Showing posts with label Horus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Horus. Show all posts

Monday, February 3, 2020

Ancient Egypt News 02/03/2020



Meidum Pyramid
Forget Giza, These Are The Unknown Pyramids Of Egypt You Need To Have On Your Bucketlist
Photo: Flying Carpet Tours

A wonder of the ancient world, the Pyramids of Giza stand tall thousands of years after their construction, a testament to the ingenuity and perseverance of the Ancient Egyptians. Yet, despite their historical significance, many tend to forget that these aren’t the only pyramids in Egypt. In fact, Egypt is home to more than a hundred pyramids, the majority of which are unknown to most people.

Throughout the Old Kingdom, Pharaohs of the Nile were obsessed with the massive construction of pyramids, and although many of the other pyramids pale in comparison to those at the Giza Plateau in terms of size, they are no less interesting or historically valuable.

So without further delay, here are six of the lesser-known pyramids of Egypt.


Tombs containing 20 sarcophagi at the Al-Ghoreifa site
Sarcophagus Dedicated to Sky God among Latest Ancient Egypt Trove

Egypt's antiquities ministry on Thursday unveiled the tombs of ancient high priests and a sarcophagus dedicated to the sky god Horus at an archaeological site in Minya governorate.

The mission found 16 tombs containing 20 sarcophagi, some engraved with hieroglyphics, at the Al-Ghoreifa site, about 300 kilometres (186 miles) south of Cairo.

The shared tombs were dedicated to high priests of the god Djehuty and senior officials, from the Late Period around 3,000 years ago, the ministry said.

More on this story:

Egyptian archaeologists unveil ancient tombs, 2500-year-old artifacts


Face and Shoulder from an Anthropoid Sarcophagus, 332–30 B.C.E. Black basalt. Brookly Museum
Cummer Museum's New 'Striking Power' Exhibit Unravels Piece Of Egyptian Art History
HEATHER SCHATZ/WJCT

Striking Power, a new exhibition at the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens, explores the meaning behind the vandalism of ancient Egyptian art. It opens Friday, Jan. 31.

Striking Power unravels the history of iconoclasm in relation to ancient Egyptian art. The exhibit features forty works on loan from the Brooklyn Museum of Art. The deliberately defaced pieces of art will be paired with undamaged examples.

In an interview on First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, Holly Keris, Chief Curator for the museum, explained the impact of iconoclasm on the Egyptian culture.



Temple of Hathor
15 Ancient Hieroglyphs Tourists Can Go And See

The world wonders in Egypt don’t end with pyramids and sphinxes. All across the country, there are sites that have survived until today to reward anyone who enters with a glimpse into the past.

Hieroglyphs found on temple faces and surrounding tombs have enlightened historians on the cultures the created them. Now tourists can learn about mythology and history while touring the sites where all these things developed.

Most are already familiar with the usual spots that hog up all the attention, but we’ll also include some less popular sites which have the necessary infrastructure and plenty of interesting hieroglyphs to see yet get none of the tourist attention.


Replicas of Pharaonic statues are seen at the workshop of the Replica Production Unit located at Salah Al Din Citadel in Cairo, Egypt. EPA
Artists Create Replicas of Ancient Egyptian Antiquities

Egyptian media has reported that the government plans to sell these first class replicas at Cairo International Airport by the end of the month

Some of the best Egyptian artists, sculptors and craftsmen are creating first class replicas of ancient Egyptian, as well as as Greco-Roman, Coptic and Islamic relics.

They're part of the Replica Production Unit at Salah Al Din Citadel in Cairo, a unit that falls under the Egyptian Ministry of State for Antiquities Affairs. The unit, which was established in 2010, produces replicas using the same methods used by ancient Egyptian workers.


Russell Thomas, Dorothy Gal, and HGO Studio Alum Peixin Chen in Houston Grand Opera's 'Aida'Photo: Lynn Lane
HGO Staging is Not your Parents’ ‘Aida’
Photo: Lynn Lane

Delicate silk billows across the stage, its fluidity complementing the passionate romanticism of a tragic tale set against the rigid hierarchical structure of ancient Egypt and its monolithic scenery.

Starting Friday, the Houston Grand Opera, led by artistic and music director Patrick Summers, will present the return of Giuseppe Verdi’s “Aida” to the Wortham stage in a new rendition by London-based director Phelim McDermott - one that lacks elephants, but not extravagance. His modernized version of the timeless story, a co-production with the English National Opera and the Grand Théâtre de Genève, features silk choreography by visionary artist Basil Twist that amplifies the impact of the already expressive costumes by Kevin Pollard, the dramatic lighting by Bruno Poet and the powerful geometric sets by Tom Pye.


