The History of Egypt Podcast

4.5 (17)
History
Updated weekly

Ancient Egypt, from Creation to Cleopatra. This podcast tells the story of pharaonic Egypt "in their own words." Using archaeology, ancient texts, and up-to-date scholarship, we uncover the world of the Nile Valley and its people. Hosted on the Airwave Media Network.

1 day ago

Was Pharaoh literally a god? Listener Questions 1

Bonus episode. I took some listener questions in a livestream, and here they are. We cover topics like: Was pharaoh literally a god? How common was tattooing? Was there an ancient canal between the Nile and Red Sea? What are my recommended Egyptology books? And much more... If you'd like to join future Q-and-A sessions you can find them at www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast. If you would like to submit a question, drop it in the comments! There is a (shorter) video version of this QnA available at https://www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast/posts/qna-ask-me-june-162481450 Questions Top 3 Egyptology books: 00:55 Royal family tombs (like KV5): 06:50 Tattooing? 09:55 Was Pharaoh literally a god? 13:21 Linen - who made it and how? 18:50 What is the biggest misconception people have about ancient Egypt? 20:44 Perfumes: What do we know about them? 23:58 How long do you need at the GEM? 27:01 Best book about gods/mythology? 29:38 How do you pronounce Ra (or Re?) 30:56 What happened to Mortuary Temples after their owner died? 31:46 What role did dwarfs / little people play in ancient Egyptian society? 34:01 What role did foreigners play? Could they reach high status? 35:14 Could Beketaten be the mother of Tutankhamun? 39:05 Did Canaanite religion influence Egypt more, or vice versa? 39:52 Did Egyptian solar religion influence the Roman cult of Sol Invictus? 42:34 Gods and Goddesses: how prominent are the LOCAL deities in different regions? 44:20 When was the "Canal of the Pharaohs" connecting the Nile and Red Sea? 47:34 What are the most common biases in Egyptology? 49:01 The Oxford Encyclopedia The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt on Internet Archive: Vol.1 (A-F); Vol. 2 (G-O); Vol. 3 (P-Z). Tattooing Booth, C. (2001). Possible tattooing instruments in the Petrie Museum. Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 87, 172--175. http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/3822379.pdf Fletcher, J. (2005). The decorated body in ancient Egypt: Hairstyles, cosmetics and tattoos. In L. Cleland, M. Harlow, & L. Llewellyn-Jones (Eds.), The clothed body in the ancient world (pp. 3--13). Oxbow. Also, researcher Anne Austin has done some work on tattooing in ancient Egypt, and has uploaded some of it to YouTube (link) and her website: http://www.anneeaustin.com/tattooing-in-ancient-egypt/ Perfumes Perfumes: I recommend the work of Dora Goldsmith: Academia.edu and Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

52 min
2 days ago • Subscribers Only

Was Pharaoh literally a god? Listener Questions 1 (Ad-Free)

Bonus episode. I took some listener questions in a livestream, and here they are. We cover topics like: Was pharaoh literally a god? How common was tattooing? Was there an ancient canal between the Nile and Red Sea? What are my recommended Egyptology books? And much more... If you'd like to join future Q-and-A sessions you can find them at ⁠www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast Questions Top 3 Egyptology books: 00:55 Royal family tombs (like KV5): 06:50 Tattooing? 09:55 Was Pharaoh literally a god? 13:21 Linen - who made it and how? 18:50 What is the biggest misconception people have about ancient Egypt? 20:44 Perfumes: What do we know about them? 23:58 How long do you need at the GEM? 27:01 Best book about gods/mythology? 29:38 How do you pronounce Ra (or Re?) 30:56 What happened to Mortuary Temples after their owner died? 31:46 What role did dwarfs / little people play in ancient Egyptian society? 34:01 What role did foreigners play? Could they reach high status? 35:14 Could Beketaten be the mother of Tutankhamun? 39:05 Did Canaanite religion influence Egypt more, or vice versa? 39:52 Did Egyptian solar religion influence the Roman cult of Sol Invictus? 42:34 Gods and Goddesses: how prominent are the LOCAL deities in different regions? 44:20 When was the "Canal of the Pharaohs" connecting the Nile and Red Sea? 47:34 What are the most common biases in Egyptology? 49:01 The Oxford Encyclopedia The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt on Internet Archive: ⁠Vol.1⁠ (A-F); ⁠Vol. 2⁠ (G-O); ⁠Vol. 3⁠ (P-Z). Tattooing Booth, C. (2001). Possible tattooing instruments in the Petrie Museum. Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 87, 172--175. ⁠http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/3822379.pdf⁠ Fletcher, J. (2005). The decorated body in ancient Egypt: Hairstyles, cosmetics and tattoos. In L. Cleland, M. Harlow, & L. Llewellyn-Jones (Eds.), The clothed body in the ancient world (pp. 3--13). Oxbow. Also, researcher Anne Austin has done some work on tattooing in ancient Egypt, and has uploaded some of it to YouTube (⁠link⁠) and her website: ⁠http://www.anneeaustin.com/tattooing-in-ancient-egypt/⁠ Perfumes Perfumes: I recommend the work of Dora Goldsmith available on Academia.edu and Instagram (@prof_dora)

