Egyptian Bones Could Help Solve Canine Conundrum

Originally published November 29, 2010 | Spiegel Online International | Translated from the German by Christopher Sultan | Perhaps the secret to the mammalian evolution of canis lupus into the 400 breeds of dogs today, from dachshunds to Great Danes, can be found at Hamunaptra (Well, not per se; rather, the Temple of Anubis at Saqqara...but it's a romantic thought, no?). The article also features an array of beautiful art depicting the domesticated dog in ancient Egypt. On a side note, this gives me an idea for another historical fiction novel. I'll save it for the third in the series I'm currently working on, as I'm already working on an outline for the second.

Video - Behenu's Burial Chamber

Accessed March 13, 2010 | Reuters | This is a nice video documenting the recent discovery of Queen Behenu's intact burial chamber at Saqqara. Whereas before (in articles announcing the discovery) you couldn't really see the beautiful inscriptions, you can with this video. If you have a minute or two, I encourage you to watch it.

Burial Chamber of Ancient Egyptian Queen Unearthed

Originally published March 3, 2010 | Yahoo! News and AFP | For all of you hieroglyphic inscription fans, this find should be a fascinating one for you (it is for me). Recently discovered in Saqqara was a burial chamber of an obscure Old Kingdom Queen. The following is an excerpt from this article at Yahoo! News:

"We are excited because the texts are well conserved," he told The Associated Press, adding that the queen's titles were written on the walls of the 33 by 16 foot (10 meter by 5 meter) burial chamber inside her small pyramid.

The text is primarily concerned with protecting the queen's remains and her transition to afterlife.

Collombert called the queen "mysterious," and said it was not clear whether she was the wife of King Pepi I or II, two long-ruling pharaohs of the Sixth Dynasty.

Another source reporting on the same news can be found at Reuters and my favorite place to frequent on the web, Heritage Key.

Discovering Pyramids - The Tomb of Queen Sesheshet

Originally published February 3, 2010 | Smithsonian Magazine | by Stephan Glain | An excerpt:

When you make your living unearthing the royal riches of ancient Egypt, the beginning is a very distant place indeed – more than four millennia away, during the time of the 6th dynasty. We are standing on the rim of the necropolis of King Teti at Saqqara, where Karar and his team of archaeologists are excavating the tomb of Queen Sesheshet, Teti's mother. The tomb, and the once five-story-high pyramid that accommodates it, was until recently a dump for the sand and detritus of surrounding digs. But the intuitive power of Karar and his inimitable boss, Zahi Hawass, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, rescued it from oblivion last November. It was a once-in-a-lifetime strike – how often does one "discover" a pyramid? – and it may shed light on a particularly notorious episode in a pharaonic tradition of court intrigue and murder most foul.

[...]

Hawass, who began working at the Saqqara necropolis in 1988, says Sesheshet's pyramid "might be the most complete subsidiary pyramid ever found" in the area. It is certainly one of the largest. The remains of its 72-square-foot base suggests a pitch of 51 degrees, a common feature of 5th and 6th century pyramidal design, and a height of 46 feet. Large, smoothly carved blocks of limestone around the southern end of its foundation is all that's left of the casing that gave Egyptian pyramids of the time their clean, elegant lines. The entire structure would have been built with bronze tools.

Karar and his team waited several weeks before opening the tomb's burial chamber so as not to disrupt the remains while the surface excavation was going on. In January, when they finally entered the chamber, they found a mummy inside wrapped in linen and conclusive evidence to suggest it is Sesheshet, Hawas told the Cairo-based Al Ahram Weekly.

New Tombs Found at Saqqara

Originally published January 5, 2010 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | by Dr. Hawass |

Saqqara yields two rediscovered tombs, dating back 2,500 years, the oldest found in the area, replete with human and falcon remains and pottery. Despite it having been looted and explored throughout the millennia, it proves that Saqqara has many more secrets.

Three sources announce different facts about the discoveries in addition to Dr. Hawass' account, which is far more descriptive: The Sydney Morning Herald, which discloses mostly topographical information; IOL, which contains a few dates and measurements; and possibly the most interesting source from the Discovery New, which includes great photographs of the discovery.

Video - The Unfinished Pyramid at Saqqara

Originally published October 22, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | by Dr. Hawass

Dr. Hawass tells the story of the Unfinished Pyramid and its discoverer, Zakaria Goneim, sharing this story so that everyone will understand that fame can be a burden and making discoveries is not an easy thing. It's a sad story and only goes to show that the scholastic world is not as romantic as it appears in books and movies. Poor man.

The original video is at Heritage Key, paired with a transcript.

Restoring Saqqara

Originally published October 17, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | by Dr. Hawass

In this article at Zahi Hawass' blog, Dr. Hawass describes the Saqqara necropolis, details his impressions on it and its place in history, and reveals upcoming and ongoing restorative efforts on the historic site.

