Baubles and Bangles Inspired by Ancient Egypt

Published May 12, 2010 | The New York Times | by Susan Joy | Many of these jewelry pieces inspired by Ancient Egypt are not as gaudy or gimmicky as you'd think. In fact, they are very beautiful and expertly made. Here's an excerpt - click the above link to read the rest, which also includes a great picture showcasing some of the jewelry:

Two of this year’s nominees for the accessories award that the Council of Fashion Designers of America will bestow next month found their way to Egypt via quite different routes. The Fallon designer Dana Lorenz, whose current collection is filled with ancient Egyptian iconography, admits to an obsessive addiction to the television series “Lost,” which she regards as “deeply embedded with Egyptian symbolism and hieroglyphs.” Her collection acquired its “spiritual and aesthetic inspiration,” she said, when, in the same week, she found “an incredible vintage King Tut pendant” and caught Elizabeth Taylor in “Cleopatra” on TCM.

Upcoming Workshops at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum

Accessed February 4, 2010 | Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum | The following are a few upcoming and recurring workshops at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum about mummification, jewelry, and hieroglyphs - each are linked to the events page on the Rosicrucion Facebook Page (click the above link to visit the museum's web site):

• Date: February 6, 2010
  Lecture: Ancient Egyptian Mummies (1st Saturday of the Month)
  Time: 12:30pm - 1:00pm
  


• Date: February 7, 2010
  Workshop: Hieroglyph Workshop (every Sunday at 11:30am and every Thursday at 4:00pm)
  Time: 11:30am - 12:00pm
  


• Date: February 7, 2010
  Lecture: Ancient Egyptian Jewelry (1st Sunday of the Month)
  Time: 12:30pm - 1:00pm
  

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous Egyptians

Originally published January 21, 2010 | Heritage Key | by Paula Veiga | An article examining the backgrounds and lifestyles of rich Egyptians (including priests and kings). These leisurely activities and ammenities included eating and drinking parties and banquets, personal hygiene rituals, quality of dress, love and marriage, and more, linking these topics to examples of their modern day counterparts.

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.

Ancient Egypt on Exhibit in Little Rock

Originally published October 11, 2009 | Florida Today | by Chuck Bartels

Exhibit - Lost Kingdoms of the Nile

Accessed October 11, 2009 | Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences of West Virginia

Visit the Clay Center's site for more information on this exhibit, which lasts from September 12, 2009 until April 11, 2010 and showcases Nubian treasures from the Museum of Fine Arts Boston such as sculpture, stone relief elements, gold and silver jewelry, and ceramic and alabaster vessels that illustrate ancient Nubian art, funerary customs, warfare, and daily life.

Museums in Alexandria - Zahi Hawass' Visit and Lecture

Originally published October 7, 2009 | Zahi Hawass' Blog | by Dr. Hawass

Museum's Egypt Exhibition Follows in Footsteps of Victorian Traveler

Originally published September 3, 2009 | Yorkshire Post

The Francis Frith's Egypt exhibition, opening next Wednesday, September 9, will feature photographs and ancient objects, including a mummy's mask, jewelery, pottery and textiles. There will be two sets of photographs, those taken by Victorian photographer Francis Frith during the 19th century and those by Egyptologist Bob Partridge of modern times. Partridge's photographs will showcase how Egyptian monuments have changed since Frith's time.

Is King Tut's Necklace from Outer Space?

Originally published August 26, 2009 | Heritage Key | by Sean Williams

It had occurred to me that something was odd about this scarab. I had seen it many times while reading. The color of the scarab seemed unusual. I suppose feldspar was not immediately available to the craftsmen who created this masterpiece, so they settle on using this meteoric glass. I wouldn't put it past Tutankhamun to want something unusual incorporated into his jewelry, coming from a family who had ignored the rules of tradition of any medium. As much as Tutankhamun tried to disassociate himself from the ways of his father, I suspect he enjoyed a bit of artistic freedom himself. After all, the presence of the Aten and the portly belly-skinny limb rendering of his own likeness were evident in his artifacts.

This brings to mind the age of the Sphinx, but that's another, very long-winded, discussion.

Archaeology Magazine's Special Ancient Egypt Issue

Accessed August 20, 2009 | Archaeology Magazine Online The following is quoted from AIA's e-Update, which will bring you to more information on what's inside this issue and how to purchase it:

Learn why mummies are the icons of ancient Egypt and why the pharaohs' tombs were designed to last forever. Discover how Napoleon's expedition led to the birth of Egyptology and how the Great Pyramid was built. Explore a City of the Dead and the Valley of the Kings. Come along with Archaeology to the banks of the Nile--and beyond. There are mummies, pharaohs' treasures, unsolved mysteries, and an entire civilization to uncover.

