1.
Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon
–
The Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon is a municipal museum of fine arts in the French city of Lyon. It is housed near place des Terreaux in a former Benedictine convent of the 17th and 18th centuries and it was restored between 1988 and 1998, and despite these important restoration works it remained open to visitors. Its collections range from ancient Egypt antiquities to the Modern art period and it hosts important exhibitions of art, recently there have been exhibitions of works by Georges Braque and Henri Laurens, then one on the work of Théodore Géricault. It is one of the largest art museums in France, until 1792, the buildings belonged to the royal abbaye des Dames de Saint-Pierre, built in the 17th century. The abbess always came from the high French nobility and here received the personalities of the kingdom, the institution had a particularly aristocratic slant, as is shown by its renovation by Louis XIV of France in the 17th and 18th centuries. The rest of its current scheme was designed by Nicolas Bidaut, the expulsion of the nuns and the destruction of the église Saint-Saturnin date to the French Revolution, though the abbeys other church still exists and now houses 19th and 20th century sculptures. After the Revolution the remaining buildings housed the Palais du Commerce et des Arts, at first made up of works confiscated from the clergy and nobility, for example, it gained archaeology and natural history collections and those of the Académie des Sciences et des Lettres. The imperial drawing school was created in 1805 in the Palais du Commerce et des Arts to provide Lyons silk factories with designers and it gave birth to the famous Lyon School. In 1860, the Chambre de Commerce left the Palais Saint-Pierre, from 1875, the museums collections underwent a major expansion and had to be expanded - the staircase by Pierre Puvis de Chavannes dates to this era. The start of the 20th century was marked by a considerable opening-up of the collections, after several restoration projects, it was in the mid-1990s that the building acquired its present scheme. The paintings department has European paintings of 14th- to mid-20th-century paintings and they are arranged chronologically and by major schools in 35 rooms. The collection features, Ancient French painting, at the heart of the abbey, the former cloister is now a municipal garden, right in the centre of the town, on the peninsula. The highlights of the collection are its display of sarcophaguses and the gates of Ptolemy III, the rest of the objects throw light on everyday life in ancient Egypt. Room 2, The divine and its rites Along this rooms length a temples decoration is recreated, culminating with the gates of Ptolemy III, the other bas-reliefs in this room come from Koptos - eight are dated to the Middle Kingdom and come from a temple to Min. They were discovered by Adolphe Reinach in 1909 in the foundations of a late building,11 other fragments come from the end of the Ptolemaic era, and more precisely the reign of Cleopatra VII. Room 3, The cult of the divine Entered through the gate of Ptolemy IV, on the walls are shown 3 fragments of bas-reliefs from the 28th Dynasty, also found in Koptos. One whole case is devoted to representations of Osiris and another to those of the pharaoh, here can be seen a head of a pharaoh of the 30th Dynasty, attributed to Nectanebo II, a Middle Kingdom bust and a scarab with the name of Amenhotep II. Room 5, Pharaoh and his servants In one case are 18 wooden models of the 23rd Dynasty from Assiout from tombs, representing scenes from everyday life, in the opposite case are two with displays on writing and on the pharaohs servants respectively
Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon
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The Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon
Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon
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Albert Gleizes, 1913,
Portrait de l’éditeur Eugène Figuière (The Publisher Eugene Figuiere), oil on canvas, 143.5 x 101.5 cm
Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon
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The Nativity,
Lorenzo Costa (c 1490)
Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon
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Virgin and Child with angels,
Quentin Metsys (c 1509)
2.
Pharaoh
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The word pharaoh ultimately derive from the Egyptian compound pr-ˤ3 great house, written with the two biliteral hieroglyphs pr house and ˤ3 column, here meaning great or high. It was used only in larger phrases such as smr pr-ˤ3 Courtier of the High House, with specific reference to the buildings of the court or palace. From the twelfth dynasty onward, the word appears in a wish formula Great House, may it live, prosper, and be in health, but again only with reference to the royal palace and not the person. During the reign of Thutmose III in the New Kingdom, after the rule of the Hyksos during the Second Intermediate Period. During the eighteenth dynasty the title pharaoh was employed as a designation of the ruler. From the nineteenth dynasty onward pr-ˤ3 on its own was used as regularly as hm. f, the term, therefore, evolved from a word specifically referring to a building to a respectful designation for the ruler, particularly by the twenty-second dynasty and twenty-third dynasty. For instance, the first dated appearance of the pharaoh being attached to a rulers name occurs in Year 17 of Siamun on a fragment from the Karnak Priestly Annals. Here, an induction of an individual to the Amun priesthood is dated specifically to the reign of Pharaoh Siamun and this new practice was continued under his successor Psusennes II and the twenty-second dynasty kings. Shoshenq I was the successor of Siamun. Meanwhile, the old custom of referring to the sovereign simply as pr-ˤ3 continued in traditional Egyptian narratives, by this time, the Late Egyptian word is reconstructed to have been pronounced *par-ʕoʔ whence Herodotus derived the name of one of the Egyptian kings, Φερων. In the Bible, the title also occurs as פרעה, from that, Septuagint φαραώ pharaō and then Late Latin pharaō, both -n stem nouns. The Quran likewise spells it فرعون firawn with n, interestingly, the Arabic combines the original pharyngeal ayin sound from Egyptian, along with the -n ending from Greek. English at first spelt it Pharao, but the King James Bible revived Pharaoh with h from the Hebrew, meanwhile in Egypt itself, *par-ʕoʔ evolved into Sahidic Coptic ⲡⲣ̅ⲣⲟ prro and then rro. Scepters and staves were a sign of authority in ancient Egypt. One of the earliest royal scepters was discovered in the tomb of Khasekhemwy in Abydos, kings were also known to carry a staff, and Pharaoh Anedjib is shown on stone vessels carrying a so-called mks-staff. The scepter with the longest history seems to be the heqa-scepter, the earliest examples of this piece of regalia dates to pre-dynastic times. A scepter was found in a tomb at Abydos that dates to the late Naqada period, another scepter associated with the king is the was-scepter. This is a long staff mounted with an animal head, the earliest known depictions of the was-scepter date to the first dynasty
Pharaoh
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Den
Pharaoh
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Narmer Palette
Pharaoh
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Nomen and prenomen of
Ramesses III
Pharaoh
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Royal titulary
3.
Egyptian chronology
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The majority of Egyptologists agree on the outline and many details of the chronology of Ancient Egypt. Scholarly consensus on the outline of the conventional chronology current in Egyptology has not fluctuated much over the last 100 years. For the Old Kingdom, consensus fluctuates by as much as a few centuries and this is illustrated by comparing the chronology as given by two Egyptologists, the first writing in 1906, the second in 2000. The disparities between the two sets of result from additional discoveries and refined understanding of the still very incomplete source evidence. For example, Breasted adds a ruler in the Twentieth dynasty that further research showed did not exist, following Manetho, Breasted also believed all the dynasties were sequential, whereas it is now known that several existed at the same time. These revisions have resulted in a lowering of the chronology by up to 400 years at the beginning of Dynasty I. The backbone of Egyptian chronology are the years as recorded in Ancient Egyptian king lists. In addition, some Egyptian dynasties may have overlapped, with different pharaohs ruling in different regions at the same time, not knowing whether monarchies were simultaneous or sequential results in widely differing chronological interpretations. However, further research has shown that these censuses were taken in consecutive years. The sed festival was celebrated on the thirtieth anniversary of the Pharaohs ascension. However, once again, this may not be the practice in all cases. In the early days of Egyptology, the compilation of regnal periods may also have been hampered due to bias on the part of the Egyptologists. This was most pervasive before the mid 19th century, when Manethos figures were recognized as conflicting with biblical chronology based on Old Testament references to Egypt, in the 20th century, such biblical bias has mostly been confined to alternative chronologies outside of scholarly mainstream. A useful way to work around these gaps in knowledge is to find chronological synchronisms, over the past decades, a number of these have been found, although they are of varying degrees of usefulness and reliability. While this does not fix a person or event to a specific year, another example are blocks from the Old Kingdom bearing the names of several kings, which were reused in the construction of Middle Kingdom pyramid-temples at Lisht in the structures of Amenemhat I. The poor documentation of these finds in the Serapeum also compounds the difficulties in using these records. The best known of these is the Sothic cycle, and careful study of this led Richard A. Parker to argue that the dates of the Twelfth dynasty could be fixed with absolute precision. More recent research has eroded this confidence, questioning many of the assumptions used with the Sothic Cycle and this is useful especially for the Early Dynastic period, where Egyptological consensus has only been possible within a range of about three or four centuries
Egyptian chronology
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Astronomical ceiling from the tomb of
Seti I showing stars and constellations used in calendar calculations
Egyptian chronology
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'Diagonal star table' from the
11th Dynasty coffin lid; found at
Asyut, Egypt.
Roemer- und Pelizaeus-Museum Hildesheim
4.
Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt
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The Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt is usually classified as the fifth Dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian Late Period. It was founded after the overthrow of Nefaarud II in 380 BC by Nectanebo I, Nectanebo I had gained control of all of Egypt by November of 380 BC, but spent much of his reign defending his kingdom from Persian reconquest with the occasional help of Sparta or Athens. In 365 BC, Nectanebo made his son Teos co-king and heir, tjahepimu took advantage of Teos unpopularity within Egypt by declaring his son—and Teos nephew, Nectanebo II—king. The Egyptian army rallied around Nectanebo which forced Teos to flee to the court of the king of Persia, Nectanebo IIs reign was dominated by the efforts of the Persian rulers to reconquer Egypt, which they considered a satrapy in revolt. For the first ten years, Nectanebo avoided the Persian reconquest because Artaxerxes III was forced to consolidate his control of the realm. Artaxerxes then attempted an invasion of Egypt in the winter of 351/350 BC, the repercussions of his defeat prompted revolts in Cyprus, Phoenicia. Although Nectanebo gave support to these revolts, Artaxerxes would eventually suppress these rebellions and was again able to invade Egypt in 343 BC. This second invasion proved successful, and Nectanebo was forced to withdraw from his defenses in the Nile Delta to Memphis and he thereupon fled south to Nubia, where he is assumed to have found refuge at the court of King Nastasen of Napata. Nectanebo, however, may have managed to some form of independent rule in the south of Egypt for 2 more years since a document from Edfu is dated to his eighteenth year. Although a shadowy figure named Khababash proclaimed himself king and led a rebellion against the Persians from about 338 to 335 BC and his flight marked the end of Egypt as an independent entity
Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt
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A 30th dynasty Egyptian funerary mask
Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt
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Stele of Nectanebo I
5.
Teos of Egypt
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Djedhor, better known as Teos or Tachos, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 30th Dynasty. A son of his predecessor Nectanebo I, Teos was his co-regent for three years before ascending to the throne in 361/0 BCE. However, to such an expedition, Teos had to impose new taxes and to expropriate the goods of the temples. This action ensured to Teos both the required finances and a great unpopularity, the operation against the Persians started with Chabrias as the admiral of the fleet, Agesilaus as the commander of the Greek mercenaries and Teos nephew Nakhthorheb as the leader of the machimoi. Teos placed himself in the command of the expedition leaving his brother Tjahapimu. The expedition made its way to Phoenicia without particular problems, unfortunately for Teos, his brother Tjahapimu was plotting against him. Taking advantage of Teos unpopularity, and with the support of the classes, Tjahapimu convinced his son Nakhthorheb to rebel against Teos. Nakhthorheb persuaded Agesilaus to join his side by taking advantage of the disagreements that had arisen between the Spartan king and the pharaoh. Nakhthorheb was acclaimed pharaoh – better known today as Nectanebo II – and the betrayed Teos had no alternative but to flee to Susa, the court of his enemies. Knowledge of the fate of Teos comes from the inscription by a noble called Wennefer. Wennefer was sent by Nectanebo II in search of Teos and managed to have him held by the Persian king Artaxerxes II at Susa, Wennefer then had Teos brought back with him in chains to the Egyptian pharaoh
Teos of Egypt
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Bowl shard with Teos' cartouches,
Petrie Museum
6.
Artaxerxes III
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He was the son and successor of Artaxerxes II and was succeeded by his son, Arses of Persia. His reign coincided with the reign of Philip II in Macedon, before ascending the throne Artaxerxes was a satrap and commander of his fathers army. Artaxerxes came to power one of his brothers was executed, another committed suicide. Soon after becoming king, Artaxerxes murdered all of the family to secure his place as king. He started two major campaigns against Egypt, the first campaign failed, and was followed up by rebellions throughout the western part of his empire. In 343 BC, Artaxerxes defeated Nectanebo II, the Pharaoh of Egypt, driving him from Egypt, in Artaxerxes later years, Philip II of Macedons power was increasing in Greece, where he tried to convince the Greeks to revolt against Achaemenid Persia. His activities were opposed by Artaxerxes, and with his support, according to a Greek source, Diodorus of Sicily, Bagoas poisoned Artaxerxes, but a cuneiform tablet suggests that the king died from natural causes. Artaxerxes III was the name adopted by Ochus when he succeeded his father in 358 BC. He is generally referred to as Ochus, but in Iran he is known as Ardeshir III, in Babylonian inscriptions he is called Umasu, who is called Artakshatsu. The same form of the name occurs in the Syrian version of the Canon of Kings by Elias of Nisibis, before ascending the throne Artaxerxes had been a satrap and commander of his fathers army. In 359 BC, just before ascending the throne, he attacked Egypt as a reaction to Egypts failed attacks on coastal regions of Phoenicia and his first order was the execution of over 80 of his nearest relations to secure his place as king. In 355 BC, Artaxerxes forced Athens to conclude a peace which required the citys forces to leave Asia Minor, Artaxerxes started a campaign against the rebellious Cadusians, but he managed to appease both of the Cadusian kings. One individual who successfully emerged from this campaign was Darius Codomannus, the order was however ignored by Artabazus of Lydia, who asked for the help of Athens in a rebellion against the king. Orontes of Mysia also supported Artabazus and the forces managed to defeat the forces sent by Artaxerxes in 354 BC. However, in 353 BC, they were defeated by Artaxerxes’ army and were disbanded, orontes was pardoned by the king, while Artabazus fled to the safety of the court of Philip II of Macedon. In around 351 BC, Artaxerxes embarked on a campaign to recover Egypt, at the same time a rebellion had broken out in Asia Minor, which, being supported by Thebes, threatened to become serious. Levying a vast army, Artaxerxes marched into Egypt, and engaged Nectanebo II, after a year of fighting the Egyptian Pharaoh, Nectanebo inflicted a crushing defeat on the Persians with the support of mercenaries led by the Greek generals Diophantus and Lamius. Artaxerxes was compelled to retreat and postpone his plans to reconquer Egypt, soon after this defeat, Phoenicia, Asia Minor and Cyprus declared their independence from Persian rule
Artaxerxes III
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Artaxerxes III (Artaxšaçrā)
Artaxerxes III
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Tomb of Artaxerxes III at
Persepolis
Artaxerxes III
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The Unfinished Gate at
Persepolis gave archaeologists an insight into the construction of Persepolis.
