PROGRAMME 2019/2020
Saturday 14th September 2019
Subject: "Religion in Ancient Egypt"
Speaker: Maiken Mosleth King, Bristol University
The ancient Egyptian religious tradition was both dynamic and long-lived, spanning a period
of four millennia. This lecture will introduce some key elements of the religion, such as
the theology of the sun god, the Osirian myth-cycle and the function of goddesses, and
the purpose of cult images.
Saturday 12th October 2019
Subject: "Who Was Buried at Beni Hasan?"
Speaker: Prof Sara Orel, Truman State University, Kirksville, USA
The excavations of John Garstang at Beni Hasan focused on the rock-cut and shaft tombs below the famous nomarchs’ tombs recorded by the EES in the 1880s. These lower rank tombs date from the late Old Kingdom through the early part of the 18th Dynasty, with the period of greatest usage at the time of the upper rank tombs.
His focus, as reflected in his publication Burial Customs of Ancient Egypt, emphasizes general trends rather than specific burials. Even when discussing individual inhumations, Garstang focuses on their representativeness or, conversely, their uniqueness, within the range of burials, and the overall goal is to show the general characteristics of burials of a particular period in Egyptian history.
The texts, grave goods and architecture of these tombs reveals more information about the
individuals buried in the cemetery and helps to identify relationships with the upper tomb inhabitants and the social rank of those buried in the larger, less wealthy necropolis.
Preceded by the AGM
Saturday 23th November 2019
Subject: "Sethy I, King of Egypt: His Life and Afterlife" - Taunton Literary Festival
Speaker: Prof Aidan Dodson, Bristol University
King Sethy I ruled for around a decade early in the thirteenth century BC. He lived at a crucial point in Egyptian history, following the ill-starred religious revolution of Akhenaten, and heralding the last phase of Egypt’s imperial splendor. As the second scion of a wholly-new royal family, his reign did much to set the agenda for the coming decades, both at home and abroad. Sethy was also a great builder, apparently with exquisite artistic taste, to judge from the unique quality of the decoration of his celebrated monuments at Abydos and Thebes. This afternoon we will take an overview of his life, reign and monuments.
Tickets only - This lecture is jointly hosted by EST and the Taunton Literary Festival
Venue: St James' Church, St James St, Taunton TA1 1JS
For further information see Committee contact details below.
Saturday 14th December 2019
Subject: "Meroe, Where It Is Always Harvest"
Speaker: Dr. Robert Morkot, Exeter University
Despite flourishing for over 1200 years, the kingdom of Meroe is still neglected by Egyptologists and Ancient Historians. Following its rule in Egypt as the 25th Dynasty, the kingdom continued
to flourish and interact with Egypt and the Mediterranean world until the end of the Roman Empire. Temples and Pyramid tombs from Aswan to modern Khartoum reveal a remarkable culture in which the African, Egyptian, and Hellenistic-Roman worlds become entangled.
End of Year/Christmas Lecture and Society Party
Saturday 11th January 2020
Members' Annual Lunch - Details to be confirmed
Saturday 8th February 2020
Subject: "Ramesses III: Why He Came To A Nasty End"
Speaker: Vanessa Foott
Ramesses III is sometimes described as the last great pharaoh and did much to model his reign on that of Ramesses the Great, however his reign came to crashing end with rebellion and murder.
Through examination of his family relationships, foreign and domestic policies and his divine
allegiances, Vanessa will demonstrate some of the reasons for his decline. It is a gripping tale of a man whose love for the good things in life may have distracted him from the all important duty of pharaoh; the maintenance of Maat.
Saturday 14th March 2020
Subject: "The new Grand Egyptian Museum and the Treasures of Tutankhamun"
Speaker: Dr Chris Naunton
The new Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) has been under construction for many years and
the moment it opens to the public – in 2020 – is now approaching fast. Dozens of objects are being moved to from the old museum on Tahrir Square to the new site on a weekly basis, initially
to a state-of-the-art conservation centre which has been up and running for several years.
The new displays will feature 100,000 objects, including all the items found by Howard Carter
in the tomb of Tutankhamun. In preparation, everything has been removed from old display cases or storage boxes, the current condition assessed so that any conservation measures required can be undertaken. In the process many objects are being studied for the first time
in decades, revealing new details about the life and death of the famous boy-king, and also
his relatives.
N.B: This meeting will NOT be held at D.A.S - Exeter
High attendance is expected for this lecture and seats are limited. Priority will be given to the members. Please, let us know in advance if you would like to attend
this event and we will try to accommodate you.
All three lectures below have been cancelled due to coronavirus
Saturday 18th April 2020
Subject: "Amelia Edwards and the History of the Egypt Exploration Society"
Speaker: Lucia Gahlin, UCL
This lecture explores one of the world’s most important Egyptological archives, and in particular,
wonderful early photographs, in order to trace the history of the Egypt Exploration Society, set up in 1882 as the Egypt Exploration Fund by the passionate Victorian writer Amelia Edwards.
In order to appreciate the role of British archaeology in Egypt, we need to appreciate the significance of the EES, its publications and archive.
Saturday 9th May 2020
Subject: "Picture This! Exploring the Conventions of Two-Dimensional Tomb Art
in Old Kingdom Egypt"
Speaker: Sarah Griffiths, Deputy Editor of "Ancient Egypt" Magazine
The painted figures and scenes in ancient Egyptian tombs look both natural and pleasing to
the eye, but on closer inspection, nothing is quite as it seems!
This illustrated presentation zooms in on the beautiful artwork in the tombs of the Old Kingdom official Kagemni and his contemporaries to pick out the conventions used in depicting three dimensional figures onto a two dimensional space. And we will discover the deeper underlying meaning and symbolism behind a style of art that remained consistent for thousands of years.
Saturday 13th June 2020
Subject: "Hidden Abydos"
Speaker: John Billman, Chairman of TVAES, Chairman of South Asasif Conservation Trust, Egyptology Tutor for WEA, Oxford University (OUDCE)
While the impressive Seti and Ramesses temples at Abydos are publically open sites, at first glance it can be hard to understand what motivated Seti and his son to construct these temples here. In this lecture we explore the Abydos monuments that tourists don’t have the opportunity to visit, but which are fundamental to the importance of this site in antiquity. From Predynastic and Early Dynastic tombs, the Middle Kingdom tomb of Senwosret III, recently discovered tombs of the Second Intermediate Period ‘Abydos Dynasty’ to the little-known pyramid of Ahmose, we will explore and attempt to interpret these monuments.