This thesis discusses the interaction between the concepts of ”justice” (ma‛at) and ”law” (hpw) in ancient Egypt. Ma‛at, one of the earliest abstract terms in human speech, was a central principle and, although no codex of Egyptian law has been found, there is abundant evidence of written law, designed to realise ma‛at on earth. The king, as the highest legal authority, was the nexus between ma‛at and the law. Egyptologists have few sources of knowledge about law and justice in ancient Egypt because the ancient Egyptians used commonplace language in legal documents and they only had a few imprecise technical terms relating to law. For Egyptology to advance, therefore, we need to reappraise its sources. The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant has a strong legal background and should be treated as an additional source of information about how law and justice were perceived and carried out in ancient Egypt. / Classics and Modern European Languages / M.A. (Ancient Languages and Cultures)

This work is focused on the conceptions involving the disorder and chaos in the re- ligion of the ancient Egypt. The basic ground was Jiří Janák's text Chaos a ne-řád ve starám Egyptě (Chaos and Disorder in Ancient Egypt), that was published in colle- ction Řád a chaos v archaických kulturách. This text presented the foundation, that could be evolved further through studying of another author's attitudes (for example J. Assmann, E. Hornung, H. Smith, H. Te Velde) and reflection of ancient writings (Pyramid Texts, Book of Dead, Amduat, Book of Gates etc.). A larger scope was gi- ven to the question of preexistence of chaos, its manifestations and interferences in the created cosmos. Further, I dealt with the problem of origin of order (maat) en- dangering forces - origin of Apophis and disorder (isfet) and impact of this forces on the life and afterlife of an individual. Outside the created world, there is the primeval ocean. It was personified by the god Nun. It is inactive, but, in spite of it, it can be a threat for the universe - every- thing could be destructed in its waters. Primeval ocean can be compared with the conception of chaos in sense of the original state of the universe. But it is also the place of the origin of the creator god. Within the world of creation there was established the...

In addition to temple rituals performed for the god by the king, festivals incorporated a broader domain, where a wider public had access to the divine. The participants in feasts ranged from the royal, officials and priests to the non-elite and the dead. Theoretically and ideologically, individuals would have received fruits of the divine power through the king by taking part in celebrations to variable extent. This functioned a vehicle for the god and the king to maintain their authoritative credibility and, by extension, the world order. The circulation of the divine force formed a different appearance at each festival, such as material supplies, promotions, and juridical decrees. These divine conveyances would have more or less met people’s social and religious needs. By embracing modality, periodicity, and publicness, festivals provided participants and audiences with a public setting and a formal means, whereby they were able to seek their identity as part of society. This may or may not have been relevant to personal piety, allegiance, responsibilities, and goodness, but public celebrations at least brought the king’s subjects together to common grounds for official beliefs and social decorum. In order to demonstrate such socio-religious functions of festivals, I will attempt to focus on and examine three Theban celebrations in the New Kingdom, namely, the Festivals of Opet, the Valley, and the New Year, about which a wealth of information has survived. The examination can hardly be possible without exploring the history of these feasts because their development from earlier times, to which part of this thesis is also devoted, shows the continuity of elements essential to Egyptian cult practices, particularly those associated with the mortuary cult.

The present dissertation is a diachronic study of cultural identity and self-presentation in ancient Egyptian fictional narratives. Cultural identity implies notions such as customs, practices, values and world-views that are implicitly or explicitly expressed in fictional narrative. The texts that are included in the study span from the Middle and New Kingdoms (c. 2055-1650 BC and 1550-1069 BC), and Ptolemaic and Roman periods (332-30 BC and 30 BC- 395 AD) and the material is analyzed within a framework that addresses "narrative traditions," which is the transmission of cultural identity in the narratives through time. In light of the diachronic perspective of the study, I focus on four principle motifs of Egyptian narratives: priests, kings,warriors, and women, and explore the literary presentations of these within an historical and intertextual context. The project relates to the literate class of ancient Egyptian society and through exploring the motifs above-mentioned motifs within a diachronic historical and intertextual context, the aim of the thesis is to gain an understanding of forming and preserving cultural identity of that specific sphere of Egyptian society through time. The archeological contexts of the material will, where itis possible, be included. This will contribute to identifying, for example, established traditions, as opposed to local traditions.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 317-339).