7.
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
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The royal titulary or royal protocol of an Egyptian pharaoh is the standard naming convention taken by the kings of Ancient Egypt. It symbolises worldly power and holy might and also acts as a sort of mission statement for the reign of a monarch. The full titulary, consisting of five names, did not come into standard usage until the Middle Kingdom, the Horus name is the oldest form of the pharaohs name, originating in the Predynastic Period. Many of the oldest-known Egyptian pharaohs were known only by this title, the Horus name was usually written in a serekh, a representation of a palace façade. The name of the pharaoh was written in hieroglyphs inside this representation of a palace, typically an image of the falcon God Horus was perched on top of or beside it. At least one Egyptian ruler, the 2nd dynasty Seth-Peribsen, used an image of the god Seth instead of Horus and he was succeeded by Khasekhemwy, who placed the symbols of both Seth and Horus above his name. Thereafter, the image of Horus always appeared alongside the name of the pharaoh, by the time of the New Kingdom the Horus name was often written without the enclosing serekh. The name is first definitively used by the First Dynasty pharaoh Semerkhet and this particular name was not typically framed by a cartouche or serekh, but always begins with the hieroglyphs of a vulture and cobra resting upon two baskets, the dual noun nebty. Also known as the Golden Horus Name, this form of the name typically featured the image of a Horus falcon perched above or beside the hieroglyph for gold. The meaning of this title has been disputed. One belief is that it represents the triumph of Horus over his uncle Seth, Gold also was strongly associated in the ancient Egyptian mind with eternity, so this may have been intended to convey the pharaohs eternal Horus name. Similar to the Nebty name, this particular name typically was not framed by a cartouche or serekh, the pharaohs throne name, the first of the two names written inside a cartouche, and usually accompanied the title nsw-bity. The term nsw-bity It has been suggested that the Berber term for strong man, the epithet neb tawy, Lord of the Two Lands, referring to valley and delta regions of Egypt, often occurs as well. This was the name given at birth and it was first introduced to the set of royal titles in the Fourth Dynasty and emphasizes the kings role as a representative of the solar god Ra. For women who became pharaoh, the title was interpreted as daughter also. Modern historians typically refer to the ancient kings of Egypt by this name, Middle Egyptian, An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, Cairo, London, and New York, The American University in Cairo Press and Thames and Hudson. The Great Name, Ancient Egyptian Royal Titulary, Egyptian Grammar, Being an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
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Serekh containing the name of
Djet and an association with
Wadjet, on display at the
Louvre
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
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Praenomen of the
Cartouche of
Thutmose II preceded by Sedge and Bee symbols, Temple of
Hatshepsut,
Luxor
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
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In the
Middle Kingdom, the full titulary was sometimes written in a single cartouche, as in this example from
Senusret I, from
Beni Hasan.
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
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Royal titulary
8.
Onuris
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In early Egyptian mythology, Anhur was originally a god of war who was worshipped in the Egyptian area of Abydos, and particularly in Thinis. Myths told that he had brought his wife, Mehit, who was his counterpart, from Nubia. One of his titles was Slayer of Enemies, Anhur was depicted as a bearded man wearing a robe and a headdress with four feathers, holding a spear or lance, or occasionally as a lion-headed god. In some depictions, the robe was more similar to a kilt, due to his position as a war god, he was patron of the ancient Egyptian army, and the personification of royal warriors. Indeed, at festivals honoring him, mock battles were staged, during the Roman era the Emperor Tiberius was depicted on the walls of Egyptian temples wearing the distinctive four-plumed crown of Anhur. The Greeks equated Anhur to their god of war, Ares, in the legend of Olympian gods fleeing from Typhon and taking animal form in Egypt, Ares was said to have taken the form of a fish as Lepidotus or Onuris. Anhurs name also could mean Sky Bearer and, due to the headdress, Anhur was later identified with Shu. He is the son of Ra and brother of Bastet if identified as Shu, amenhotep, from the time of Thutmose IV. Amenhoteps wife Henut was a songstress of Anhur and their sons Hat and Kenna were Chariot Warriors of His Majesty. Known from a now in the British Museum. Nebwenenef High Priest of Anhur during the reign of Sety I, was appointed High Priest of Amun in the beginning of the reign of Ramesses II. Hori Minmose, son of the High Priest of Anhur Hori, from the reign of Ramesses II. Anhurmose, from the time of Merenptah, sishepset, from the time of Ramesses III Harsiese, mentioned on an ostracon in Abydos Anhur is a playable character in the multiplayer online battle arena, SMITE. Anhur is a hunter and bears title the Slayer of Enemies and is shown in his lion form maintaining his beard, robe, Anhur is also a chaotic god in the computer game NetHack/SlashEM. Onuris has a role in the 2012 fantasy novel The Serpents Shadow as a presumed dead god who is revived in order to destroy the Lord of Chaos
Onuris
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Amulet of Anhur
Onuris
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Anhur was depicted wearing a headdress of two or four tall feathers.
9.
Horus
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Horus is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the Ptolemaic Kingdom, different forms of Horus are recorded in history and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptologists. He was most often depicted as a falcon, most likely a falcon or peregrine falcon. In another tradition Hathor is regarded as his mother and sometimes as his wife, Horus served many functions, most notably being a god of the sky, war and hunting. Horus is recorded in Egyptian hieroglyphs as ḥr. w Falcon, additional meanings are thought to have been the distant one or one who is above, over. As the language changed over time, it appeared in Coptic dialects variously as hoːɾ or ħoːɾ and was adopted into ancient Greek as Ὧρος Hōros and it also survives in Late Egyptian and Coptic theophoric names such as Har-si-ese Horus, Son of Isis. Nekheny may have been another falcon god worshipped at Nekhen, city of the falcon, Horus may be shown as a falcon on the Narmer Palette, dating from about the 31st century BC. In early Egypt, Horus was the brother of Isis, Osiris, Set, as different cults formed, he became the son of Isis and Osiris. Isis remained the sister of Osiris, Set and Nephthys, the Pyramid Texts describe the nature of the pharaoh in different characters as both Horus and Osiris. The pharaoh as Horus in life became the pharaoh as Osiris in death, New incarnations of Horus succeeded the deceased pharaoh on earth in the form of new pharaohs. The lineage of Horus, the product of unions between the children of Atum, may have been a means to explain and justify pharaonic power. The gods produced by Atum were all representative of cosmic and terrestrial forces in Egyptian life, the notion of Horus as the pharaoh seems to have been superseded by the concept of the pharaoh as the son of Ra during the Fifth Dynasty. Once Isis knew she was pregnant with Horus, she fled to the Nile Delta marshlands to hide from her brother Set, who jealously killed Osiris, there Isis bore a divine son, Horus. Since Horus was said to be the sky, he was considered to contain the sun. It became said that the sun was his eye and the moon his left, and that they traversed the sky when he. Later, the reason that the moon was not as bright as the sun was explained by a tale, known as the The Contendings of Horus and Seth. As Horus was the victor he became known as ḥr. w wr Horus the Great. In the struggle, Set had lost a testicle, explaining why the desert, Horus left eye had also been gouged out, then a new eye was created by part of Khonsu, the moon god, and was replaced
Horus
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Horus,
(Louvre Museum),
Shen rings in his grasp
Horus
Horus
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Figure of a Horus Falcon, between circa 300 and circa 250 BC (Greco-Roman). The Walters Art Museum.
Horus
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Horus, patron deity of Hierakonpolis (near
Edfu), the predynastic capital of Upper Egypt. Its head was executed by means of beating the gold then connecting it with the copper body. A uraeus is fixed to the diadem which supports two tall openwork feathers. The eyes are inlaid with obsidian. (6th dynasty).
10.
Hathor
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Hathor is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of joy, feminine love, and motherhood. She was one of the most important and popular throughout the history of Ancient Egypt. Hathor was worshipped by royalty and common people alike, in tomb paintings, she is often depicted as Mistress of the West, welcoming the dead into the next life. In other roles, she was a goddess of music, dance, foreign lands and she was believed to assist women in childbirth. She was also believed to be the goddess of miners. Hathor is commonly depicted as a cow goddess with horns in which is set a sun disk with Uraeus, twin feathers are also sometimes shown in later periods as well as a menat necklace. The Ancient Egyptians viewed reality as multi-layered in which deities who merge for various reasons, while retaining divergent attributes and myths, were not seen as contradictory but complementary. In a complicated relationship Hathor is at times the mother, daughter and wife of Ra and, like Isis, is at times described as the mother of Horus, the cult of Osiris promised eternal life to those deemed morally worthy. Originally the justified dead, male or female, became an Osiris but by early Roman times females became identified with Hathor, the Ancient Greeks sometimes identified Hathor with the goddess Aphrodite. Hathor is ambiguously depicted until the fourth dynasty, in the historical era Hathor is shown using the imagery of a cow deity. At times they are regarded as one and the goddess, though likely having separate origins. The evidence pointing to the deity being Hathor in particular is based on a passage from the Pyramid texts which states that the Kings apron comes from Hathor, from the Old Kingdom she was also called Lady of the Sycamore in her capacity as a tree deity. Hathor had a relationship with Ra. At times she is the eye of Ra and considered his daughter and she absorbed this role from another cow goddess Mehet-Weret who was the mother of Ra in a creation myth and carried him between her horns. As a mother she gave birth to Ra each morning on the eastern horizon, the Milky Way was seen as a waterway in the heavens, sailed upon by both the sun deity and the moon, leading the ancient Egyptians to describe it as The Nile in the Sky. Hathor also was favoured as a protector in desert regions, as Serabit el-Khadim was where turquoise was mined, Hathors titles included Lady of Turquoise, Mistress of Turquoise, and Lady of Turquoise Country. Hathors identity as a cow, perhaps depicted as such on the Narmer Palette, meant that she identified with another ancient cow-goddess of fertility. The assimilation of Bat, who was associated with the sistrum, in this later form, Hathors cult became centred in Dendera in Upper Egypt and it was led by priestesses and priests who also were dancers, singers and other entertainers
Hathor
–
Cow deities appear on the Kings belt and the top of the
Narmer Palette
Hathor
–
Hathor as a cow, wearing her necklace and showing her sacred eye –
Papyrus of Ani.
Hathor
–
The Milky Way seen as it may have appeared to Ancient Egyptians
Hathor
–
Sculpture of Hathor as a cow, with all of her symbols, the sun disk, the cobra, as well as her necklace and crown.
11.
Two Lands
–
Upper and Lower Egypt also referred to as The Two Lands is a name used for Ancient Egypt. The concept appears in titles of Egyptian Kings and Queens and appears in scenes in temple, tombs, the concept also refers to an innate sense of duality in the Ancient Egyptian culture. The Egyptian expression sema-tawy is usually translated as The Uniter of the Two Lands and was depicted as a human trachea entwined with the papyrus, the trachea stood for unification, while the papyrus and lily plant represent Lower and Upper Egypt. Standard titles of a King of Egypt was King of Upper and Lower Egypt, similarly a Queen might use titles such as Lady of The Two Lands, Mistress of the Entire Two Lands, and Mistress of the Two Lands. Ancient Egypt was divided into two regions, namely Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt, to the north was Lower Egypt, where the Nile stretched out with its several branches to form the Nile Delta. To the south was Upper Egypt, stretching to Syene, Lower Egypt mostly consists of the Nile Delta. The two kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt were united c.3000 BC, but each maintained its own regalia, the hedjet or White Crown for Upper Egypt and the deshret or Red Crown for Lower Egypt. Thus, the pharaohs were known as the rulers of the Two Lands, and wore the pschent, Ancient Egyptian tradition credited Menes, now believed to be the same as Narmer, as the king who united Upper and Lower Egypt. On the Narmer Palette the king is depicted wearing the Red Crown in one scene and the White crown in another, the union of Upper and Lower Egypt is depicted by knotted papyrus and reed plants. The binding motif represents both harmony through linkage and domination through containment, the duality is an important part of royal iconography. Sometimes the duality is further extended by having the knotted plants extend and bind foreign foes as well, during the first dynasty dualistic royal titles emerge, including the King of Upper and Lower Egypt title which combines the plant representing Upper Egypt and a bee representing Lower Egypt. The other dualistic title is the Two Ladies name or Nebty name, the two ladies as Nekhbet, the vulture goddess associated with Hierakonpolis in Upper Egypt, and Wadjet, the cobra goddess associated with Buto in Lower Egypt. There are many depictions of the ritual unifications of the Two Lands and it is not known if this was perhaps a rite that would have been enacted at the beginning of a reign, or merely a symbolic representation. Many of the depictions of the show two gods binding the plants. Often the gods are Horus and Set, or on occasion Horus, there are several examples of Barque stands from the reigns of Amenhotep III, Taharqa, and Atlanersa that show two river gods performing the rite. This matches a scene from the Temple at Abu Simbel from the time of Ramesses II, there are only a handful of scenes that show the King himself performing the ritual. All of these are from barque stands and date to the reigns of Amenhotep III, Sety I, the latter two may be copies of the first one. Upper Egypt Lower Egypt Narmer History of ancient Egypt
Two Lands
–
Hapi tying the papyrus and reed plants in the sema tawy symbol for the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt
Two Lands
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Map of Lower and Upper Egypt
Two Lands
–
The river gods
Hapy uniting Upper and Lower Egypt.
Colossi of Memnon. Reign of
Amenhotep III.
Two Lands
–
Temple scene at
Luxor, Thebes
12.
Tjahapimu
–
Tjahapimu or Tjahepimu, was an ancient Egyptian prince, general and regent during the 30th Dynasty. Tjahapimu most likely was a son of pharaoh Nectanebo I and thus a brother of pharaoh Teos, though he is sometimes reported as a brother of Nectanebo I. When Teos went to the Near East leading an expedition against the Achaemenid Empire. However, Tjahapimu took advantage of Teos unpopularity in Egypt, which was due to the tax regime that the pharaoh imposed in order to finance his expedition. Tjahapimu convinced his own son Nakhthorheb, who was serving Teos as the commander of the machimoi, to rebel against him and his plan was successful, Nakhthorheb was acclaimed pharaoh and Teos fled at Susa to the court of the Great King. For Tjahapimu we have a statue made from meta–greywacke which was unearthed at Memphis and is now exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. On the statue Tjahapimu is called Brother of the King and Father of the King
Tjahapimu
–
Statue of Tjahapimu. MMA, New York.
13.