51 min
22 Jun • Subscribers Only

Ramesses Eternal with Prof. Peter Brand (Ad-Free)

Prof. Peter Brand joins us for one final conversation about Ramesses II: Egypt's "Ultimate Pharaoh." Extended: This episode is extended for subscribers and includes extra discussion about Ramesses' self-deification as "the Great God." If you haven't read it, I highly recommend Peter's book Ramesses II: Egypt’s Ultimate Pharaoh (2023). It covers everything I discussed, and much more, in exceptional detail.

19 min
22 Jun

Ramesses Eternal with Prof. Peter Brand

Prof. Peter Brand joins us for one final conversation about Ramesses II: Egypt's "Ultimate Pharaoh." If you haven't read it, I highly recommend Peter's book Ramesses II: Egypt’s Ultimate Pharaoh (2023). It covers everything I discussed, and much more, in exceptional detail. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

19 min
15 Jun

236: Legends of Ramesses "the Great"

How does Ramesses II stack up to his predecessors? Why did ancient writers connect him with the Trojan War? In this episode we explore tales of Ramesses, told in antiquity, and consider his legacy in the modern world. Music: Keith Zizza and Luke Chaos. Bibliography Brand, P. (2010a). Reuse and Restoration. In W. Wendrich (Ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2vp6065d Brand, P. (2010b). Usurpation of Monuments. In W. Wendrich (Ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5gj996k5 Brand, P. J. (2023). Ramesses II: Egypt’s Ultimate Pharaoh. Breasted, J. H. (1912). A History of Egypt. Bunsen, C. C. J. von. (1848). Egypt’s place in universal history: An historical investigation in five books (C. H. Cottrell, Trans.; Vols. 1–5). https://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015050932519 Cooney, K. M. (2022). The New Kingdom of Egypt Under the Ramesside Dynasty. In D. T. Potts, N. Moeller, & K. Radner (Eds.), The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume III: From the Hyksos to the Late Second Millennium BC (pp. 251--366). https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190687601.003.0027 Davies, B. G. (1997). Egyptian Historical Inscriptions of the Nineteenth Dynasty. Edwards, A. B. (1899). A Thousand Miles up the Nile (2nd edn). https://archive.org/details/thousandmilesupn0000edwa_e0y7/page/n9/mode/2up Kelly, B. (2010). Tacitus, Germanicus and the Kings of Egypt (tac. Ann. 2.59–61). The Classical Quarterly, 60(1), 221–237. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40984750 Kitchen, K. A. (1982). Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II, King of Egypt. Lietzelman, H. (2014). Pharaonism: Decolonizing Historical Identity. Prized Writing 2014-2015, 46–51. Neville, J. W. (1977). Herodotus on the Trojan War. Greece & Rome, 24(1), 3–12. https://www.jstor.org/stable/642683 Said, S. (2012). 2 Herodotus and the ‘Myth’ of the Trojan War. In E. Baragwanath & M. de Bakker (Eds.), Myth, Truth, and Narrative in Herodotus (pp. 87--106). https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199693979.003.0003 Sourouzian, H. (1988). Standing Royal Colossi of the Middle Kingdom Reused by Ramesses II. Mitteilungen Des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts, Abteilung Kairo, 44, 229--254. Sourouzian, H. (2019a). Catalogue de la statuaire royale de la XIXe dynastie [Database]. https://www.ifao.egnet.net/bases/publications/bietud177/ Sourouzian, H. (2019b). Catalogue de la statuaire royale de la XIXe dynastie. https://www.ifao.egnet.net/publications/catalogue/9782724707571/ Tyldesley, J. (2001). Ramesses: Egypt’s Greatest Pharaoh. Wilkinson, T. (2023). Ramesses the Great: Egypt’s King of Kings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

