Egyptian

The Amarna Letters: Diplomacy in the Ancient World

Posted on July 12, 2018 by MAMcIntosh

These clay tablets (letters) were found in the ruins of Akhenaten’s capital, Tell el-Amarna, Egypt. They were inscribed with Babylonian cuneiform inscriptions, not hieroglyphs. The letters represent the diplomatic correspondence sent by various vassal princes of the Egyptian Empire to the pharaoh Amenhotep III, Akhenaten, and Tutankhamun. They document a turbulent period when Egypt’s preoccupation with domestic policy led to insurrection and instability throughout[…]

Letters to the Dead in Ancient Egypt

Posted on July 12, 2018 by MAMcIntosh

A letter to the dead, addressed to the ‘excellent spirit, the Count, Overseer of the Army’. First Intermediate Period of Egypt. / British Museum The letters to the dead, often written on an offering bowl, would be delivered along with food and drink and would then be read by the soul of the departed. By Dr.[…]

Egyptian Ship Model Sheds Light on Bronze Age Warfare and Religion

Posted on July 11, 2018 by MAMcIntosh

Wooden Ship-Cart Model, late 13th–early 12th century B.C. Wood with traces of paint, 5 3/16 × 15 3/16 × 2 3/16 in. Courtesy of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, UCL. Photo: J. Paul Getty Museum, Rebecca Vera-Martinez A wooden model of a ship-cart excavated at Gurob, Egypt, is the single most important piece of[…]

Hammurabi and the Babylonian Empire

Posted on July 11, 2018 by MAMcIntosh

Hammurabi (standing), depicted as receiving his royal insignia from Shamash. Hammurabi holds his hands over his mouth as a sign of prayer (relief on the upper part of the stele of Hammurabi’s code of laws). / Photo by MBZT, Louvre Museum, Paris, Wikimedia Commons According to his own inscriptions, letters and administrative documents from his reign, he sought[…]

Ancient Egyptian Law: Seeking Peace with Oneself, One’s Community, and the Gods

Posted on July 1, 2018 by MAMcIntosh

Polychrome relief of Kagemni in his own mastaba, Saqqara, Egypt. Kagemni was a vizier of pharaohs Djedkare Isesi and Unas (5th dynasty), and Teti (6th dynasty), 24th century BCE. / Photo by Sémhur, Wikimedia Commons Ancient Egyptian culture flourished through adherence to tradition and their legal system By Dr. Joshua J. Mark / 10.02.2017 Professor of Philosophy Marist College[…]