Egyptian language
–
The language spoken in ancient Egypt was a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. The earliest known complete sentence in the Egyptian language has been dated to about 2690 BCE, making it one of the oldest recorded languages known. Egyptian was spoken until the seventeenth century in the form of Coptic. The national language of modern Egypt is Egyptian Arabic, which gradually replaced Coptic as the language of life in the centuries after the Muslim conquest of Egypt. Coptic is still used as the language of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. It has several hundred fluent speakers today, the Egyptian language belongs to the Afroasiatic language family. Of the other Afroasiatic branches, Egyptian shows its greatest affinities with Semitic, in Egyptian, the Proto-Afroasiatic voiced consonants */d z ð/ developed into pharyngeal ⟨ꜥ⟩ /ʕ/, e. g. Eg. Afroasiatic */l/ merged with Egyptian ⟨n⟩, ⟨r⟩, ⟨ꜣ⟩, and ⟨j⟩ in the dialect on which the language was based. Original */k g ḳ/ palatalize to ⟨ṯ j ḏ⟩ in some environments and are preserved as ⟨k g q⟩ in others, Egyptian has many biradical and perhaps monoradical roots, in contrast to the Semitic preference for triradical roots. Egyptian probably is more archaic in this regard, whereas Semitic likely underwent later regularizations converting roots into the triradical pattern, scholars group the Egyptian language into six major chronological divisions, Archaic Egyptian language Old Egyptian language Middle Egyptian language, characterizing Middle Kingdom. Demotic Coptic The earliest Egyptian glyphs date back to around 3300 BC and these early texts are generally lumped together under the general term Archaic Egyptian. They record names, titles and labels, but a few of them show morphological and syntactic features familiar from later, more complete, Old Egyptian is dated from the oldest known complete sentence, found in the tomb of Seth-Peribsen and dated to around 2690 BCE. It reads, dmḏ. n. f t3wj n z3. f nswt-bjt pr-jb. snj He has united the Two Lands for his son, extensive texts appear from about 2600 BCE. Demotic first appears about 650 BCE and survived as a written language until the fifth century CE and it probably survived in the Egyptian countryside as a spoken language for several centuries after that. Bohairic Coptic is still used by the Coptic Churches, Old, Middle, and Late Egyptian were all written using hieroglyphs and hieratic. Demotic was written using a script derived from hieratic, its appearance is similar to modern Arabic script and is also written from right to left. Coptic is written using the Coptic alphabet, a form of the Greek alphabet with a number of symbols borrowed from Demotic for sounds that did not occur in ancient Greek. Arabic became the language of Egypts political administration soon after the early Muslim conquests in the seventh century, today, Coptic survives as the sacred language of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria and the Coptic Catholic Church
Egyptian language
–
Seal impression from the tomb of
Seth-Peribsen, containing the oldest known complete sentence in Egyptian
Egyptian language
–
Ebers Papyrus detailing treatment of
asthma
Egyptian language
–
3rd-century Coptic inscription
14.
Behbeit el-Hagar
–
Behbeit El Hagar is an archaeological site in Lower Egypt. It contains an ancient Egyptian temple for the goddess Isis, the site lies along the Damietta branch of the Nile, north of Sebennytos and 8 kilometers west of Mansoura. The temple is known as the Iseion, and was the first large temple to have dedicated to Isis. In earlier shrines at the site, she may have been worshipped alongside her husband, Osiris. It was begun by the kings of the Thirtieth Dynasty and completed under Ptolemy III, the Iseion became one of Isis major cult centers. It paralleled the deitys most important temple located at Philae in Upper Egypt, unusually, the temple was built entirely of granite. It was demolished at some point, possibly in ancient times, only scattered blocks remain there today. Behbeit el-Hagara web site Media related to Behbeit El Hagar at Wikimedia Commons
Behbeit el-Hagar
–
View of the temple site
15.
Ancient Egypt
–
Ancient Egypt was a civilization of ancient Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It is one of six civilizations to arise independently, Egyptian civilization followed prehistoric Egypt and coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh Narmer. In the aftermath of Alexander the Greats death, one of his generals, Ptolemy Soter and this Greek Ptolemaic Kingdom ruled Egypt until 30 BC, when, under Cleopatra, it fell to the Roman Empire and became a Roman province. The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River valley for agriculture, the predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which supported a more dense population, and social development and culture. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities carried off to far corners of the world and its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travelers and writers for centuries. The Nile has been the lifeline of its region for much of human history, nomadic modern human hunter-gatherers began living in the Nile valley through the end of the Middle Pleistocene some 120,000 years ago. By the late Paleolithic period, the climate of Northern Africa became increasingly hot and dry. In Predynastic and Early Dynastic times, the Egyptian climate was less arid than it is today. Large regions of Egypt were covered in treed savanna and traversed by herds of grazing ungulates, foliage and fauna were far more prolific in all environs and the Nile region supported large populations of waterfowl. Hunting would have been common for Egyptians, and this is also the period when many animals were first domesticated. The largest of these cultures in upper Egypt was the Badari, which probably originated in the Western Desert, it was known for its high quality ceramics, stone tools. The Badari was followed by the Amratian and Gerzeh cultures, which brought a number of technological improvements, as early as the Naqada I Period, predynastic Egyptians imported obsidian from Ethiopia, used to shape blades and other objects from flakes. In Naqada II times, early evidence exists of contact with the Near East, particularly Canaan, establishing a power center at Hierakonpolis, and later at Abydos, Naqada III leaders expanded their control of Egypt northwards along the Nile. They also traded with Nubia to the south, the oases of the desert to the west. Royal Nubian burials at Qustul produced artifacts bearing the oldest-known examples of Egyptian dynastic symbols, such as the crown of Egypt. They also developed a ceramic glaze known as faience, which was used well into the Roman Period to decorate cups, amulets, and figurines. During the last predynastic phase, the Naqada culture began using written symbols that eventually were developed into a system of hieroglyphs for writing the ancient Egyptian language. The Early Dynastic Period was approximately contemporary to the early Sumerian-Akkadian civilisation of Mesopotamia, the third-century BC Egyptian priest Manetho grouped the long line of pharaohs from Menes to his own time into 30 dynasties, a system still used today
Ancient Egypt
–
The
Great Sphinx and the
pyramids of Giza are among the most recognizable symbols of the civilization of ancient Egypt.
Ancient Egypt
–
A typical Naqada II jar decorated with gazelles. (Predynastic Period)
Ancient Egypt
–
The
Narmer Palette depicts the unification of the Two Lands.
16.
Relief
–
Relief, formerly known as Panorama, is a public affairs newsmagazine series in Canada, airing nightly in Ontario on TFO, the Franco-Ontarian public television network. The series is hosted by Gisèle Quenneville, reporters associated with the series include Melanie Routhier-Boudreau, Isabelle Brunet, Marie Duchesneau, Luce Gauthier, Frédéric Projean and Chantal Racine. Longtime host Pierre Granger retired from the series in 2009, the series was renamed RelieF in fall 2010. The show airs seven nights a week at 7 p. m, from Monday to Thursday, it airs news and public affairs. On Fridays, the program airs documentary programming, on Saturdays, it airs a week in review edition, and on Sundays it airs an arts and culture magazine
Relief
17.
Ptolemaic Kingdom
–
The Ptolemaic Kingdom was a Hellenistic kingdom based in Egypt. Alexandria became the city and a major center of Greek culture. To gain recognition by the native Egyptian populace, they named themselves the successors to the Pharaohs, the later Ptolemies took on Egyptian traditions by marrying their siblings, had themselves portrayed on public monuments in Egyptian style and dress, and participated in Egyptian religious life. The Ptolemies had to fight native rebellions and were involved in foreign and civil wars led to the decline of the kingdom. Hellenistic culture continued to thrive in Egypt throughout the Roman and Byzantine periods until the Muslim conquest. The era of Ptolemaic reign in Egypt is one of the most well documented periods of the Hellenistic Era. In 332 BC, Alexander the Great, King of Macedon invaded the Achaemenid satrapy of Egypt and he visited Memphis, and traveled to the oracle of Amun at the Oasis of Siwa. The oracle declared him to be the son of Amun, the wealth of Egypt could now be harnessed for Alexanders conquest of the rest of the Persian Empire. Early in 331 BC he was ready to depart, and led his forces away to Phoenicia and he left Cleomenes as the ruling nomarch to control Egypt in his absence. Following Alexanders death in Babylon in 323 BC, a crisis erupted among his generals. Perdiccas appointed Ptolemy, one of Alexanders closest companions, to be satrap of Egypt, Ptolemy ruled Egypt from 323 BC, nominally in the name of the joint kings Philip III and Alexander IV. However, as Alexander the Greats empire disintegrated, Ptolemy soon established himself as ruler in his own right, Ptolemy successfully defended Egypt against an invasion by Perdiccas in 321 BC, and consolidated his position in Egypt and the surrounding areas during the Wars of the Diadochi. In 305 BC, Ptolemy took the title of King, as Ptolemy I Soter, he founded the Ptolemaic dynasty that was to rule Egypt for nearly 300 years. All the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy, while princesses and queens preferred the names Cleopatra, Arsinoe and Berenice. Because the Ptolemaic kings adopted the Egyptian custom of marrying their sisters, many of the kings ruled jointly with their spouses and this custom made Ptolemaic politics confusingly incestuous, and the later Ptolemies were increasingly feeble. The only Ptolemaic Queens to officially rule on their own were Berenice III, Cleopatra V did co-rule, but it was with another female, Berenice IV. Cleopatra VII officially co-ruled with Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator, Ptolemy XIV, and Ptolemy XV, upper Egypt, farthest from the centre of government, was less immediately affected, even though Ptolemy I established the Greek colony of Ptolemais Hermiou to be its capital. But within a century Greek influence had spread through the country, nevertheless, the Greeks always remained a privileged minority in Ptolemaic Egypt
Ptolemaic Kingdom
–
Eagle of Zeus
Ptolemaic Kingdom
–
Bust of
Ptolemy I Soter, king of Egypt (305 BC–282 BC) and founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic Kingdom
–
A bust depicting King
Ptolemy II Philadelphus 309–246 BCE
18.
Nectanebo I
–
Kheperkare Nakhtnebef, better known by his hellenized name Nectanebo I, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, founder of the last native dynasty of Egypt, the thirtieth. Nectanebo was a general from Sebennytos, son of an important military officer named Teos. A stele found at Hermopolis provides some evidence that he came to power by overthrowing, and possibly putting to death and it has been suggested that Nectanebo was assisted in the coup by the Athenian general Chabrias. Nectanebo carried out the ceremony in c. 379/8 BCE in both Sais and Memphis, and shifted the capital from Mendes to Sebennytos, the relationships between Nectanebo and the pharaohs of the previous dynasty are not entirely clear. He showed little regard for both Nepherites II and his father Achoris, calling the former inept and the latter an usurper, however, it has been suggested that both Achoris and Nectanebo may have been Nepherites Is relatives in some way. Nectanebo had two sons, Teos, who was his appointed successor, and Tjahapimu. Nectanebo was a builder and restorer, to an extent not seen in Egypt for centuries. He ordered work on many of the temples across the country, on the sacred island of Philae near Aswan, he began the temple of Isis, which would become one of the most important religious sites in ancient Egypt, by erecting its vestibule. Nectanebo also began the First Pylon in the Precinct of Amun-Re at Karnak, and it is believed that the earliest known mammisi, further works ordered by the pharaoh have been found in religious buildings at Memphis, Tanis and El Kab. Nectanebo was also generous towards the priesthood, a twin of this stele was recently discovered in the now-submerged city of Heracleion. Nectanebos prodigality showed his devotion to the gods and at the same time supported the largest holders of wealth of the country. In 374/3 BCE Nectanebo had to face a Persian attempt to retake Egypt and it has been recorded that the army was composed of over 200,000 troops including Persian soldiers and Greek mercenaries and around 500 ships. Fortifications on the Pelusiac branch of the Nile ordered by Nectanebo forced the fleet to seek another way to sail up the Nile. Eventually the fleet managed to find its way up the less-defended Mendesian branch, at this point, the mutual distrust that had arisen between Iphicrates and Pharnabazus prevented the enemy from reaching Memphis. Then the annual Nile flood and the Egyptian defenders resolve to defend their territory turned what had appeared as certain defeat for Nectanebo I. Nectanebo died during his 19th year as ruler and his tomb, sarcophagus and mummy have never been found. However, shortly after Teos accession, his brother Tjahapimu betrayed him and managed to put his own son Nakhthorheb onto the Egyptian throne. de Meulenaere, zeitschrift für Ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde
Nectanebo I
–
Torso of Nectanebo I,
Louvre
Nectanebo I
–
Irimeretnetjeru Jrj-mrt-nṯrw He who does what the gods love Titulary of Nectanebo from the Temple of
Atum at
Heliopolis.
Nectanebo I
–
Vestibule of the Temple of Isis at Philae
Nectanebo I
–
First Pylon, Karnak
19.
Ancient Egyptian religion
–
Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals which were an integral part of ancient Egyptian society. It centered on the Egyptians interaction with many deities who were believed to be present in, and in control of, rituals such as prayers and offerings were efforts to provide for the gods and gain their favor. Formal religious practice centered on the pharaoh, the king of Egypt and he acted as the intermediary between his people and the gods and was obligated to sustain the gods through rituals and offerings so that they could maintain order in the universe. The state dedicated enormous resources to Egyptian rituals and to the construction of the temples, individuals could interact with the gods for their own purposes, appealing for their help through prayer or compelling them to act through magic. These practices were distinct from, but closely linked with, the formal rituals, the popular religious tradition grew more prominent in the course of Egyptian history as the status of the Pharaoh declined. Another important aspect was the belief in the afterlife and funerary practices, the Egyptians made great efforts to ensure the survival of their souls after death, providing tombs, grave goods, and offerings to preserve the bodies and spirits of the deceased. The religion had its roots in Egypts prehistory and lasted for more than 3,000 years, the details of religious belief changed over time as the importance of particular gods rose and declined, and their intricate relationships shifted. At various times, certain gods became preeminent over the others, including the sun god Ra, the creator god Amun, for a brief period, in the theology promulgated by the Pharaoh Akhenaten, a single god, the Aten, replaced the traditional pantheon. Ancient Egyptian religion and mythology left behind many writings and monuments, along with significant influences on ancient, the beliefs and rituals now referred to as ancient Egyptian religion were integral within every aspect of Egyptian culture. Their language possessed no single term corresponding to the modern European concept of religion, the characteristics of the gods who populated the divine realm were inextricably linked to the Egyptians understanding of the properties of the world in which they lived. The Egyptians believed that the phenomena of nature were divine forces in and these deified forces included the elements, animal characteristics, or abstract forces. The Egyptians believed in a pantheon of gods, which were involved in all aspects of nature and their religious practices were efforts to sustain and placate these phenomena and turn them to human advantage. This polytheistic system was complex, as some deities were believed to exist in many different manifestations. Conversely, many forces, such as the sun, were associated with multiple deities. The diverse pantheon ranged from gods with vital roles in the universe to minor deities or demons with very limited or localized functions. It could include gods adopted from foreign cultures, and sometimes humans, deceased Pharaohs were believed to be divine, and occasionally, distinguished commoners such as Imhotep also became deified. The depictions of the gods in art were not meant as representations of how the gods might appear if they were visible. Instead, these depictions gave recognizable forms to the deities by using symbolic imagery to indicate each gods role in nature
Ancient Egyptian religion
–
The gods Osiris, Anubis, and Horus, in order from left to right
Ancient Egyptian religion
–
Amun-Ra kamutef, wearing the plumed headdress of Amun and the sun disk representing Ra
Ancient Egyptian religion
–
The air god Shu, assisted by other gods, holds up Nut, the sky, as Geb, the earth, lies beneath.
