In the 19th century an African possession cult called zār arrived in Egypt and became hugely popular. Jewellery formed an integral part of this cult. Currently, zār jewellery items are sought-after... Show moreIn the 19th century an African possession cult called zār arrived in Egypt and became hugely popular. Jewellery formed an integral part of this cult. Currently, zār jewellery items are sought-after collectors’ items for both private collectors and museums. Silver of the Possessed places jewellery of the Egyptian zār in its cultural and historical context and addresses Egyptian zār jewellery from multiple angles. First, it analyses how our current understanding of this jewellery has evolved through collecting and publishing. Examining its cultural background in African possession cults results in a new insight of the many roles jewellery played in zār, observing jewellery as a financial asset allows us to grasp its implications for household economy dynamics, while looking at jewellery in a diachronic perspective may even reveal changes in the ritual itself. Finally, this study explores its potential as an actual historic source: these jewellery items shed light on the world view of their wearers, and as such form an unexpected additional source for late 19th and early 20th century Egypt. Show less
This is a Festschrift offered by friends and colleagues to papyrologist and ancient historian Peter van Minnen. The volume contains the edition or re-edition of 52 papyri and ostraca, dating from... Show moreThis is a Festschrift offered by friends and colleagues to papyrologist and ancient historian Peter van Minnen. The volume contains the edition or re-edition of 52 papyri and ostraca, dating from between the third century BCE and the eighth century CE. Their subjects vary from Demosthenes to the delivery of camels in early Islamic Egypt, and their provenances stretch from the Eastern to the Western Desert, and from the Egyptian Nile valley to Qasr Ibrim in northern Nubia. All texts are published with transcription, translation, commentary and colour photographs. In addition, there are five studies, reflecting the honorand’s wide-ranging interests. Show less
The departure of most Greeks from Egypt at the beginning of the 1960s raised questions in the community about how it should readjust its presence at an institutional level. This article examines... Show moreThe departure of most Greeks from Egypt at the beginning of the 1960s raised questions in the community about how it should readjust its presence at an institutional level. This article examines how the Greek Koinotēta of Alexandria (GKA) operated as both a local and diasporic institution in periods of contraction, in terms of size and finances, and analyzes the adjustment policies it undertook concerning its institutional property and real estate. Despite the community’s demographic shrinkage in the 1960s and 1970s, the GKA was assigned its role as the value keeper and moral guide for the children of the community through its educational institutions and orphanages, having the support of the Greek representatives, in this case the consular authorities.Even though the GKA faced serious financial difficulties in the 1960s, it strived to find strategies of adaptation to maintain its agency and social, political and economic capital. Show less
This volume contains the first edition of 66 papyri and ostraca in the collection of the Leiden Papyrological Institute. The texts are dated between the third century BCE and the eighth century CE... Show moreThis volume contains the first edition of 66 papyri and ostraca in the collection of the Leiden Papyrological Institute. The texts are dated between the third century BCE and the eighth century CE and originate from Egypt. They include two Demotic literary papyri (one of which is written in Hieratic script), 19 Demotic ostraca, 44 Greek documentary papyri and one Coptic ostracon. All texts are published with transcription, translation, commentary and colour photographs. Show less
Gräzer Ohara, A.: Perre, A. Van der; De Meyer, M.J.C.; Claes, W. 2023
In het begin van de 20ste eeuw ondernamen de Belgische Egyptoloog Jean Capart en zijn medewerkers verschillende reizen naar Egypte. Met een passie voor fotografie documenteerden zij het land aan de... Show moreIn het begin van de 20ste eeuw ondernamen de Belgische Egyptoloog Jean Capart en zijn medewerkers verschillende reizen naar Egypte. Met een passie voor fotografie documenteerden zij het land aan de Nijl in al zijn facetten. De Egyptologische bibliotheek van de Koninklijke Musea voor Kunst en Geschiedenis in Brussel herbergt deze belangrijke collectie van ca. 14.000 fotografische glasnegatieven. De meer dan 200 foto's die hier zijn geselecteerd schetsen het verhaal van deze pioniersjaren van de Belgische Egyptologie. Ze geven eveneens een caleidoscopisch beeld van het Egypte van weleer, met dramatische landschappen, eeuwenoude monumenten, archeologische expedities en het dagelijkse leven in al zijn verscheidenheid.Bij elke taalversie van dit boek zit een Arabische bijlage van het hoofdessay. Show less
Gräzer Ohara, A.: Perre, A. Van der; De Meyer, M.J.C.; Claes, W. 2023
