Sekhmet: Goddess of Destruction and Healing

The blog post for this week has been written by Pam Llewellin. Pam is a retired Practice Manager and an amateur Egyptologist with a special interest in the ancient religions and goddesses of ancient Egypt. She also co-administers two ancient Egyptian history groups for which she researches articles and artifacts of interest to post daily to the Groups.

We had the third session of the Egypt Centre’s online course this week, examining the gods, goddesses, and demons of ancient Egypt, where Dr Griffin provided us with many interesting and unusual anthropomorphic goddesses. Some that were so rare that they had limited representations, and many that would have been quite difficult to find without Dr Griffin’s information as to their whereabouts. Several of the goddesses Dr Griffin mentioned could also be depicted in lioness-headed form and, although she was not mentioned in this particular part of the course, I would like to devote this blog to the lioness-headed goddess, Sekhmet (fig. 1). Apart from her character and history, I have a very personal reason to find her fascinating and evocative, but more of that later.

Statue of Sekhmet (W496)

Sekhmet’s name was derived from the word sḫm, which translates into “power” or “might” and she would be known as “The Powerful One” and “The One who loves Maat”. Sekhmet is mostly depicted semi-anthropomorphic with the body of a woman and the head of a lioness. She wears the sun disk and uraeus upon her head and can be seated or standing, usually holding the ankh in her right hand and the sekhem-sceptre in her left as a symbol of authority and power (fig. 2). Some ancient Egyptians believed that Sekhmet was one of the daughters of Ra, the king of the men and gods who ruled with his daughter, Maat, the goddess representing truth and justice. Others suggest that she is the daughter of Geb (god of the earth) and Nut (goddess of the sky). In one creation myth, she is brought into existence after Ra gazed upon the earth. In another version, an ageing Ra was so angry with humankind, he ripped out his own eye and threw it at mankind where the divine eye becomes Sekhmet.

Fig. 2: Statue of Sekhmet (BM EA 45)

In yet another, and my personal favourite, Ra becomes so enraged at the way in which humankind was plotting against him and going against the laws of maat that he tore the cobra from the uraeus on his head and turned it into a lioness-headed goddess. She would become Sekhmet, his warrior/weapon, created in order to wreak revenge on mankind for their behaviour. She would have a reputation for fighting, not retreating, just like the cobra from whom she is created. What Ra creates though, is a goddess with a bloodlust for death and a destructive power that she is unable to control. In his paranoia that mankind is plotting against him, and seeking retribution for what he perceives as the misdeeds of mankind, Ra sends Sekhmet to teach the people a lesson. In her passionate loyalty to both her father and her devotion to the principles of the goddess Maat, she is happy to carry out her duty to her father and embarks on a bloodthirsty and frenzied rampage against mankind.

When Ra can see that the killing spree of his daughter is in grave danger of extinguishing the human race, he wanted to find a way to stop Sekhmet. He devises a plan to distract Sekhmet and dictates that beer to be brewed in huge quantities and turned red (some say with mandrake, some with pomegranate, some with ochre) and orders the priests to spill the mixture onto the earth so that it resembles human blood. Sekhmet drinks the mixture until she is very intoxicated and sleeps for three days until her bloodlust is abated, and humanity saved. One version of the aftermath hangover is that the first person she sees when she wakes up is the god Ptah and instantly falls in love with him. Their union (creation and destruction) creates Nefertum and so re-establishes Ma’at (fig. 3). Another version of the myth is when she becomes sober, her bloodlust has dissipated, and she becomes the gentle aspect of herself in the body of the goddess Hathor.

Faience statue of Sekhmet and Nefertum (W1163)

The saving of mankind was commemorated every year on a feast day of Hathor/Sekhmet. Everyone drank beer stained with pomegranate juice and worshipped “the mistress and lady of the tomb, gracious one, destroyer of rebellion, mighty one of enchantments”. A statue of Sekhmet would be dressed in red facing west, representing Upper Egypt, while the considered counterpart to Sekhmet, Bastet, was dressed in green and faced east, representing Lower Egypt.

Sekhmet was worshipped throughout Egypt, particularly whenever a wadi opened out in the desert edges. This is the type of terrain that lions are often found. Many of them having come from the desert in order to drink and prey upon cattle in the area. Some believe that the worship of Sekhmet was possibly introduced into Egypt from Sudan because lions are more plentiful in that region. Sekhmet’s main cult centre was located in Memphis, and was part of the Divine Triad of Ptah, Sekhmet, and Nefertum (fig. 4). Sekhmet, as the wife of Ptah, the ‘Creator’, and their son Nefertum is also closely associated with healers and healing. Some scholars believe that Sekhmet’s worship might pre-date Ptah by at least several hundred years, but because of the shift in power from Memphis to Thebes during the New Kingdom (1550–1069 BC) the Theban Triad made up of Amun, Mut, and Khonsu resulted in Sekhmet’s attributes being absorbed into that of the goddess Mut.