Ancient Egyptian religion
–
Colossal statue of the Pharaoh
Ramesses II
20.
Egyptian temple
–
Egyptian temples were built for the official worship of the gods and in commemoration of the pharaohs in ancient Egypt and regions under Egyptian control. Temples were seen as houses for the gods or kings to whom they were dedicated and these rituals were seen as necessary for the gods to continue to uphold maat, the divine order of the universe. Housing and caring for the gods were the obligations of pharaohs, nevertheless, a temple was an important religious site for all classes of Egyptians, who went there to pray, give offerings, and seek oracular guidance from the god dwelling within. The most important part of the temple was the sanctuary, which contained a cult image. These edifices are among the largest and most enduring examples of Egyptian architecture and their typical design consisted of a series of enclosed halls, open courts, and massive entrance pylons aligned along the path used for festival processions. Beyond the temple proper was a wall enclosing a wide variety of secondary buildings. A large temple also owned sizable tracts of land and employed thousands of laymen to supply its needs, temples were therefore key economic as well as religious centers. The priests who managed these powerful institutions wielded considerable influence, temple-building in Egypt continued despite the nations decline and ultimate loss of independence to the Roman Empire. With the coming of Christianity, however, Egyptian religion faced increasing persecution, for centuries, the ancient buildings suffered destruction and neglect. Dozens of temples survive today, and some have become world-famous tourist attractions that contribute significantly to the modern Egyptian economy, Egyptologists continue to study the surviving temples and the remains of destroyed ones, as they are invaluable sources of information about ancient Egyptian society. Ancient Egyptian temples were meant as places for the gods to reside on earth, indeed, the term the Egyptians most commonly used to describe the temple building, ḥwt-nṯr, means mansion of a god. A gods presence in the temple linked the human and divine realms and these rituals, it was believed, sustained the god and allowed it to continue to play its proper role in nature. They were therefore a key part of the maintenance of maat, maintaining maat was the entire purpose of Egyptian religion, and it was the purpose of a temple as well. Because he was credited with divine power himself, the pharaoh, as a king, was regarded as Egypts representative to the gods. Thus, it was theoretically his duty to perform the temple rites, the pharaoh was nevertheless obligated to maintain, provide for, and expand the temples throughout his realm. Although the pharaoh delegated his authority, the performance of rituals was still an official duty. The participation of the populace in most ceremonies was prohibited. Much of the lay religious activity in Egypt instead took place in private and community shrines, however, as the primary link between the human and divine realms, temples attracted considerable veneration from ordinary Egyptians
Egyptian temple
–
The Temple of
Isis at
Philae, with
pylons and an enclosed court on the left and the inner building at right
Egyptian temple
–
Low relief of
Seti I performing rituals for the god
Amun
Egyptian temple
–
Sunk relief of personified
provinces of Egypt bearing offerings for the temple god
Egyptian temple
–
Reconstruction of an Old Kingdom pyramid temple, with causeway leading out to the valley temple
21.
Isis
–
Isis is a goddess from the polytheistic pantheon of Egypt. She was first worshiped in ancient Egyptian religion, and later her worship spread throughout the Roman Empire, Isis was worshipped as the ideal mother and wife as well as the patroness of nature and magic. She was the friend of slaves, sinners, artisans and the downtrodden, Isis is often depicted as the mother of Horus, the falcon-headed deity associated with king and kingship. Isis is also known as protector of the dead and goddess of children, as the personification of the throne, she was an important representation of the pharaohs power. The pharaoh was depicted as her child, who sat on the throne she provided. Her cult was popular throughout Egypt, but her most important temples were at Behbeit El Hagar in the Nile delta, and, beginning in the reign with Nectanebo I, on the island of Philae in Upper Egypt. In the typical form of her myth, Isis was the first daughter of Geb, god of the Earth, and Nut, goddess of the Sky and she married her brother, Osiris, and she conceived Horus with him. Isis was instrumental in the resurrection of Osiris when he was murdered by Set, using her magical skills, she restored his body to life after having gathered the body parts that had been strewn about the earth by Set. This myth became very important during the Greco-Roman period, for example, it was believed that the Nile River flooded every year because of the tears of sorrow which Isis wept for Osiris. Osiriss death and rebirth was relived each year through rituals, the worship of Isis eventually spread throughout the Greco-Roman world, continuing until the suppression of paganism in the Christian era. The popular motif of Isis suckling her son Horus, however, the Greek name version of Isis is close to her original, Egyptian name spelling. Isis name was written with the signs of a throne seat. The grammar, spelling and used signs of Isis name never changed during time in any way, however, the symbolic and metaphoric meaning of Isis name remains unclear. The throne seat sign in her name might point to a role as a goddess of kingship. Thus, her name could mean she of the kings throne, but all other Egyptian deities have names that point to clear cosmological or nature elemental roles, thus the name of Isis shouldnt be connected to the king himself. The throne seat symbol might alternatively point to a meaning as throne-mother of the gods and this in turn would supply a very old existence of Isis, long before her first mentioning during the late Old Kingdom, but this hypothesis remains unproven. A third possible meaning might be hidden in the egg-symbol, that was used in Isis name. The egg-symbol always represented motherhood, implying a role of Isis
Isis
–
Isis depicted with outstretched wings (wall painting, c. 1360 BCE)
Isis
–
Isis nursing Horus (
Louvre)
Isis
–
Temple of Isis at Philae. The Court. 1893. Wilbour Library of Egyptology,
Brooklyn Museum
Isis
–
Philae, Egypt. Temple of Isis., n.d.
Brooklyn Museum Archives
22.
Philae
–
Philae is currently an island in the reservoir of the Aswan Low Dam downstream of the Aswan Dam and Lake Nasser, Egypt. Philae was originally located near the expansive First Cataract of the Nile in Upper Egypt and was the site of an Egyptian temple complex and these rapids and the surrounding area have been variously flooded since the initial construction of the Aswan Low Dam in 1902. Philae is mentioned by ancient writers, including Strabo, Diodorus Siculus, Ptolemy, Seneca. It was, as the name indicates, the appellation of two small islands situated in latitude 24° north, just above the First Cataract near Aswan. Groskurd computes the distance between these islands and Aswan at about 100 km, despite being the smaller island, Philae proper was, from the numerous and picturesque ruins formerly there, the more interesting of the two. Prior to the inundation, it was not more than 380 metres long and it is composed of syenite, its sides are steep and on their summits a lofty wall was built encompassing the island. Since Philae was said to be one of the burying-places of Osiris and it was deemed profane for any but priests to dwell there and was accordingly sequestered and denominated the Unapproachable. It was reported too that neither birds flew over it nor fish approached its shores, in the nineteenth century, William John Bankes took the Philae obelisk on which this petition was engraved to England. When its Egyptian hieroglyphs were compared with those of the Rosetta Stone, the islands of Philae were not, however, merely sacerdotal abodes, they were the centres of commerce also between Meroë and Memphis. For the rapids of the cataracts were at most seasons impracticable, Philae also was remarkable for the singular effects of light and shade resulting from its position near the Tropic of Cancer. The most conspicuous feature of islands was their architectural wealth. Monuments of various eras, extending from the Pharaohs to the Caesars, the principal structures, however, lay at the south end of the smaller island. The most ancient was a temple for Isis, built in the reign of Nectanebo I during 380-362 BC, nekhtnebef was his ancient Egyptian royal titulary and he became the founding pharaoh of the Thirtieth and last native dynasty when he deposed and killed Nepherites II. In front of the propyla were two lions in granite, behind which stood a pair of obelisks, each 13 metres high. The propyla were pyramidal in form and colossal in dimensions, one stood between the dromos and pronaos, another between the pronaos and the portico, while a smaller one led into the sekos or adyton. At each corner of the adytum stood a shrine, the cage of a sacred hawk. Of these shrines one is now in the Louvre, the other in the Museum at Florence, the story of Osiris is everywhere represented on the walls of this temple, and two of its inner chambers are particularly rich in symbolic imagery. Upon the two great propyla are Greek inscriptions intersected and partially destroyed by Egyptian figures cut across them
Philae
–
The temple of
Isis from Philae at its current location on
Agilkia Island in
Lake Nasser
Philae
–
Map of Island of Philae, with floor plan of Temple of Isis.
Philae
–
Egypt - Philae. Columns
Philae
–
Philae temple aswan
23.
Achaemenid Empire
–
The Achaemenid Empire, also called the Persian Empire, was an empire based in Western Asia, founded by Cyrus the Great. The empires successes inspired similar systems in later empires and it is noted in Western history as the antagonist of the Greek city-states during the Greco-Persian Wars and for the emancipation of the Jewish exiles in Babylon. The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was built in a Hellenistic style in the empire as well. By the 7th century BC, the Persians had settled in the portion of the Iranian Plateau in the region of Persis. From this region, Cyrus the Great advanced to defeat the Medes, Lydia, Alexander, an avid admirer of Cyrus the Great, conquered the empire in its entirety by 330 BC. Upon his death, most of the former territory came under the rule of the Ptolemaic Kingdom and Seleucid Empire. The Persian population of the central plateau reclaimed power by the second century BC under the Parthian Empire, the historical mark of the Achaemenid Empire went far beyond its territorial and military influences and included cultural, social, technological and religious influences as well. Many Athenians adopted Achaemenid customs in their lives in a reciprocal cultural exchange. The impact of Cyruss edict is mentioned in Judeo-Christian texts, the empire also set the tone for the politics, heritage and history of modern Iran. Astronomical year numbering Dates are approximate, consult particular article for details Due to the duration of their reigns, Smerdis, Xerxes II. The Persian nation contains a number of tribes as listed here, the Pasargadae, Maraphii, and Maspii, upon which all the other tribes are dependent. Of these, the Pasargadae are the most distinguished, they contain the clan of the Achaemenids from which spring the Perseid kings. Other tribes are the Panthialaei, Derusiaei, Germanii, all of which are attached to the soil, the Achaemenid Empire was created by nomadic Persians. The Achaemenid Empire was not the first Iranian empire, as by 6th century BC another group of ancient Iranian peoples had established the short lived Median Empire. The Iranian peoples had arrived in the region of what is today Iran c.1000 BC and had for a number of centuries fallen under the domination of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, based in northern Mesopotamia. However, the Medes and Persians, Cimmerians, Persians and Chaldeans played a role in the overthrow of the Assyrian empire. The term Achaemenid means of the family of the Achaemenis/Achaemenes, despite the derivation of the name, Achaemenes was himself a minor seventh-century ruler of the Anshan in southwestern Iran, and a vassal of Assyria. At some point in 550 BC, Cyrus rose in rebellion against the Medes, eventually conquering the Medes and creating the first Persian empire
Achaemenid Empire
–
Standard of Cyrus the Great
Achaemenid Empire
–
Relief of
Cyrus the Great.
Achaemenid Empire
–
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus one of the
Seven wonders of the ancient world was built by Persian satrap of
Caria,
Mausolus (Scale model.)
24.
Battle of Pelusium (343 BC)
–
The Battle of Pelusium in 343 was fought between the Persians, with their Greek mercenaries, and the Egyptians with their Greek mercenaries. It took place at the stronghold of Pelusium, on the coast at the far side of the Nile Delta. The Greek troops with Egyptians inside the fortress were commanded by Philophron, the first attack was by Theban troops under Lacrates. Overall, Artaxerxes III commanded the Persians, and Nectanebo II commanded the Egyptians, in 351 BC before his victory at the Battle of Pelusium Artaxerxes III had embarked on a campaign to recover Egypt, which had revolted under his father, Artaxerxes II. At the same time a rebellion had broken out in Asia Minor, levying a vast army, Artaxerxes marched into Egypt, and engaged Nectanebo II. After a year of fighting the Egyptian Pharaoh, Nectanebo inflicted a defeat on the Persians with the support of mercenaries led by the Greek generals Diophantus and Lamius. Artaxerxes was compelled to retreat and postpone his plans to reconquer Egypt and he divided these troops into three bodies, and placed at the head of each a Persian and a Greek. The Greek commanders were Lacrates of Thebes, Mentor of Rhodes and Nicostratus of Argos while the Persians were led by Rhossaces, Aristazanes, and Bagoas, Nectanebo II resisted with an army of 100,000 of whom 20,000 were Greek mercenaries. Nectanebo II occupied the Nile and its various branches with his large navy, after his defeat, Nectanebo hastily fled to Memphis, leaving the fortified towns to be defended by their garrisons. These garrisons consisted of partly Greek and partly Egyptian troops, between whom jealousies and suspicions were easily sown by the Persian leaders. As a result, the Persians were able to rapidly reduce numerous towns across Lower Egypt and were advancing upon Memphis when Nectanebo decided to quit the country, the Persian army completely routed the Egyptians and occupied the Lower Delta of the Nile. Following Nectanebo fleeing to Ethiopia, all of Egypt submitted to Artaxerxes, the Jews in Egypt were sent either to Babylon or to the south coast of the Caspian Sea, the same location that the Jews of Phoenicia had earlier been sent. After this victory over the Egyptians, Artaxerxes had the city destroyed, started a reign of terror. Persia gained a significant amount of wealth from this looting, Artaxerxes also raised high taxes and attempted to weaken Egypt enough that it could never revolt against Persia. For the 10 years that Persia controlled Egypt, believers in the religion were persecuted and sacred books were stolen. Before he returned to Persia, he appointed Pherendares as satrap of Egypt, with the wealth gained from his reconquering Egypt, Artaxerxes was able to amply reward his mercenaries. He then returned to his capital having successfully completed his invasion of Egypt, first Persian occupation of Egypt Battle of Pelusium Artaxerxes III Cambyses II
Battle of Pelusium (343 BC)
–
Persian Empire at the beginning of Artaxerxes III's rule (green), and his conquests and suppressed rebellions (Dark grey)
25.
