Deir el-Medina

Workers' strike at Deir el-Medina

Workers strike at Deir el-Medina

The first workers strike in recorded history took place in the 12th Century BC in Egypt. Even though they regarded the king as a kind of living god, Egyptian workers were not afraid to protest for better working conditions. The most famous example came in the 12th century BC during the reign of the New...

Stele of dedicated to Amun-Re by Baki

Stele Dedicated to Amun-Re, by the Foreman Baki

This round-topped stele of the foreman Baki is carved in low relief and painted in several colors. The pictorial plane is divided into two registers, the upper one containing two rams facing each other. The animals, with cobras rising on their foreheads, wear tall headdresses composed of two tall plumes with a solar disk at...

Two lions of the god Aker

Two lions of the god Aker

Aker appears as a pair of twin lions, one named Duaj (meaning “yesterday”) and the other Sefer (meaning “tomorrow”). Aker was thus often titled “He who’s looking forward and behind”. Lions were widespread in prehistoric times and still present in the Nile Valley in the late Pharaonic history. The lion was an important element in...

Tomb painting of Inherkhau worshiping the serpent god Sata

Inherkhau worshiping the serpent god Sata

Tomb painting of Inherkhau worshiping the serpent god Sata, son of the earth and guardian of the underworld. Snakes were dominantly present in ancient Egyptian mythology. They played a double role, benevolent and malevolent. They could be evoked for curing, protecting and healing but at the very same time cursing and inflicting danger. Sata belonged...