Freshwater School’s “Egyptian Mask Project”
Freshwater Students Show Results of Mask Project

Redwood Curtain is hosting a show of Freshwater School’s “Egyptian Mask Project” in February and March in the theater gallery, 220 First St. in Eureka.

Freshwater teacher Kylah Rush immerses her sixth-grade class in an ancient Egypt unit for the month of January. The students learn science, history, art, writing and even math through the lens of the ancient Egyptians. The unit culminates in the students mummifying chickens and making personalized death shroud masks in the style of the ancient mummified pharaohs.


Replica of a sarcophagus
Exhibition from ROM offers insights into ancient Egypt
RICHA BHOSALE/The Daily Press

“Egypt, Gift of the Nile” on display at Timmins Museum until March 29.

The exhibition explores Egyptian civilization through everyday life, buildings, family life, personal adornment, education and religion, the Timmins Museum stated in a release announcing the new exhibition. The exhibit displays a replica of a sarcophagus which helps explain the Egyptian view on the afterlife.

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Ancient Egypt News 12/24/2019



Add next here
Egypt's History of Humanity' Monuments Face Climate Change Threat
Ceiling at Karnak  © Michalea Moore 2017

It’s a steamy November day in the southern Egyptian city of Luxor, and the tourists tramping through the ancient temples of Luxor and Karnak are sweating. But the city’s famed 7,000-year-old antiquities are feeling the heat too.

Increasingly high temperatures linked to climate change, as well as wilder weather, particularly heavy rains and flooding, are taking a growing toll on the ancient stonework, said Abdelhakim Elbadry, a restoration expert who works at Karnak temple.

5th Dynasty Egyptian Tomb
Old Kingdom Tomb
Courtesy Mohamed Megahed

During investigation of the funerary complex of the 5th Dynasty pharaoh Djedkare Isesi (r. ca. 2381–2353 B.C.), a team from the Czech Institute of Egyptology discovered the painted tomb of a high-ranking Old Kingdom Egyptian dignitary. After descending a narrow subterranean tunnel that opened up into a series of rooms, members of the team, led by archaeologist Mohamed Megahed, found hieroglyphs on the walls announcing that a man named Khuwy was entombed within the chamber. The writing also enumerates Khuwy’s many titles, including “Secretary of the King,” “Companion of the Royal House,” and “Overseer of the Tenants of the Great House.”

Horus statue at the Funerary Temple of king Amenhotep III
A Granodiorite Colossus of Horus Unearthed in Egypt's Luxor

During excavations carried out at the Funerary Temple of king Amenhotep III, an Egyptian-German archaeological mission led by Horig Sourouzian unearthed a large part of a granodiorite colossus of a standing falcon-headed god Horus.

Sourouzian said the statue is missing the legs, and the arms are broken, but the head and torso are very well preserved.

The 1.85-metres-tall statue depicts the ancient Egyptian deity Horus wearing the divine pleated kilt held around the waist with a horizontally pleated belt.

The last known hieroglyphic inscription at Philae
Hunting for Hieroglyphs at Philae
Photo: Nile Scribes

In October, the Nile Scribes led their first tour to Egypt, stopping in Aswan, Luxor, and Cairo. Agilika Island, located in the river at Aswan, is now the home of Philae Temple. It was moved there in the 1960s, piece by piece, from neighbouring Philae Island, now underwater. The island is a regular spot for visitors to southern Egypt thanks to its gorgeous setting in the Nile, but we were anxious to visit the temple complex for another reason: hieroglyph hunting. Philae contains the last known instances of inscriptions that were written using both the hieroglyphic and Demotic scripts. This week we are introducing our readers to both inscriptions, and showing you how you can see them for yourself on your next visit to Philae.

Anubis Was Ancient Egypt's Jackal-headed Guard Dog of the Dead
DRE/FLICKR (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Death isn't exactly a comfortable topic of conversation in our modern culture. But in countless societies around the world and throughout time, death has been openly discussed, revered and even celebrated. Ancient Egypt is no exception — case in point, the deity Anubis, otherwise known as Inpu or Anpu, aka the god of death.

"Anubis is the Egyptian god of mummification, and one of the many deities related with the afterlife," says M. Victoria Almansa-Villatoro, Ph.D. candidate in Egyptology at Brown University. "He is usually depicted as either some sort of canid, or as a cynocephalus god."