Memphis, Egypt
–
Memphis was the ancient capital of Aneb-Hetch, the first nome of Lower Egypt. Its ruins are located near the town of Mit Rahina,20 km south of Giza, according to legend related by Manetho, the city was founded by the pharaoh Menes. Capital of Egypt during the Old Kingdom, it remained an important city throughout ancient Mediterranean history and it occupied a strategic position at the mouth of the Nile delta, and was home to feverish activity. Its principal port, Peru-nefer, harboured a high density of workshops, factories, during its golden age, Memphis thrived as a regional centre for commerce, trade, and religion. Memphis was believed to be under the protection of the god Ptah and its great temple, Hut-ka-Ptah, was one of the most prominent structures in the city. The name of temple, rendered in Greek as Aί γυ πτoς by the historian Manetho, is believed to be the etymological origin of the modern English name Egypt. The history of Memphis is closely linked to that of the country itself and its eventual downfall is believed to be due to the loss of its economic significance in late antiquity, following the rise of coastal Alexandria. Its religious significance also diminished after the abandonment of the ancient religion following the Edict of Thessalonica, the ruins of the former capital today offer fragmented evidence of its past. They have been preserved, along with the complex at Giza. The site is open to the public as an open-air museum, Memphis has had several names during its history of almost four millennia. Its Ancient Egyptian name was Inbu-Hedj, because of its size, the city also came to be known by various other names that were actually the names of neighbourhoods or districts that enjoyed considerable prominence at one time or another. For example, according to a text of the First Intermediate Period, it was known as Djed-Sut, the city was also at one point referred to as Ankh-Tawy, stressing the strategic position of the city between Upper and Lower Egypt. This name appears to date from the Middle Kingdom, and is found in ancient Egyptian texts. At the beginning of the New Kingdom, the city known as Men-nefer. The name Memphis is the Greek adaptation of this name, which was originally the name of the pyramid of Pepi I, in the Bible, Memphis is called Moph or Noph. The city of Memphis is 20 km south of Cairo, on the west bank of the Nile. The modern cities and towns of Mit Rahina, Dahshur, Abusir, Abu Gorab, the city was also the place that marked the boundary between Upper and Lower Egypt. The island of the city is today uninhabited, the closest settlement is the town of Mit Rahina
Memphis, Egypt
–
Ruins of the pillared hall of
Rameses II at Mit Rahina
Memphis, Egypt
–
This ritualistic object depicts the
god Nefertem, who was mainly worshipped in Memphis. The Walters Art Museum.
Memphis, Egypt
–
Rameses II flanked by Ptah and Sekhmet.
Memphis, Egypt
–
Sculpture from the Middle Kingdom restored in the name of Rameses II.
26.
Greywacke
–
It is a texturally immature sedimentary rock generally found in Palaeozoic strata. The larger grains can be sand- to gravel-sized, and matrix materials generally constitute more than 15% of the rock by volume, the term greywacke can be confusing, since it can refer to either the immature aspect of the rock or the fine-grained component of the rock. Geologists now attribute its formation to submarine avalanches or strong turbidity currents and these actions churn sediment and cause mixed-sediment slurries, in which the rocks may exhibit a variety of sedimentary features. They also occur in association with black shales of deep sea origin, greywackes are mostly grey, brown, yellow or black, dull-colored sandy rocks which may occur in thick or thin beds along with shales and limestones. Among other minerals found in them are biotite, chlorite, tourmaline, epidote, apatite, garnet, hornblende, augite, sphene, the cementing material may be siliceous or argillaceous and is sometimes calcareous. As a rule greywackes are not fossiliferous, but organic remains may be common in the finer beds associated with them and their component particles are usually not very rounded or polished, and the rocks have often been considerably indurated by recrystallization, such as the introduction of interstitial silica. In some districts the greywackes are cleaved, but they show phenomena of this much less perfectly than the slates. Some varieties include feldspathic greywacke, which is rich in feldspar, and lithic greywacke and their essential features are their gritty character and their complex composition. By increasing metamorphism, greywackes frequently pass into mica-schists, chloritic schists, Greywacke zone Torlesse Greywacke This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Greywacke. National Park Service site Presidio Franciscan Greywacke/Shales
Greywacke
–
Photomicrograph of a feldspathic wacke (sandstone). Top image is in plane polarized light (PPL); bottom image is in cross polarized light (XPL). Blue epoxy fills pore spaces.
Greywacke
–
Photomicrograph of a lithic wacke (sandstone). Top image is in plane polarized light (PPL); bottom image is in cross polarized light (XPL). Blue epoxy fills pore spaces.
Greywacke
–
A sample of greywacke rock
Greywacke
–
Example of greywacke cliffs, Mangaweka, Nthrn.Manawatu, New Zealand
27.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
–
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially the Met, is located in New York City and is the largest art museum in the United States, and is among the most visited art museums in the world. Its permanent collection contains two million works, divided among seventeen curatorial departments. The main building, on the edge of Central Park along Manhattans Museum Mile, is by area one of the worlds largest art galleries. A much smaller second location, The Cloisters at Fort Tryon Park in Upper Manhattan, contains a collection of art, architecture. On March 18,2016, the museum opened the Met Breuer museum at Madison Avenue in the Upper East Side, it extends the museums modern, the Met maintains extensive holdings of African, Asian, Oceanian, Byzantine, Indian, and Islamic art. The museum is home to collections of musical instruments, costumes and accessories, as well as antique weapons. Several notable interiors, ranging from first-century Rome through modern American design, are installed in its galleries, the Metropolitan Museum of Art was founded in 1870. The founders included businessmen and financiers, as well as leading artists and thinkers of the day and it opened on February 20,1872, and was originally located at 681 Fifth Avenue. The Met maintains extensive holdings of African, Asian, Oceanian, Byzantine, the museum is also home to encyclopedic collections of musical instruments, costumes and accessories, and antique weapons and armor from around the world. A number of interiors, ranging from 1st century Rome through modern American design, are permanently installed in the Mets galleries. In addition to its permanent exhibitions, the Met organizes and hosts traveling shows throughout the year. The director of the museum is Thomas P. Campbell, a long-time curator and it was announced on February 28th,2017 that Campbell will be stepping down as the Mets director and CEO, effective June. On March 1st,2017 the BBC reported that Daniel Weiss shall be the acting CEO until a replacement is found, Beginning in the late 19th century, the Met started to acquire ancient art and artifacts from the Near East. From a few tablets and seals, the Mets collection of Near Eastern art has grown to more than 7,000 pieces. The highlights of the include a set of monumental stone lamassu, or guardian figures. The Mets Department of Arms and Armor is one of the museums most popular collections. Among the collections 14,000 objects are many pieces made for and used by kings and princes, including armor belonging to Henry VIII of England, Henry II of France, Rockefeller donated his more than 3, 000-piece collection to the museum. The Mets Asian department holds a collection of Asian art, of more than 35,000 pieces, the collection dates back almost to the founding of the museum, many of the philanthropists who made the earliest gifts to the museum included Asian art in their collections
Metropolitan Museum of Art
–
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
–
The facade of the Met dominates the city's "
Museum Mile ".
Metropolitan Museum of Art
–
The Great Hall
28.
Uraeus
–
The Uraeus is the stylized, upright form of an Egyptian cobra, used as a symbol of sovereignty, royalty, deity and divine authority in ancient Egypt. The Uraeus is a symbol for the goddess Wadjet and she was one of the earliest Egyptian deities and who often was depicted as a cobra. The center of her cult was in Per-Wadjet, later called Buto by the Greeks and she became the patroness of the Nile Delta and the protector of all of Lower Egypt. In whatever manner that the Uraeus was displayed upon the head, it was, in effect. The pharaoh was recognized only by wearing the Uraeus, which conveyed legitimacy to the ruler, there is evidence for this tradition even in the Old Kingdom during the third millennium BCE. Several goddesses associated with or being considered aspects of Wadjet are depicted wearing the Uraeus also, the importance of their separate cults kept them from becoming merged as with so many Egyptian deities. Together, they were known as The Two Ladies, who became the joint protectors and patrons of the unified Egypt. Later, the pharaohs were seen as a manifestation of the sun god Ra, in some mythological works, the eyes of Ra are said to be uraei. As the Uraeus was seen as a symbol, the deities Horus. In early ancient Egyptian mythology, Horus would have been the given to any king as part of the many titles taken. According to the mythology of Re, the first Uraeus was said to have been created by the goddess Isis, who formed it from the dust of the earth. In this version of the mythology, the Uraeus was the instrument with which Isis gained the throne of Egypt for Osiris, Isis is associated with and may be considered an aspect of Wadjet. In 1919, after only a half-hour of excavation, the Qufti worker Hosni Ibrahim held in his hands the solid-gold Golden Uraeus of Senusret II and it had been decided to make a complete clearance of the El-Lahun Pyramids rooms at Saqqara. The start in the offering chamber, leading from the tomb, on the south, immediately revealed in the turnover of the six inches of debris. Prior to the 1922 find of Tutankhamuns tomb, this Golden Uraeus was the only ornament ever known to be worn by an entombed pharaoh, and it was thought that it was passed to the next pharaoh. The Golden Uraeus is of gold,6.7 cm, black eyes of granite, a snake head of deep ultramarine lapis lazuli, the flared cobra hood of dark carnelian inlays. For mounting on the crown, two loops in the rear-supporting tail of the cobra provide the attachment points. Besides the Uraeus being used as an ornament for statuary or as an adornment on the pharaoh, it also was used for jewellery, however, another important use is as the hieroglyph
Uraeus
–
Mask of
Tutankhamun 's mummy featuring a uraeus, from the
eighteenth dynasty. The
cobra image of
Wadjet with the
vulture image of
Nekhbet representing of the unification of Lower and Upper Egypt
Uraeus
–
Uraeus with Solar Disk, 305-30 B.C.E.,51.147.2,
Brooklyn Museum
Uraeus
–
Green glazed cobra amulet in the form of a Uraeus
29.
Khepresh
–
The khepresh was an ancient Egyptian royal headdress. It is also known as the crown or war crown. New Kingdom pharaohs are depicted wearing it in battle. It used to be called a war crown by many, the khepresh was made of cloth or leather stained blue and was covered with small yellow sun discs. As with many royal crowns, it featured a uraeus fastened to its front. The Blue Crown, or War Crown, was represented in hieroglyphs, the earliest known mention of the khepresh is on the stela Cairo JE59635 which dates to the reign of pharaoh Neferhotep III, during the Second Intermediate Period. In this and other examples from the era, the word is written with a determinative that represents the cap crown. This crown continued to evolve during the early Eighteenth Dynasty, attaining its best-known form in the reigns of Hatshepsut, after Amenhotep IIIs reign – and particularly during the 18th and 19th Dynasties – it came into fashion and was even adopted by some pharaohs as a primary crown. The crown ceased to be depicted in the Kushite Dynasty, during the New Kingdom, pharaohs were shown with this crown in military circumstances. However, some think that the crown was also meant to evoke the divine power of the pharaoh
Khepresh
–
Pharaoh
Akhenaten
Khepresh
–
Khepresh, the blue crown of Egypt
Khepresh
–
Tutankamun
ushabti
Khepresh
–
This statue shows
Amenhotep III (recarved as
Ramesses II) wearing the khepresh crown.
Walters Art Museum,
Baltimore.
30.
Quartzite
–
Quartzite is a hard, non-foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to grey, though quartzites often occur in shades of pink. Other colors, such as yellow, green, blue and orange, are due to other minerals, when sandstone is cemented to quartzite, the individual quartz grains recrystallize along with the former cementing material to form an interlocking mosaic of quartz crystals. Most or all of the texture and sedimentary structures of the sandstone are erased by the metamorphism. The grainy, sandpaper-like surface becomes glassy in appearance, minor amounts of former cementing materials, iron oxide, silica, carbonate and clay, often migrate during recrystallization and metamorphosis. This causes streaks and lenses to form within the quartzite, orthoquartzite is a very pure quartz sandstone composed of usually well-rounded quartz grains cemented by silica. Orthoquartzite is often 99% SiO2 with only minor amounts of iron oxide and trace resistant minerals such as zircon, rutile. Although few fossils are present, the original texture and sedimentary structures are preserved. The term is traditionally used for quartz-cemented quartz arenites. Quartzite is very resistant to weathering and often forms ridges. The nearly pure silica content of the rock provides little for soil, therefore, because of its hardness and angular shape, crushed quartzite is often used as railway ballast. Quartzite is a stone and may be used to cover walls, as roofing tiles, as flooring. Its use for countertops in kitchens is expanding rapidly and it is harder and more resistant to stains than granite. Crushed quartzite is used in road construction. High purity quartzite is used to produce ferrosilicon, industrial silica sand, during the Paleolithic quartzite was used, in addition to flint, quartz, and other lithic raw materials, for making stone tools. Quartzite is also found in the Morenci Copper Mine in Arizona, the town of Quartzsite in western Arizona derives its name from the quartzites in the nearby mountains in both Arizona and Southeastern California. A glassy vitreous quartzite has been described from the Belt Supergroup in the Coeur d’Alene district of northern Idaho, in the United Kingdom, a craggy ridge of quartzite called the Stiperstones runs parallel with the Pontesford-Linley fault,6 km north-west of the Long Mynd in south Shropshire
Quartzite
–
Blue Quartzite from
Maurienne valley in the
French Alps
Quartzite
–
Quartzite has a grainy, sandpaper-like surface which becomes glassy in appearance
Quartzite
–
Abandoned quartzite mine in
Kakwa Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada
Quartzite
–
Quartzite biface
hand axe from
Stellenbosch, South Africa
31.
Basalt
–
Basalt is a common extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of a planet or moon. Flood basalt describes the formation in a series of basalt flows. By definition, basalt is an igneous rock with generally 45-55% silica and less than 10% feldspathoid by volume. Basalt commonly features a very fine-grained or glassy matrix interspersed with visible mineral grains, the average density is 3.0 gm/cm3. Basalt is defined by its content and texture, and physical descriptions without mineralogical context may be unreliable in some circumstances. Basalt is usually grey to black in colour, but rapidly weathers to brown or rust-red due to oxidation of its mafic minerals into hematite, although usually characterized as dark, basaltic rocks exhibit a wide range of shading due to regional geochemical processes. Due to weathering or high concentrations of plagioclase, some basalts can be quite light-coloured and these phenocrysts usually are of olivine or a calcium-rich plagioclase, which have the highest melting temperatures of the typical minerals that can crystallize from the melt. Basalt with a texture is called vesicular basalt, when the bulk of the rock is mostly solid. Gabbro is often marketed commercially as black granite and these ultramafic volcanic rocks, with silica contents below 45% are usually classified as komatiites. Agricola applied basalt to the black rock of the Schloßberg at Stolpen. Tholeiitic basalt is relatively rich in silica and poor in sodium, included in this category are most basalts of the ocean floor, most large oceanic islands, and continental flood basalts such as the Columbia River Plateau. Basalt rocks are in some cases classified after their content in High-Ti and Low-Ti varieties. High-Ti and Low-Ti basalts have been distinguished in the Paraná and Etendeka traps and it has greater than 17% alumina and is intermediate in composition between tholeiite and alkali basalt, the relatively alumina-rich composition is based on rocks without phenocrysts of plagioclase. Alkali basalt is relatively poor in silica and rich in sodium and it is silica-undersaturated and may contain feldspathoids, alkali feldspar and phlogopite. Boninite is a form of basalt that is erupted generally in back-arc basins. Ocean island basalt Lunar basalt On Earth, most basalt magmas have formed by melting of the mantle. Basalt commonly erupts on Io, the third largest moon of Jupiter, and has formed on the Moon, Mars, Venus. The crustal portions of oceanic tectonic plates are composed predominantly of basalt, produced from upwelling mantle below, the mineralogy of basalt is characterized by a preponderance of calcic plagioclase feldspar and pyroxene
Basalt
–
Basalt
Basalt
–
Columnar basalt flows in
Yellowstone National Park, USA.
