Commemorating Amenhotep III’s sed-festivals
Amenhotep III in sed-festival attire, reused block in the Khonsu temple at Karnak.
(Photo A. Chéné, CFEETK)
Mødedato: Torsdag d. 10. april 2025, kl. 18 – Lokale 22.0.11
Commemorating Amenhotep III’s sed-festivals in Thebes and Soleb, v. Susanne Bickel, professor of Egyptology, University of Basel, Switzerland
In his thirtieth year of reign, and again in his year 33 and 37, pharaoh Amenhotep III from the 18th dynasty had a lavish jubilee festival organized. The celebrations lasted over several weeks and implied numerous high officials and priests. It was also a great economic endeavour with temples and palaces being built for the purpose and large quantities of food and wine prepared for the festivities.
The actual sequence of rituals and events can only be very partially reconstructed through the available documentation. The festivals were, however, also commemorated for eternity in temple reliefs that were taken over and adapted from Old Kingdom models. Two examples of this extended sed-festival relief cycle are preserved, albeit incompletely, one in Thebes and one in the Nubian temple of Soleb.
The Theban relief cycle is preserved partly within the remains of Amenhotep III’s funerary cult temple on the West Bank – presumably its original location – and partly in the form of reused blocs in the 21st Dynasty Khonsu temple at Karnak. Parts of the Nubian example at Soleb are still standing and therefore allow a better insight into the sequence of representations and the visual impression this remarkable composition must have made on people entering the temple.
The lecture will present some of this material, analyse the process of reactivating a very old model of scenes, and try to grasp some of the messages and impressions the sed-festival relief cycle would have conveyed upon contemporaneous viewers.
Queen Tiye and Nefertiti or not Nefertiti,
Lørdag d. 3. maj, kl. 14 – Muligt ekstra foredrag i Kbenhavn. Lokale 22.0.11.
Queen Tiye and Nefertiti or not Nefertiti, v. Christian Bayer, Kurator Roemer- und Pelizaeus Museum, Hildesheim
Pyramider og soltempler i Gamle Rige – Lørdagsseminar
Mødedato: Lørdag d. 24. maj 2025 kl. 11.00-16.00
Lokale: 22.0.11
Kl. 11.00 – Kheopspyramiden helt fra bunden – nyt laserblik på ældgamle spørgsmål
v. Søren Sindbæk, professor i arkæologi, Aarhus Universitet
Et hold af danske arkæologer har i to år arbejdet sammen med ægyptiske og amerikanske kollegaer om at lave en ny opmåling af områderne omkring Kheopspyramiden i Giza. Her vrimler undergrunden med spor, der fortæller om det enestående byggearbejde. Som deltagere i forskningsorganisationen Ancient Egypt Research Associates’ projekt The Giza Plateau Mapping Project har Søren Sindbæk og hans team fra Aarhus Universitet og Museum Vest i Ribe bidraget med deres ekspertise i 3D-laserscanning for at afsløre, hvordan pyramidebyggerne arbejdede. I projektet er nogle områder for første gang blevet renset ned til klippeoverfladen, hvor nye spor er dukket op. Resultatet er den første moderne opmåling af pyramideområdet – færdiggjort 100 år efter den sidste komplette opmåling i 1925. Her skal vi høre om ekspeditionens oplevelser, og løfte sløret for nogle af deres resultater.
Kl. 12.15 – Frokostpause (tag selv mad med)
Kl. 13.00 – Pyramideteksterne: Verdens ældste længere religiøse tekster
v. Jørgen Podemann Sørensen, lektor emeritus, Københavns Universitet
I året 2323 f.v.t. begraves den ægyptiske kong Unas i sin pyramide i Sakkara. Som noget nyt er pyramidens indre kamre beskrevet med hieroglyftekster fra loft til gulv. Nogle af dem nævner ofre og salver, som den døde konge skulle have, men andre har et mytologisk eller kosmologisk indhold, som kongen på en eller anden måde inddrages i. Det er ofte dunkle tekster, og mange af dem fik et langt liv; de blev gengivet i sarkofager, på gravvægge og som dødebogskapitler på papyrus helt op til den romerske kejsertid. Derfor er det selvfølgelig religions- og kulturhistorisk vigtigt at forstå selve den oprindelige (4347 år gamle) ide i at forsyne kong Unas og hans efterfølgere med pyramidetekster. Og det er netop, hvad vi skal forsøge lørdag 24. maj 2024.
