Egyptomania

Who is Tutankhamun? During Akhenaten’s reign, a royal child was born under the name of Tutankh aten, after Aten, the new all-god preached by Akhenaten .   Following the turmoil of Akhenaten’s death, the boy king changed his name after the famous solar deity, Amun and his name became Tutankh amun . Scholars are still uncertain about the identity of Tutankhamun’s mother; some believe that the child’s mother was Nefertiti who was Akhenaten’s principal wife and some believe that his mother was one of his secondary wives named Kiya. He married Ankhesenamun who was his half-sister and the daughter of Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti. Although the couple had no surviving children, it was believed they had two daughters, Tutankhamun was the 12 th pharaoh of the 18 th dynasty and he ruled Egypt as a pharaoh for 10 years. Because Tutankhaten was just nine years old when he ruled Egypt, the first years of his reign were dominated by Ay, who was a Vizier during that ...

The physical body (khet) is one of the five aspects of the ancient Egyptian identity. This body had to preserve its form as the only tangible vessel to the intangible entirety of a human being. Coupled with the ancient Egyptian belief in the afterlife, mummification became of paramount importance. When it comes to ancient Egyptian kings and queens, the situation becomes more and more complex. For it was the ancient Egyptian rulers who shall lead their people in the land of the dead, naturally marking their mummies as the most important in the land. In this article we aim to follow the brief stories of some of the kings and queens recently featured in the Pharaoh's Golden Parade transporting them from the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities. They now find their resting place at the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in a show-stopping display aimed to simulate their original resting place at the Valley of  Kings and Queens.  Entrance to the Royal Mummies Hall, National Museum ...

General information This battle was between the ancient Egyptians under the leadership of King Ramses II and the Hittites under the leadership of King Muwattali II along with his brother and commander in charge Murshilli. This battle dates to nearly 1275B.C. It took place in present day Syria. This battle is, by far, the most well documented in the history of the Middle East.  Causes Hittite expansion into Syria coincided with the revive of the Egyptian interests in the same area. Both of them wanted the wealth of natural sources in Syria, its strategical location and the control of trade routes.  Why clash in Kadesh specifically? Kaddish was the border line and a critical point between Egypt and the Hittite empire so the battle naturally took place there.As usual the Egyptian army was divided into its traditional four divisions (Amun, Seth, Re, Hours). The Hittites surpassed the Egyptian army and Muwatalli was very cunning to drag Egypt to a foxy trap. He sent a spy to the Eg...

The City of the Dead unveils more treasures. Saqqara, located to the Southwest of Cairo, had always been one of the main cemeteries in Memphis. As old as civilized times, Saqqara housed the remains of the earliest dynastic kings, to the proximity of 3,100 B.C. This makes Saqqara about 5,120 years old (or older) to the best of our knowledge. Saqqara may be most prominently known for the Great Funerary Complex of Djoser. Beneath its dry sands, it holds numerous treasures just as fascinating as the ground level architectural masterpiece. It also houses later Pyramids such as the Pyramids of Unas and Userkaf . Saqqara held the title of "The Land of the Dead" for many ancient centuries, only to be (almost) paralleled by the Valley of Kings and Queens much later in Ancient Egyptian history. The new discovery in the Necropolis of Saqqara can only testify to its ever persistent importance. So, what did the Egyptian mission find? Three 10-12 metres deep burial shafts were uncovered. ...

Pepi II was one of the late pharaohs of the sixth dynasty. The boy king ascended the throne at the age of six. He was thought to be the son of Pepi I but it is now more accepted that Pepi II was the son of Merenre (who was thought first to be his half-brother). His mother Ankhesenmeryre II served as regent for a number of years while Pepi II was a child. Pepi II ruled for 94 years according to the Turin King-list. Manetho also recorded that he reigned for 94 years. This would make Pepi II the longest ruler of Ancient Egypt. However, some doubt has been shed on this number, and some researchers suggest that it was a misreading of 64. At first glance, we do not notice that Pepi II was a bad king. He developed new trade links with southern Africa and he also strengthened foreign relations in a very similar manner to both his predecessors of the 5 th and 6 th Dynasties. These are such as the good relations he maintained with the Nubians during his reign. Egypt received goods such...

