Egyptology

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[[Image:Egypt.Giza.Sphinx.02.jpg|333px|thumb|The [[Great Sphinx of Giza]] against [[Khafre's Pyramid]] at the [[Giza pyramid complex]].]]
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'''Egyptology''' (from ''Egypt'' and [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] -λογία|-λογία}}, ''-logia''. علم المصريات|علم المصريات) is the study of [[ancient Egypt]]ian [[History of Egypt|history]], [[Egyptian language|language]], [[Ancient Egyptian literature|literature]], [[Ancient Egyptian religion|religion]], and [[Art of ancient Egypt|art]] from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an ''[[List of Egyptologists|Egyptologist]]''. In Europe, particularly on the [[Continental Europe|Continent]], Egyptology is primarily regarded as being a [[philology|philological]] discipline, while in North America it is often regarded as a branch of [[archaeology]].
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== Development of the field ==
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===The first Egyptologists===
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The first Egyptologists were the ancient Egyptians themselves. [[Thutmose IV]] restored the Sphinx and had the dream that inspired his restoration carved on the famous [[Dream Stele]]. Less than two centuries later, Prince [[Khaemweset]], fourth son of [[Ramesses II]], is famed for identifying and restoring historic buildings, tombs and temples including the pyramid.<sup>[]</sup>
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===Graeco-Roman Period===
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Some of the first historical accounts of Egypt were given by [[Herodotus]], [[Strabo]], [[Diodorus Siculus]] and the largely lost work of [[Manetho]], an [[Egyptians|Egyptian]] priest, during the reign of [[Ptolemy I]] and [[Ptolemy II]] in the 3rd century BC. The Ptolemies were much interested in the work of the ancient Egyptians, and many of the Egyptian monuments, including the pyramids, were restored by them (although they built many new temples in the Egyptian style). The Romans too carried out restoration work in this most ancient of lands.
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===Muslim Egyptologists===
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{{Main|Sociology in medieval Islam#Egyptology|l1=Egyptology in medieval Islam}}
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Progress was made by [[List of Muslim historians|Muslim historians]] in [[Egypt]] and the first known attempts at deciphering [[Egyptian hieroglyphs]] were made by [[Dhul-Nun al-Misri]] and [[Ibn Wahshiyya]] in the 9th century, who were able to at least partly understand what was written in the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, by relating them to the contemporary [[Coptic language]] used by [[Copt]]ic priests in their time. [[Abd al-Latif al-Baghdadi (medieval writer)|Abdul Latif al-Baghdadi]], a teacher at [[Cairo]]'s [[Al-Azhar University]] in the 13th century, wrote detailed descriptions on [[Ancient Egyptian architecture|ancient Egyptian monuments]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2010}} Similarly, the 15th-century Egyptian historian [[al-Maqrizi]] wrote detailed accounts of Egyptian antiquities.
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===European explorers===
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European exploration and travel writings of ancient Egypt commenced from the 13th century onward, with only occasional detours into a more scientific approach, notably by [[John Greaves]], [[Claude Sicard]], [[Benoît de Maillet]], [[Frederic Louis Norden]] and [[Richard Pococke]]. In the early 16th century, the [[Society of Jesus|Jesuit]] scientist-priest [[Athanasius Kircher]] was the first to identify the phonetic importance of Egyptian hieroglyphs, and he demonstrated [[Coptic language|Coptic]] as a vestige of [[Egyptian language|early Egyptian]], for which he is considered a "founder" of Egyptology.<sup>[]</sup> In the late 18th century, with Napoleon's scholars' recording of Egyptian flora, fauna and history (published as ''[[Description de l'Egypte (1809)|Description de l'Egypte]]''), the study of many aspects of ancient Egypt became more scientifically oriented. The British captured Egypt from the French and gained the [[Rosetta Stone]]. Modern Egyptology is generally perceived as beginning about 1822.
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==Modern Egyptology==
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[[Image:Papyrus Ani curs hiero.jpg|thumb|left|A section of the [[Papyrus of Ani]] showing [[cursive hieroglyphs]].]]
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[[Jean François Champollion]] and [[Ippolito Rosellini]] were some of the first Egyptologists of wide acclaim. The German [[Karl Richard Lepsius]] was an early participant in the investigations of Egypt; mapping, excavating, and recording several sites. Champollion announced his general decipherment of the system of Egyptian [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|hieroglyphics]] for the first time, employing the Rosetta Stone as his primary aid. The Stone's decipherment was a very important development of Egyptology. With subsequently ever-increasing knowledge of Egyptian writing and language, the study of [[Ancient Egypt]]ian civilisation was able to proceed with greater academic rigour and with all the added impetus that comprehension of the written sources was able to engender. Egyptology became more professional via work of [[William Matthew Flinders Petrie]], among others. Petrie introduced techniques of field preservation, recording, and excavating. [[Howard Carter]]'s expedition brought much acclaim to the field of Egyptology.
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Around 1830, [[Rifa'a el-Tahtawi]] was one of the first main scholars of Egyptian Egyptology. He was inspired by the work of Muslim Egyptologists in medieval Egypt, though modern Egyptian Egyptology developed slowly compared to its Western scholars, primarily because of Islamic identity. Islamic and modern Egyptian civilization has been influenced by the pre-Islamic Egyptian culture with which Egyptology is concerned.