Kl. 14.15-14.45 – Pause
Kl. 14.45-16.00 – The Fifth Dynasty Sun Temples. A pyramid alter ego? v. Massimiliano Nuzzolo, Senior Lecturer in Egyptology at the University of Turin, Italy, Director of the Italian Archaeological Mission at the Sun Temple of Niuserra at Abu Ghurab and the multidisciplinary research project named “Sun Temples Project”
The Fifth Dynasty sun temples represent a unique and still largely unexplored category of monuments of ancient Egypt. Despite the fact of being the very first temples dedicated to the cult of the sun god Ra in pharaonic civilization, our knowledge of these monuments is still blurred and full of dark spots. This is clear when we consider that out of the six temples known from historical sources only two have been uncovered so far. By means of a comprehensive exploration of the temples, and the comparison with the contemporary pyramids, this lecture will guide us through the world of the Fifth Dynasty Kings of Egypt. Special focus of this lecture will be on the sun temple of Niuserra at Abu Ghurab, where an archaeological exploration led by the present author has been working over the last 10 years. It will give new insights into the architecture, decoration and symbolical meaning of the temples.
Generalforsamling og The Meketre models
Mødedato: Tirsdag d. 28/1 2025 kl. 18.00 – Lokale: 23.0.49
Først generalforsamling fulgt af foredrag ca. kl. 19.
A new view on the Meketre models v. Adela Oppenheim, Curator, Department of Egyptian Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
The models from the tomb of Meketre in Thebes are among the most beloved items of the Egyptian collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
The serdab of Meketre’s tomb as found
Meketre lived in the early Middle Kingdom during the reign of Mentuhotep Nehepetre and to the beginning of Amenemhat I. Herbert Winlock, head of the excavations for Metropolitan Museum and his team, discovered the tomb in 1920. It was situated high up on the cliff close to the Deir el Bahri Temple of Mentuhotep.
The burial chamber had been robbed in ancient times, and tomb models are normally found in the burial chamber on the coffin and next to it. In Meketre’s tomb they were luckily kept in a so-called serdab that had not been touched. Following the regulations of the time the finds were divided between the Metropolitan Museum and Egypt where they are now displayed in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation.
Winlock published the models as ’Models of daily life in ancient Egypt’ and this is how they have generally been understood. Adela Oppenheim presents an alternative interpretation in connection with the burial and the burial rituals.
Mapping the Looting and Trafficking of Egypt’s Cultural Heritage
Mødedato: Torsdag d. 13. marts 2025, kl. 19 – Lokale 23.0.49
Mapping the Looting and Trafficking of Egypt’s Cultural Heritage, v. Marcel Marée, British Museum
Marcel Marée is Assistant Keeper at the Department of Egypt & Sudan in the British Museum. He is in charge of the Museum’s Egyptian Sculpture Gallery and oversaw its recent renewal with updated interpretation. He has done epigraphic fieldwork at Elkab, Edfu and Aswan. He specialises in provenance research, with a particular focus on tracing artefacts to specific workshops, sculptors and painters.
In 2018, he initiated a project called Circulating Artefacts – CircArt in short. The project is designed to monitor, record and analyse the trade in cultural artefacts, to clarify provenance, and to detect irregularities. This has enabled the identification and recovery of thousands of illegally sourced antiquities in the trade. CircArt twice received generous grants from the Cultural Protection Fund, a scheme run by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS). The project is currently being prepared for adoption on a higher institutional level, under a new name. Marcel is a founding member of the Heritage Crime Task Force, created in 2022. It is being developed in partnership with the Organization for Security & Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). At venues across
Europe, the Task Force offers training to law enforcement and heritage professionals engaged in the fight against heritage crime. The Task Force also promotes and enables collaboration between OSCE member and partner states in tackling live criminal cases.
Marcel’s lecture looks more closely at how to map the looting and trafficking of Egypt’s cultural heritage.
The secrets under the isched tree
Mødedato: Onsdag d. 11. September 2024 kl. 19
Lokale: KUA – 23.0.49
The secrets under the isched tree, v. Dr. Andreas Effland, M.A. Seminar für Ägyptologie und Koptologie, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
During the excavations carried out by French and British missions in Umm el-Qaab at Abydos towards the end of the19th and the beginning of the 20th century and again in the course of the recent excavations by the German Archaeological Institute, numerous fragments of very specific, inscribed pottery sherds were found. They are belonging to a small corpus of characteristic heart-shaped vessels.
These vessels – used during regenerative rituals in the direct vicinity of the god’s resting place – were dedicated by the high priest and the vizier, in the end coming to rest as votive objects in the “Tomb of Osiris”. The hieroglyphic text on this votive pottery was composed during the reign of Ramesses II, when the interest in Umm el-Qaab flourished. It is cast as a speech by the king himself, as having entered upon his kingly rule following his father, probably to announce his accession to the throne to the oldest royal ancestors at Abydos. In spite of the fragmentary state of preservation of the text, it contains precious information on the ceremonies conducted at the Osirian sacred site during the regenerative rituals of what is known as the Khoiak Festival.