Ramesses III before the Memphite Triad (BM EA 9999)

Sekhmet is one of the oldest known deities (nṯr) in Egyptian history. She is the patron of the physicians, physician-priests, and healers. She could be known as the “lady of terror” or “the lady of life”. Even though, to the ancient Egyptians, Sekhmet was a terrifying goddess, they also believed that she had a cure for every problem including plague and disease. In order to stay on her good side, they offered food and drink, played music for her, and burned incense. They would whisper their prayers into the ears of cat mummies and offer them to Sekhmet. They believed that there was a direct connection to their deities and their prayers would be answered. Sekhmet is closely associated with kingship, and often described as the mother of Mahes, the lion god who was a patron of the pharaoh. Pharaohs Nuiserre and Ramesses II would have reliefs constructed showing them being suckled by Hathor whose title is “mistress of the house of Sekhmet”. Ramesses II would adopt her as a symbol of power in the friezes of the battle of Kadesh at Abu Simbel where she appears on the horse with her flames scorching the bodies of the enemy soldiers. But, of all the Pharaohs, Amenhotep III was the most obsessed with Sekhmet. He commissioned hundreds of statues of the goddess in Karnak Temple, and this is where I can tell you about my connection with Sekhmet (fig. 5).

 

Fig. 5: Statue of Sekhmet at Karnak

In week two of the course, Dr Griffin mentioned a little-known temple in Karnak that is not on the usual ‘tourist route’: the temple of Ptah. By coincidence, I had Googled information about Karnak temple before I visited Luxor and the article mentioned an amazing statue of Sekhmet in the temple of Ptah at Karnak (fig. 6). Our guide arranged for us to see it during a visit to the temple. When we arrived at the inner part of the temple, one of the permanent temple guards came up to me and gave me the key to open the door. Even with the door to the sanctuary open, the inside was quite gloomy and stiflingly hot. The large black granite or diorite statue of the lioness-headed goddess was at the back of the room. The energy in the room was palpable. Sekhmet was in a standing position on a plinth holding the ankh in her left hand and the sekhem-sceptre in her right. She was quite a bit taller than me and I’m 5’8”. Above her head was a small opening where the sun shone through onto the sun-disk and uraeus on the top of her head.

Fig. 6: Statue of Sekhmet

I completely lost all awareness of the other people in the room, until the guard came up to me and told me to place my left hand in front of Sekhmet’s forehead and move it slowly down the length of the statue until I reached her feet. Standing on my tip toes to reach, I placed my hand in front of her forehead. Even without physically touching her, I could feel how hot her statue was. At the same time, a gentle but unmistakable surge of energy came in a wave through my body from my head to my feet and I felt quite disorientated. It only lasted a few seconds, but it left me with a numb feeling in my left thigh (it lasted for three days – I could stick a pin in it and not feel anything!) and I was feeling completely manic and unsteady on my feet!

For three days, I could neither eat nor sleep, I was still manic, and I kept reliving in my head what had happened, trying to make some sense of it. No-one else in the party experienced anything similar, although some said they felt “something” but could not explain any further.

When I arrived home, I started to research more about Sekhmet, who she was, what she represented, anything I could find about her. As I read, I began to recognise aspects about her that I could somehow identify with and understand. I understood her loyalty and her passion, and I became increasingly aware, in a strange way, that I was “feeling” what it might be like to experience the energy one would need to “be” Sekhmet. It came as no shock to realise that she could represent that neglected and disowned part of my psyche that C.G. Jung described as the “shadow” self - that aspect which is an invisible but inseparable part of our psychic totality. It was an amazing feeling to be able to get to know more about myself through knowing her and I am so grateful for what I believe was the great gift I was given. Was the energetic exchange in the temple a healing portal for me? Most definitely. Can I explain it? Most definitely not!

Bibliography

Germond, Philippe 1981. Sekhmet et la protection du monde. Aegyptiaca Helvetica 9. Genève: Éditions de Belles-Lettres.

Graves-Brown, Carolyn 2010. Dancing for Hathor: women in ancient Egypt. London: Continuum.

Känel, Frédérique von 1984. Les prêtres-ouâb de Sekhmet et les conjurateurs de Serket. Bibliothèque de l’École des hautes études. Sciences religieuses 87. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.

Wilkinson, Richard H. 2003. The complete gods and goddesses of ancient Egypt. London: Thames & Hudson.

Anthropomorphic Deities and the God Seth

The blog post for this week is written by Judit Blair, who has a Masters in Ancient Near Eastern religions and a PhD in Hebrew and the Old Testament, both from the University of Edinburgh. Judith is a Teaching Fellow at the Centre for Open Learning (COL) Edinburgh University and a Tutor at Glasgow University where she teaches such courses as Ancient Egypt and the Bible, Aspects of Ancient Near Easter Demonology, and Ancient Monsters. Judith is also a member of Egyptology Scotland and the EES.

 

The second week of the latest Egypt Centre online course Gods, Goddesses and Demons of Ancient Egypt focused on male anthropomorphic deities. A total of thirty-seven gods and demons, as well as five deified humans were introduced in alphabetic order. The list included major gods such as Atum, Ra, Thoth, or Seth who were worshipped throughout Egypt and had many cult centres; minor deities, e.g. Bes, who although popular, had no formal cult, as well as deities such as Andjety (Busiris) and Ash (Western Desert), who were ancient, local gods, closely associated with and assimilated by other known deities (Osiris and Seth respectively). Ken introduced some rare and obscure figures too, for example Kheded (fig. 1), associated with fowling and marshes, of whom there are only about eight known attestations, Sehaqeq, the demon of headaches, who appears in a few Ramesside spells from Deir el-Medina and is once depicted as a young man with his tongue on his backside and covering his face with his hand (Lucarelli 2010: 4). Weneg, a son of Ra, appears only once in PT 952c and there are no known depictions of him.