Basalt
–
Columnar basalt at Szent György Hill, Hungary
Basalt
–
Vesicular basalt at
Sunset Crater, Arizona. US quarter for scale.
32.
Alexandria
–
Alexandria is the second largest city and a major economic centre in Egypt, extending about 32 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country. Its low elevation on the Nile delta makes it vulnerable to rising sea levels. Alexandria is Egypts largest seaport, serving approximately 80% of Egypts imports and exports and it is an important industrial center because of its natural gas and oil pipelines from Suez. Alexandria is also an important tourist destination, Alexandria was founded around a small Ancient Egyptian town c.331 BC by Alexander the Great. Alexandria was the second most powerful city of the ancient world after Rome, Alexandria is believed to have been founded by Alexander the Great in April 331 BC as Ἀλεξάνδρεια. Alexanders chief architect for the project was Dinocrates, Alexandria was intended to supersede Naucratis as a Hellenistic center in Egypt, and to be the link between Greece and the rich Nile valley. The city and its museum attracted many of the greatest scholars, including Greeks, Jews, the city was later plundered and lost its significance. Just east of Alexandria, there was in ancient times marshland, as early as the 7th century BC, there existed important port cities of Canopus and Heracleion. The latter was rediscovered under water. An Egyptian city, Rhakotis, already existed on the shore also and it continued to exist as the Egyptian quarter of the city. A few months after the foundation, Alexander left Egypt and never returned to his city, after Alexanders departure, his viceroy, Cleomenes, continued the expansion. Although Cleomenes was mainly in charge of overseeing Alexandrias continuous development, the Heptastadion, inheriting the trade of ruined Tyre and becoming the center of the new commerce between Europe and the Arabian and Indian East, the city grew in less than a generation to be larger than Carthage. In a century, Alexandria had become the largest city in the world and and it became Egypts main Greek city, with Greek people from diverse backgrounds. Alexandria was not only a center of Hellenism, but was home to the largest urban Jewish community in the world. The Septuagint, a Greek version of the Tanakh, was produced there, in AD115, large parts of Alexandria were destroyed during the Kitos War, which gave Hadrian and his architect, Decriannus, an opportunity to rebuild it. On 21 July 365, Alexandria was devastated by a tsunami, the Islamic prophet, Muhammads first interaction with the people of Egypt occurred in 628, during the Expedition of Zaid ibn Haritha. He sent Hatib bin Abi Baltaeh with a letter to the king of Egypt and Alexandria called Muqawqis In the letter Muhammad said, I invite you to accept Islam, Allah the sublime, shall reward you doubly. But if you refuse to do so, you bear the burden of the transgression of all the Copts
Alexandria
–
Alexandria Ἀλεξάνδρεια
Alexandria
Alexandria
–
Residential neighborhood in Alexandria
Alexandria
–
Fishing in Alexandria
33.
Granite
–
Granite is a common type of felsic intrusive igneous rock that is granular and phaneritic in texture. Granites can be white, pink, or gray in color. The word granite comes from the Latin granum, a grain, in reference to the structure of such a holocrystalline rock. By definition, granite is a rock with at least 20% quartz. The term granitic means granite-like and is applied to granite and a group of igneous rocks with similar textures and slight variations in composition. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a texture is known as a granite porphyry. Granitoid is a general, descriptive field term for lighter-colored, coarse-grained igneous rocks, petrographic examination is required for identification of specific types of granitoids. The extrusive igneous rock equivalent of granite is rhyolite, Granite is nearly always massive, hard and tough, and therefore it has gained widespread use throughout human history, and more recently as a construction stone. The average density of granite is between 2.65 and 2.75 g/cm3, its compressive strength usually lies above 200 MPa, and its viscosity near STP is 3–6 •1019 Pa·s. The melting temperature of dry granite at ambient pressure is 1215–1260 °C, it is reduced in the presence of water. Granite has poor primary permeability, but strong secondary permeability, true granite according to modern petrologic convention contains both plagioclase and alkali feldspars. When a granitoid is devoid or nearly devoid of plagioclase, the rock is referred to as alkali feldspar granite, when a granitoid contains less than 10% orthoclase, it is called tonalite, pyroxene and amphibole are common in tonalite. A granite containing both muscovite and biotite micas is called a binary or two-mica granite, two-mica granites are typically high in potassium and low in plagioclase, and are usually S-type granites or A-type granites. A worldwide average of the composition of granite, by weight percent, based on 2485 analyses. Much of it was intruded during the Precambrian age, it is the most abundant basement rock that underlies the relatively thin veneer of the continents. Outcrops of granite tend to form tors and rounded massifs, granites sometimes occur in circular depressions surrounded by a range of hills, formed by the metamorphic aureole or hornfels. Granite often occurs as small, less than 100 km² stock masses
Granite
–
Granite containing
potassium feldspar,
plagioclase feldspar,
quartz, and
biotite and/or
amphibole
Granite
–
Close-up of granite exposed in
Chennai,
India
Granite
–
The
Cheesewring, a granite
tor
Granite
–
A granite peak at
Huangshan, China
34.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
–
The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts, is the fourth largest museum in the United States. It contains more than 450,000 works of art, making it one of the most comprehensive collections in the Americas, with more than one million visitors a year, it is the 55th most-visited art museum in the world as of 2014. Founded in 1870, the moved to its current location in 1909. The museum is affiliated with the Tufts School of the Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Fine Arts was founded in 1870 and opened in 1876, with most of its initial collection taken from the Boston Athenæum Art Gallery. Francis Davis Millet, a local artist, was instrumental in starting the Art School affiliated with the museum and it was built almost entirely of red brick and terracotta with a small amount of stone in its base. The brick was produced by the Peerless Brick Company of Philadelphia, in 1907, plans were laid to build a new home for the museum on Huntington Avenue in Bostons Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood near the renowned Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Museum trustees decided to hire architect Guy Lowell to create a design for a museum so that could be built in stages as funding was obtained for each phase, two years later, the first section of Lowell’s neoclassical design was completed. It featured a 500-foot façade of granite and a grand rotunda, the museum moved to its new location later that year, the Copley Square Hotel eventually would replace the old building. The second phase of construction built a wing along the The Fens to house paintings galleries and it was funded entirely by Maria Antoinette Evans Hunt, the wife of wealthy business magnate Robert Dawson Evans, and opened in 1915. From 1916 through 1925, the noted artist John Singer Sargent painted the frescoes that adorn the rotunda, numerous additions enlarged the building throughout the years, including the Decorative Arts wing in 1928 and the Norma Jean Calderwood Garden Court and Terrace in 1997. The West Wing, designed by I. M. Pei, opened in 1981 and this wing now houses the museums cafe, restaurant, and gift shop as well as a special exhibition space. In the mid-2000s, the museum launched an effort to renovate. In 2011, Moodys Investors Service calculated that the museum had over $180 million in outstanding debt, however, the agency cited growing attendance, a large endowment, and positive cash flow as reasons to believe that the museums finances would become stable in the near future. The renovation included a new Art of the Americas Wing to feature artwork from North, South, in 2006, the groundbreaking ceremonies took place. The landscape architecture firm Gustafson Guthrie Nichol redesigned the Huntington Avenue and Fenway entrances, gardens, access roads, the wing opened on November 20,2010 with free admission to the public. Mayor Thomas Menino declared it Museum of Fine Arts Day, the 12, 000-square-foot glass-enclosed courtyard features a 42. 5-foot high glass sculpture, titled the Lime Green Icicle Tower, by Dale Chihuly. In 2014, the Art of the Americas Wing was recognized for its architectural achievement by being awarded the Harleston Parker Medal. In 2015, the museum renovated its Japanese garden, Tenshin-en, the garden, which originally opened in 1988, was designed by Japanese professor Kinsaku Nakane
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
–
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
–
A view of the original Museum of Fine Arts building in Copley Square.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
–
Cyrus Dallin 's
Appeal to the Great Spirit stands outside the museum's Huntington Avenue entrance.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
–
Tenshin-en, the museum's Japanese garden
35.
Hakor
–
Hakor or Hagar, also known by the hellenized forms Achoris or Hakoris, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 29th Dynasty. His reign marks the apex of this feeble and short-lived dynasty, hakors accession and relationships with his predecessor Nepherites I were long debated. As a result, Hakor was alternately considered Nepherites legitimate successor or an unrelated usurper, ray suggested that Hakor was Nepherites heir, who ruled undisturbed until his Year 2 when he was deposed by Psammuthes. The third pretender, Muthis, could be inserted within this struggle, rays hypothesis is accepted by other Egyptologists such as Alan B. Shortly after his death, Hakor was called an usurper by the founder of the subsequent dynasty, however, it has been suggested that Achoris and Nectanebo might have been relatives in some way, possibly both related to Nepherites I but rivals to each other. Once re-established, Hakor made considerable exertions to affirm his legitimacy and his building activity was remarkable and he also extensively restored many monuments of his royal predecessors. His building activity is attested in various places in Upper Egypt, in the Temple of Hibis of Kharga Oasis. Hakor apparently reprised Nepherites foreign policy, Theopompus also reported an alliance between Hakor and the Pisidians. The peace of Antalcidas between the Persians and Greeks was a point, after that, Egypt and Cyprus remained the only opponents of Artaxerxes II as reported by Theopompus and Orosius. The following years are obscure, but it seems that the Persians first attacked Egypt in 385 BCE and. In 381 BCE Hakor sent aid, money and 50 triremes to Evagoras in order to contribute to his resistance against the Great King who, after the unsuccessful campaign in Egypt, was now focusing on Cyprus. However, when, in 380 BCE, Evagoras himself came to Egypt to beg other aid, Hakor saw no need to continue supporting him and sent him back to Cyprus with merely some more money. Hakor managed to get the Athenian general Chabrias into his service, Hakor died in 379/8 BCE, leaving his throne to his son Nepherites II
Hakor
–
Granodiorite fragmentary statue torso of Hakor.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Hakor
–
Hakor's chapel in Karnak
36.
Classical Athens
–
Athenian democracy was established in 508 BC under Cleisthenes following the tyranny of Isagoras. This system remained remarkably stable, and with a few brief interruptions remained in place for 180 years, the peak of Athenian hegemony was achieved in the 440s to 430s BC, known as the Age of Pericles. The radical politician of aristocratic background, Cleisthenes, then took charge, the reforms of Cleisthenes replaced the traditional four Ionic tribes with ten new ones, named after legendary heroes of Greece and having no class basis, which acted as electorates. Each tribe was in divided into three trittyes, while each trittys had one or more demes —depending on their population—which became the basis of local government. The tribes each selected fifty members by lot for the Boule, the public opinion of voters could be influenced by the political satires written by the comic poets and performed in the city theaters. Most offices were filled by lot, although the ten strategoi were elected, prior to the rise of Athens, Sparta, a city-state with a militaristic culture, considered itself the leader of the Greeks, and enforced a hegemony. In 499 BC Athens sent troops to aid the Ionian Greeks of Asia Minor and this provoked two Persian invasions of Greece, both of which were repelled under the leadership of the soldier-statesmen Miltiades and Themistocles. In 490 the Athenians, led by Miltiades, prevented the first invasion of the Persians, guided by king Darius I, in 480 the Persians returned under a new ruler, Xerxes I. Simultaneously the Athenians led a naval battle off Artemisium. However, this action was not enough to discourage the Persian advance which soon marched through Boeotia, setting up Thebes as their base of operations. This forced the Athenians to evacuate Athens, which was taken by the Persians, subsequently the Athenians and their allies, led by Themistocles, defeated the Persian navy at sea in the Battle of Salamis. It is interesting to note that Xerxes had built himself a throne on the coast in order to see the Greeks defeated, spartas hegemony was passing to Athens, and it was Athens that took the war to Asia Minor. These victories enabled it to bring most of the Aegean and many parts of Greece together in the Delian League. He fostered arts and literature and gave to Athens a splendor which would never return throughout its history and he executed a large number of public works projects and improved the life of the citizens. Hence, he gave his name to the Athenian Golden Age, silver mined in Laurium in southeastern Attica contributed greatly to the prosperity of this Golden Age of Athens. During the time of the ascendancy of Ephialtes as leader of the democratic faction, the conflict marked the end of Athenian command of the sea. The war between Athens and the city-state Sparta ended with an Athenian defeat after Sparta started its own navy, Athenian democracy was briefly overthrown by the coup of 411, brought about because of its poor handling of the war, but it was quickly restored. The war ended with the defeat of Athens in 404
Classical Athens
–
Early
Athenian coin, 5th century BC.
British Museum.
Classical Athens
–
Delian League ("Athenian Empire") shown in yellow, Athenian territory shown in red, situation in 431 BC, before the
Peloponnesian War.
Classical Athens
–
The modern
National Academy in Athens, with Apollo and Athena on their columns, and Socrates and Plato seated in front.
Classical Athens
–
Map of the environs of Athens showing
Piraeus,
Phalerum, and the
Long Walls
37.
Polis
–
Polis, plural poleis literally means city in Greek. It can also mean a body of citizens, in modern historiography, polis is normally used to indicate the ancient Greek city-states, like Classical Athens and its contemporaries, and thus is often translated as city-state. The term city-state, which originated in English, does not fully translate the Greek term. The poleis were not like other primordial ancient city-states like Tyre or Sidon, which were ruled by a king or a small oligarchy, the term polis, which in archaic Greece meant city, changed with the development of the governance center in the city to signify state. Finally, with the emergence of a notion of citizenship among landowners, the ancient Greeks did not always refer to Athens, Sparta, Thebes, and other poleis as such, they often spoke instead of the Athenians, Lacedaemonians, Thebans and so on. The body of citizens came to be the most important meaning of the polis in ancient Greece. The Greek term that meant the totality of urban buildings. Plato analyzes the polis in The Republic, whose Greek title, Πολιτεία, the best form of government of the polis for Plato is the one that leads to the common good. The philosopher king is the best ruler because, as a philosopher, in Platos analogy of the ship of state, the philosopher king steers the polis, as if it were a ship, in the best direction. Books II–IV of The Republic are concerned with Plato addressing the makeup of an ideal polis, in The Republic, Socrates is concerned with the two underlying principles of any society, mutual needs and differences in aptitude. Starting from these two principles, Socrates deals with the structure of an ideal polis. According to Plato, there are five main classes of any polis, producers, merchants, sailors/shipowners, retail traders. Along with the two principles and five classes, there are four virtues. The four virtues of a just city include, wisdom, courage, moderation, with all of these principles, classes, and virtues, it was believed that a just city would exist. Publication of state functions, laws, decrees, and major fiscal accounts were published, synoecism, conurbation, Absorption of nearby villages and countryside, and the incorporation of their tribes into the substructure of the polis. Many of a polis citizens lived in the suburbs or countryside, most cities were composed of several tribes or phylai, which were in turn composed of phratries, and finally génea. They had the right to vote, be elected into office, and bear arms, metics could not vote, be elected to office, bear arms, or serve in war. They otherwise had full personal and property rights, albeit subject to taxation, slaves, chattel in full possession of their owner, and with no privileges other than those that their owner would grant at will
Polis
–
Acropolis of Athens, a noted polis of classical Greece.