A Thousand Miles Up the Nile
Mødedato: Mandag d. 3/6-2024 kl. 18
Lokale: KUA1 23.0.49
A Thousand Miles Up the Nile with Amelia Edwards, v. Carl Graves, PhD, Director of the Egypt Exploration Society
A chance visit to Egypt in 1873 by Amelia B Edwards changed the future of British Egyptology forever. Her travelogue, A Thousand Miles Up the Nile, would inspire generations after her to take up her message to support and promote Egyptian cultural heritage.
Attendees will hear about Amelia’s life and relive Amelia’s 1873 journey up the Nile with Dr Carl Graves, Director of the Society that she set up in 1882. The presentation is illustrated with archival material held by the Egypt Exploration Society as well as original artwork by Amelia kept at the Griffith Institute and Somerville College, both University of Oxford, and the Peggy Joy Egyptology Library.
Carl Graves is Director of the Egypt Exploration Society. He completed his PhD at the University of Birmingham, and his research now focuses on ancient Egyptian settlement archaeology and the development of British Egyptology during the late eighteenth century. Carl is responsible for managing the Society’s day-to-day operations in its London and Cairo Offices and works closely with Board, Committees, volunteers, and staff to deliver the Society’s charitable activities, research, and publications programme.
One Tomb, Two Kings
Mødedato: Lørdag d. 9/3-2024 kl. 14
Lokale: 15A.1.11
One Tomb, Two Kings: Unlocking the Sequence of Construction and Decoration in Theban Tomb 110, v. JJ. Shirley, PhD, Director of the TT110 Epigraphy and Research Field School
Theban Tomb 110, well-known for its depiction of both Hatshepsut and Thutmose III, presents a unique opportunity to examine the degree of personal involvement that the tomb’s owner, Djehuty, had in its decoration. In 2022 the epigraphic work of the TT110 Epigraphy and Research Field School completed the first full documentation of the tomb. The results of the work provide new information that allows for a more nuanced understanding of the timeline of the tomb’s design, and the owner’s career. In this talk I will present the findings of the field school, suggesting a chronology for TT110’s construction and decoration and highlighting Djehuty’s participation in the process.
An interdisciplinary approach to the study of a rare mummy with painted shroud
Mødedato: Onsdag d. 24/4 2024 Kl. 19
Lokale: KUA 23.0.49
An interdisciplinary approach to the study of a rare mummy with painted shroud, v. Daniela Picchi, Head or Curator of the Egyptian Collection, Archaeological Museum of Bologna
This study was promoted by the Bologna Archaeological Museum and Eurac Research, Institute for Mummy Studies in Bolzano (Italy), in the framework of the Bologna mummy project (BOmp). The mummy with a rare painted shroud (1st-2nd century A.D.) belonged to the collection of the Bolognese artist Pelagio Palagi (1875-1860), who offered over three thousand Egyptian antiquities to his hometown at a reasonable price through a bequest in his will.
The aim of the project was to return the mummy, which had been stored in the museum’s storerooms since the late 1970s, to the scientific community and the public. This project requested an interdisciplinary diagnostic approach to acquire the tomography computed (CT) scans of the bodies, to obtain the radiocarbon date (14C), to reconstruct the biological (e.g., sex, age at death) and the paleopathological profiles, as well as to insight the embalming techniques. Additionally, the mummy underwent a complex restoration work before being displayed in the museum.
An interdisciplinary approach to the study of a rare mummy with painted shroud
Mødedato: Torsdag d. 25/4-2024 kl. 17.30– døren låses 17.20!
Antikmuseet på Aarhus Universitet,
Victor Albecksvej, Århus C, bygning 1414
An interdisciplinary approach to the study of a rare mummy with painted shroud, v. Daniela Picchi, Head or Curator of the Egyptian Collection, Archaeological Museum of Bologna
This study was promoted by the Bologna Archaeological Museum and Eurac Research, Institute for Mummy Studies in Bolzano (Italy), in the framework of the Bologna mummy project (BOmp). The mummy with a rare painted shroud (1st-2nd century A.D.) belonged to the collection of the Bolognese artist Pelagio Palagi (1875-1860), who offered over three thousand Egyptian antiquities to his hometown at a reasonable price through a bequest in his will.
The aim of the project was to return the mummy, which had been stored in the museum’s storerooms since the late 1970s, to the scientific community and the public. This project requested an interdisciplinary diagnostic approach to acquire the tomography computed (CT) scans of the bodies, to obtain the radiocarbon date (14C), to reconstruct the biological (e.g., sex, age at death) and the paleopathological profiles, as well as to insight the embalming techniques. Additionally, the mummy underwent a complex restoration work before being displayed in the museum.
