The ancient Egyptians led a rich theological life. With 8,700 deities in their pantheon, religion played a central part in both their society and their daily lives. The heart of their religious devotions was the temple...

Xerxes I was Persia’s king from 486 to 465 B.C. His reign continued the Achaemenid Dynasty. He has come to be known to historians as Xerxes the Great. In his time, Xerxes I’s empire stretched from Egypt to parts of...

As with other cultures, the home was the centre of social life. Ancient Egyptian homes were built to a generally common layout using a limited range of natural materials. Most houses in ancient Egypt were built using...

Thanks to her role as the ancient Egyptian goddess of kindness and love, Hathor was one of the most popular deities, worshipped by pharaohs and queens through to ordinary people. Hathor also personified motherhood and...

In a religious pantheon brimming with 8,700 gods, the ancient Egyptians worshipped Ra ahead of all other gods. After all, Ra was the Egyptian god who created everything. In this role, Ra rose from a sea of turbulent...

Today, Tutankhamun’s tomb is considered to be one of the world’s great art treasures. When his burial items go on tour, they continue to draw record crowds. Its fame is due in no small part to the grave goods in King...

Few Pharaohs have captured the public imagination over succeeding generations than the young Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Ever since Howard Carter discovered his tomb in 1922, the world has been enthralled with the splendour...

Neferefre may not be amongst the most high profile of Egyptian pharaohs, however, he is one of the most thoroughly documented kings of the Old Kingdom’s (c. 2613-2181 BCE) Fifth Dynasty. Inscriptions, texts and...

An icon of ancient Egyptian culture, the enigmatic Great Sphinx of Giza is one of the most instantly recognizable artifacts in the world. Hewn from a single colossal limestone outcrop, the origins of this 20 metres (66...

In ancient Egypt, Isis was the much-loved goddess of fertility, motherhood, marriage, medicine and magic. Myths and legends abounded in the ancient world about Isis and have come down to us today through Egyptian...

That the ancient Egyptian civilization proved so resilient and endured for thousands of years was in no small part due to the system of government it evolved over centuries. Ancient Egypt developed and refined a...

Ancient Egypt was a culture rich in theological beliefs. In a religious cosmos featuring 8,700 major and minor deities, one god, Amun was consistently depicted as the Egyptian supreme creator-god and the king of all the...

The ancient Egyptian concept of ma’at or harmony and balance in all things lay at the heart of their approach to technology. Harmony and balance could be maintained by overcoming life’s problems with human ingenuity...

Alongside the pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, when we think of ancient Egypt, we immediately summon an image of an eternal mummy, swathed in bandages. Initially, it was the grave goods that accompanied the mummy into...

Ancient Egyptian medical practises were so advanced that many of their procedures and observations were not eclipsed by western medicine for centuries following the fall of Rome. Both the ancient Greeks and Roman...

Religion in ancient Egypt permeated every facet of society. Ancient Egyptian religion combined theological beliefs, ritual ceremonies, magical practices and spiritualism. Religion’s central role in everyday Egyptians’...

While Egypt’s Old Kingdom poured resources into building the Giza Pyramids and tombs in the Nile Delta, New Kingdom pharaohs, searched for a southern location closer to their dynastic roots in the south...

Education in ancient Egypt was shaped by its conservative social system. While education was valued, it was largely restricted to the children of those with means. As the same families often staffed civilian and...

Geb was the ancient Egyptian god of the earth. He was also one of the second generations of the nine gods who formed the Ennead of Heliopolis. Also known as Gebb, Kebb, Keb or Seb,  Geb was the third divine pharaoh. He...

Surely one of the world’s most evocative rivers as well as being its longest, the mighty Nile River surges imperiously ever northwards 6,650 kilometres (4,132 miles) from its origins in Africa to its mouth on the Uat-Ur...

People have played sports seemingly since the dawn of time when the first cities and organized civilisations emerged. Unsurprisingly, ancient Egyptians enjoyed both individual and team sports. Just as ancient Greece had...

Modern Alexandria is a port set on Egypt’s northern Mediterranean coast. Following his conquest of Syria in 332 BCE, Alexander the Great invaded Egypt and founded the city the following year in 331 BCE. It achieved fame...

One of the signature actions expected of every Egyptian pharaoh was the commissioning of monumental construction projects. These projects would celebrate the achievements of the pharaoh’s reign for all eternity...

The Ramesseum is a monumental funerary temple honouring Ramses II or Ramses the Great. It was commissioned to serve the king’s mortuary cult after Ramses’ death and was also consecrated to Amun the king of Egypt’s gods...

Hatshepsut (1479-1458 BCE) is considered to be one of ancient Egypt’s most revered if controversial rulers. Celebrated by Egyptologists as a commanding female sovereign whose rule ushered in a long period of military...

Modern-day Karnak is the contemporary name for the ancient Egyptian Temple of Amun. Set at Thebes, the ancient Egyptian referred to the site as Ipetsut, “The Most Select of Places,” Nesut-Towi, or...

When we think of the ancient Egyptians, we summon images of Giza’s pyramids, the vast Abu Simbel temple complex, the Valley of the Dead or King Tutankhamun’s death mask. Rarely do we get a glimpse of ordinary ancient...

At the heart of ancient Egypt’s culture is the belief in a host of deities and the central role they played in everyday life and the immortal journey every human soul underwent in the underworld. Ancient Egyptians...

Symbolising ancient Egypt’s cultural richness the Abu Simbel temple complex is a breathtaking statement of political and religious power. Originally carved into living rock, Abu Simbel is typical of Ramses II...

Nefertari means ‘beautiful companion’ and was the first of Rameses the Great’s Great Royal Wives. Known also as Nefertari Meritmutor or ‘Beloved of the goddess Mut’ Nefertari is one of Egypt’s...