Polis
–
Theatre of ancient
Syracuse, a classical polis.
38.
Cyprus
–
Cyprus, officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the Eastern Mediterranean and the third largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean. It is located south of Turkey, west of Syria and Lebanon, northwest of Israel and Palestine, north of Egypt, the earliest known human activity on the island dates to around the 10th millennium BC. Archaeological remains from this include the well-preserved Neolithic village of Khirokitia. Cyprus was settled by Mycenaean Greeks in two waves in the 2nd millennium BC, Cyprus was placed under British administration based on Cyprus Convention in 1878 and formally annexed by Britain in 1914. While Turkish Cypriots made up 18% of the population, the partition of Cyprus and creation of a Turkish state in the north became a policy of Turkish Cypriot leaders, following nationalist violence in the 1950s, Cyprus was granted independence in 1960. On 15 July 1974, a coup détat was staged by Greek Cypriot nationalists and elements of the Greek military junta in an attempt at enosis and these events and the resulting political situation are matters of a continuing dispute. The Cyprus Republic has de jure sovereignty over the island of Cyprus, as well as its territorial sea and exclusive economic area, another nearly 4% of the islands area is covered by the UN buffer zone. The international community considers the part of the island as territory of the Republic of Cyprus occupied by Turkish forces. The occupation is viewed as illegal under law, amounting to illegal occupation of EU territory since Cyprus became a member of the European Union. Cyprus is a major tourist destination in the Mediterranean, on 1 January 2008, the Republic of Cyprus joined the eurozone. The earliest attested reference to Cyprus is the 15th century BC Mycenaean Greek
Cyprus
–
A copper mine on Cyprus. In antiquity, Cyprus was a major source of copper.
Cyprus
–
Flag
Cyprus
–
Archeologic site of Choirokoitia with early remains of human habitation during Aceramic Neolithic period (reconstruction)
Cyprus
–
Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates,
Kourion
39.
Machimoi
–
The term Máchimoi commonly refers to a broad category of ancient Egyptian low-ranked soldiers which rose during the Late Period of Egypt and, more prominently, during the Ptolemaic dynasty. It should be noted, however, that the term was used by him. As well as Herodotus, also other Greek authors such as Plato and Diodorus Siculus, pharaoh Apries send them against Cyrene but after their defeat, they proclaimed general Amasis as pharaoh and served him against Apries in 570 BCE. Egyptian máchimoi also fought at Plataea in 479 BCE, nectanebo II himself later relied on these soldiers before the second Persian conquest of Egypt in 343 BCE. However, the most famous document mentioning them is the Rosetta Stone made under Ptolemy V Epiphanes, a 2013 paper by historian Christelle Fischer-Bovet revised many of the traditional claims about the máchimoi. In this regard, she accepts the idea that the máchimoi were the lowest level of the military hierarchy, Christelle Fischer-Bovet, Egyptian warriors, the Machimoi of Herodotus and the Ptolemaic Army. The Classical Quarterly 63, pp. 209–36, doi,10. 1017/S000983881200064X, werner Huß, Ägypten in hellenistischer Zeit, 332–30 v. Chr. Beck, München 2001, ISBN 3-406-47154-4, pp. 20–31, 47–53
Machimoi
–
Possible reconstruction of a late Ptolemaic machimos (around mid–1st century BCE)
Machimoi
–
The Rosetta Stone mentions an amnesty given to some machimoi
40.
Sparta
–
Sparta was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece. In antiquity the city-state was known as Lacedaemon, while the name Sparta referred to its settlement on the banks of the Eurotas River in Laconia. Around 650 BC, it rose to become the dominant military land-power in ancient Greece, given its military pre-eminence, Sparta was recognized as the overall leader of the combined Greek forces during the Greco-Persian Wars. Between 431 and 404 BC, Sparta was the enemy of Athens during the Peloponnesian War, from which it emerged victorious. Spartas defeat by Thebes in the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC ended Spartas prominent role in Greece, however, it maintained its political independence until the Roman conquest of Greece in 146 BC. It then underwent a period of decline, especially in the Middle Ages. Modern Sparta is the capital of the Greek regional unit of Laconia, Sparta was unique in ancient Greece for its social system and constitution, which completely focused on military training and excellence. Its inhabitants were classified as Spartiates, mothakes, perioikoi, Spartiates underwent the rigorous agoge training and education regimen, and Spartan phalanges were widely considered to be among the best in battle. Spartan women enjoyed more rights and equality to men than elsewhere in the classical world. Sparta was the subject of fascination in its own day, as well as in the West following the revival of classical learning and this love or admiration of Sparta is known as Laconism or Laconophilia. At its peak around 500 BC the size of the city would have been some 20,000 –35,000 free residents, plus numerous helots, olliers theory of the Spartan mirage has been widely accepted by scholars. The ancient Greeks used one of three words to refer to the location of the Spartans. The first refers primarily to the cluster of settlements in the valley of the Eurotas River. The second word was Lacedaemon, this was used sometimes as an adjective and is the name commonly used in the works of Homer. Herodotus seems to denote by it the Mycenaean Greek citadel at Therapne and it could be used synonymously with Sparta, but typically it was not. It denoted the terrain on which Sparta was situated, in Homer it is typically combined with epithets of the countryside, wide, lovely, shining and most often hollow and broken. The hollow suggests the Eurotas Valley, Sparta on the other hand is the country of lovely women, a people epithet. The name of the population was used for the state of Lacedaemon
Sparta
–
Territory of ancient Sparta
Sparta
–
Hollow Lacedaemon. Site of the Menelaion, the ancient shrine to Helen and Menelaus constructed in the Bronze Age city that stood on the hill of
Therapne on the left bank of the
Eurotas River overlooking the future site of Dorian Sparta. Across the valley the successive ridges of Mount
Taygetus are in evidence.
Sparta
–
Eurotas River
Sparta
–
The theater of ancient Sparta with
Mt. Taygetus in the background.
41.
Agesilaus
–
Small in stature and lame from birth, Agesilaus became ruler somewhat unexpectedly in his mid-forties. He was greatly admired by his friend, the historian Xenophon, Agesilaus was the son of Archidamus II and his second wife, Eupoleia, brother to Cynisca, and younger half-brother of Agis II. There is little surviving detail on the youth of Agesilaus, born with one leg shorter, he was not expected to succeed to the throne after his brother king Agis II, especially because the latter had a son. Therefore, Agesilaus was trained in the curriculum of Sparta. However, Leotychidas was ultimately set aside as illegitimate and Agesilaus became king around 401 BC, Lysander and the young Agesilaus came to maintain an intimate relation, as was common of the period. Their unique relationship would serve an important role during Agesilaus later campaigns in Asia Minor, Agesilaus is first recorded as king during the suppression of the conspiracy of Cinadon, shortly after 398 BC. Then, in 396 BC, Agesilaus crossed into Asia with a force of 2,000 neodamodes and 6,000 allies to liberate Greek cities from Persian dominion. In these campaigns Agesilaus also benefited from the aid of the Ten Thousand, after spending the winter organizing a cavalry force, he made a successful incursion into Lydia in the spring of 395 BC. Tithraustes was sent to replace Tissaphernes, who paid with his life for his continued failure, an armistice was concluded between Tithraustes and Agesilaus, who left the southern satrapy and again invaded Phrygia, which he ravaged until the following spring. He then came to an agreement with Pharnabazus and once more turned southward, during these campaigns, Lysander attempted to manipulate Agesilaus into ceding his authority. Agesilaus, the passive lover of Lysander, would have nothing of this. He had Lysander sent away to assist the naval campaigns in the Aegean and this dominating move by Agesilaus earned the respect of his men-at-arms and of Lysander himself, who remained emotionally close with Agesilaus. A rapid march through Thrace and Macedonia brought him to Thessaly, reinforced by Phocian and Orchomenian troops and a Spartan army, he met the confederate forces at Coronea in Boeotia and in a hotly contested battle was technically victorious. However, the Spartan baggage train was ransacked and Agesilaus himself was injured during the fighting, resulting in a subsequent retreat by way of Delphi to the Peloponnese. Shortly before this battle the Spartan navy, of which he had received the command, was totally defeated off Cnidus by a powerful Persian fleet under Conon. During these conflicts in mainland Greece, Lysander perished while attacking the walls of Thebes, pausanias failed to fight for the bodies of the dead, and because he retrieved the bodies under truce, he was disgraced and banished from Sparta. In 393 BC, Agesilaus engaged in an invasion of Argolis. In 392 BC he took a prominent part in the Corinthian War, making several expeditions into Corinthian territory and capturing Lechaeum
Agesilaus
–
Lelegids
Agesilaus
–
Agesilaus and Pharnabazus.
42.
Mendes
–
Mendes, the Greek name of the Ancient Egyptian city of Djedet, also known in Ancient Egypt as Per-Banebdjedet and Anpet, is known today as Tell El-Ruba. The city is located in the eastern Nile delta and was the capital of the 16th Lower Egyptian nome of Kha, the two cities are only several hundred meters apart. During the 29th dynasty, Mendes was also the capital of Ancient Egypt, lying on the Mendesian branch of the Nile, the city was the capital of the Mendesian nome, situated at the point where the Mendesian arm of the Nile flows into the lake of Tanis. Archaeological evidence attests to the existence of the town at least as far back as the Naqada II period, under the first Pharaohs, Mendes quickly became a strong seat of provincial government and remained so throughout the Ancient Egyptian period. Mendes, however, declined early, and disappears in the first century AD, the chief deities of Mendes were the ram deity Banebdjedet, who was the Ba of Osiris, and his consort, the fish goddess Hatmehit. With their child Har-pa-khered, they formed the triad of Mendes and they say that Heracles’ overriding desire was to see Zeus, but Zeus was refusing to let him do so. Eventually, as a result of Heracles’ pleading, Zeus came up with a plan and he skinned a ram and cut off his head, then he held the head in front of himself, wore the fleece, and showed himself to Heracles like that. That is why the Egyptian statues of Zeus have a head, is why rams are sacred to the Thebans. Then everyone around the sanctuary mourns the death of the ram, the image of the satyr-like Baphomet and its supposed connection with Mendes has since been repeated by various occultists, conspiracy theorists, and neopagans. The site is today the largest surviving tell in the Nile delta, overall, Mendes is about 3 km long from north to south and averages about 900m east-to-west. An Old Kingdom necropolis is estimated to contain over 9,000 interments, under the direction of Prof. Redford, the current excavations are concentrating on a number of areas in and around the main temple. Work on the New Kingdom processional-style temple has recently uncovered foundation deposits of Merenptah below the second pylon and it is thought that four separate pylons or gates existed for each of the Avatars of the main deity worshiped here. Evidence has suggested that their dates from at least the Middle Kingdom. The original structures were buried, added to, or incorporated into later ones over time by later rulers, over thirty of the bricks were stamped with the cartouche of Menkheperre, the pre-nomen of Thutmose III. A cemetery of sacred rams was discovered in the northwest corner of Tell El-Ruba, Monuments bearing the names of Ramesses II, Merneptah. and Ramesses III were also found. A temple attested by its foundation deposits was built by Amasis II, the tomb of Nepherites I, which Donald Reford concluded was destroyed by the Persians, was discovered by a joint team from the University of Washington and the University of Toronto in 1992-1993. On the edge of the mound, a sondage supervised by Matthew J. Adams has revealed uninterrupted stratification from the Middle Kingdom down to the First Dynasty. Coring results suggest that future excavations in that sondage should expect to take the stratification down into the Buto-Maadi Period, the material excavated so far is already the longest uninterrupted stratification for all of the Nile Delta, and possibly for all of Egypt
Mendes
–
Ushabti of pharaoh
Hakor, found at Mendes
43.
Nepherites I
–
Nefaarud I or Nayfaurud I, better known with his hellenised name Nepherites I, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, the founder of the 29th Dynasty. Nepherites then crowned himself pharaoh at Memphis and possibly also at Sais, according to Manetho, Nepherites I ruled for six years, although his highest archaeologically attested date is his regnal year 4. There has been evidence of Nepherites building work found in a number of locations across the country, in Lower Egypt, he is attested at Thmuis, Tell Roba, Buto, Memphis, Saqqara and his capital and hometown Mendes. In Middle and Upper Egypt, he ordered a chapel at Akoris while at Akhmim, near Sohag and he also added some buildings at Karnak such as a storeroom and a shrine meant to house a sacred bark. A basalt sphinx with his name is now located in the Louvre, in foreign affairs, he resumed the policy of Egyptian intervention in the Middle East. Nepherites supplied the Spartans with 500,000 measures of grain, however, the cargo reached Rhodes just after the Persians managed to retake the island, so it was entirely seized by the philo-Persian admiral Conon of Athens. Nepherites I died during the winter of 394/393 BC after six years of reign, the Demotic Chronicle simply states that his son was allowed to succeeded him, without providing any name. A tomb believed to be that of Nepherites was discovered by a joint team from the University of Toronto, possible ownership of the tomb was identified by the presence of a shabti bearing the name of Nepherites I, however, definitive proof has not been found. Although still containing funerary objects and a limestone sarcophagus, the tomb was believed to have been destroyed by the Persians in 343 BC. Ceramic vessels containing fish specimens and fish-covered stelae have been found on the site of Nepheritess funerary complex, the presence of the fish, often interpreted as votive offerings, could be an indication that the site was previously occupied by a temple of the fish-goddess Hatmehyt. Muthis – A conjectural pharaoh, once believed to be Nepherites Is son
Nepherites I
–
Sphinx of pharaoh Nepherites I in the
Louvre Museum
Nepherites I
–
An ushabti, or funerary figure, of Nepherites I
44.
