The destructive nature of conventional analytical techniques, coupled with the finite nature of ancient/historical artefacts, has long restricted technical examinations of museum collections, mainly due to ethical constraints. However, over the past few decades, the application of Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) techniques has become increasingly popular within the fields of archaeology and cultural heritage diagnostics. The application of such techniques has facilitated the examination of objects that have long remained uninvestigated. However, this positive development also held a slight drawback, in that researchers tend to now focus on technical analyses alone, while excluding more traditional means of analyses, such as comparative stylistic analysis and surface investigation. By employing a combination of stylistic analysis, visual surface investigation (by means of SLR photography and digital microscopy) and nuclear imaging (by means of Microfocus X-Ray Computed Tomography), the thesis sets out to justify the application of mixed methodologies as part of a more holistic integrated authentication approach. Thus stated, the thesis presents a mixed-methodological approach towards the analysis of selected metal objects from the Ditsong National Museum of Cultural History in Pretoria, South Africa. The objects under investigation include a small collection of ancient Egyptian bronze statuettes, a Samurai helmet (kabuto) and mask (menpó), a European gauntlet, and an Arabian dagger (jambiya/khanjar). While all the objects are curated as part of the museum’s archaeology and military history collections, the exact production dates, manufacturing techniques and areas of origin remain a mystery. By using a combination of techniques, the thesis aims to identify diagnostic features that can be used to shed light on their relative age, culturo-chronological framework and, by extension, their authenticity. / Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies

Thesis (MA (Ancient Studies)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study deals with the ancient Egyptian family. Cultural anthropology is used as a point of departure to reconstruct the daily lives of the ancient Egyptians. Cultural anthropology usually applies to living communities but most of the principles it uses are just as relevant in the study of a dead culture. The emphasis of this study is on the different cultural domains, which include education, religion, family livelihoods, family recreation, entertaimnent and travel and social organization and how these are interrelated. Most of our ancient Egyptian knowledge comes from the tombs of wealthy individuals, and thus incomplete since we have no record of how peasants perceived the world, as they could not afford a good burial. Other sources are the ancient documents and artefacts from town sites all associated with wealthy individuals. While peasants were too poor to send their children to school, wealthier Egyptians did send their children to school especially boys. Agriculture was central in ancient Egyptian life. The nobility and other higher classes depended on the toil of the peasant for basic commodities and food. The peasant families in the rural areas were unable to attend the lavish festivals in the cities. Their basic focus was centred on their homes, families and on the success of the harvest. The peasant had his own private god or gods to whom he could tum for aid or comfort in times of trouble. Surplus items of food, clothing, oil and such like could be used for barter for purchasing essential items for everyday living. During their spare time the Egyptian families entertained friends, engaged in the various pastimes and travel. The peasant, as providers of food, formed an important social base for the Egyptian state. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie handel oor die Egiptiese familie. Kulturele antropologie word gebruik as metode om die daaglikse lewe van die antieke Egiptenare te rekonstrueer. Kulturele antropologie word gewoonlik op "lewende" gemeenskappe toegepas, maar die beginsels daarvan is net so relevant vir die bestudering van "dooie" kulture. Die fokus van hierdie studie is op die verskillende kulturele domeine wat insluit onderrig, religie, familie aktiwiteite, familie ontspanning, vermaak, reis en sosiale organisasie en hoe hierdie domeine op mekaar inwerk. Meeste van die kennis oor antieke Egipte word verkry uit die grafte van ryk individue en is daarom gebrekkig ten opsigte van kleinboere en hul siening van die wêreld, omdat hulle nie behoorlike grafte kon bekostig nie. Ander bronne is die antieke tekste en artefakte wat gevind word in dorpe, wat ook meestal behoort het aan ryk persone. Die kleinboere kon nie bekostig om hul kinders na 'n skool te stuur nie, maar ryk Egiptenare kon wel - veral dan seuns. Landbou was baie belangrik tot Egiptiese lewe. Die aristokrasie en ander klasse was afhanklik van die sukkelbestaan van kleinboere om hulle te voorsien van die basiese goedere en voedsel. Kleinboer families, wat in die platteland gebly het kon nie die groot feeste in die stede bywoon nie. Hul persoonlike oortuigings het daarom gefokus op die huishouding, familie en suksesvolle oeste. Kleinboere het 'n persoonlike god of gode gehad wat tot hul hulp kon kom, of troos kon bied in tye van krisis. Surplus goedere soos, onder andere, voedsel, klere en olie kon as ruilmiddel gebruik word om ander items wat benodig word, te bekom. In vrye tyd het families vriende onthaal, verskillende stokperdjies beoefen en rondgereis. Die kleinboere, as verskaffers van voedsel, het 'n belangrike sosiale basis van die Egiptiese staat gevorm.