Merit Ptah
The Story of That Famous Female Physician From Ancient Egypt Is Actually Wrong
Stzeman/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 3.0
NOTE: Don't despair. Read the end of the article. Peseshet  is a genuine hero of the modern feminist struggle.
Merit Ptah. In recent decades, the name of this ancient Egyptian doctor, said to have lived nearly 5,000 years ago, has become a figurehead of women in science, technology, maths, and engineering (STEM).

She is credited as being the "first woman known by name in the history of science". But there's a bit of a problem - Merit Ptah probably didn't exist. Not as described, at any rate.

Egyptologist Lara Weiss
‘Egypt is not Just Pyramids and Mummies’

Egyptologist Lara Weiss is curator at The National Museum of Antiquities and has been leading the VIDI research project ‘Walking Dead’ since 2017. The exhibition ‘Sakkara: Living in a necropolis’h will be on display at the museum starting March 9 next year.

Tesla & Pyramids
Why Nikola Tesla was Obsessed with the Egyptian Pyramids
Mstyslav Chernov/Wikimedia

Nikola Tesla died somewhat unappreciated but his fame and the myth around him has continued to grow tremendously into our times. He is now perceived as the ultimate mad scientist, the one who essentially invented our times, credited with key ideas leading to smartphones, wi-fi, AC electrical supply system, and more.

Besides ideas that Tesla implemented and patented, he also had many other interests in different fields of research, some quite esoteric. One of the most unusual was his preoccupation with Egyptian pyramids, one of humanity's most mysterious and magnificent constructions.

Monday, February 11, 2019

Ancient Egypt February 11



His cape billowing behind him, a cowled crimefighter flees from police by leaping and bounding over cars in a crowded metropolis rife with corruption an injustice. Sound familiar? The story takes a sharp turn once the cops eventually capture the hero and treat to him to brutal beating back at the station.

This isn't the kind of world we're used to seeing our superheroes normally operate in. These aren't the streets of NYC or a fictionalized Western metropolis; this is Cairo, Egypt, and the caped crusader skirting the law and being beaten in a police station is the reincarnated ancient Egyptian god Horus.

Effort to Save Egypt's Abu Simbel Temples in 1960s Recalled

Egyptologists and other experts gathered in Italy this week to celebrate a successful campaign to save ancient Egyptian temples from being submerged by a dam project 50 years ago and heard of cultural sites facing similar threats now.

The international campaign that saved the temples of Abu Simbel during construction of Aswan High Dam was remembered in Turin as an unprecedented engineering achievement and a turning point that made the preservation of cultural treasures a responsibility that cut across borders.


Egypt Races Time With Recent Archaeological Discoveries
Credit: Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities

Perhaps, the world’s oldest civilization, Egypt, has been around for more than 5,000 years; subsequently, our ancestors and those who came after have left us relics and monuments, commemorating their existence, leaving their mark.

Pharaonic Egypt, the ancient Egyptian civilization that spanned over 3,000 years, was followed by Persian Egypt, under the rule of the Achaemenid Empire, and then the Ptolemies followed by the Romans. In other words, Egypt has been a historic, as well as cultural, melting pot, and now, all around us from Aswan to Alexandria, Egyptian cities are awash with a tinge of historic landmarks.

In recent months, more and more groundbreaking discoveries are surfacing, with the Ministry of Antiquities, sponsoring excavations and encouraging archaeologists to uncover Egyptian history.

Maze of Tombs in Egypt Holds Many Mummies Dating Back 2,300 Years
Credit: Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities

Archaeologists have discovered a maze of tombs in Egypt holding tens of mummies, of all ages, possibly dating back to the Ptolemaic dynasty, which lasted from 305 to 30 B.C.

The mummies, which likely belonged to a family from the elite middle class, were discovered at the Egyptian archaeological site called Tuna el-Gebel, which lies to the west of the Nile River, the Egyptian antiquities ministry announced. The burials date back to a line of rulers descended from Ptolemy Soter, who was one of Alexander the Great's generals. (Cleopatra VII was the last of the Ptolemaic rulers; in 30 B.C., after her forces were defeated by Roman emperor Augustus, she killed herself.)

