Ancient Egypt offers a wide range of topics to explore. These topics provide a starting point for exploring the rich and complex civilization of Ancient Egypt. Each area offers a unique perspective on the history, culture, and achievements of this remarkable ancient civilization.
The Nile was far more than a ribbon of water through Egypt’s deserts: it was a living larder, brimming with silvered scales and darting fins. From its depths and from the quiet marshes at its edges, fish provided nourishment, inspiration, and mystery to the Egyptians for thousands of years. To the farmer in his reed...
Both in life and death, the Ancient Egyptians adorned their world with plants whose meanings reached far beyond the garden. Flowers and fruits were not merely decorative, they were potent symbols, bearing associations of love, fertility, regeneration, and eternal life. In the imagery of tombs, such flora carried a language of their own, one that...
Dwarfism in Ancient Egypt was not only recognised but often respected, and individuals with dwarfism could hold positions of considerable prestige. Rather than being marginalised, many dwarfs were integrated into society, particularly within elite or sacred spheres, and there were indeed religious and mythological associations that cast their condition in a positive, even divine, light....
Taxation in Ancient Egypt was the very lifeblood of the state, binding ploughman, priest, and pharaoh in a tapestry of obligation. Long before coinage glinted under Persian and Greek rule, dues were rendered in grain, livestock, crafted wares, and, perhaps most valuable of all, labour itself. Our clearest windows onto this bustling fiscal world are...
In the times of Ancient Egypt, the Sinai Peninsula was known by several evocative names, each reflecting its character and significance. The most enduring term was Mafkat, meaning “Land of Turquoise,” a nod to its famed turquoise mines in the southern regions near Serabit el-Khadim and Wadi Maghareh (Egyptian Arabic: “Valley of the Caves”). An...
The game of Senet (Ancient Egyptian: “znt”, meaning ‘passing’ and in Coptic: ⲥⲓⲛⲉ/sinə, meaning “passing, afternoon”), is a board game consisting of 10 or more pawns on a 30 square playing board.whose origins stretch back to the earliest dynasties of Ancient Egypt, was more than a pastime of the living; it was a symbolic rite...
Sham Ennessim (Sham El-Nassim) (شم النسيم), celebrated each year in Egypt on the Monday following Coptic Easter, is a vibrant springtime festival that unites Egyptians of all faiths in a joyful celebration of nature’s renewal. Though today it is observed as a national holiday, its origins stretch far deeper, reaching back into the fertile soil...
Within the Tutankhamun’s tomb, two mummified foetuses were discovered. Known as Mummies 317a and 317b, the female mummies were buried with no namesake alongside their father, and are simply referred to as “Osiris” on their coffins The foetus known as 317a was born prematurely at approximately 5–6 months of gestation. With C.T. scans estimating her...
The Egyptian military estimated the number of those killed in front of the king soon after combat ended by displaying the severed hands of the deceased enemy. This was all but a theory based upon ancient reliefs until 2012 when archaeologists excavating at the modern site of Avaris, Tell el-Daba, unearthed 16 human right hands...
In Ancient Egyptian art, when a king is depicted touching the Was sceptre, it is a symbolic gesture signifying his divine authority and legitimate rule. The Was sceptre, often held by gods such as Thoth or Osiris, represents power, dominion, and the control of chaos. By touching it, the king affirms his connection to the...