The aim of the present thesis is translation, detailed analysis and interpretation of the Coffin Texts of the Late-period tomb of Iufaa at Abusir. The corpus of these texts is unique, because except for a few text sequences, which were common in the Late Period, there are texts that are not preserved elsewhere in the Late Period and sometimes only exist in highly fragmentary Middle Kingdom versions. The Coffin Texts found on Iufaa's outer sarcophagus and on the walls of his burial chamber consist only of such uncommon texts. Some of these are also placed on the inner sarcophagus, whereall theremaining Coffin Texts spells are also located. The thesis presents a translation and analysis of the individual texts, focusing on their development, tradition and changes between the Middle Kingdom and the Late Period, including commentaries on grammar and language use as well as on the content. Iufaa's versions of these texts significantly contribute to our understanding and interpretation of some Coffin Texts spells and present a wider view on Egyptian religious texts and their interpretation, as well as on the textual transmission and work of Egyptian priests and scribes themselves.

The present thesis deals with the reign of Nyuserre, one of great Old Kingdom rulers who ruled in the mid-Fifth Dynasty (2402-2374+25 BC). A transformation of whole society of ancient Egypt came to pass during his reign as a consequence of the events in the late Fourth and early Fifth Dynasties, when the highest posts in the administrative system had passed over from members of the royal family to dignitaries of non-royal origin. This fact had been reflected in whole society and started numerous rivulets of change, which merged in a single river in Nyuserre's reign. The gradual transformation of Egyptian society from a kingdom to a state took place during this crucial period, and a number of innovations came about in various spheres (religion, society, administration, tomb architecture, etc.), mirroring a change in the participation in power. This situation was reflected primarily in dignitaries' tombs dated to the given period, which became indicators of the transformation of society. The research is focused on an analysis more than 100 tombs of high-ranking individuals and their family members, and particularly of their titulary, offering formulae, false doors (the central point of the funerary cult), etc. The individual chapters of the present thesis exemplify the most noticeable changes in...

The black church and Prince Hall Freemasonry both played important roles in the black experience in America. Freemasonry and the black church; one secular, the other spiritual, played equally important, interrelated roles in the way the black community addressed social, political, and economic problems in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Text in English / The destructive nature of conventional analytical techniques, coupled with the finite nature of ancient/historical artefacts, has long restricted technical examinations of museum collections, mainly due to ethical constraints. However, over the past few decades, the application of Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) techniques has become increasingly popular within the fields of archaeology and cultural heritage diagnostics. The application of such techniques has facilitated the examination of objects that have long remained uninvestigated. However, this positive development also held a slight drawback, in that researchers tend to now focus on technical analyses alone, while excluding more traditional means of analyses, such as comparative stylistic analysis and surface investigation. By employing a combination of stylistic analysis, visual surface investigation (by means of SLR photography and digital microscopy) and nuclear imaging (by means of Microfocus X-Ray Computed Tomography), the thesis sets out to justify the application of mixed methodologies as part of a more holistic integrated authentication approach. Thus stated, the thesis presents a mixed-methodological approach towards the analysis of selected metal objects from the Ditsong National Museum of Cultural History in Pretoria, South Africa. The objects under investigation include a small collection of ancient Egyptian bronze statuettes, a Samurai helmet (kabuto) and mask (menpó), a European gauntlet, and an Arabian dagger (jambiya/khanjar). While all the objects are curated as part of the museum‘s archaeology and military history collections, the exact production dates, manufacturing techniques and areas of origin remain a mystery. By using a combination of techniques, the thesis aims to identify diagnostic features that can be used to shed light on their relative age, culturo-chronological framework and, by extension, their authenticity. / Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies / D. Litt. et Phil.(Ancient Near Eastern Studies)