Newly Found Ancient Tombs in Egypt Revealed 40 Mummies of More Than 2000 Years Old Great Lakes Ledger

Mummified Proportionate Dwarfs from the Valley of the Kings

Proportionate dwarfism represents a form of harmonically short stature (lower than 150 cm), mostly caused by congenital deficiencies of the pituitary gland. The condition is well known in the modern world, but its antiquity is far from clarified. Three cases have so far been reported: a female skeleton from the 4th century CE in Roman Britain, and two more from the Americas. Regarding Ancient Egypt, there are some controversial or insufficiently substantiated diagnoses, including in the remains of Seneb (described by John Garstang [1876–1956] in 1907, and dating back to the end of the fifth dynasty, circa 2400 BCE), in a skeleton from the tomb complex of King Djer (first dynasty, circa 2980 BCE), and in nine abnormal skulls from the third dynasty (circa 2700 BCE).

Monday, September 17, 2018

Ancient Egypt September 17 2018



The Neith of Spetses

Anargyros was also fascinated with Egyptology, and in 1903 he began construction of a grand mansion decorated inside and out with Egyptian décor. Finished in 1904, Anargyros named it “Neith” after the Egyptian goddess of war and hunting. It immediately became the most imposing building in Spetses, hosting kings, queens, and other dignitaries of that time. These guests entered past one of the mansion’s most impressive features, the two large sphinxes flanking the entrance.
Two 4,500-Year-Old Homes Found Near Giza Pyramids
Credit: Copyright 2016 by Ancient Egypt Research Associates

Archaeologists have discovered two ancient homes near the Giza pyramids in Egypt. The structures may have housed officials responsible for overseeing the production of food for a paramilitary force more than 4,500 years ago.

4,000-year-old Egyptian 'Lost City of the Dead' FOUND: 800 tombs unearthed at burial site
MINISTRY OF ANTIQUES

The site, near Al Ayyat, on the edge of the Sahara Desert had previously been left alone for about 4,000 years, until now.

Egyptologists believe it is one of the largest necropolis (city of the dead) dating back to the Middle Kingdom period of Egyptian history.

Inside the crypts there is enough space that experts believe it could have held thousands of corpses.

For another article see, Ancient Egypt: 800 Tombs Discovered In Massive Grave Site Lurking Between Two Pyramids

The Mummy Returns
PHOTO BY ROBERT ISENBERG

Everybody loves Nesmin. The RISD Museum staff all refer to Nesmin by name. They encourage visitors to see Nesmin, to spend a little time with him on the third floor. Nesmin is much beloved, especially for a guy who died 2,250 years ago.

The Ptolemaic mummy has been on display since 1938, a well-wrapped bundle of cloth covered in intricate painting. Yet after much discussion, the museum has decided to put Nesmin back in his ornate coffin, where he was originally ensconced in the third century B.C.E.

The Latest Discoveries in Egyptology (July-August 2018)
A Saite-Persian Period gilded mummy mask found at Saqqara (Photo: AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

Every few months, the Nile Scribes bring you summaries of the latest news and discoveries in Egyptology, both from the field and the lab. We’ll introduce you to the newest archaeological finds or recently undusted manuscripts being rediscovered in museum collections, plus other new theories stirring in the Egyptological Zeitgeist. This summer has seen a wealth of new discoveries and research, with much excitement generated by the discovery of an intact, black sarcophagus in Alexandria. Another intriguing find was the identification of the world’s oldest cheese from the tomb of an Egyptian official at Saqqara.

Eye Of Horus: Meaning Behind The Egyptian Eye
The fractions of the Eye of Horus. Image source: Wikipedia.

The Eye of Horus, also called the Egyptian Eye, the Wedjat, or the all-seeing eye, was a powerful symbol for the ancient Egyptians. The Eye was widely used in funeral rites and as protective amulets in ancient Egypt. Often made of gold, wood, carnelian, or lapis, the Eye of Horus was often worn as jewelry worn by both the living and the dead or as an amulet to be tucked between the folds of linen wrapped around mummified corpses.

Ankh Meaning: The Egyptian Cross Symbol
Image source: Wikipedia

This is an ancient symbol that originated in Egypt where it was used in portraits of gods, usually seen carried on each hand, on their chest or carried by the cross’s loop. The ankh is seen in the Egyptian pantheon either in close proximity or in the hand of most Pharaohs and deities.

But this symbol is also found among other ancient cultures outside Europe, most notably in Persia (present-day Iran), and Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq). It is also found on the seal of King Hezekiah in the bible.

Breathtaking Ancient Egyptian tombs dating back to the Sixth Dynasty are reopened to the public for the first time since they were discovered nearly 80 years ago

The tombs of Mehu have been reopened to the viewing public for the first time in almost 80 years since it was discovered in 1940 in Giza, Egypt.