Au début du XXème siècle, l’égyptologue belge Jean Capart et ses collaborateurs ont entrepris plusieurs voyages en Égypte. Avec un sens aigu de la photographie, ils ont documenté cette terre sur... Show moreAu début du XXème siècle, l’égyptologue belge Jean Capart et ses collaborateurs ont entrepris plusieurs voyages en Égypte. Avec un sens aigu de la photographie, ils ont documenté cette terre sur les rives du Nil sous toutes ses facettes. La bibliothèque égyptologique des Musées royaux d’Art et d’Histoire de Bruxelles abrite cette importante collection d’environ 14.000 négatifs photographiques sur plaques de verre. Les plus de 200 photographies réunies ici illustrent ces années pionnières de l’égyptologie belge. Elles brossent en même temps un tableau kaléidoscopique d’une Égypte d’un temps révolu dans toute sa diversité, avec ses paysages spectaculaires, ses monuments antiques, ses expéditions archéologiques et sa vie quotidienne. Show less
Gräzer Ohara, A.: Perre, A. Van der; De Meyer, M.J.C.; Claes, W. 2023
In the early 20th century, Belgian Egyptologist Jean Capart and his collaborators undertook several voyages to Egypt. With a keen eye for photography, they documented the land on the Nile in all... Show moreIn the early 20th century, Belgian Egyptologist Jean Capart and his collaborators undertook several voyages to Egypt. With a keen eye for photography, they documented the land on the Nile in all its facets. The Egyptological library of the Royal Museums of Art and History in Brussels houses this important collection of about 14,000 photographic glass negatives. The more than 200 photographs selected here illustrate these pioneering years of Belgian Egyptology. They simultaneously offer a kaleidoscopic view of Egypt of a bygone era, with dramatic landscapes, ancient monuments, archaeological expeditions and daily life in all its diversity. Show less
Egypt became a province of the Persian or Achaemenid Empire in 526 BC. In the decades thereafter, some inhabitants of the Delta and Nile Valley rebelled against their Persian overlords. Though... Show moreEgypt became a province of the Persian or Achaemenid Empire in 526 BC. In the decades thereafter, some inhabitants of the Delta and Nile Valley rebelled against their Persian overlords. Though these rebellions are well known, they have been little studied. The present thesis provides an in-depth study of the first two rebellions of Persian-Period Egypt: the rebellion that began in ca. 521 BC, and which may have lasted until 519/18 BC, and the rebellion that began in ca. 487/86 BC, and which may have lasted until 485/84 BC. Show less
This book is the first comprehensive monographic treatment of the New Kingdom (1539–1078 BCE) necropolis at Saqqara, the burial ground of the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis, and addresses... Show moreThis book is the first comprehensive monographic treatment of the New Kingdom (1539–1078 BCE) necropolis at Saqqara, the burial ground of the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis, and addresses questions fundamental to understanding the site’s development through time. For example, why were certain areas of the necropolis selected for burial in certain time periods; what were the tombs’ spatial relations to contemporaneous and older monuments; and what effect did earlier structures have on the positioning of tombs and structuring of the necropolis in later times? This study adopts landscape biography as a conceptual tool to study the long-time interaction between people and landscapes. Show less
This article analyses how a creative writing workshop in 2017 Cairo dynamically engaged with cultural memories of the 1967 defeat of the Arab armies. The article first situates 1967 as a crucial... Show moreThis article analyses how a creative writing workshop in 2017 Cairo dynamically engaged with cultural memories of the 1967 defeat of the Arab armies. The article first situates 1967 as a crucial reference point in discursive attempts to tie personal life stories to national history and in making sense of a widespread feeling of postcolonial disenchantment. It is in the ruinous aftermath of the 2011 uprisings, when a view on a political horizon beyond the stifling present temporarily was reopened, that the workshop critically examined the relations between cultural memory, family history, and everyday life with, at its center, the notion of defeat in all its shapes and intensities. The article argues that the workshop can be seen as ‘an intimate public,’ carving out a space for survival lying largely outside of the sphere of politics. Nevertheless, in its affective plurality that stimulated modes of irreverence, the workshop tentatively opened up new political dispositions under the strenuous conditions of post-2013 Egypt. Show less
