Author: Serkadis

Al Masry Al Youm (Heba Helmy and Nehal Mostafa)

A symposium was held yesterday at the Egyptian Museum by prominent author Youssef Maati and Engi Fayed, office manager for cultural development of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

The symposium, which lasted for almost two hours, focused on the relationship between Pharaonic history and Maati’s literary works including his movies, plays and books.

Most of Maati’s works are influenced by Pharaonic civilization, Maati said, adding, “I used to work as a tour guide for a long time before starting my writing career, which instilled in me a profound appreciation for Pharaonic heritage.”

Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes

Heritage Key

Sir William Flinders Petrie was one of the most revered Egyptologists in history, and a pioneer of systematic methodology in archaeology. He already had exploration in his blood before his birth in 1853; his grandfather was one of the first men to chart Australia. Whilst a child, his mother introduced him to Hebrew, Latin and Greek – which helped nurture his later obsession with the ancient past. As a young man Petrie developed a taste for geometry and engineering, spurred on by his industrial engineer father.

Later on he would allude the building of Stonehenge with that of the Great Pyramids at Giza, and speculated that pi must have been used in their development. His 1883 book The Pyramids and Temples of Giza still remains a key text on the subject of the structures’ construction and measurement. He then carried on his work at Tanis, Sehel and Fayoum – by which time he was already famous for discovering a great number of steles and pottery.

Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes

Art Museum Journal (Stan Parchin)

Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes

La Vanguardia

En Egipto, un estudio genético de la momia de Tutankamón acaba de desvelar que era hijo del faraón hereje, Akenatón, y ha desmitificado su imagen juvenil y bella. En Nueva York, el Met exhibe los objetos utilizados para su embasamiento. En Barcelona, el hospital Quirón acaba de reconstruir el rostro de una momia de la época del Fayum y el Museo de Arqueología muestra los rostros de 18 momias abandonadas en Tebas. En Alicante, otra exposición más revela los secretos de los ritos funerarios egipcios. Parece que las momias vuelven a estar de moda, si es que en 5.000 años dejaron alguna vez de estarlo. Y, si no, que se lo digan al arqueólogo José Miguel Parra, que se suma a la tendencia con el libro divulgativo Momias.

Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes

The Economist

LOOK at an ancient coin under ordinary light and the chances are that its features, worn down by its passage from hand to hand, will be hard to make out. Point a spotlight at it, though, so that the face of the coin is illuminated from an acute angle, and the resulting shadows will emphasise any minor details.

This is the basic principle behind a novel technique that is helping archaeologists reveal previously invisible clues hidden in the worn or damaged surfaces of any objects they uncover. From wall paintings in Herculaneum to Scandinavian stone tools to rock art in Libya, polynomial texture mapping, as the process is known, is proving an invaluable way to illuminate the past.
The Antikythera in a new light

The lighting method was originally developed by Tom Malzbender, a computer scientist at HP’s laboratory in Palo Alto, California, to generate better 3-D imagery for computer games. In its most basic form, the process involves capturing between 30 and 50 digital photos of an object of interest. The pictures are taken from directly above the object in a darkened room. Though the camera is fixed, the object is lit from a different angle in every shot. The photos are then combined on a computer to create an image that can have a “virtual” light shone from various angles to reveal any hidden surface detail.

Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes