News — Ancient Egypt

I am happy to report that by and large the restoration project in Habu Temple on the West Bank of Luxor has mostly been completed and it looks very good. I had concerns that the work would end up enhancing the colors in a way that was not original and would appear out of place. To some degree, that did happen, but almost everyone who has seen the results is pleasantly surprised by the current condition of the Temple. Particularly in the second courtyard known as the Mortuary Temple of Ramses III, walls that were completely brown are quite colorful...

The goddess Taweret was a protector of women and children. Like the Egyptian god Bes, she offered protection to pregnant women.   During the Discoveries team's visit to the Luxor Museum, we saw several small amulets resembling a standing Taweret. It was an awesome suprise to turn the corner into the newer part of the museum and find an impressively large statue of Taweret from the late dynastic period. (See photo) This statue had seen many centuries out in the elements and most detail was gone but we still were in awe of the size and presence. It is apparent the importance this deity...

On a recent trip to Luxor, Egypt, I was in the backseat of a van on the way to Medinet Habu. I looked out the window and noticed two giant statues sitting in an open field by the road. Our guide turned the car around so we could get a closer look. This was the Colossi of Memnon and Amenhotep III.   The two 60 foot statues of Amenhotep III stand at the gates of the pharaoh's funerary temple. Behind the large statues, you can see that archeologists are working to excavate and reconstruct the rest of the temple. The...

Ancient Egypt was cat country. The fertile Nile Valley and the arid surrounding desert were home to no less than seven species of cat, ranging from big cats like the great lion to the small desert cat that came to live with humans thousands of years ago. Cats, big and small, became an important part of daily life and religion in ancient Egypt.  Ancient Egyptians loved animals and kept many different species of cats. Lions were the companions of kings; nobles hunted with servals, caracals and cheetahs, while leopard skins clothed lector priests. Families viewed their cats as an essential...