Fig. 1: The god Kheded

The classification of some of these beings is ambiguous as some scholars regard them as gods while others would classify them as demons. A good example is Bes, who has been regarded as a popular household deity, a minor god (Hart 2005: 49; Wilkinson 2003: 102) as well as a spirit or benevolent demon (Gahlin 2001: 198). In this blog I would like to focus on my favourite deity, Seth.

Seth, Lord of Chaos

Seth had an ambiguous and complex character existing somewhere between the transitory and the everlasting, on the boundary that separates order from chaos (Hornung 1970: 158). His early significance is quite different from his later image. He was originally worshipped in Ombos; here he was regarded as the chief god of the Eastern Desert and the rich gold mines there (fig. 2). However, following the myth of his murder of his brother Osiris and his attempt to take the throne, he appears to represent evil, disorder and everything foreign (Turner 2012: 14).

Fig. 2: Wooden statue of Seth (W458)

Earlier works on Seth (e.g. Te Velde 1967) tend to focus on three specific aspects of the god’s character: murderer, homosexual, and lord of foreign lands. This approach sets him apart within the Egyptian pantheon and labels him as an “irregular deity whom the ancients had to deal with the best they could” (Shanley 2015: Abstract). More recent research has challenged these perceptions and shows that Seth, perhaps misunderstood, was an integral part of the Egyptian pantheon (fig. 3), and like the other members, had a “fluid and flexible character that changed in relation to the context in which he was found” (Shanley 2015: Abstract).

Fig. 3: The god Seth

The name of Seth and its meaning

The name of the god Seth occurs in many different forms in Egyptian texts. In the Pyramid Texts (except that of Unas where it is written with the Seth-animal hieroglyph) it is śtš. Te Velde (1967: 1) gives the spellings: śtš; stš; śtẖ; stẖ; ś(w)tḫ; śtḫ; ś(w)t(y); st(y); śt, arguing that these are all various spellings of the same name (fig. 4).

Fig. 4: Varient writings of the name Seth

The meaning of the name is uncertain, with various suggestions proposed. According to Te Velde (1967: 7) the Egyptians seem to have attached three meanings to his name: instigator of confusion, deserter, drunkard. The Seth-animal hieroglyph is used as a determinative in the writing of some words, which refer to something disruptive, fear-arousing and troublesome (Te Velde 1967: 22–23; McDonald 2007: 10).

Iconography

Seth can be represented in animal form (the Seth-animal) or as a man with the Seth-animal head or human head. The earliest occurrence of the Seth-animal is possibly on the mace-head of King Scorpion, although there are suggestions that it can be seen on some Nagada I finds (Te Velde 1967: 7–12). In semi-anthropomorphic form, Seth can be represented wearing the Double Crown. On a stela from the Manchester Museum (Stela of Anhotep, AN 4528) he is standing before an altar (fig. 5). The inscription at the top reads: “Seth of Nubt, lord of provisions, great of strength, powerful of arm” (Turner 2012: 74). A stela from Cairo Museum, which dates to the reign of Thutmose III shows a similar representation of Seth (fig. 5).    

                  

Fig. 5: Cairo Museum stela of Seth wearing the Double Crown (author's photo)

Seth is also often depicted together with Horus. For example, on the side of the throne of Senwosret I, the two gods are shown cooperating in the uniting of Egypt. The pharaohs Seti I, Ramesses II, and Ramesses III all have scenes/statues showing them being crowned by Horus and Seth (fig. 6). There are also examples of Seth with a bull’s head, a falcon’s head, and an ass’ head (Te Velde 1967: Plates VIII, IX and VI).

Fig. 6: Ramesses III with Horus and Seth. Cairo Museum (author's photo)

Worship

Seth is an ancient deity; some scholars have hypothesized that items possibly depicting the Seth animal dating from the Naqada I Period might point to a worship at this time (Turner 2012: 24). Close to the First Dynasty king Aha’s tomb ten donkey burials were discovered, and it is possible that as the donkey was an animal associated with Seth. These burials could be an indication of his worship (Turner 2012: 33). What is most interesting is the fact that the queens of the First Dynasty bore the title “she who sees Horus-and-Seth”. This title remained in use throughout the Old Kingdom. Two Second Dynasty kings favoured Seth; Peribsen’s serekh was topped by the Seth animal, and Khasekhemwy had both the Horus falcon and the Seth animal on top of his (Hart, 144). Seth appears on a number of monuments from the Middle Kingdom; Amenemhat I, Senwosret I, and Senwosret III all have scenes depicting Seth as a royal god who plays a part in the king’s sed-festival (Cruz-Uribe 2009: 211; Turner 2012: 50).

There is abundant evidence for the prominence of Seth in the New Kingdom. He played an important role in the sed-festival of the king. There is even evidence that he continued to be worshipped by the people during the Amarna Period. After this, Horemheb acknowledged the god, and, during the time of the Ramesside kings he became their family god, achieving perhaps the highest status he has ever held. The warrior kings of the New Kingdom recognised Seth’s war-like attributes, and had likened themselves to him on the battlefield (Turner 2012: 77–97; Te Velde 1967: 135–138). Ramesses II placed a great importance on the worship of Seth (fig. 7). His army consisted of four divisions, of Amun, Ra, Ptah and Seth. Seth was a state god.

