Rediscovering Ancient Egypt and Egyptology

Aims of the course

This course aims to:
1. Introduce you to different ways of obtaining information from what has survived from Ancient Egypt;
2. Enable you to assess the use of archaeological excavation, museum objects and archive records;
3. Examine the use of written sources.

Content

The five sessions in this course will highlight a number of different ways in which Ancient Egypt has been rediscovered: through archaeology, through the study of texts, and the study of objects.

The archaeological aspect of the course will look at the excavation of the tomb of Senneferi at Luxor undertaken by Dr Nigel Strudwick and will give examples of how the careful and appropriate recovery of material remains, in this case pottery and coffins, can enhance our understanding of a site; it will also look at the recording of the paintings in the tomb and how this might be best done.

The written sources will consist of one session each of two very different sets of information. We will begin by looking at the range of information available from the Old Kingdom (the “Pyramid Age”, c. 2450–2150 BC) in its written sources, go into detail on the more detailed descriptions of what officials tell us about themselves, and also what can be learned from some of the oldest papyri in the world about administration. The second session takes a broad overview of the socalled “Tomb Robbery Papyri” and tells us about how tomb theft may have taken place, who the robbers were, and the economic effect it had on Thebes (modern Luxor) around 1100 BC.

A visit to the Egyptian Galleries of the Fitzwilliam Museum will highlight the wide range of objects in museum collections and give you a chance to learn more about the Museum’s Egyptian collection. The last talk will look at how we can find out more about the modern history of some ancient Egyptian objects, and how that study, in addition to the study of the objects themselves, can tell us something about collecting, the art trade, and how museum and other archive records can give us a fuller picture of several individual objects.

Presentation of the course

It will be done mostly by illustrated in-class talks followed by questions and discussion.

Class sessions

1. The excavation of the tomb of Senneferi at Luxor

2. The Old Kingdom (the “Pyramid Age”, c. 2450–2150 BC) in its written source

3. “Tomb Robbery Papyri”

4. Visit to the Egyptology Galleries at the Fitzwilliam Museum

5. The modern history of ancient Egyptian objects

Learning outcomes

The learning outcomes for this course are:
1. To have gained a better understanding of how Egyptian monuments and objects can be studied and preserved.
2. To be able to assess how we use written ancient sources in Egyptology, and how we evaluate their relative usefulness.
3. To be able to explain how museum collections have developed and the sorts of materials that are available for learning about them.

Required reading

Most of the subjects considered during the course rely on primary sources that are either hard to access or are not published. For better or worse, there is not a lot of reliable material about Ancient Egypt on the Internet.

Typical week: Monday to Friday

Courses run from Monday to Friday. For each week of study, you select a morning (Am) course and an afternoon (Pm) course. The maximum class size is 25 students. 

Courses are complemented by a series of daily plenary lectures, exploring new ideas in a wide range of disciplines. To add to the learning experience, we are also planning additional evening talks and events.

Evaluation and Academic Credit 

If you are seeking to enhance your own study experience, or earn academic credit from your Cambridge Summer Programme studies at your home institution, you can submit written work for assessment for one or more of your courses. 

Essay questions are set and assessed against the University of Cambridge standard by your Course Director, a list of essay questions can be found in the Course Materials. Essays are submitted two weeks after the end of each course, so those studying for multiple weeks need to plan their time accordingly. There is an evaluation fee of £75 per essay.

For more information about writing essays see Evaluation and Academic Credit.

Certificate of attendance

A certificate of attendance will be sent to you electronically after the programme.