France does the Right Thing and Gets to Dig at Saqqara Again

Originally published October 14, 2009 | Heritage Key | by Ann Wuyts

The Egyptology world has been abuzz about the latest drama going down at the SCA. It nearly cut ties with France's Louvre Museum in the event that officials didn't return reportedly stolen artifacts in its possession. Thank the gods that everything is just fine and dandy now. Just in case you missed all that swirling news, here is a list with all the details:

• Egypt Cuts Ties With Louvre Over Artifacts - October 7, CBSNEWS
• No Relics, No Ties - October 10, the Straits Times

And then France does the right thing:

• French Commission Agrees to Return Egyptian Art - October 9, Associated Press/Google
• France Ready to Hand Back Egyptian Murals - October 7, Yahoo! News/Reuters
• Louvre Agrees to Return Egyptian Relics - October 11, pressTV
• France to Return Disputed Tomb Fresco to Egypt - October 10, Washington Times (by Angela Charlton)
• Stolen Egyptian Relics On Their Way Home - October 9, Discovery Channel News (by Pascale Mollard-Chenebenoit)

Video - Beautiful Mummy Found at Saqqara

Originally published September 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | by Dr. Hawass

EES 2010 Tour to Egypt

Originally published September 22, 2009 | Egypt Exploration Society

When: Saturday, March 13 - 27, 2010; Key Figures: Professor Alan Lloyd, Faten Saleh, and Ros Phipps; Contact: Emily Feasey (The Traveller) +44 (0)20 7436 9343 or email info@the-traveller.co.uk; Cost: £2635 (per person)/Single room supplement £332. The program guide offers more details and descriptions about this trip; click the link to access it.

Video - Cool Jobs: Mummy Hunter

Originally published May 1, 2009 | Discovery Channel | by Rossella Lorenzi

Follow the link to watch this video that captures the interview between Rosella Lorenzi and Dr. Zahi Hawass, where the latter speaks of many well-known ancient place including Saqqara and the Step Pyramid, Giza and the Great Pyramid, and the Valley of the Kings and popular names such as Tutankhamun, Ramesses, and Nefertari.

Dig Days: The Search for Queen Mutnodjmet

Originally published for week of August 13 - 19, 2009 | Al-Ahram Weekly Online | by Dr. Zahi Hawass

Below is an excerpt from Dr. Hawass' article at Al-Ahram Weekly Online, where he discusses the life and times of the lesser known Queen Mutnodjmet, wife to Horemheb, and his current scholastic endeavors regarding the noblewoman's mummy. Good luck, Dr. Hawass! I appreciate your efforts.

Queen Mutnodjmet is not one of the famous queens, like Nefertiti or Nefertari, but she married a high official named Horemheb who later became Pharaoh. Horemheb was the leader of the army in the reigns of Akhenaten, Tutankhamun and Ay. After Ay's death, Horemheb rose to the throne. Prior to his ascension he had constructed for himself a nobleman's tomb at Saqqara. After his ascension, however, this tomb was no longer suitable, so he had a second one carved out in the Valley of the Kings that was more befitting of his rank. His first tomb at Saqqara has, since then, suffered much damage, and some of its blocks have illegally been taken out of the country. Archaeologist Geoffrey Martin has been in charge of re- excavating and restoring the tomb, and has carried out some very impressive work.

I am currently trying to locate the bones of Horemheb's queen, Mutnodjmet, in order to include her remains within our DNA research on the family of King Tutankhamun. Her bones could be an extra piece of the puzzle in helping us to identify more individuals who were related to the Golden Boy.

Bare Bones Egypt 2010 Tour

Accessed July 21, 2009 | Andante Travels

The Bare Bones Egypt 2010 tour provides a look into the funerary/religious beliefs of the ancient Egyptians through their monuments and art. The above link will bring you to a page from Andante Travels that lists all the tour's information: a descriptor, itinerary, what's included in the tour, flight and hotel information, a map of where the tour will be located, a reading list, and an electronic means of booking the tour. Pricing is also provided, along with information on the tour guide (Lucia Gahlin).

Other tours include Egypt - land of the Pharaohs 2009 (October 11-26, 2009) and Egypt - land of the Pharaohs 2010 (March 21-April 5, 2010).

Photo - Pyramid Texts in the Pyramid of Teti

Originally published July 4, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Photo Blog

Courtesy of the SCA, this picture showcases the inside of the Sixth Dynasty king's pyramid in Saqqara, complete with pyramid text, ceiling art, and his sarcophagus.

Opening Djoser’s Burial Vault

Originally published June 26, 2009 | Talking Pyramids

This blog post features information on the possibility of the burial vault in Djoser's Step Pyramid being open to the public. It features a video and links to other resources.

Pictures - Decorated Cartonnage from Saqqara

Originally published June 26, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Photo Blog

This post provides a beautiful picture of one of the discoveries found near the Step Pyramid in Saqqara.

Saving the Serapeum

Originally published June 25, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | Dr. Hawass

Zahi Hawass writes about the Serapeum, about the importance of the Saqqara plateau and the key figures who had a hand in its development; it's role in past and recent-present history, spanning from Strabo to Auguste Mariette; and his attempts to find a solution to preserving and protecting this unique monument, which has been closed to visitors for safety reasons, asking for every authoritative person's advice. He describes the Serapeum's current state and how he's keeping a loving and watchful eye on this mysterious place.

Featured in the post are beautiful pictures showcasing the support and ventilation systems that are meant to help preserve and stabilize the Serapeum.

Archaeological Discovery in Saqqara

Originally published June 24, 2009 | Egypt State Information Service

More on the discoveries found near the Step Pyramid in Saqqara, including thoughts one what each purpose of the artifacts found could have been.

The following is the original press release from Zahi Hawass' blog.

Press Release - New Discoveries at Saqqara

Originally published June 24, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | by Dr. Hawass

While performing routine conservation work, Egyptian archaeologists stumble upon some artifacts inside a deep hole near the southern side of the Step Pyramid, the likes of which are illustrated in pictures in this press release.

Egyptology Books Free to Read Online

Accessed June 22, 2009 | Pyramid Texts Online

This web site features many Egyptological books, brought to you digitally for you reading pleasures.