Fig. 7: Ramesses II with Horus and Seth. Temple of Nefertari, Abu Simbel (author's photo)

The complex character of Seth is also reflected in his portrayal in the religious texts. The Pyramid Texts and Coffin Texts portray him in a negative, positive, and neutral light. His power and strength are aspects emphasised in the positive texts along with his role as the protector of the solar bark. The Book of the Dead portrays Seth frequently in a negative light, but he is also shown as a positive force in the same spells. He is the defender of Ra’s barque against Apepi (fig. 8). His positive side was also reflected in the fact that his name was incorporated into people’s personal names, and this points to the fact that he was not only a state god but also venerated by the ordinary people of the period. However, after the New Kingdom the importance of Seth began to fade. During the Late and Graeco-Roman periods, Seth became demonised. Plutarch and other Greek writers identified Seth with Typhon. This name carried such “unfavourable” connotations that it could be regarded as a term of abuse (Te Velde 1967: 149).

Fig. 8: Seth spearing Apepi

References

Cruz-Uribe E. (2009). “Seth, God of Power and Might”. Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 45: 201–226.

Gahlin L. (2001). Egypt. Gods, Myths and Religion. London: Lorenz Books

Hart G. (2005). The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. London and New York: Routledge

Hornung E. (1970). “Review of Te Velde’s: Seth, God of Confusion”. Orientalistische Literaturzeitung 65: 17–20.

Lucarelli R. (2010). Demons (benevolent and malevolent). In Jacco Dieleman, Willeke Wendrich (eds.), UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, Los Angeles. http://digital2.library.ucla.edu/viewItem.do?ark=21198/zz0025fks3  

McDonald, A. (2007). “A metaphor for troubled times: the evolution of the Seth deity determinative in the First Intermediate Period”. Zeitschrift für ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde 134, 26–39.

Shanley A. J. (2015). God of Confusion?: An Examination of the Egyptian God Seth in New Kingdom Expressions of Royal Ideology. Phd Thesis, Emory University, Faculty of the James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies

Te Velde H. (1967). Seth, God of Confusion: A study of his role in Egyptian mythology and religion. Leiden: E.J. Brill.

Turner P. J. (2012). Seth – A misrepresented God in the Ancient Egyptian Pantheon? Phd Thesis, University of Manchester, Faculty of Life Sciences

Wilkinson H. R. (2003). The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt. London: Thames & Hudson.

Abaset: A Prickly Goddess?

The blog post for this week has been written by Sam Powell. Sam is an Egypt Centre volunteer, director at Abaset Collections Ltd, and regular contributor to this blog.

This week was the first of the latest five-week Egypt Centre online course looking at Gods, Goddesses, and Demons of Ancient Egypt. This course has been long anticipated by many regular attendees, as Ken often includes many strange and obscure deities in his classes for us to try and identify, encouraging us to hunt out the various clues such as the iconography, hieroglyphs, and epithets used to identify the deity in question so we can recognise them for ourselves in the future.

The first deity we looked at as part of the introduction to the course was the goddess Abaset, as she is the namesake for Abaset Collections, the software I created to host the Egypt Centre Online Collection (which is also usually referred to as Abaset). The Egypt Centre Online Collection was launched in October 2020, and as well as being the place for attendees to access the recordings of the classes, its main purpose is to host the online catalogue allowing you to search the entire collection of nearly 6,000 objects housed in the Egypt Centre’s galleries and stores (https://abasetcollections.com).

When looking for a name to refer to the software by, I initially chose “Abaset” as I wanted to pay homage to the little hedgehogs often seen in wildlife scenes trotting along focused on an insect, oblivious to the chaos surrounding them and just getting the job done (something I aspire for the software to also do!). But as I have found out more about this goddess (fig. 1), she certainly does seem to be a good patron for Abaset Collections.

Figure 1: The goddess Abaset (Sherbiny & Bassir. 2014: 183)

The goddess Abaset is known from only two depictions in a single tomb in the Bahariya Oasis, belonging to a Twenty-sixth Dynasty merchant named Bannentiu. The translation of her name ꜥb-ꜣst is unclear, but it may translate to praising or boasting to Isis, as ꜥb can be read as “to boast” or “to praise”. Since the Egypt Centre Online Collection is a way of praising the amazing collection held in Swansea, I think this can be seen as a good match! She is given the fairly standard epithets such as “the great goddess” and “the mistress of heaven” clearly marking her status as a goddess, but it is difficult to identify further information about her role as a deity from such limited sources. There is some discussion of Abaset being a goddess of Libyan origin, but the inclusion of the goddess Isis within the name makes an Egyptian origin more probable. In one of the two scenes the words of Abaset are given in which she instructs Horus and Anubis to “pay attention every day to (?) the tears of Isis...” showing her place amongst the Egyptian pantheon.

 

The goddess Abaset is shown in human form wearing a red dress. She clearly has some association with hedgehogs as she is depicted with one atop her vulture headdress. I had wanted to name the software after the Egyptian word for hedgehog, but there only seems to be words encompassing all “prickly” creatures (ḥntj or ḥntꜣ), and so the hedgehog goddess Abaset seems a good compromise. There are two species of hedgehog known from ancient Egypt; the long-eared desert hedgehog, and the bigger desert hedgehog, and they appear in wildlife scenes, as the prows of boats, and even being carried in tribute scenes. The Egypt Centre is home to two, or possibly three depictions of hedgehogs, the former two of which are on loan from the British Museum. The first, BM EA 4764, is a hedgehog aryballos, a small globular flask which would have contained oil or perfume. It is made of faience and dates to the Late Period (fig. 2).

Figure 2: BM4764 (image at https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/Y_EA4764)

The second, BM EA 37826, is a steatite amulet in the form of a hedgehog, and is less than a centimetre tall. The base forms a seal stamp of a seated deity and a mn sign. The final object is an intriguing one. W1155a is a faience ring bezel from Amarna (fig. 3). The image upon it is very difficult to interpret as it shows a creature surrounded by wiggly lines. It was first though to show a centipede surrounded by its many wiggly legs. This was then thought more likely to be a hedgehog with its prickly spikes. However, since being compared to a very similar piece in Liverpool World Museum (56.20.1001), it seems more probable to be a gazelle in front of the fronds of a palm leaf (Graves-Brown 2014, 121–123).

 

Figure 3: The mysterious creature upon ring bezel W1155a

In class, we discussed the importance of the names of the various deities being spoken to allow them to continue to exist, so I hope the goddess Abaset would be very pleased with the number of times her name is uttered on a daily basis in the Egypt Centre and in Ken’s classes. In Abaset Collections news, I will be co-presenting the launch of a new online collection (further details to follow soon!) in September as part of the Egypt Centre’s conference celebrating fifty years of the Wellcome collection being in Swansea; hopefully Abaset will be smiling down favourably on us!

Figure 4: I’m sure Abaset would approve of the Abaset Collections logo complete with hedgehog

 

Graves-Brown, Carolyn 2014. A gazelle, a lute player and Bes: three ring bezels from Amarna. In Dodson, A. M., John J. Johnston, and W. Monkhouse (eds), A good scribe and an exceedingly wise man: studies in honour of W. J. Tait, 113–126. London: Golden House.

Shaikh Al Arab, Walid 2019. The hedgehog goddess Abaset. Papyrologica Lupiensia 28, 81–102.

Sherbiny, Hend and Hussein Bassir 2014. The representation of the hedgehog goddess Abaset at Bahariya Oasis. Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt 50, 171–189.

Vandier, Jacques 1964. Iousâas et (Hathor)-Nébet-Hétépet. Revue d’égyptologie 16, 55–146.

Droste zu Hülshoff, Vera von 1980. Der Igel im alten Ägypten. Hildesheimer Ägyptologische Beiträge 11. Hildesheim: Gerstenberg.

Conference Announcement: Fifty Years of the Wellcome Collection at Swansea and Beyond

On the 17^th September 1971, ninety-two crates consisting of some 4,500 objects (mainly Egyptian) arrived to Swansea University. This was part of dispersal of the Egyptian material at the Wellcome Collection, which probably amassed somewhere in the region of 20,000 objects. To mark the fiftieth anniversary of this event, the Egypt Centre will be hosting a free three-day Zoom conference (fig. 1). The conference will focus on Wellcome’s Egyptian and Sudanese collections, which were dispersed to numerous institutions following his death in 1936. The event will feature talks and virtual handling sessions by curators, collections managers, and researchers associated with the Wellcome material.

Fig. 1: Fifty year celebration logo

While tickets for this event are free, registration via our Eventbrite page is required. Once registered, you will receive an automated email from Eventbrite containing the Zoom link. If you have not received this within 24 hours of booking, please contact Ken Griffin at k.griffin@swansea.ac.uk

The programme for this event is presented below, with the times listed being BST (UK times). We look forward to having you join us for this event and to celebrate an important milestone in the history of the Egypt Centre!

Day 1: Wednesday 15 September

13.00–13.15: Introductory remarks

13.15–13.45: Ruth Horry (Collections Curator – Exhibitions, Wellcome) - Henry Wellcome’s Historical Medical Museum: an introduction to collecting, display and dispersals

13.45–14.15: Isabelle Vella Gregory (Deputy Director of the Jebel Moya excavations) - Piecing together the archaeological history of Jebel Moya, Sudan

14.15–14:45: Discussion panel with John Baines (Professor Emeritus at Oxford University) & Alan Lloyd (Professor Emeritus at Swansea University)

14:45–15.00: Break

15.00–15.30: Ken Griffin (Collections Access Manager of the Egypt Centre) - The Egyptian Collection of Sir Henry Wellcome

15.30–16.00: Stephanie Boonstra (Collections Manager at the Egypt Exploration Society) - Nefertiti lived there: a look at the 1930–31 EES excavation at Amarna

16.00–16.30: Frances Larson (author of An infinity of things: how Sir Henry Wellcome collected the world) - “A perfect whirl of delight”: Winifred Blackman in Egypt

16.30–17.00: Rachel Barclay (Curator at Oriental Museum, Durham) – “Contained in tea chests with no lists or identification”: the Wellcome Collection of Egyptology at the Oriental Museum, Durham University

 

Day 2: Thursday 16 September

13.00–13.30: Campbell Price (Curator of Egypt and Sudan, Manchester Museum) & Molly Osborne - Wellcome Material in Manchester

