First Intermediate Period

During the Old Kingdom, private tomb façades can be considered as distinctive areas within the dynamics of tombs, since they are in direct contact with the landscape of the necropolis, that is, the world of the "living ones". Although their decorative program might appear very standardized with little interesting content in comparison to that of interior funerary chapels, they exhibit a specific use of space and of visual and aesthetic parameters, especially with their pictorial, textual, and architectural decoration fully integrated into the outer environment. Based on the analysis of the façade of Werkhuu (Giza G 8674 - 5th dynasty), the author aims to demonstrate how the tomb façade can be considered as a privileged medium for individual expression. Several strategies of self-representation through a visual and textual vocabulary, such as calibration and repetition of a pattern, or selecting the "informative" contents on this external support, are developed in order to express the tomb owner's identity. Then, the materiality and spatiality of the façade is considered, as a way to establish contact between the tomb owner and viewers (that is, passers-by in the necropolis), who are likely to participate to the funerary cult. Aesthetic effects such as variations on colour, light and relief, or symmetry, as well as the multiplicity of the tomb owner's representations (through image(s) and text(s)) are discussed as ways to "stage" a visual encounter between the passer-by and the deceased. The conclusion highlights that the decorative programme of tomb façades was conceived with a communicative purpose, by anticipating conditions of reception.

This article studies the stela of Mertanahy at the Egyptian Museum Cairo (JE 49637). The provenance of this stela is unknown. The database of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo did not provide any data about this stela. It belongs to Mertanahy, who was Sole companion and Overseer of cloth. It probably dates to the late Old Kingdom to Early First Intermediate Period, based on its style, epigraphical and orthographical study. It is worth noting that the text recorded on this stela is very common. It contains the offering formula associated with the god Anubis accompanied by the owner"s title and name, followed by the name of his son Iti, wife Qedi, and daughter Ankhenes.

This is the third part of my Timeline "trilogy" All dates, notes , and maps referenced, are explained in my (part one) "Timeline AS (Abraham to Solomon)" Part two is "The Arad Incident" All emphasis is mine. Background shaded areas are comments by the 11 th century traditional exegete, RASHI.

This article studies the stela of Mertanahy at the Egyptian Museum Cairo (JE 49637). The provenance of this stela is unknown. The database of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo did not provide any data about this stela. It belongs to Mertanahy, who was Sole companion and Overseer of cloth. It probably dates to the late Old Kingdom to Early First Intermediate Period, based on its style, epigraphical and orthographical study. It is worth noting that the text recorded on this stela is very common. It contains the offering formula associated with the god Anubis accompanied by the owner"s title and name, followed by the name of his son Iti, wife Qedi, and daughter Ankhenes.

This paper intends to recognize the amuletic significance of the Synodontis by analyzing its features represented in daily life scenes. This was achieved through a thorough study of coherent scene elements, similarity and continuity, and variation and innovation. Moreover, relevant material gathered from museum collections includes Synodontis-shaped ornaments, amulets, and necklaces. Furthermore, relevant texts were analysed.

Professor Donald B. Redford (an Egyptologist) in 1992, averred that Israel's Exodus was fiction, a fiction based on a real event, the expulsion of the Hyksos from Avaris, in the Delta, circa 1580 BC by Pharaoh Ahmose I, of Thebes. (Redford. 1992:412-413): "Despite the lateness and unreliability of the story in Exodus, no one can deny that the tradition of Israel's coming out of Egypt was one of long standing...There is only one chain of historical events that can accommodate this late tradition, and that is the Hyksos descent and occupation of Egypt...in fact it is in the Exodus account that we are confronted with this Canaanite version of this event...their departure came not as a result of ignominious defeat, but….as salvation from bondage." (Donald B. Redford. Egypt, Canaan and Israel in Ancient Times. Princeton University Press. Princeton, New Jers Ahmose I was the founder of the 18 th Dynasty, or New Kingdom, Egypt (ca. 1580-1130 BC).