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In the Modern era, the [[Supreme Council for Antiquities]] control excavation permits for Egyptologists to conduct their work. The field can now use [[Geophysics|geophysical methods]] and other applications of modern [[sensing techniques]] to further Egyptology. The [[Egyptian language]]s (such as [[Hieratic]]s and [[Coptic language|Coptic]]) and the [[Egyptian writing]] systems are still of importance in Egyptology.
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==Pseudoegyptology==
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Egyptology has attracted various [[pseudoscientific]] theories of which most are widely discounted by many Egyptologists. This includes [[esoteric]], or [[Extraterrestrial life|extraterrestrial]], subjects which are considered [[pseudohistorical]] overall; few in Egyptology entertain views of the "[[New Age]]", [[ufology]], [[occultism]], "[[secret societies]]", or [[Atlantis]] ideas.
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==See also==
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*[[Assyriology]]
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*[[Iranology]]
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*[[List of Egyptologists]]
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*[[List of writers about Egypt till the 19th century]]
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*; Categories:[[:Category:Austrian Egyptologists|Austrian Egyptologists]], [[:Category:English Egyptologists|English Egyptologists]], [[:Category:Canadian Egyptologists|Canadian Egyptologists]], [[:Category:American Egyptologists|American Egyptologists]], [[:Category:Australian Egyptologists|Australian Egyptologists]], [[:Category:Dutch Egyptologists|Dutch Egyptologists]], [[:Category:British Egyptologists|British Egyptologists]], [[:Category:Belgian Egyptologists|Belgian Egyptologists]], [[:Category:Prussian Egyptologists|Prussian Egyptologists]], [[:Category:Scottish Egyptologists|Scottish Egyptologists]]
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*; Contributing studies: [[Archaeology]], [[Anthropology]], [[Chronology]], [[Philology]], [[Linguistics|Language studies]], [[Epigraphy]], [[Social history]], [[Ethnoarchaeology]], [[Art history]], [[Archaeoastronomy]], [[Architect]]ure, [[Oriental studies]], [[Biblical studies]]
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*; Other: [[Egyptomania]], [[Excavation (archaeology)|Excavation]], [[Artifact (archaeology)|Artifacts]]
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==References==
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==Further reading==
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<div style="column-count: 2;">
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* David, Rosalie. ''Religion and magic in ancient Egypt''. Penguin Books, 2002. ISBN 0-14-026252-0
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* Jacq, Christian. ''Magic and mystery in ancient Egypt''. Souvenir Press, 1998. ISBN 0-285-63462-3
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* Manley, Bill (ed.). ''The Seventy Great Mysteries of Ancient Egypt''. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05123-2
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* Mertz, Barbara. ''Red Land, Black Land: Daily Life in Ancient Egypt''. Dodd Mead, 1978. ISBN 0-396-07575-4
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* Mertz, Barbara. ''Temples, Tombs and Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt''. Bedrick, 1990. ISBN 0-87226-223-5
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* ''Mysteries of Egypt''. National Geographic Society, 1999. ISBN 0-7922-9752-0
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==External links==
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{{Wiktionary|Egyptology|Egyptologist}}
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* [http://www.uee.ucla.edu/ Encyclopedia of Egyptology] at [[UCLA]]
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* [http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/civil/egypt/egypte.shtml ''Mysteries of Egypt''. Canadian Museum of Civilization ]
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* [http://guardians.net/hawass/index.htm Official Website for Dr. Zahi Hawass]
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* [http://www.catchpenny.org/ Catchpenny Mysteries of Ancient Egypt].
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* [http://www.sacredsites.com/africa/egypt/great_pyramid.html Gray, Martin, ''The Great Pyramid, Egypt''. 2005.]
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* [http://www.doernenburg.alien.de/RDV/RDV00_e.php Dörnenburg, Frank, ''Mysteries of the Past''. 2004.]
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* [http://www.kv5.com/ Theban Mapping Project]
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* [http://www.hallofmaat.com/ The Hall of Ma'at]
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* [http://www.glyphdoctors.com Glyphdoctors: Online courses in Egyptology and other resources]
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* [http://www.antiquityofman.com/AncientEgypt.html The Antiquity of Man Exploring human evolution and the dawn of civilisation]
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* [http://www.ancientneareast.net/egyptology.html Egyptology - Ancient Near East .net] - a collection of links to online Egyptology resources
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* [http://www.ssae.org.uk The Society for the Study of Ancient Egypt]
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* [http://www.thessea.org/ The Society for the Study of Ancient Egyptian Antiquities, Canada]
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* [http://www.egyptology-uk.com/ Sussex Egyptology Society Online]
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* [http://www.gizaplateau.com/ Egypt Antiquity News Service]
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* [http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/egypt/dailylife/hairstyles.html Ancient Egyptian Hairstyles]
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* [http://www.philae.nu/akhet/index.html Akhet, the Horizon - Ancient Egyptian Religion]
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*[http://www.dmoz.org/Reference/Museums/Science/Archaeology/Egyptology/ List of web sites for museums whose primary focus is on Egyptology] at the [[Open Directory Project]]
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[[Category:Egyptology| ]]