13.30–14.00: Ian Trumble (Curator of Archaeology, Egyptology and World Cultures, Bolton Museum) - The Wellcome Collection at Bolton Museum

14.00–14.30: Manchester Museum handling session/tour

14.30–15.00: Bolton Museum handling session/tour

15.00–15.15: Break

15.15–15.45: Lee Robert McStein (Technical Director at Monument Men) - The curious case of the Deir el-Bahari casts

16.45–16.15: Anna Garnett (Curator of the Petrie Museum), Kyle Jordan and Daniel Bailey - The Wellcome Collection and the Petrie Museum: Past and Present

16.15–16.45: Helen Strudwick (Senior Assistant Keeper – Egyptian Antiquities, The Fitzwilliam Museum) - Wellcome to the Fitzwilliam: the rediscovery of a collection of Egyptian objects in Cambridge

16.45–17.15: Selina Hurley (Curator of Medicine, The Science Museum) - Reviewing the Wellcome Egyptology material held on loan at the Science Museum

  

Day 3: Friday 17 September

13.00–13.30: Ashley Cooke (Lead Curator of Antiquities, World Museum Liverpool) - Rising from the ashes: how the Wellcome Collection came to the aid of Liverpool’s war-torn museum

13.30–14.00: Carolyn Graves-Brown (Curator of the Egypt Centre) - From Wellcome to Swansea: the history of the Swansea Wellcome collection

14.00–14.30: Swansea Wellcome Museum video recording from 1976

14.30–15.00: The Egypt Centre handling session/tour

15.00–15.15: Break

15.15–15.45: Alexandra Eveleigh (Collections Information Manager, Wellcome) - Transcribe Wellcome: piecing together the Wellcome collections’ diaspora

15.45–16.00: Ersin Hussein (Lecturer in Ancient History – Swansea University) - Launch of the Egypt and its Neighbours display

16.00–16.15: Dulcie Engel (Egypt Centre volunteer)- Kate’s museum: transcribing the daybooks of Käthe Bosse Griffiths

16.15–16.30: Ken Griffin (Collections Access Manager of the Egypt Centre) & Sam Powell (Director at Abaset Collections Ltd) - Launch of a new online catalogue

16.30–17.00: Closing discussion

Short Course on the Gods, Goddesses, and Demons of the Ancient Egyptians

Over the past year, the Egypt Centre has organised seven successful short courses via Zoom. The COVID lockdown has provided this new platform and allowed us to attract a larger and more international audience. These courses have been attended by 981 participants, which is much more than what would have been possible had they taken place at Swansea. Sessions take place on Sunday evenings and are repeated live on Wednesday mornings. Additionally, recordings of the sessions are made available to students via our online catalogue. Thus, the courses are accessible to participants wherever they are in the world, regardless of time differences or other commitments!

Fig. 1: Khabekhnet and Sahte before Ptah, Ptah-Sokar, and Isis (W927)

This coming Sunday (18 July), we will have the first session of a new course entitled Gods, Goddesses, and Demons of Ancient Egypt (fig. 1). The ancient Egyptians are well known for their worship of hundreds of gods, goddesses, and demons over the course of 3,000 years. Some were seen as creator deities, while others could be evoked for their protection. They could be depicted as humans, animals, or a combination of both. This course will present many of the gods, goddesses, and demons of the Egyptian pantheon, including several deified officials. It will include an examination of their iconography, places of worship, and the hieroglyphs used to identify them. While many of the names will be familiar, such as Amun, Osiris, and Horus, others are more obscure, such as Apedemak (fig. 2), Hatmehyt, Shezmu. Throughout the course, the sessions will incorporate objects from the Egypt Centre collection, many of which are not widely known to Egyptologists (fig. 3).

As with previous courses, this one will take place over five weeks:

Week 1 (Sunday 18 July or Wednesday 21 July)

Week 2 (Sunday 25 July or Wednesday 28 July)

Week 3 (Sunday 01 August or Wednesday 04 August)

Week 4 (Sunday 08 August or Wednesday 11 August)

Week 5 (Sunday 15 August or Wednesday 18 August)

Relief of Apedemak (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Apedemak)

Each week we will be examining a series of gods, goddesses, and demons, focusing on their iconography and cult centres. Additionally, I will provide the most common hieroglyphs used for each deity, which are the primary means of identification. Those of you who have taken courses with me before will know that I like to include pictures of obscure deities, so this course will provide the perfect opportunity for me to do so!

Fig. 3: Coffin fragment depicting several deities (W1050)

This course costs £40, with fees going directly to supporting the Egypt Centre as we continue to remain closed to visitors. Your place on the course can be booked via the following link. We are grateful to everyone who has supported us, and continue to do so, over the past year!

Reflecting on the Past: The Display of Egyptian Mummies

Just over a year ago Swansea University launched its annual Research as Art competition. At the time I was writing an assignment on the ethical issues relating to the display of ancient Egyptian human remains as part of my MA in Museum Studies at Leicester University. Therefore, I decided to submit an image I took the previous year of my good friend Mohamed Shabib gazing into the face of the mummy of Ramesses I, which is displayed at Luxor Museum. The photo (fig. 1) was submitted under the title Reflecting on the Past: The Display of Egyptian Mummies, with Mohamed listed as a collaborator. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic, the results of the competition were delayed until this past week. We were both absolutely thrilled to have been announced as the overall winner for the 2021 event and are most grateful to the panel who selected our entry!