The present report includes the archaeological, epigraphic, conservation, and landscape activities carried out by the Middle Kingdom Theban Project (an initiative run by the Uni- versity of Alcalá expedition to Deir el-Bahari and Asasif) in its seasons VII, VIII and IX. The priority areas of these campaigns included: i) the eastern sector of the courtyard in the tomb of Dagi (TT 103); ii) the eastern sector of the transversal corridor of the same monument; iii) the southern sector of the courtyard in the tomb of Djari (TT 366); iv) the northern sector of the transversal corridor of this complex; v) the burial chamber and sarcophagus in the funerary complex of Ipi (TT 315); and, finally, vi) the territory and landscape of the Theban necropolis to produce a Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Furthermore, with the authorization of the Mi- nistry of Tourism and Antiquities (MoTA) and the Direction of the Luxor Museum, the team transferred the findings from the mummification deposit in the complex of Ipi to the museum storage facility.

Along with the body, the ka (kʒ; "life force"), the shadow, and the name, the ba (Eg., bʒ) was one of the major components in the Egyptian concept of an individual. Its closest analog in Western thought is the "soul"-a term with which ba is often translated-although the two concepts are not fully comparable. At the same time, however, Paheri's text also states that "your ba will not abandon your corpse," echoing the Coffin Texts: "my ba cannot be kept from my corpse." This relationship is reflected in vignettes of the New Kingdom Book of Going Forth by Day (Book of the Dead), which show the ba not only returning to the mummy and hovering over it but also participating in activities outside the tomb. This vision of the Bibliography

Ancient Egyptian culture (3rd-1st millennium B.C.) reveals that it developed its own vision not only of the divine, but also of human nature, though it expressed it not through concepts, but through images. This essay reconstructs and translates the Egyptian idea of human nature into concepts, underlining its connections with that of the divine. It proposes an interpretative hypothesis that highlights its affinities, in the earliest period (up to the mid-2nd millennium B.C.), with the Homeric vision of human nature and, in the subsequent era, with that of Plato and, even more so, of Plotinus.

«Khennu, “Scribe, Treasurer of the God of the Pyramid of
Merykara, and Regulator of a Phyle of the Pyramid of Teti,”
was a distinguished official whose intact tomb was discovered
during the 1906–1907 excavations east of the Pyramid of Teti at
Saqqara. His burial assemblage included a wooden rectangular
coffin (Imhotep Museum, J.E. 39052), a model boat, and a
statuette of his son. Despite its excellent state of preservation,
the coffin remains unpublished. Made of wood and coated
with a yellow ground, its interior surfaces bear extensive
inscriptions from the Coffin Texts, written in black ink with
traces of blue pigment still visible within several hieroglyphs.
These texts, arranged in vertical and horizontal bands, were
intended to safeguard the deceased and facilitate his transition
into the afterlife.
The research presented here provides the first detailed
description and analysis of Khennu’s coffin and its inscriptions,
situating the piece within the textual and artistic traditions of
the late Heracleopolitan to early Middle Kingdom transition
(Dynasties XI–XII). Khennu’s intriguing association with both
the Pyramid of Teti and the Pyramid of Merikare—rulers
separated by several centuries—highlights the persistence
and complexity of royal cults during this period. By examining
the coffin alongside the broader burial assemblage, this study
contributes new evidence for Middle Kingdom funerary
customs and offers fresh insight into contemporary conceptions
of death, rebirth, and the journey to the afterlife.

The sun as an object of worship by early humans seemed natural enough to avoid any surprise since it was a powerful object in the sky, visible to all and able to grant life or death to all, both nature and the humans that inhabited the land. Such worship was visible almost everywhere in the world and adopted many different forms, as people conceived its manifestations. In the case of ancient Egypt we can detect its presence already from the earliest times. Not surprisingly, humans also used it as a tool to intervene in political affairs as well, seeming to grant divine approval to very human royal and other concerns.

