Did an Egyptian prince conspire to murder his own father? And could a mysterious mummy, its mouth stretched wide in an eternal, silent scream, be all that remains of him? Perhaps the most unsettling figure in the assassination plot of Ramesses III known as the “Harem Conspiracy” is the young man commonly called the Screaming...
There are some faces from Ancient Egypt that seem determined not to be forgotten. Among them is that of a young man who died more than 3,000 years ago, his head thrown back, his mouth gaping open, and his features contorted into an expression that has disturbed and fascinated generations of observers. Known to Egyptologists...
This is a vignette (illustration) from the Book of the Dead of Userhat (British Museum. EA10009), an 18th Dynasty papyrus (c. 1450 B.C., around the reign of Amenhotep II), belonging to a Theban royal scribe and official. The scene shows four greenish-grey baboons (hamadryas type) standing upright on their hind legs with arms raised in...
Among the beautifully illustrated funerary manuscripts to survive from Ancient Egypt is the Book of the Dead belonging to Anhay (also known as Anhai), a woman who lived during the later New Kingdom. With its delicate figures, colourful divine imagery and enchanting landscapes of the hereafter, the papyrus offers a remarkable glimpse into the Ancient...
Discovery announced: 13th October 2026. An unexpected discovery in Egypt’s Nile Delta has brought to light the remains of two colossal royal statues, one identified as Ramesses II, the celebrated pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty, who ruled from approximately 1279 to 1213 B.C. The discovery was made in the village of Behbeit el-Hagar, in Gharbia...
A Testament to Enduring Cultural Heritage Cooperation Discovered in Antinoöpolis, the “Tondo of the Two Brothers” was painted in the 2nd century A.D. and is believed to depict two brothers. The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has announced the completion of the restoration project, undertaken in cooperation with Italy, as part of efforts to...
Carved from a single piece of ivory, this exquisite kohl container turns an object of everyday adornment into a tiny garden of abundance. Upon one face, an elegantly dressed woman moves amongst blossoms, bearing floral tribute as a sacrificial calf walks beside her. On the reverse of the ivory kohl container, lotus and papyrus blossoms...
Beneath a canopy of uraei supported by Hathoric columns, the serene face of a sacred bovine emerges from an ornate aegis collar. Crowned with a solar disk, long horns and curling feathers, the animal is flanked by rearing cobras bearing disks and horns of their own. Cows & Bulls in Ancient Egypt The pectoral belongs...
These limestone ostraca were discovered amongst accumulated rubbish in the courtyard outside the Tomb of Nespakashuty (TT 312) at Deir el-Bahari. The deposit contained drawings from different periods, including a horse, leaping lion, calf, blind harpist, floral capitals and an incised crocodile. Several pieces (notably the calf, harpist and floral studies) appear contemporary with Nespakashuty’s...
With only a few deft strokes of red and black ink, an Ancient Egyptian artist caught the elegant sweep of a horse in motion. Drawn upon a fragment of limestone, this lively study belongs to the Ramesside Period, c. 1300–1080 B.C., when the horse had become a familiar symbol of speed, prestige and royal power...
Bes was a household and protective deity associated especially with women, childbirth, children, sexuality, music and the warding-off of dangerous forces. Unlike most Egyptian gods, he is normally shown frontally, staring directly out at the viewer. His squat body, leonine features, protruding ears, beard and exaggerated face were not meant to make him ridiculous; they...
Fashioned during the Middle Kingdom, this enchanting necklace pairs the soft violet glow of amethyst with a small Ba Bird amulet carved from green feldspar. The string is composed of twenty-eight substantial amethyst beads, mostly shaped into long, gently swelling bicones; charmingly, one remains distinctly misshapen, perhaps an unfinished scaraboid or an experimental attempt at...
The mummified remains of a very young boy (aged approximately 2–5 years) survive in exceptional condition, enclosed within a painted shroud and a small vaulted wooden coffin. His body lies fully extended, the head inclined gently forwards, with the arms resting beside him and the open hands placed against the thighs. Both the skull and...