An interdisciplinary approach to the study of a rare mummy with painted shroud – og julefest
Mødedato: Mandag d. 4/12-2023 Kl. 18
Lokale: KUA1 23.0.49
An interdisciplinary approach to the study of a rare mummy with painted shroud, v. Daniela Picchi, Head or Curator of the Egyptian Collection, Archaeological Museum of Bologna
This study was promoted by the Bologna Archaeological Museum and Eurac Research, Institute for Mummy Studies in Bolzano (Italy), in the framework of the Bologna mummy project (BOmp). The mummy with a rare painted shroud (1st-2nd century A.D.) belonged to the collection of the Bolognese artist Pelagio Palagi (1875-1860), who offered over three thousand Egyptian antiquities to his hometown at a reasonable price through a bequest in his will.
The aim of the project was to return the mummy, which had been stored in the museum’s storerooms since the late 1970s, to the scientific community and the public. This project requested an interdisciplinary diagnostic approach to acquire the tomography computed (CT) scans of the bodies, to obtain the radiocarbon date (14C), to reconstruct the biological (e.g., sex, age at death) and the paleopathological profiles, as well as to insight the embalming techniques. Additionally, the mummy underwent a complex restoration work before being displayed in the museum.
The Nubian Pharaohs of Egypt – og sommerfest
Mødedato: Tirsdag d. 23. maj Kl. 18
Lokale: Aud. 9A.3.01 NB: der har vi ikke været før. Indgang fra Karen Blixens Plads 16. Se kort i nyhedsmailen.
The Nubian Pharaohs of Egypt, v. Professor Aidan Dodson, University of Bristol
For a few decades during the 8th to 7th centuries BC, there was a remarkable reversal of the age-old imperial domination of Nubia by Egypt. In the wake of the fragmentation of the Egyptian state during the 8th century, the Kushite state that had evolved in Nubia since Egyptian withdrawal at the beginning of the 11th century expanded northwards, ultimately absorbing the south of Egypt, including Thebes itself. Having established themselves as overlords of the various regional rulers in Egypt, the Nubian pharaohs led a national revival in Egypt, until an Assyrian onslaught drove them back into Nubia, where their composite of Egyptian and Nubian culture would survive into the 4th century AD.
Aidan Dodson has taught Egyptology at the University of Bristol, UK, since 1996, and has been honorary full Professor of Egyptology since 2018. A graduate of Liverpool and Cambridge Universities, he is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, and a former Chairman of the Egypt Exploration Society. The author of some 25 books and over 400 articles and reviews, The Nubian Pharaohs of Egypt: their lives and afterlives is due to be published by the American University in Cairo Press at the end of 2023.
Rescuing More of the Lost City of the Pyramids
Mødedato: Lørdag d. 4. marts kl. 14
Lokale: Online via Zoom og i KUA 15a.0.13
Vi har lokalet, så vi kan se foredraget sammen på storskærm.
Zoom-linket er sendt ud til medlemmerne, så det også er muligt at se det hjemmefra.
Rescuing More of the Lost City of the Pyramids – Season 2023 Update, v. Mark Lehner, Director and President of Ancient Egypt Research Associates, Inc. (AERA)
For 35 years, teams from Ancient Egypt Research Associates (AERA) have been clearing, mapping and excavating in the Heit el-Ghurab (HeG) site of 4th Dynasty settlement (c. 2600 BC), about 400 meters south of the Great Sphinx, finding the houses, barracks, bakeries, workshops and cattle corral of the pyramid builders. Heit el-Ghurab, ‘Wall of the Crow’ in Arabic, is the name of the site, after the 200-meter long, 10 meter-tall, stone wall with a great gate that borders the site on the Northwest.
In the last two years the AERA team has been able to find major parts of the site that had been covered for more than 40 years by a sports club and soccer field, which were removed in 2021. The focus is on the Royal Administrative Building (RAB), which contained the central grains store for the pyramid builders’ city. AERA excavated the northern end of the RAB, protruding from under the soccer field, between 2002 and 2007. Now, the AERA team excavates rest of the building to the south, under the hypothesis that it was an important element of a wider palace city at Giza, the earlier parts of which are attested in the newly-discovered Wadi el-Jarf Papyri. I report to the Danish Egyptological Society the latest findings, fresh from the field, and from the work in progress.
Den svarta pyramiden
Norden Vue des Pyramides
Mødedato: Torsdag d. 16. 3 2023 kl. 18
Lokale: KUA – 15A.0.13
Den svarta pyramiden: Fakta och fiktion i nordisk tidigmodern egyptologi v. Joachim Östlund, docent och lektor i historia vid Lunds Universitet
I början av 1700-talet kom vetetenskapsresenärer från Sverige och Danmark att besöka Egypten i syfte att utforska dess fornhistoria. Dessa expeditioner genomfördes under en tid då nya vetenskapliga ideal kom att utmana äldre teorier om det forntida Egypten. Detta föredrag handlar om vilka teorier som överlevde, utmanades eller omvärderades samt vilken kunskap som producerades om det forntida Egypten i Norden.