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Bibliography: leaves 515-531 / The Brooklyn Papyrus (47.218.48 and 47.218.85) is the handbook of the Priests of Serqet who were called upon to treat snakebite victims in ancient Egypt. The first part of the Brooklyn Papyrus describes various snakes encountered by the ancient Egyptians, and the effects of the bites of these snakes. The second part of the Papyrus contains the numerous treatments that were used to treat the snakebite victims. The primary question of the thesis is to address how the ancient Egyptians treated snakebite victims; and if it is possible to identify the snakes that they encountered, as treatment often hinges on this identification. Additional questions are addressed, namely: What is the Brooklyn Papyrus exactly and what is its background? How does the Brooklyn Papyrus compare to the well-known ancient Egyptian medical papyri? How does the snakebite treatment of the ancient Egyptians compare to that of today’s treatment protocol? In order to answer these questions, this thesis provides my transliteration of the hieroglyphic writing into Latin script, and my translation into English, based on the hieratic to hieroglyphic transliteration done by Serge Sauneron in the late 1960s, and published in 1989 as Un Traité Egyptien d’Ophiologie. The primary aim of this thesis is to provide a transliteration and full English translation of the Brooklyn Papyrus, as none is currently available. It is clear that from the translation that one can discover exactly how snakebite was treated in ancient Egypt: what medicinal ingredients were used and how the patient was treated. Furthermore, from the text describing the snakes and the effects of their bites, one can indeed attempt to identify the species of snakes. It is also apparent from the Brooklyn Papyrus that the ancient Egyptians did recognise and accurately describe many effects of snakebite on the human body, as well as the different types of bite wounds: and they also understood the importance of being able to identify a species of snake as it very often impacted on the treatment to be prescribed—exactly as snakebite treatment is considered in medicine today / Biblical and Ancient studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Ancient Near Eastern Studies)

Ancient Egypt has long been a place of intrigue and mystery, being held in high esteem during ancient times. In modern times ancient Egypt has once again risen to such a position with many ancient Egyptian-based symbols and iconology being used in modern culture since its birth in the renaissance. Three easily identifiable and commonly used symbols are identified: the ankh, sun-disk and Wadjet Eye. This study attempts to evaluate and explore the extent of the influence of ancient Egyptian symbols and iconography on modern culture as a whole. This is achieved through emic analysis and comparative studies, comparing the context of the original ancient Egyptian symbols (in terms of their symbolic form, origins and meanings/usage) to the modern usage of the same symbols. A comparison between the contexts and usage of these three symbols in ancient Egypt and modern society shows that they are part of a wider trend of “romanticising” ancient cultures to “enchant” our modern culture. / Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies / M.A. (Ancient Near Eastern Studies)

Representational artistic works were researched as visual evidence for the social, political, religious and economic lifestyles of the ancient Egyptian elite. The aims were to comprehend the status of elite women and to challenge the hypothesis that during the New Kingdom they enjoyed an increased social status in comparison to that of their predecessors. Many artistic works were analysed (tomb and palace wall scenes, statues, obelisks and personal artefacts), on the quest for evidence for the roles of elite women in events, practices and rituals at the time when the objects were created. Various international museums were visited and personal observations are correlated with expert publications. The study concludes that the status of elite women in the New Kingdom was both significantly different and exalted in comparison with the status of their counterparts during earlier dynasties. / OLD TESTAMENT & ANCIENT NE / MA (ANC NEAR EAST STUDIES)