Thesis (M.S.)--Florida State University, 2004. / Advisor: Dr. Cheryl Ward, Florida State University, College of Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Anthropology. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Apr. 18, 2005). Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 111 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis -- Departmental honors in Art History. / Bibliography: ℓ.114-121

Light is seldom addressed in archaeological research, despite the fact that, at least in ancient Egypt, it would have impacted upon all aspects of life. When discussing light in Egyptology, the vast majority of scholarly attention is placed on the sun, the primary source of illumination. In comparison, artificial light receives very little attention, primarily due to a lack of archaeological evidence for lighting equipment prior to the 7th century BC. However, 19th and 20th century lychnological studies have exaggerated this point by placing an overwhelming emphasis on decorated lamps from the Greco-Roman Period. In an attempt to move beyond these antiquarian roots, recent scholarship has turned towards examining the role that light, both natural and artificial, played in aspects of ancient societies’ architecture, ideology and religion. The extensive body of archaeological, textual and iconographic evidence that remains from ancient Egypt is well suited to this type of study and forms three core data sets in this thesis. Combining a materials-based examination of artificial light with a contextualized, theoretical analysis contributes to a richer understanding of ancient Egyptian culture from the 3rd to 1st millennium BC. The first three chapters of this study establish a typology of known artificial lighting equipment, as well as a lexicon of lighting terminology. A comparison of the archaeological and textual evidence allows for a discussion on the consumption of lighting in ancient Egypt and its impact on social and economic spheres. From this material it becomes apparent that artificial light was a luxury and this corresponds to its inclusion in religious texts and iconography, as well as the presence of lighting implements in tombs of the wealthy elite. The second half of the thesis examines the ritual application of artificial light, incorporating iconographic and textual evidence, consideration of ritual space and timing, and experimental archaeology. This interdisciplinary approach allows for a discussion of the sensory experience of artificial lighting and its perceived potency in ancient Egypt. It also demonstrates the contribution that Egyptology can make to lychnological and sensory studies of the ancient Near East and Mediterranean by examining the impact of light on phenomenology and aesthetics.

Mummies have been considered as 'biologic museums' as they display vital evidence and clues about the life and death of the ancient Egyptian population who lived thousands of years ago. They also hold the secrets of the evolution of disease. The Third Intermediate Period mummies represent the mummification technique at its best. The main aim of this research is to produce a scientific study of the Third Intermediate Period mummies in the British Museum. It attempts to answer some important questions and considers to what extent a detailed radiographic investigation of a group of mummies can provide evidence about disease processes, diet, mummification techniques, funerary and medical practices within that period. Non-invasive techniques were used during this study to investigate a group of seven mummies from the collection of the British Museum. The mummies are encased in cartonnage cases except one mummy which is inside a wooden coffin. The radiological methods (i.e. X-ray radiography and CT scanning) provided new information regarding the manufacturing of cartonnage cases during that period. The detailed radiographs showed aspects of the mummification techniques that were not reported during pervious investigations. A historical account of the Third Intermediate Period was given in chapter one while chapter two provides information regarding the mummification techniques used during this historical period. Chapter three gives information on previous radiological studies and chapter four gives detailed description and photographs of the selected mummies, the subjects of this investigation. Chapter five contains a full description of the methods used during this study and the results and discussions were presented in chapter six. A catalogue with detailed information is attached as an appendix to the thesis to present the physical anthropological data and radiological finds with regards to each mummy from this selected group.

Ancient Egypt is renowned for its extensive use of beauty products, but the image of Ancient Egypt modern media presents to consumers today barely expresses the importance of these products and practices. This paper details the production, application process, and function of these products and describes their importance in relation to modern society. The four functions of cosmetics (Religion, Aesthetics, Status, Health) are used to examine why beauty rituals are important to the Egyptian society, and modern beauty trends are contrasted with those of Ancient Egypt. Culture and industry movements and their catalysts explain the connection between past and present beauty ideals and standards. Overall, this paper determines Ancient Egypt’s profound impact on the modern beauty culture.