  This fun strategy game will teach you the history of the ancient Egyptian civilization easily This game is based on the real history of ancient Egypt, containing a lot of historical information, including the sacred deities of the ancient Egyptians, their names and their role in building ancient Egypt. Also, the technologies, industries and agricultural crops that the ancient Egyptians knew,  the challenges they faced and how they dealt with them. When the game starts, you will find yourself in Memphis, 3500-2140 BC, the era of the First Six Dynasties. You have to create a prosperous kingdom by exploring new lands, constructing buildings and cultivating lands to provide food and industrial resources. Later on you will face many problems including social problems of farmers and craftsmen, political problems of foreign neighbours, environmental problems such as predators and dry seasons. You must deal with each of the problems wisely so that your kingdom is not overthrown . If...

  Al-Mummia (The Mummy) or the Night of Counting the Years is the only long feature film directed by the exquisite Shady Abd El Salam. It was produced in 1969 with a plot set in 1881, one significant year before the Anglo-Egyptian war. The photography is done by Abd El Aziz Fahmy and the music score is by  Mario Nascimbene. This movie was selected to be the Egyptian entry for the Academy Awards foreign film nominations, but was sadly overlooked. The movie may be critically acclaimed in Egyptian Cinema but it did not connect with a lot of audience, even in Egypt. This is NOT going to be one of those spoiler-free reviews. Watch the movie right now if you haven't. You have been warned. The simple detailed plot  The movie starts with the Cairene archaeologists discussing the surfacing of some antiquities (specifically a Book of the Dead papyrus) belonging to the never discovered tombs of the 21st dynasty on the black market. This has led the archaeologists to believe that so...

 Amenhottep IV  was an unusual king of ancient Egypt of the 18 th dynasty, New kingdom. There was probably a co-regency between Amenhotep IV and his father, Amenhotep III. That way, it would have begun in the twenty-eighth or twenty-ninth year of Amenhotep III’s reign. Others had suggested that this co-regency was in the thirty-seventh or thirty-ninth year. Amenhotep IV became a sole ruler from 1378/1352 BC onwards. From normal beginnings: The Pharoah Akhenaten started his rule with the name of (Amenhotep) like his father which means: the god Amun is satisfied. His coronation name was Nefer Kheperu Re (the transformations of Ra are perfect). Amenhotep IV married his cousin Nefertiti, who was the daughter of Ay and Tiy II and the granddaughter of Yuya and Tuya. He had probably six daughters from her. Amenhotep IV had a secondary wife, Kiya, who was the mother of Tutankhamun. At the beginning of his reign, the young king, Amenhotep IV worshipped the old gods, especially...

Menkaure was the fifth Egyptian pharaoh of the fourth dynasty during the Old Kingdom. Egyptian transliteration of his name is (mn-k3w-R`) which means ( Eternal like the soul of Re ). Herodotus named him Mykerinos under the Hellenistic period (Greek) while Manetho named him Menkheres. According to Manetho, he was the successor of king Bikheris but this turned out to be false. According to more sound archaeological evidence, he was the successor of king Khafre who was his father. Menkaure died after at least 26 years of his rule leaving his complex unfinished while the work was completed by his successor, Shepseskaf in mud brick. The Pyramid of Menkaure   It was the last and the smallest pyramid of the three main pyramids, located on the Giza plateau in the southwestern outskirts of Cairo. Herdotus wrote that there once was a very rich woman called Rhodopis who claimed that the pyramid of Menkaure belonged to her. This was almost believed until it was disproved because of the d...

The Westcare papyrus recorded the sacred birth of the fifth dynasty of Ancient Egypt, it tells us that the first three kings of the fifth dynasty were begotten from the sun God himself who married the wife of the high priest of Heliopolis whose name is"rdi djt". The true origin of the kings of the fifth dynasty : The true origin of the fifth dynasty is a mystery very difficult to solve, but we will explore different points of view from scholars. Queen Khentkawes   She is the daughter of Menkaure according to Selim Hassan, as he found an offering table holding the title Khentkawes at the valley temple of Menkaure. It held the title "sa ntr" so Selim Hassan suggested that she was the daughter of King Menkaure and she married King Shepseskaf before marrying Userkaf. She was probably the mother of the two kings (Sahure and Neferirkare). Queen Khentkawes held an unusual title and some scholars are debating about the reading of the title, Selim Hassan   translate...