Des guerres simultanées sur trois fronts pour contrôler le métal. Une sécheresse globale. Un effondrement en cascade. I. Le bronze-une matière première impossible Le bronze n'existe nulle part à l'état naturel. Il s'agit d'un alliage composé à 88 % de cuivre et à 12 % d'étain-deux métaux qui coexistent rarement sur le même territoire. Cette contrainte physique fondamentale est à l'origine de toute la géopolitique de l'âge du bronze. 1.1 La composition du bronze Composant Détails Cuivre-88 % Relativement abondant : Chypre (Kypros = cuivre), Sardaigne, Sinaï, Oman Étain-12 % Extrêmement rare en Méditerranée. Sources : Bactriane (Afghanistan), Cornouailles (Bretagne anglaise), Erzgebirge (Saxe-Bohême), Anatolie centrale (limitée) Bronze résultant Alliage dur, forgeable, coulable. Supérieur au cuivre pur pour armes, outils et clous de construction navale 1.2 La route de l'étain-5 000 à 8 000 km Une épée mycénienne représente une chaîne logistique transcontinentale. L'étain extrait en Bactriane (mine de Shortughaï, Afghanistan actuel) transite par des caravaniers jusqu'à Assur, puis rejoint les marchands assyriens établis à Kanesh (Anatolie), avant d'atteindre les ports du Levant comme Ugarit, d'où les navires le transportent vers les ateliers palataux. Preuve archéologique : l'épave d'Uluburun (~1300 av. J.-C.) Découverte au large des côtes turques, cette épave contient 10 tonnes de lingots de cuivre et 1 tonne d'étain-exactement dans le ratio 88/12 du bronze. Elle illustre concrètement la réalité du commerce transcontinental de l'âge du bronze et l'ampleur des cargaisons en transit. 1.3 Le bronze vital pour les marins Une dimension systématiquement sous-estimée : le bronze n'équipe pas seulement les armées-il est la condition matérielle de la navigation elle-même. • Ancres : crochets et anneaux d'attache en bronze La fin de l'Age du Bronze-document récapitulatif

Cette étude vise à mettre en perspective les divers éléments de la documentation en lien avec la liturgie mémorielle de « perpétuation du nom » (sanx rn ). Apparues, semble-t-il, au début de la Première Période intermédiaire (vers 2200 av. n. è.), ces sources textuelles et iconographiques sont encore attestées à la période ptolémaïque, formant un corpus documentaire qui couvre une durée de près de deux millénaires.
Dans son dispositif général, cette liturgie est animée par un ou plusieurs desservants qui agissent rituellement à destination d’un défunt. Si dans le plus grand nombre de cas, le liturgiste est le propre fils du défunt, ou
parfois de la défunte, d’autres membres de la famille, voire certains individus extérieurs à ce cercle le plus intime, peuvent également assumer cette responsabilité.
Par suite, cette enquête a permis de mettre en lumière que la « perpétuation du nom » du défunt, plus qu’un simple rituel, constitue une véritable liturgie articulée en plusieurs phases, déployées dans un temps espéré « éternel ».
Partant de l’inscription du nom du défunt au cœur d’une formule rituelle consignée sur un support durable, la pérennisation de cette liturgie est principalement assurée au moyen de la récitation récurrente de cet
énoncé, verbalisation effectuée « pour toujours et à jamais ».
Finalement, la liturgie mémorielle de « perpétuation du nom » ( sanx rn) apparaît comme étant probablement le plus important cérémonial mémoriel de l’ancienne Égypte. Permettant pour l’essentiel de maintenir des liens
entre les vivants et les morts, il vise notamment à perpétuer le nom de ces derniers « dans la bouche des vivants ».

O presente artigo tem com objetivo investigar as associações profissionais e religiosas durante o Egito Romano. Essas associações podem ser caracterizadas como grupos de agentes que compartilham interesses comuns, tanto de natureza profissional quanto religiosa. Ao participarem dessas associações, os agentes buscam assistência e apoio mútuos, especialmente em questões relacionadas à morte e ao ambiente funerário como um todo. Como documentos, utilizamos uma série de papiros do período, além de estelas funerárias e pedras memoriais. Através da análise das interações sociais, do simbolismo visual presente nas estelas e, ainda, do estudo das associações profissionais e religiosas, buscamos compreender o funcionamento dessas corporações como espaços de preservação identitárias de agentes e grupos.