Nile Delta
–
The Nile Delta is the delta formed in Northern Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the worlds largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the east, from north to south the delta is approximately 160 kilometres in length. The Delta begins slightly down-river from Cairo, from north to south, the delta is approximately 160 kilometres in length. From west-to-east, it covers some 240 kilometres of coastline, the delta is sometimes divided into sections, with the Nile dividing into two main distributaries, the Damietta and the Rosetta, flowing into the Mediterranean at port cities with the same name. In the past, the delta had several distributaries, but these have been lost due to flood control, one such defunct distributary is Wadi Tumilat. The Suez Canal runs to the east of the delta, entering the coastal Lake Manzala in the north-east of the delta, to the north-west are three other coastal lakes or lagoons, Lake Burullus, Lake Idku and Lake Maryut. The Nile is considered to be a delta, as it resembles a triangle or flower when seen from above. The outer edges of the delta are eroding, and some coastal lagoons have seen increasing salinity levels as their connection to the Mediterranean Sea increases, topsoil in the delta can be as much as 70 feet in depth. People have lived in the Delta region for thousands of years, the Delta River used to flood on an annual basis, but this ended with the construction of the Aswan Dam. The Rosetta Stone was found in the Nile Delta in 1799 in the city of Rosetta. The delta was a constituent of Lower Egypt. The Biblical Land of Goshen was located in an area on the west bank of the Pelusiac distributary. There are many sites in and around the Nile Delta. About 39 million people live in the Delta region, outside of major cities, population density in the delta averages 1,000 persons/km² or more. Alexandria is the largest city in the delta with a population of more than 4.5 million. Other large cities in the delta include Shubra al Khaymah, Port Said, El-Mahalla El-Kubra, El Mansura, Tanta, during autumn, parts of the Nile River are red with lotus flowers. The Lower Nile and the Upper Nile have plants that grow in abundance, the Upper Nile plant is the Egyptian lotus, and the Lower Nile plant is the Papyrus Sedge, although it is not nearly as plentiful as it once was, and is becoming quite rare. Several hundred thousand birds winter in the delta, including the world’s largest concentrations of little gulls
Nile Delta
–
NASA satellite photograph of the Nile Delta (shown in false color)
Nile Delta
–
The Nile Delta at night
Nile Delta
–
Nile River and Delta
Nile Delta
–
Ancient branches of the Nile, showing Wadi Tumilat, and the lakes east of the Delta
45.
Egyptian gold stater
–
The gold stater was the first coin ever minted in ancient Egypt, around 360 BCE during the reign of pharaoh Teos of the 30th Dynasty. Teos introduced the gold stater in order to pay salaries of Greek mercenaries who were at his service, gold stater with the same weight of a Persian daric, with an owl on the left, modelled after the Athenian model, and a papyrus on the right. Gold stater as a tetradrachm, with an owl on the left, Teos successor Nectanebo II kept this practice, though coining his personal gold staters. Gold stater as a daric, obverse with a horse on the right. Small gold stater, with a picture of a leaping gazelle. Its attribution to Nectanebo II, however, is not confirmed, ernst Gölitzer, Entstehung und Entwicklung des alexandrinischen Münzwesens von 30 v. Chr. bis zum Ende der julisch-claudischen Dynastie. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-05-004089-0, p.6
Egyptian gold stater
–
Gold stater of Nectanebo II: reverse with hieroglyphs nfr-nb
46.
Apis (deity)
–
In Egyptian mythology, Apis or Hapis is a sacred bull worshipped in the Memphis region. Identified as the son of Hathor, a deity in the pantheon of Ancient Egypt. Initially, he was assigned a significant role in her worship, being sacrificed, later, Apis also served as an intermediary between humans and other powerful deities. Apis was very important among all of the animals in Egypt, and, as with the others. Auguste Mariettes excavation of the Serapeum of Saqqara revealed the tombs of more than sixty animals, at first, each animal was buried in a separate tomb with a chapel built above it. The current available historical documentary and archaeological evidence suggests the Apis was the first god of Egypt, worship of an Apis bull began during the First Dynasty, which is after the year 2686 BCE. The Apis as a bull experienced by ancient Egyptians as holy, was worshipped at Memphis, worship of the Apis as a god seems to belong to ancient culture of Egypt during the Second Dynasty. According to Manetho, worship of the Apis was instituted by Kaiechos of the Second Dynasty, Apis is named on very early monuments, but little is known of the divine animal before the New Kingdom. This Osorapis was identified with Serapis of the late Hellenistic period, creating parallels to their own religious beliefs, ancient Greek writers identified Apis as an incarnation of Osiris, ignoring the connection with Ptah. During the start of the Hellenistic period, Ptolemy Soter, who ruled for the period 323-283 BCE, Apis was the most popular of three great bull cults of ancient Egypt, the others being the cults of Mnevis and Buchis. All are related to the worship of Hathor or Bat, similar primary goddesses separated by region until unification that eventually merged as Hathor, the worship of Apis was continued by the Greeks and after them by the Romans, and lasted until almost 400 CE. This animal was chosen because it symbolized the heart, great strength. Apis came to being considered a manifestation of the king, as bulls were symbols of strength and fertility, strong bull of his mother Hathor was a common title for Egyptian gods and male kings, being unused for women serving as king, such as Hatshepsut. As early as the time of the Narmer Palette, the king is depicted with a tail on one side. Occasionally, Apis was pictured with the symbol of his mother, Hathor. When the disk was depicted on his head with his horns below and the marking on his forehead. That symbol always was associated with Hathor. Early on, Apis was the herald of Ptah, the deity in the area around Memphis
Apis (deity)
–
Statue of Apis, Thirtieth dynasty of Egypt (Louvre)
Apis (deity)
–
Api or Hapi (Apis, Taureau Consacré a la Lune), N372.2,
Brooklyn Museum
Apis (deity)
–
Stele dedicated to an Apis, dating to Year 21 of
Psamtik I (c.644 BCE)
Apis (deity)
–
Bust of the Hellenistic-Egyptian god Serapis, Roman copy of an original by
Bryaxis which stood at the Serapeion of
Alexandria,
Vatican Museums.
47.
Khnum
–
Khnum was one of the earliest Egyptian deities, originally the god of the source of the Nile River. He later was described as having moulded the other deities, and he had the titles Divine Potter, Khnum was the god of rebirth, creation and the evening sun, although this is usually the function of Atum. The worship of Khnum centered on two principal sites, Elephantine Island and Esna, which were regarded as sacred sites. At Elephantine, he was worshipped alongside Anuket and Satet as the guardian of the source of the Nile River. His significance led to early theophoric names of him, for children, such as Khnum-Khufwy – Khnum is my Protector, Khnum has also been related to the deity Min. The temple at Elephantine was dedicated to Khnum, his consort Satet, the temple dates back to at least the Middle Kingdom. By the 11th dynasty Khnum, Satet and Anuket are all attested at Elephantine, during the New Kingdom finds from the time of Ramesses II show Khnum was still worshipped there. Opposite Elephantine, on the east bank at Aswan, Khnum, in Esna, known as Iunyt or Ta-senet to the Ancient Egyptians, a temple was dedicated to Khnum, Neith and Heka, and other deities. The temple dates to the Ptolemaic period, Khnum is sometimes depicted as a crocodile-headed god. Nebt-uu and Menhit are Khnums principal consorts and Heka is his eldest son, both Khnum and Neith are referred to as creator deities in the texts at Esna. Khnum is sometimes referred to as the father of the fathers and they later become the parents of Re, who is also referred to as Khnum-Re. The Beit el-Wali temple of Ramesses II contained statues of Khnum, Satis and Anukis, along with statues of Isis and Horus
Khnum
–
Cnouphis-Nilus (Jupiter-Nilus, Dieu Nil), N372.2,
Brooklyn Museum
Khnum
–
Khnum, accompanied by the goddess
Heket, moulds
Ihy in a relief from the
mammisi (birth temple) at
Dendera Temple complex,
Dendara,
Egypt
48.
Elephantine
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Elephantine is an island on the Nile, forming part of the city of Aswan in southern Egypt. There are archaeological sites on the island, Elephantine island is 1,200 metres from north to south, and is 400 metres across at its widest point. The layout of this and other islands in Aswan can be seen from west bank hillsides along the Nile. The island is located just downstream of the First Cataract, at the border of Upper Egypt with Lower Nubia. This region above is referred to as Upper Egypt due to land and river elevations being higher than downstream, and than the Nile Delta region to the Mediterranean Sea. The island may have received its name after its shape, which in aerial views is similar to that of an elephant tusk and this is the meaning of the Greek word elephas. Known to the Ancient Egyptians as Abu or Yebu, the island of Elephantine stood at the border between Egypt and Nubia and it was an excellent defensive site for a city and its location made it a natural cargo transfer point for river trade. Elephantine was a fort that stood just before the first cataract of the Nile, during the Second Intermediate Period, the fort marked the southern border of Egypt. According to Egyptian mythology, here was the place of Khnum, the ram-headed god of the cataracts. He was worshipped here as part of a late triad among the Egyptian pantheon of deities, the Elephantine Triad included Satis and Anuket. Satis was worshipped from very early times as a war goddess, when seen as a fertility goddess, she personified the bountiful annual flooding of the Nile, which was identified as her daughter, Anuket. The cult of Satis originated in the ancient city of Swenet, later, when the triad was formed, Khnum became identified as her consort and, thereby, was thought of as the father of Anuket. His role in myths changed later and another deity was assigned his duties with the river, at that time his role as a potter enabled him to be assigned a duty in the creation of human bodies. Ongoing excavations by the German Archaeological Institute at the town have uncovered many findings, on display in the Aswan Museum located on the island, artifacts dating back to predynastic times have been found on Elephantine. A rare calendar, known as the Elephantine Calendar of Things, in ancient times, the island was also an important stone quarry providing granite materials that would be transported widely within Egypt for monuments and buildings. Prior to 1822, there were temples to Thutmose III and Amenhotep III on the island, at that time they were destroyed during the campaign of Muhammad Ali, who had taken power in Egypt, to Conquer Sudan. Both temples were relatively intact prior to the deliberate demolition, the first temple was the Temple of Satet, it was founded around 3000 BC and enlarged and renovated over the next 3000 years. There are records of an Egyptian temple to Khnum on the island as early as the third Dynasty of Egypt and this temple was completely rebuilt in the Late Period, during the thirtieth dynasty of Egypt, just before the foreign rule that followed in the Graeco-Roman Period
Elephantine
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West bank of Elephantine Island on the
Nile River.
Elephantine
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View south (upstream) of Elephantine Island and Nile, from a hotel tower.
Elephantine
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Verdant Euphantine Island, opposite Assuan, Egypt.", 1908. Lantern slide.
Brooklyn Museum
49.
Amun
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Amun was a major Ancient Egyptian deity. He was attested since the Old Kingdom together with his wife Amaunet, with the 11th dynasty, he rose to the position of patron deity of Thebes by replacing Monthu. After the rebellion of Thebes against the Hyksos and with the rule of Ahmose I, Amun acquired national importance, expressed in his fusion with the Sun god, Ra, Amun-Ra retained chief importance in the Egyptian pantheon throughout the New Kingdom. Amun-Ra in this period held the position of transcendental, self-created creator deity par excellence, he was the champion of the poor or troubled and his position as King of Gods developed to the point of virtual monotheism where other gods became manifestations of him. With Osiris, Amun-Ra is the most widely recorded of the Egyptian gods, as the chief deity of the Egyptian Empire, Amun-Ra also came to be worshipped outside of Egypt, according to the testimony of ancient Greek historiographers in Libya and Nubia. As Zeus Ammon he came to be identified with Zeus in Greece, Amun and Amaunet are mentioned in the Old Egyptian Pyramid Texts. The name Amun meant something like the one or invisible. Amun rose to the position of tutelary deity of Thebes after the end of the First Intermediate Period, as the patron of Thebes, his spouse was Mut. In Thebes, Amun as father, Mut as mother and the Moon god Khonsu formed a family or Theban Triad. The history of Amun as the god of Thebes begins in the 20th century BC. The city of Thebes does not appear to have been of great significance before the 11th dynasty, major construction work in the Precinct of Amun-Re took place during the 18th dynasty when Thebes became the capital of the unified ancient Egypt. Construction of the Hypostyle Hall may have begun during the 18th dynasty, though most building was undertaken under Seti I. Merenptah commemorated his victories over the Sea Peoples on the walls of the Cachette Court and this Great Inscription shows the kings campaigns and eventual return with booty and prisoners. Next to this inscription is the Victory Stela, which is largely a copy of the more famous Israel Stela found in the complex of Merenptah on the west bank of the Nile in Thebes. Merenptahs son Seti II added 2 small obelisks in front of the Second Pylon, and this was constructed of sandstone, with a chapel to Amun flanked by those of Mut and Khonsu. The last major change to the Precinct of Amun-Res layout was the addition of the first pylon, the local patron deity of Thebes, Amun, therefore became nationally important. The pharaohs of that new dynasty attributed all their enterprises to Amun. The victory accomplished by pharaohs who worshipped Amun against the rulers, brought him to be seen as a champion of the less fortunate
Amun
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Amon-Ra (l'esprit des quatre elements, lame du monde matérial),N372.2.,
Brooklyn Museum
Amun
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Bas-relief depicting Amun as
pharaoh
Amun
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Amun-Min as Amun-Ra ka-Mut-ef from the temple at Deir el Medina.
Amun
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The
sarcophagus of a priestess of Amon-Ra, c. 1000 BC –
Smithsonian 's
National Museum of Natural History
50.
Thirtieth dynasty of Egypt
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The Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt is usually classified as the fifth Dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian Late Period. It was founded after the overthrow of Nefaarud II in 380 BC by Nectanebo I, Nectanebo I had gained control of all of Egypt by November of 380 BC, but spent much of his reign defending his kingdom from Persian reconquest with the occasional help of Sparta or Athens. In 365 BC, Nectanebo made his son Teos co-king and heir, tjahepimu took advantage of Teos unpopularity within Egypt by declaring his son—and Teos nephew, Nectanebo II—king. The Egyptian army rallied around Nectanebo which forced Teos to flee to the court of the king of Persia, Nectanebo IIs reign was dominated by the efforts of the Persian rulers to reconquer Egypt, which they considered a satrapy in revolt. For the first ten years, Nectanebo avoided the Persian reconquest because Artaxerxes III was forced to consolidate his control of the realm. Artaxerxes then attempted an invasion of Egypt in the winter of 351/350 BC, the repercussions of his defeat prompted revolts in Cyprus, Phoenicia. Although Nectanebo gave support to these revolts, Artaxerxes would eventually suppress these rebellions and was again able to invade Egypt in 343 BC. This second invasion proved successful, and Nectanebo was forced to withdraw from his defenses in the Nile Delta to Memphis and he thereupon fled south to Nubia, where he is assumed to have found refuge at the court of King Nastasen of Napata. Nectanebo, however, may have managed to some form of independent rule in the south of Egypt for 2 more years since a document from Edfu is dated to his eighteenth year. Although a shadowy figure named Khababash proclaimed himself king and led a rebellion against the Persians from about 338 to 335 BC and his flight marked the end of Egypt as an independent entity
Thirtieth dynasty of Egypt
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A 30th dynasty Egyptian funerary mask
Thirtieth dynasty of Egypt
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Stele of Nectanebo I
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