Mehu's tombs, which are situated in the vast ancient burial ground of Saqqara, are deemed to be the most beautiful tombs at the site.

The magnificent burial site was restored by the Egyptian Ministry of Antiques, who reinstated the tomb paintings pictured on the walls of the chambers.


Meeting the “Queens of Egypt” in Montréal
The exhibition space imagining the royal harem beside the river Nile (photo: Nile Scribes)

Having opened in early April at Pointe-à-Callière in Montréal, Canada, the new exhibition Reines d’Égypte (Queens of Egypt) invites visitors on a tour of the east and west banks of the Nile during the New Kingdom. The Nile Scribes were able to visit Pointe-à-Callière this summer and see this special exhibition for ourselves. Including objects from temple, palace, and harem contexts on the east bank, the exhibition also featured objects associated with preparing for the afterlife on the west bank.

Papiro di Aaner video


Papyrus of Aaner, priest of the goddess Mut, Third Intermediate Period (1076 – 722 a.C.) Click this link to watch the video.


Monday, July 23, 2018

Ancient Egypt July 16 & 23 2018



Grand Egyptian Museum to open in 2020

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has instructed the government to complete the construction work on Egypt's massive new museum and open it to visitors by 2020, Presidency Spokesman Ambassador Bassam Radi said.

The presidential directives were issued during a meeting President Sisi held Tuesday with Prime Minister Dr Moustafa Madbouli and Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Enani, to review the latest developments pertaining to the progress of work on building the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) in Giza.

Hilary Waddington: Lights, camera, action

The Waddington collection in the Lucy Gura archive comprises 3 boxes/files of documents and photographs from the 1930s, which together provide a vivid insight into the experience and practicalities of excavation at Tell el-Amarna (ancient Akhetaten) in Egypt between the wars.


What's Inside This Massive Egyptian Sarcophagus?
Credit: Courtesy Egypt Antiquities Ministry

A massive black granite sarcophagus and a sculpture of a man who may be buried inside have been discovered in a tomb in Alexandria, Egypt.

The granite sarcophagus looks foreboding: It's nearly 9 feet long, 5 feet wide and 6 feet tall (2.7 by 1.5 by 1.8 meters). And, it may be the largest sarcophagus ever discovered in Alexandria, said Mostafa Waziri, general secretary of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, in a statement released by Egypt's antiquities ministry.

In Ancient Egypt, it was believed that people were protected by mystic eyes. To protect themselves from evil, the ancient Egyptians conducted various rituals including creating talismans to protect them, which is still a practice seen in many cultures today.

In "some sort of carbonated energy drink."

On Thursday, some archeologists over in Egypt decided to go against the threat of a world-ending curse to open up a 2,000-year-old black sarcophagus found in Alexandria. In it they found three skeletons, believed to be of military officials, marinating in a red liquid the Ministry of Antiquities called "sewage." And while the archeologists may not have unleashed an apocalyptic curse upon humanity, they have, however, unearthed at least a couple hundred people who now want to drink the red sarcophagus "juice."

Mummies, embalming equipment discovered south of Pyramid of Unas in Egypt's Saqqara

The Ministry of Antiquities is set to announce the discovery of a number of mummies and embalming equipment at the Saqqara necropolis on Saturday.

The ministry told Ahram Online that the discovery includes a collection of inscribed mummification vessel measuring cups.

QUIZ: WHICH ANCIENT EGYPTIAN QUEEN ARE YOU?

They may be ancient indeed, but boy are they fierce! A few simple questions and we'll tell you which Pharaonic matriarch you probably were in your previous life.

Virtual Reality May Help Save Ancient Egypt's 'Sistine Chapel'

A new virtual reality experience may help save an ancient Egyptian tomb built for Queen Nefertari whose paintings are so beautiful that it has been compared to Italy's Sistine Chapel.

Built around 3,250 years ago for the favorite wife of pharaoh Ramesses II (who reigned from 1279 B.C. to 1213 B.C.), the Tomb of Nefertari is located in the Valley of the Queens, near Luxor. The tomb is open to just small groups of visitors, because the increase in humidity that comes when people enter can damage its paintings.

2-headed ancient Egyptian mummy shown to public for 1st time 

A bizarre mummy from ancient Egypt combining the heads of a girl and a crocodile was photographed for the first time. Before its picture was published in the media, the mummy was hidden from the public eye for more than a century.

The first ever photo of the unusual mummy was unveiled by the Turkish daily Hurriyet. Experts told the paper that the mummy was composed of the head of an unidentified ancient Egyptian princess and the head and body of a Nile crocodile.