Resumo: O Estado faraônico não deve ser entendido a partir dos pressupostos do Estado Moderno. A historiografia atual tem enfrentado o tema diante de novas perspectivas, voltando-se para os limites do exercício da autoridade, as redes de poder sustentadas pela elite e suas instituições, a formação e transformação dos setores dominantes e as relações de poder entre o centro e as províncias. Por outro lado, as condições de possibilidade do surgimento do Estado devem ser pensadas a partir das lógicas sociais e das relações de produção do Pré-Dinástico. Explorando os trabalhos de Marcelo Campagno, Juan Carlos Moreno García e Ciro Flamarion Cardoso, procuramos explicitar esse novo enfoque, destacando as estratégias utilizadas pela monarquia para criar as condições de sua manutenção, por meio das articulações com as elites locais, da organização do trabalho e dos elementos constitutivos da legitimidade estatal.

Avaris (Tell el-Dabʿa) seems to change in two steps during the Middle Bronze Age. First, one older district (“Old Avaris,” Area F/I) loses houses and stops looking like a normal living neighborhood. Soon after, activity grows strongly in another district (Area A). Later, a second phase ends in a more forceful removal.

This paper asks a focused question: does the first break look more like slow decline, sudden violence, or a large relocation—possibly even a voluntary departure—by a long-settled Semitic community? The goal is to identify what kind of rupture the ground record actually shows, and whether later memory traditions of a Levantine population in Avaris describing crisis, departure, and takeover could be shaped by a real urban break like this.

Questions for discussion

What archaeological signs best separate planned relocation from economic decline or hidden violence?

How should we read a major dump feature in Old Avaris: normal trash, cleanup after rebuilding, or a district losing its domestic life?

Does the shift from Area F/I to Area A look like a move of power and institutions, or just normal city reorganization?

What single find or pattern would most strongly falsify the “relocation/departure” idea?

The conclusion first. The hype about the Grand Egyptian Museum (opened in November 2025) is true and deserved; it is worth the money and the abundant amount of time needed for a visit for anyone with an archaeological background that can drag along the rest of family, or for anybody else even vaguely interested in ancient Egypt. Using the words of a previous article in Antiquity, this is “one of the most important museological events of our century so far” (cited as an introduction to Plantzos 2011: 613), or, as stated by Egyptian colleagues: “a new version of the (Pharaonic) ancient Egyptian museum” (Eissa & el-Senussi 2020: 1195), see also (Zakaria 2024). Indeed, we might dare to consider it one of the most important museological events of our century because this is the largest museum globally dedicated to a single civilization, that of ancient Egypt. The main promise was to provide a sufficient space for the burial equipment of King Tutankhamun and, on this, the museum delivers impeccably, as well as on much more. This will be both its blessing and its bane, as I will try to exemplify below. But Egypt made its statement on heritage display clearly, and the world ought to listen.

Between 1946 and 1947, Labib Habachi conducted archaeological excavations on Elephantine Island with the objective of excavating Heqaib's sanctuary. During these excavations, Habachi unearthed some artefacts out of its surrounding areas, but he did not consider them substantial. Among these objects, there was a pottery oval artefact (No. 123) that was interpreted as a lamp by the Egyptologist. However, some reviews and recent studies of the area have raised some doubts about this object and its actual function. Therefore, this paper analyses the above-mentioned object and discusses Habachi's proposal. In short, a votive function and a possible link with Khnum's temple are suggested.

The Hyksos were foreign rulers established in the Nile Delta, with their capital at Avaris (Tell el-Daba). According to the biblical narrative, Joseph was sold into slavery and later rose to power within Egypt, ultimately becoming Grand Vizier. This historical framework raises the possibility that Joseph's political ascent occurred during the Hyksos period.