Fig. 1: Mohamed Shabib gazing into the face of Ramesses I

The winning photo was taken when Mohamed and I visited Luxor Museum to see the recently displayed temporary exhibition called South Asasif Necropolis: Journey Through Time, a project we have both been involved in for many years (fig. 2). While at the museum we looked around the permanent displays, including the mummy room. For Mohamed, this was his first time seeing the mummies of Ahmose II, Egypt’s great liberator, and Ramesses I, the grandfather of Ramesses the Great. I noticed Mohamed gazing into the face of the latter ruler, his back slightly bent as if showing his humility (a pose well-known from the reign of Seti I, the son of Ramesses I). Additionally, Mohamed’s reflection on the glass case appeared as if the spirit of Ramesses was rising from the corpse to communicate with Mohamed. I quickly took out my mobile phone and captured the image. A split second later and the opportunity would have been lost, for as soon as I snapped the image Mohamed had turned to me smiling. Upon seeing the photo, Mohamed was delighted and bursting with pride. We also discussed how he felt about seeing the mummies of his ancestors displayed in the museum.

Fig. 2: South Asasif exhibition at Luxor Museum

There is no doubt that the display of mummies, human remains, and skeletons is popular with museum visitors.  The naturally mummified body of the Gebelein man, commonly referred to as “Ginger” due to his colour, is one of the most popular attractions in the British Museum.  Schoolchildren in particular have a deep fascination for Egyptian mummies, perhaps emanating from their curiosity. Day (2014, 34) notes that this curiosity is likely the result of mummies being the first dead body that many people see. The display of mummies can create a variety of emotions, including awe and wonder. Human remains can be inspirational and have the ability to shape future career choices. In fact, my own career as an Egyptologist was shaped by regular visits to the Ulster Museum at a young age to see the mummy of Takabuti (fig. 3).

Fig. 3: The mummy of Takabuti in the Ulster Museum

The public unwrapping of Egyptian mummies was a popular pastime amongst the British elite of the nineteenth century. These “performances” attracted large crowds of up to 3,000 people, with each attendee paying an entrance fee. This fee often included attendees receiving a section of the unwrapped bandages as a souvenir (fig. 4). Writing in 1998, Montserrat (1998, 182) noted that the unwrapping of Egyptian mummies still fascinated people despite the practice of public unwrapping no longer being acceptable. This is still the case, as can be seen by the sold-out 2016 enactment of a Victorian unwrapping “party” at Barts Pathology Museum in London, led by the Egyptologist John Johnston. Several years prior, in 2011, Channel 4 aired the award-winning documentary Mummifying Alan, which carried the sub-title Egypt’s Last Secret. The documentary followed Alan Billis, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, in the last few weeks of his life. Following his death, Alan was mummified using ancient Egyptian techniques, with opinions divided as to whether it was a “genuinely fascinating scientific experiment or a macabre and tasteless example of TV sensationalism.” This fascination with Egyptian mummies and the lives they represent led Montserrat (1998) to term them “erotics of biography.”

Fig. 4: Mummy cloth from an unwrapping party

The Egypt Centre’s policy on human remains is as follows:

10.1. As the Museum holds one item of human remains possibly under 100 years old (EC3445), it is listed on the database of the College of Medicine, Swansea University who has obtained the necessary licence under the Human Tissue Act 2004 and any subordinate legislation from time to time in force.

10.2. As the Museum also holds human remains from any period, it follows the procedures in the “guidance for the care of human remains in museums” issued by DCMS in 2005. Moreover, the Museum does not display any unwrapped human remains.

 

In total, the Egypt Centre holds twenty-two items that are catalogue as human remains. Point 10.2 of the Museum’s Collection Development Policy notes that the Egypt Centre does not display any unwrapped human remains, but does it really matter if they are wrapped or not? One of the highlights of the collection is the cartonnage mummy of a child (W1013), which is on display in the House of Death gallery (fig. 5). A recent CT-scan revealed that the cartonnage contained a 12–16 week old foetus. This begs the question, is it acceptable to display human remains if they are fully covered or concealed within their wrappings or coffins? Additionally, what is likely to be more upsetting to visitors, an unwrapped adult mummy or fully wrapped or enclosed mummified baby? Moreover, how does the Museum balance the views of its visitors, most of whom have no objections to the display of human remains? What the Egypt Centre strives to do is present appropriate interpretation labels next to objects identified as having the potential to cause distress. Additionally, the new Egypt Centre online catalogue includes a graphic stating “images depicting human remains only available on request” in place of a photograph of the object (fig. 6).

Fig. 5: Cartonnage containing a foetus (W1013)

The Egypt Centre staff frequently arrange tours of the museum store for volunteers, students, and occasionally members of the public. This is a unique opportunity for visitors to see those items in the collection that are not on display. What is most telling is that when given a choice of what to see, the majority of visitors request the mummified remains, both human and animal. Of course, when in groups, visitors are always warned in advance before viewing human remains in case they would rather opt out. This has been repeated during more recent virtual tours of the store via Zoom. Rather than complete mummies, these human remains largely consist of specific body parts, including heads, arms, and feet. Yet the most requested item amongst volunteers and students is a beautifully preserved mummified baby, which still has tufts of its hair. What does this tell us about the visitors? It is possible that the experience of many visitors seeing Egyptian mummies in museums has desensitised or normalised the idea that bodies of an ancient culture “belong” in museums.

Fig. 6: Restricted view of human remains on the Egypt Centre catalogue

If human remains are displayed, whether wrapped or unwrapped, what is the best practice? Antoine (2014, 7) notes that “the display of human remains in museums should, as far as possible, be informed and guided by current opinion as well as conceived with care, respect and dignity.” Unsurprisingly, “respect” is the most commonly used word to describe how human remains should be treated and displayed. Yet how does one determine what does and does not constitute respect? In 2008, Manchester University covered three unwrapped mummies with cloth, citing respect as their primary reason. Interestingly, Day (2014, 30) points out that the decision to cover the mummies was made without canvassing visitors’ views and that the majority of comments made after suggested that the public actually favoured them being uncovered. Marstine (2011, 19) raises an important point when she says that “an ancient Egyptian mummy is equally as deserving of respect as are human remains from the Second World War.” Interestingly, a 2002 survey (Kilminster 2003, 61) found that most people felt it would be disrespectful to display human remains that were less than 100 years old since they were “too close in time to us today” (Kilminster (2003, 61).

The Museums Association advise that museums should consult with the country of origin when displaying human remains. While the practice of displaying human remains in Egyptian museums has changed over time, the current policy is that mummies should be exhibited. This is certainly the case with the mummies of Ahmose II and Ramesses I at Luxor museum, which are displayed in a separate exhibition space. Visitors ascend several steps into a darkened room where labels and interpretation panels are minimal. This display creates a dignified and tranquil setting, which is befitting of these two great rulers (fig. 7). Just a few months ago the bodies of twenty-two kings and queens of Egypt’s New Kingdom (c. 1,550–1,100 BC) were relocated from the Cairo Museum to the newly built National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation (NMEC) in a spectacular “Golden Parade”. These actions show the upmost respect and honour afforded to the former rulers of Egyptian history by the current population. 

Fig. 7: The mummy of Ahmose II displayed at Luxor Museum

In formulating the decision as to whether museums should display human remains, various stakeholders should be consulted. This can include museum staff and officials, religious groups, researchers and students, people from the country of origin, and the general public. However, in the end the decision must be made by the individual museums, using their own judgement as to what best fits their museum. In the case of the Egypt Centre, the decision has been made not display unwrapped human remains since the Museum only has body parts rather than complete mummies. One group who has long been overlooked when discussing Egyptian mummies is the ancient Egyptians themselves. Would they have wanted their bodies to be displayed in museums for everyone to see? While this is somewhat impossible to answer, the following passage by Diodorus Siculus may suggest that the answer was probably yes.

“Many Egyptians keep the bodies of their ancestors in costly chambers and gaze face to face upon those who died many generations before their own birth” (Diodorus Siculus Book I, 91.7)

The Egyptians believed that it was of great importance for them to be remembered after death. The importance of the name to the ancient Egyptians is best illustrated in the Instruction of Papyrus Insinger, dating to the Graeco-Roman Period, which includes the line “the renewal of life for the dead is leaving his name on earth behind him” (Taylor 2001, 23). At the Egypt Centre, an interpretation panel is located in the House of Death, which contains the names of the ancient Egyptians that can be found inscribed on the objects in the collection (fig. 8). Visitors are encouraged to recite the offering formula (an ancient Egyptian prayer), thus ensuring that the named individual receive sustenance in the afterlife.

“To speak the name of the dead is to make him live again” (Desroches-Noblecourt 1963, 27)

Fig. 8: List of named individuals in the Egypt Centre

Bibliography

Antoine, Daniel (2014) ‘Curating human remains in museum collections. Broader considerations and a British Museum perspective.’ In Alexandra Fletcher, Daniel Antoine, & J. D. Hill (eds) Regarding the dead: Human remains in the British Museum, 3–9. British Museum Occasional Publication 197. British Museum Press: London.

Day, Jasmine (2014) ‘“Thinking makes it so”: reflections on the ethics of displaying Egyptian mummies,’ Papers on Anthropology 23 (1), 29–44.

Desroches-Noblecourt, Christiane (1963) Tutankhamen: Life and death of a pharaoh. London: The Connoisseur and Michael Joseph.

Diodorus Siculus (1933) Diodorus of Sicily, book I, Loeb Classical Library. Translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. London: W. Heinemann.

Kilmister Hugh (2003) ‘Visitor perceptions of ancient Egyptian human remains in three United Kingdom museums,’ Papers from the Institute of Archaeology 14: 57–69.

Marstine, Janet (2011) ‘The contingent nature of the new museum ethics.’ In Janet Marstine (ed) The Routledge companion to museum ethics. Redefining ethics for the twenty-first-century museum, 3–25. Routledge: London; New York, NY.

Montserrat, Dominic (1998) ‘Unidentified human remains: mummies and the erotics of biography.’ In Dominic Montserrat (ed) Changing bodies, changing meanings: Studies on the human body in antiquity, 162–197. Routledge: London; New York, NY.

Taylor, John H. (2001) Death and the afterlife in ancient Egypt. British Museum Press: London.