I think I voted for this cover! I'm glad to have helped Archaeology Magazine :)

I'm thinking I might request that my library buy this issue for its magazine collection. I'm sure someone other than myself will find this a great addition.

Michael C. Carlos Museum - Gallery Profiles

Originally published July 30, 2009 | Art Museum Journal | by Gail S. Myhre

Gail Myhre describes in short paragraphs various galleries of the Michael C. Carlos Museum on the campus of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Featured among the gallery profiles is the Egyptian, Nubian and Near Eastern Collection, alongside which is a picture of one of the artifacts.

Exhibit - World of the Pharaohs: Treasures of Egypt Revealed

Accessed August 1, 2009 | Arkansas Arts Center

World of the Pharaohs: Treasures of Egypt Revealed explores the long-vanished world of ancient Egypt. This Egyptian exhibition is the first ever held in Arkansas. More than 200 mangificent objects, including mummies, a majestic colossus of Ramses the Great, Egyptian art, jewelry, statues, sculptures, and funerary artifacts, tell the story of not just how the Egyptians died, but how they lived!

Click the above link to visit the Arkansas Arts Center's official exhibit web site for ticket information, exhibit duration, and program details.

King Tut Explorer’s Photos, Treasures Revealed

Originally published July 16, 2009 | MSNBC | by Rossella Lorenzi

The Highclere cache is just a tiny part of a magnificent collection which Almina, Lord Carnarvon's wife and the illegitimate daughter of Alfred de Rothschild of the famous banking family, sold to the Metropolitan Museum in New York in 1926.

The long-hidden collection is now presented in its full glory in the cellars of the castle, along with hundreds of unpublished photographs taken by Lord Carnarvon between 1907 and 1914. They were discovered two years ago in the family archives by Fiona, the Eighth Countess of Carnarvon.

The following is a direct link to the exhibit.

Excavate Your Inner Pharaoh

Originally published June 26, 2009 | SFGate | by Carole Terwilliger Meyers

This article lists a few places close to home (at least in North America anyway) that you can visit to get a similar experience as you would in Egypt including the Tutankhamun exhibit at the M.H. de Young Museum, the largest North American collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts at the Rosicrucian Museum, a small exhibit at Phoebe A Hearst Museum of Anthropology, an Egyptian restaurant, and a Middle Eastern hookah bar. Each paragraph gives venue and contact information.

Upcoming Exhibitions: World of the Pharaohs-Arkansas Arts Center

Accessed June 15, 2009 | Arkansas Art Center

On display at the Arkansas Art Center from September 25, 2009 through July 5, 2010 are over 200 artifacts from Ancient Egypt. The upcoming exhibit is entitled World of the Pharaohs: Treasures of Egypt Revealed and showcases funerary objects, mummies, and more.

A beautiful picture accompanies the announcement, followed by a detailed descriptor of that picture.

Calling the Queen's Authenticity Into Question

Originally published May 21, 2009 Spiegel Online by Christoph Seidler

This article follows Henri Stierlin's theory that the Nefertiti bust in the Berlin Museum is a fake, built 100 years ago and whose purpose he believes its finder withheld from the world.

Even though his friends doubt Stierlin's theory, he counteracts any proof of Nefertiti's authenticity, with contamination and advanced reproduction techniques even 100 years ago being his evidence.

Royal Bling Glitters For the Crowds - Jewels Moved to the Egyptian Museum

Originally published 21 - 27 May 2009 | Al-Ahram Weekly Online

After it had been discovered that some pieces in the Mohamed Ali family jewels collection were missing, they were packed away in 45 wooden boxes, sealed with red wax, and moved from the Central Back of Egypt to the Egyptian Museum. Dr. Zahi Hawass heads the ordeal.

New Finds Span Time - New Discoveries in Alexandria and the Fayoum

Originally published 21 - 27 May 2009 | Al-Ahram Weekly Online | by Nevine El-Aref

Described forthwith is the most recent discovery at the Shallalat Gardens in Alexandria: a white marble statue of an athletic Alexander the Great, with a detailed account of its features from Kalliopi Limneou-Popakosta, attributing each element to different types of sculptural styles.

Giving credit to the developing importance of this site, El-Aref mentions last year's discovery: a statue of Ptolemy V and statues featuring Bacchus.

In addition, the SCA's discoveries at Al-Karn Al-Zahali Island include prehistoric hunting and medicine tools; needles and jewelry; and 25 rock-hewn tombs nearby, complete with human skeletons. These artifacts reveal the site's long history of use, which spans from prehistoric times to the Islamic era.