31 min
14 Jun • Subscribers Only

236: Legends of Ramesses "the Great" (Ad-Free)

How does Ramesses "the Great" stack up to his predecessors? How do scholars and audiences alike receive this grandiose ruler? In this episode we explore tales of Ramesses, told in antiquity, and consider his legacy in the modern world. Music: Keith Zizza and Luke Chaos.

29 min
8 Jun

235: Ramesses the Great God

In 1226 BCE, his sixty-seventh year of rule, the long life of Ramesses II finally ended. We explore his final decades, the difficult life revealed by his mummy, his ascent to status of "living god," and the aftermath of his reign. Music: Luke Chaos. Support the History of Egypt at www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast Select References: Balout, L., Roubet, C., & Desroches-Noblecourt, C. (1985). La momie de Ramsès: Contribution scientifique à l’Egyptologie. Brand, P. (2010). Reuse and Restoration. In W. Wendrich (Ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology online. Brand, P. J. (2023). Ramesses II: Egypt’s Ultimate Pharaoh. Demarée, R. J. (2016). Announcement of the passing of Ramesses II. JEOL, 46, 121--125. Academia.edu. Gallet, L. (2013). Karnak: The Temple of Amun-Ra-Who-Hears-Prayers. In W. Wendrich (Ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology online. Hawass, Z. A., & Saleem, S. N. (2016). Scanning the Pharaohs: CT Imaging in the New Kingdom Royal Mummies. Hornung, E., Krauss, R., & Warburton, D. (Eds.). (2006). Ancient Egyptian Chronology. Shehab El-Din, T. (1997). The title, “mdw jAwj”: “the staff of old age” “ 'ukkāza aš-šayḫuḫa.” Discussions in Egyptology, 37, 59--64. Academia.edu. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

31 min
6 Jun • Subscribers Only

235: Ramesses the Great God (Ad-Free)

In 1226 BCE, his sixty-seventh year of rule, the long life of Ramesses II finally ended. We explore his final decades, the difficult life revealed by his mummy, his ascent to status of "living god," and the aftermath of his reign. Music: Luke Chaos. Select References: Balout, L., Roubet, C., & Desroches-Noblecourt, C. (1985). La momie de Ramsès: Contribution scientifique à l’Egyptologie. Brand, P. (2010). Reuse and Restoration. In W. Wendrich (Ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. Brand, P. J. (2023). Ramesses II: Egypt’s Ultimate Pharaoh. Demarée, R. J. (2016). Announcement of the passing of Ramesses II. JEOL, 46, 121--125. Gallet, L. (2013). Karnak: The Temple of Amun-Ra-Who-Hears-Prayers. In W. Wendrich (Ed.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. Hawass, Z. A., & Saleem, S. N. (2016). Scanning the Pharaohs: CT Imaging in the New Kingdom Royal Mummies. Hornung, E., Krauss, R., & Warburton, D. (Eds.). (2006). Ancient Egyptian Chronology. Shehab El-Din, T. (1997). The title, “mdw jAwj”: “the staff of old age” “ 'ukkāza aš-šayḫuḫa.” Discussions in Egyptology, 37, 59--64.

29 min

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Dominic Perry

Host
Peter Brand

Guest
Peter Brand

Guest

4.5

out of 5

17 Ratings

Investigative History

09/01/2021

MutatisMutandis

An excellent walk through the history of ancient Egypt, with great depth and detail. The great charm of getting from someone who actually studies it, is that get dragged into the sleuthing, the uncertainties, the analysis of the evidence. Perry is very good at presenting the evidence, makes up his mind about the version he chooses as the most credible, but does let you retain some of the mystery.

Ancient Egypt, from Creation to Cleopatra. This podcast tells the story of pharaonic Egypt "in their own words." Using archaeology, ancient texts, and up-to-date scholarship, we uncover the world of the Nile Valley and its people. Hosted on the Airwave Media Network.