The History of Egypt

Interlude: How the Egyptians Celebrated. From beer halls to temples to cemeteries, this episode explores Egyptian revelry. We focus on two major festivals: the raucous celebrations for Hathor, and the sombre re-enactment of the Osiris story...Episode 40: Feasting, Laughing and Dancing – The History of Egypt Podcast (egyptianhistorypodcast.com). Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Vangelis. Select Bibliography: John C. Darnell, “The Opet Festival.” UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. LA Times interview with Prof. Betsy M. Bryan, Johns Hopkins University. E.F. Morris, “Sacred and Obscene Laughter in the Contendings of Horus and Seth,” in Egyptian Stories, 2007. Plutarch, Isis and Osiris (1st Century CE). The Ikher-nefret Stela (12th Dynasty). Additional Music by Vangelis – Alexander (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amenemhat II (Part 2): Fabulous Wealth. From 1927 – 1910 BCE, Nub-Kau-Re Amenemhat II launches expeditions to lands outside Egypt. Trade missions to and from the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine) bring wealth and exotic goods into Egypt. Treasures even come from southern Turkey and the Aegean Sea, finding their way into the temples being built or renovated by the king.Nubkaure’s reign is remarkable for the archaeological finds of al–Tod that give testament to the foreign wealth entering the kingdom. This wealth goes to fund a number of building projects… Date c. 1920 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Wolfram Grajetzki – The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. 2006. Nicolas Grimal – A History of Egypt. 1994. Ezra S. Marcus – “Amenemhet II and the Sea: Maritime Aspects of the Mit Rahina (Memphis) Expedition.” Egypt and the Levant vol. 17 (2007) . Free Download (Academia.edu) K.R. Maxwell-Hyslop – “A Note on the Anatolian Connections of the Tod Treasure” Anatolian Studies vol. 45 (1995) – Read Free Online (JSTOR) Lawrence E. Stager – “Port Power in the Early and the Middle Bronze Age: The Organization of Maritime Trade and Hinterland Production.” Studies in the Archaeology of Israel and Neighboring Lands in Memory of Douglas L. Esse. 2001. Free Download (Oriental Institute, University of Chicago) Metropolitan Museum News – the Colossal Statue of Amenemhat II. Reshafim.org – the biography of Thoth-Hotep. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amenemhat II (Part 1): International Fame. Around 1927 BCE, King Nub-kau-Re Amenemhat II came to power. His reign was peaceful and prosperous, and many treasures emerge from this period... Date c. 1927 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Jacques de Morgan, Fouilles a Dachour 1894-1895, 1903 (Free Download). The New York Times, 1899 – Jacques de Morgan speaks to the American Archaeological and Numismatic Society on his discovery. Reshafim.org – the Biography of Khnumhotep II, of Beni Hassan (Menat Khufu). Wolfram Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, 2006. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senuseret I (Part 4): Money Money Honey. Gold drives empires today, and the ancient Egyptians were no different. Senuseret I sends warriors into Nubia, the Sinai Peninsula and the Eastern Desert. They go in search of precious metals, resources needed for the King's monuments... Date c. 1960 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Wolfram Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, 2006. Henriette Hafsas-Talkos,  “Between Kush and Egypt: the C-Group People of Lower Nubia,” in Between the Cataracts: Proceedings of the 11th International Conference for Nubian Studies, 2006. Tourist blog in Sudan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senuseret I (Part 3): Creating Karnak Temple. The temple of Karnak is a wonder of the world; but its origins are mostly lost, beneath generations of re-modelling and re-building. Nevertheless, a few traces survive of the earliest days; among them, a magnificent monument of King Senuseret I... Date c.1950 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Wolfram Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, 2006. James H. Breasted, A History of Egypt, 1905 (1959 Edition). UCLA Digital Karnak Project. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senuseret I (Part 2): Teachings from the Father. Around 1962 BCE, King Sen-Useret I came to power. His father was dead, assassinated by his own royal guards. Now, the new ruler had to figure things out. Fortunately, Senuseret had some "teachings" from his father. What a coincidence, right? Date c.1962 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Dorothea Arnold, “Amenemhat I and the Early Twelfth Dynasty at Thebes,” Metropolitan Museum of Art Journal 1991 (Free Download from MMA). Wolfram Grajetzki, Court Officials of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom, 2009. Gay Robins, The Art of Ancient Egypt, 2008. William C. Hayes, The Scepter of Egypt, 1976 (Free Download from the MMA). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senuseret I (Part 1): Sinuhe's Fear and Flight. Around 1962 BCE, conspirators broke into the royal bedchamber and attacked King Amenemhat in his bed. The result was panic. The king's son Senuseret was far from home, and the situation was incredibly perilous. In the midst of this, a minor official named Sinuhe got caught up in the storm, and decided to flee for his life. Thereby hangs a tale... Date c. 1960 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Other podcasts: The Tale of Sinuhe, discussed on BBC Radio 4 "In Our Time" with Melvyn Bragg. A nice (and very British) discussion of the tale. Enjoy! A new reading! Barbara Ewing (actress) and Richard M. Parkinson (Professor of Egyptology, Oxford) have produced a new version of Sinuhe’s tale. Select Bibliography: Miriam Lichtheimm Ancient Egyptian Literature, 2006. W.K. Simpson (editor), The Literature of Ancient Egypt, 2003. Reshafim.org – The Tale of Sinuhe. Scott Morschauser, “What made Sinuhe run?” Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 37 (2000). Hans Goedicke, “Sinuhe’s Duel.” JARCE 21 (1984): 197-201. Anthony Spalinger, “Orientations on Sinuhe,” Studien zur Altägypischen Kultur 25 (1998). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amenemhat I (Part 2): Father and Son. Around 1985 BCE, King Amenemhat I ruled with skill and sense. His reign was a time of new developments, epitomised in the foundation of a new capital city. Strangely, the King decided to name his new capital "Seizing the Two Lands." Date c. 1985 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Dorothea Arnold, “Amenemhat I and the Early Twelfth Dynasty at Thebes,” Metropolitan Museum of Art Journal, 1991. Wolfram Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, 2006. Wolfram Grajetzki. Court Officials of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom. 2009. Gay Robins. The Art of Ancient Egypt. 2008. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amenemhat I (Part 1): A Self-Made King. Around 1990 BCE, a new King took power. His name was Amun-em-Hat ("Amun in the Forefront"). First things first, he had to justify his unusual accession... Date c.1990 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Dorothea Arnold, “Amenemhat I and the Early Twelfth Dynasty at Thebes,” Metropolitan Museum of Art Journal, 1991. Wolfram Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, 2006. Wolfram Grajetzki. Court Officials of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom. 2009. Gay Robins. The Art of Ancient Egypt. 2008. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Montuhotep IV: A Forgotten King. At the end of Dynasty 11, there is a "gap" in the royal king list. The Turin Canon records the seven years of Montuhotep IV as a time when "no king reigned." On top of this, no royal images or records survive from his reign. Who is this man, and why is he lost?... Date c.1995 BCE. Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com. Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.  Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com. Select Bibliography: Dorothea Arnold, “Amenemhat I and the Early Twelfth Dynasty at Thebes,” Metropolitan Museum of Art Journal, 1991. Wolfram Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, 2006. Nicolas Grimal, A History of Egypt, 1994. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices