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Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

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Egyptian Writings

The ancient Egyptians were a highly literate society, with a rich tradition of writing that spanned thousands of years. Their writing system, hieroglyphics, was one of the earliest forms of writing in the world, and their language and literature continue to fascinate and inspire people today.

Egyptian writings were used for a variety of purposes, from recording history and religious beliefs to everyday communication and commerce. The hieroglyphic script consisted of hundreds of individual symbols, each with its own meaning and significance. The Egyptians also developed a cursive script, known as hieratic, which was used for everyday writing and was faster and easier to use  than hieroglyphics.

The Abydos Kings list cartouches in the Temple of Seti, Abydos. Source: Olaf Tausch/CC BY 3.0

The Abydos King List Safeguards the Identities of 76 Egyptian Kings

Abydos is one of the oldest ancient Egyptian cities (3,100 – 332 BC) and is one of the most important archaeological sites in all of Egypt. Many ancient temples and tombs can be found there, offering...
Example of a brightly painted antique papyrus, as could benefit from wasabi’s preservative qualities.	Source: Thomas Sztanek/Adobe Stock

Wasabi Is Innovative ‘Green’ Solution for Preserving Ancient Papyrus

Researchers have discovered a novel, environmentally friendly method for preserving bio-deteriorated painted archaeological papyri using wasabi. The study, led by Hanadi Saada and her team, explored...
The project team at the start of work at the end of 2018 in the University Library's manuscript collection with (from left) Markéta Preininger, Korshi Dosoo and Edward O. D. Love. Source: Gunnar Bartsch / Universität Würzburg

Translated Egyptian Magical Texts Map Human Emotions

After five years of research two German scientists have published translations of a collection of Egyptian magical texts. Cutting through the love spells, curses and protection rituals, this work...
The Pyramid texts discovered within the tomb of Unas at Saqqara in Egypt. Source: EvrenKalinbacak / Adobe Stock

The Pyramid Texts: Evidence for Hypnosis and Trance

There has been a long history of Egyptologists denying that the Egyptians had any mystical doctrines and practices connected with the world of the living, despite everything to the contrary said...
The pyramid texts of ancient Egypt’s pyramids are a rich source of information on their beliefs and religion. Source: EvrenKalinbacak/ Adobe Stock

The Pyramid Texts: Incantations Carved in Stone

The ancient Egyptians were known for their elaborate funerary traditions and beliefs in life after death, with the pharaohs being the most powerful and religious rulers of their time. The Pyramid...
 Part of the 16-meter-long document from Saqqara that includes illustrations and text from the Book of the Dead of Ahmose. Source: Supreme Council of Antiquities

First Public Display of 16-meter-long Papyrus Found in Saqqara Casket

The exciting discovery of a 16-meter-long (52.5 ft) ancient papyrus found in a sarcophagus in Egypt's Saqqara region has now been unveiled. A papyrus of this size and quality had not been discovered...
Thutmose IV’s Dream Stele standing between the front legs of the Sphinx in Giza, Egypt. Source: Claudio Caridi / Adobe Stock

The Dream Stele: How a Dream Changed the Course of Egyptian History

In or around the year 1400 BC, Menkheperure, an Egyptian prince, took a ride out to the pyramids of Giza. Upon reaching his destination, he did some hunting before eventually falling asleep under the...
Part of the Egyptian Book of Breathing, a hieratic papyrus probably from Thebes, Egypt written during the Ptolemaic dynasty.

Resuscitation of the Ancient Egyptian Book of Breathing

Recently, an American professor has for the first time analyzed the First Book of Breathing , a famous ancient Egyptian book that reveals incredible insights into the afterlife. What happens to us...
Egyptian Hieroglyphs: The Language of the Gods

Egyptian Hieroglyphs: The Language of the Gods

Egyptian hieroglyphs are among the oldest writing systems in the world, dating back some 5,200 years. Known in ancient Egyptian as the “language of the gods” and said to have been created by the god...
Dendera light relief, Temple of Hathor, Dendera, Egypt

The Dendera Light: Myths, Tests and Truth

The Dendera light is a particularly controversial topic since it is not exactly an artifact of potential ancient technology, but the possible depiction of such an artifact on a wall of one of the...
Plates vi and vii of the Edwin Smith Papyrus

Edwin Smith Papyrus: 3,600-Year-Old Surgical Treatise Reveals Secrets of Ancient Egyptian Medical Knowledge

The Edwin Smith Papyrus is a medical treatise from ancient Egypt. This papyrus is named after Edwin Smith, the American collector of antiquities who purchased the papyrus. The Edwin Smith Papyrus is...
Colossal statue of Amenhotep III in the British Museum. (Public Domain) Background: Detail of Amarna letter: Royal Letter from Abi-milku of Tyre to the king of Egypt. (CC0)

To the King, My Sun, My God, the Breath of My Life… Amarna Letters Paint Remarkable Picture of Ancient Egyptian Rulership

“Your city weeps, and her tears are running, and there is no help for us. For 20 years we have been sending to our lord, the king, the king of Egypt, but there has not come to us a word from our lord...
Pyramid of Pepi II with smaller pyramids for the queens Neith, Iput II and Udjebten.

Documenting 6th Dynasty Pharaohs: The Significant Inscription on the South Saqqara Stone

The sands of Egypt still cover many secrets. One such example was unearthed in the desert in Saqqara, which is now a part of Cairo. The stories of the people who lived there more than 5000 years ago...
Is The Iconic Dendera Zodiac of Ancient Egypt The Oldest Horoscope in the World?

Is The Iconic Dendera Zodiac of Ancient Egypt The Oldest Horoscope in the World?

The Dendera Zodiac is the name given to an interesting bas-relief found on the ceiling of a chapel in the Temple of Hathor, which is part of the Dendera Temple complex in Upper Egypt. This famous bas...
One of the papyri in the ancient logbook which documented some details on the later construction period of the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Ancient Egyptian Logbook of Inspector Who Helped Construct the Great Pyramid Revealed

Some of the details of the construction of the Egyptian Great Pyramid are revealed to the public for the first time when they go on display at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The information comes in...
Spanish Archaeologists Try to Reconstruct Fragments of the Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead

Spanish Archaeologists Try to Reconstruct Fragments of the Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead

For the last 14 years, twenty archaeologists, Egyptologists, and Spanish specialists have been working on the southern foot of the hill of Dra Abu el-Naga with a team of over a hundred Egyptian...
The hieroglyph at the top middle with the seven arms and a dome radiating from a post is the symbol for the regent Queen Neith-Hotep. It was previously thought that she was King Narmer’s wife and not a sovereign in her own right.

Discovery of 5,000-year-old Hieroglyphs Change the Story of a Queen, a Pharaoh, and an Ancient City

Miners carved Egyptian hieroglyphs and drawings into the rock of the Sinai Desert 5,000 years ago as a way of marking the area as owned by Egypt, a researcher says. The people carving the symbols...
Tempest Stela

Translation of Tempest Stela could change ancient timeline

The Tempest Stela is a 6-foot-tall calcite block found in the 3 rd Pylon of the temple of Karnak in Thebes, modern Luxor. In a new translation of the 40-line inscription, scholars affirm previous...
Photo of a relief-section of hieroglyphs in the great temple of Ramses II in Abu Simbel

Unravelling the literacy of the Egyptian Pharaohs

It is well known that only about one percent of ancient Egyptians mastered the difficult art of reading and writing hieroglyphics. But there is little information about the education of royal...