The Egyptian Empire conquered and colonized Nubia, what is today northern Sudan, on multiple occasions. The colonization strategy employed was highly variable through time, ranging from the... Show moreThe Egyptian Empire conquered and colonized Nubia, what is today northern Sudan, on multiple occasions. The colonization strategy employed was highly variable through time, ranging from the construction of militarized fortresses (Middle Kingdom 2050–1650 BCE) to an amicable co-existence approach (New Kingdom 1550–1050 BCE). Egyptian tactics also varied spatially, depending on several factors including a colonized community's utility to the empire and the potential for revolt. Using a large dataset (n = 341), this paper compares osteoarthritis between seven Nubian communities to (1) evaluate whether imperial strategy impacted osteoarthritis severity and (2) assess whether rates of osteoarthritis differed between colonized communities.Age-controlled analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) suggests there was significant variation in the frequency and severity of osteoarthritis throughout the empire. The Middle Kingdom C-Group, an indigenous Nubian population that lived outside the Egyptian-built and -occupied fortresses, displayed the highest rates of osteoarthritis for nearly all joint systems. Osteoarthritis then decreased during the postcolonial Second Intermediate Period (1650–1550 BCE) and again increased during the recolonization of the New Kingdom. However, there is significant variation of osteoarthritis at three New Kingdom sites, each of which experienced a differing colonization approach. This study suggests that the varying imperial strategies utilized by the Egyptian Empire may have impacted the physical activities and daily lives of Nubians and that these tactics were not equal throughout Nubia but were tailored to communities. It is therefore difficult to discuss a singular outcome of colonization; rather, these interpretations need to be nuanced with community-level archaeological context. Show less
Egypt’s position in the caliphate has generally been considered either as loosely tributary, with its governors running the province more or less as a personal possession, granting the caliph a... Show moreEgypt’s position in the caliphate has generally been considered either as loosely tributary, with its governors running the province more or less as a personal possession, granting the caliph a share of the province’s riches, as it pleased them, or as the outer rim of a radial system extending from the caliph’s capital and through which caliphal power was exercised by means of administrative control and military force. In this model – which looks from the center outwards – Egypt is located at the decision-making periphery of the Muslim empire, the recipient of directives and consumer of developments initiated at the imperial capital (first located in Medina, then Damascus, and finally Baghdad), where the sneezes that precipitated all of the caliphate’s colds occurred.This chapter takes a different view. By examining Egypt’s relationship to the imperial center between the Arab conquest and the establishment of the Fatimid caliphate in Cairo in 969 CE, and the complex, ambiguous, and shifting processes of interdependency, caliphal ambition, and local self-assertion as they appear in the sources, I will argue that at all times Egypt’s centrality to the caliphate was a two-way relationship, in which Egypt occupied a key place in caliphal strategic thinking, and in which Egyptians saw themselves as intrinsic to the Muslim imperial project. Show less
In the 2019 season, the joint Leiden-Turin Expedition to Saqqara continued work in the area north of thetomb of Maya with the aim of lowering the terrain above the new tomb discovered during the... Show moreIn the 2019 season, the joint Leiden-Turin Expedition to Saqqara continued work in the area north of thetomb of Maya with the aim of lowering the terrain above the new tomb discovered during the 2018 season(V82.1) and to prepare the area for further exploration in 2020. Many layers of deposit situated immediatelyto the north of the new tomb were removed, and – although they mostly originated from previous excavationsin the 1980s and 1990s – systematically investigated. Several dumps of organic material such as linenand wood as well as numerous small finds and relief fragments were identified and recorded. In addition,existing storage facilities on site were renovated and upgraded. In this process, part of the undergroundstructures of the tombs of Horemheb and Meryneith were surveyed by the 3D Survey Group (Politecnico diMilano). Thanks to the cooperation with the same Milanese team, a new documentation method was testedduring the ongoing excavation work. Within a 3D model the different stages of excavation were recorded,allowing the digital reconstruction of the stratigraphy of the whole area and the documentation of all findsin their original contexts. A Digital Surface Model of the entire concession area was also produced, and 3Dmodels of some of the previously excavated monumental tombs were created. Lastly, since heavy rainfallshad damaged many of the earlier excavated monumental tombs open to the public, they were consolidatedand where necessary rebuilt. Show less
In addition to the formal reliefs and texts, the limestone revetment and columns in the superstructure of the tomb of Ptahemwia bear several dozen unofficial inscriptions and depictions, some... Show moreIn addition to the formal reliefs and texts, the limestone revetment and columns in the superstructure of the tomb of Ptahemwia bear several dozen unofficial inscriptions and depictions, some incised, some written in red ochre (dipinti). These graffiti warrant further analysis for two reasons. First, they provide strong, contextualised evidence about the various ways in which the tomb of Ptahemwia was used. Second, they have the potential to shed new light on a shadowy area of Egyptian religious history: the study of aspects of popular piety. Show less