Archaeology of Egypt and Nubia - lecture

The lecture covers the archaeology of ancient Egypt and Nubia from the

11 th millennium BCE to the 1 st millennium CE. Topics include

geography, natural resources, chronology, religion, architecture, and art,

with a focus on continuities and discontinuities in the archaeological

record. The course also explores expressions of cultural identities in the

Nile Valley and Delta, as well as the history of research and its

implications for the interpretation of various phenomena.

The lecture examines the most important archaeological remains in

Egypt and Nubia, dating from the 11 th millennium BCE to the 1 st

millennium CE. It discusses historical, cultural, and social phenomena

and the different hypotheses regarding their occurrence.

Egypt:

1. Introduction to Archaeology of the Nile Valley and Delta

2. Basic Definitions and Concepts

3. Prehistory of the Egyptian Nile Valley and Delta

4. Behind the Narmer Palette: Unification of Egypt (Late

Predynastic Period)

5. The First Pharaohs (Dynasties 1–2)

6. Time of Innovation (Dynasty 3)

7. The Pyramids and Their Builders (Dynasty 4)

8. The Sun Kings (Dynasty 5)

9. Rupture and Continuity (Dynasty 6)

10. The First Intermediate Period (Dynasties 8–Beginning of 11)

11. Bringing Egypt Back Together (Dynasty 11 and Beginning of 12)

12. The Golden Age? (Dynasty 12)

13. The Threat of the Hyksos (Dynasties 13–17)

14. The Beginning of a New Era (Beginning of Dynasty 18)

15. Worshipping the Aten (Dynasty 18)

16. The Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamun (Dynasty 18)

17. Fortresses and Temples (Dynasties 19–20)

18. Libyan Anarchy? (Dynasties 21–23)

19. Kushites and Saites (Dynasties 25–26)

20. Persians and the Last “Native” Dynasties (Dynasties 27–30)

21. Alexander in Egypt

22. Ptolemaic Period

23. Roman Period

Nubia:

1. Neolithic cultures

2. Group A – pre-Krema cultures

3. Kerma horizon: Krema, Group-C and Pan-grave cultures

4. Napatan period

5. Meroitic period

Egypt:

1. K.A. Bard (ed.), Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient

Egypt, London-New York 1999

2. B.J. Kemp, Ancient Egypt. Anatomy of a Civilization, London

2018

3. M. Lehner, The Complete Pyramids, London 1997

4. A.B. Lloyd (ed.), A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Chichester-

Malden 2010

5. N. Moeller, The Archaeology of Urbanism in Ancient Egypt:

From the Predynastic Period to the End of the Middle Kingdom,

New York 2016

6. P.T. Nicholson, I. Shaw (eds), Ancient Egyptian Materials and

Technology, Cambridge 2000

7. N. Reeves, R.H. Wilkinson, The Complete Valley of the Kings.

Tombs and Treasures of Egypt’s Greatest Pharaohs, London 1996

8. G. Robins, Women in Ancient Egypt, London 1993

9. G. Robins, The Art of Ancient Egypt, London 2000

10. I. Shaw, E. Bloxam (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Egyptology,

Oxford 2020

11. S. Snape, The Complete Cities of Ancient Egypt, London 2014

12. J.H. Taylor, Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt, London

2001

13. E. Teeter, Religion and Ritual in Ancient Egypt, Cambridge 2011

14. J. Tyldesley, Egypt. How a Lost Civilization Was Rediscovered,

London 2005

15. R.H. Wilkinson, The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient

Egypt, London 2003

16. R.H. Wilkinson, The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt,

London 2000

Nubia:

1. M. Baud (ed.), Méroé. Un empire sur le Nil, Paris 2010

2. T. Eide, T. Hägg, R.H. Pierce, L. Török, Fontes Historiae

Nubiourum. Textual Sources for the History of the Middle Nile

Region Between the Eighth Century BC and the Sixth Century

AD I. From the Eighth to the Mid-Fifth Century BC, Bergen

1994

3. P. Lacovara, Ancient Nubia. African Kingdoms on the Nile,

Cairo 2012

4. R. Morkot, The Black Pharaohs: Egypt’s Nubian Rulers, London

2000.

5. L. Török, The Kingdom of Kush. Handbook of the Napatan-

Meroitic Civilization, Leiden 1997

6. L. Török, Between Two Worlds: the Frontier Region between

Ancient Nubia and Egypt, 3700 BC-AD 500, Leiden 2009

7. D. Valbelle, C. Bonnet, The Nubian Pharaohs: Black Kings on

the Nile, Cairo 2007

8. D.A. Welsby, The Kingdom of Kush: the Napatan and Meroitic

Empires, London 1998.

9. D.A. Welsby, J.R. Anderson, Sudan: Ancient Treasures: an

Exhibition of Recent Discoveries from the Sudan National

Museum, London 2004

Additional readings will be given during the course.

- The student knows the basic terminology associated with the Egyptian

and Nubian archaeology (K_W02).

- The student knows the basics of ancient Egyptian and Nubian

civilisations (K_W05).

- The student knows the latest discoveries and theories related ancient

Egypt and Nubia (K_W08).

- The student knows how to analyze, judge, select and use information

concerning archaeology of Egypt and Nubia (K_U01).

- The student knows how to obtain knowledge and develop scientific

skills in case of Egyptian and Nubian archaeology (K_U04).

- The student appreciates the unique values of archaeological sources and

their role in reproducing the past of man (K_K02).

- the student can critically assess the interpretation of archaeological and

historical sources with an awareness of the multifaceted interpretation

(K_K04).

The final grade is calculated based on:

- One written assignment (essay) (50% final grade)

- Oral exam (50% final grade).