associated very closely with the Eye of Ra and all were considered to be important protectors of the dead, fierce and nurturing protectors. Of all the leonine deities the most elusive is Henut-Mestjet, or Mestjet. [more…]
Review: Study Day. Ancient Egypt – Myth and History with John Romer
John Romer delivered an ambitious set of lectures that looked at the history of Egyptology, with a view to understanding how ideas about the past first developed in the nineteenth century have influenced how Egyptology is researched and understood today. [more…]
Review. Bill Manley, Egyptian Hieroglyphs for Complete Beginners. 2012
Bill Manley, well known for the surprising best seller How To Read Egyptian Hieroglyphs that he co-authored with Mark Collier, (generally known simply as “Collier and Manley”) has produced a new book for those who are planning to learn hieroglyphs for the first time. The Preface, as well as the book’s title, makes it clear that Dr Manley is aiming at the complete beginner with this book [more…]