Revision as of 05:07, 1 April 2011

Egyptology (from Egypt and Greek -λογία|-λογία}}, -logia. علم المصريات|علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an Egyptologist. In Europe, particularly on the Continent, Egyptology is primarily regarded as being a philological discipline, while in North America it is often regarded as a branch of archaeology.

Contents

Development of the field

The first Egyptologists

The first Egyptologists were the ancient Egyptians themselves. Thutmose IV restored the Sphinx and had the dream that inspired his restoration carved on the famous Dream Stele. Less than two centuries later, Prince Khaemweset, fourth son of Ramesses II, is famed for identifying and restoring historic buildings, tombs and temples including the pyramid.[]

Graeco-Roman Period

Some of the first historical accounts of Egypt were given by Herodotus, Strabo, Diodorus Siculus and the largely lost work of Manetho, an Egyptian priest, during the reign of Ptolemy I and Ptolemy II in the 3rd century BC. The Ptolemies were much interested in the work of the ancient Egyptians, and many of the Egyptian monuments, including the pyramids, were restored by them (although they built many new temples in the Egyptian style). The Romans too carried out restoration work in this most ancient of lands.

Muslim Egyptologists

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Progress was made by Muslim historians in Egypt and the first known attempts at deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs were made by Dhul-Nun al-Misri and Ibn Wahshiyya in the 9th century, who were able to at least partly understand what was written in the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, by relating them to the contemporary Coptic language used by Coptic priests in their time. Abdul Latif al-Baghdadi, a teacher at Cairo's Al-Azhar University in the 13th century, wrote detailed descriptions on ancient Egyptian monuments.Template:Citation needed Similarly, the 15th-century Egyptian historian al-Maqrizi wrote detailed accounts of Egyptian antiquities.

European explorers

European exploration and travel writings of ancient Egypt commenced from the 13th century onward, with only occasional detours into a more scientific approach, notably by John Greaves, Claude Sicard, Benoît de Maillet, Frederic Louis Norden and Richard Pococke. In the early 16th century, the Jesuit scientist-priest Athanasius Kircher was the first to identify the phonetic importance of Egyptian hieroglyphs, and he demonstrated Coptic as a vestige of early Egyptian, for which he is considered a "founder" of Egyptology.[] In the late 18th century, with Napoleon's scholars' recording of Egyptian flora, fauna and history (published as Description de l'Egypte), the study of many aspects of ancient Egypt became more scientifically oriented. The British captured Egypt from the French and gained the Rosetta Stone. Modern Egyptology is generally perceived as beginning about 1822.

Modern Egyptology

Jean François Champollion and Ippolito Rosellini were some of the first Egyptologists of wide acclaim. The German Karl Richard Lepsius was an early participant in the investigations of Egypt; mapping, excavating, and recording several sites. Champollion announced his general decipherment of the system of Egyptian hieroglyphics for the first time, employing the Rosetta Stone as his primary aid. The Stone's decipherment was a very important development of Egyptology. With subsequently ever-increasing knowledge of Egyptian writing and language, the study of Ancient Egyptian civilisation was able to proceed with greater academic rigour and with all the added impetus that comprehension of the written sources was able to engender. Egyptology became more professional via work of William Matthew Flinders Petrie, among others. Petrie introduced techniques of field preservation, recording, and excavating. Howard Carter's expedition brought much acclaim to the field of Egyptology.

Around 1830, Rifa'a el-Tahtawi was one of the first main scholars of Egyptian Egyptology. He was inspired by the work of Muslim Egyptologists in medieval Egypt, though modern Egyptian Egyptology developed slowly compared to its Western scholars, primarily because of Islamic identity. Islamic and modern Egyptian civilization has been influenced by the pre-Islamic Egyptian culture with which Egyptology is concerned.

In the Modern era, the Supreme Council for Antiquities control excavation permits for Egyptologists to conduct their work. The field can now use geophysical methods and other applications of modern sensing techniques to further Egyptology. The Egyptian languages (such as Hieratics and Coptic) and the Egyptian writing systems are still of importance in Egyptology.

Pseudoegyptology

Egyptology has attracted various pseudoscientific theories of which most are widely discounted by many Egyptologists. This includes esoteric, or extraterrestrial, subjects which are considered pseudohistorical overall; few in Egyptology entertain views of the "New Age", ufology, occultism, "secret societies", or Atlantis ideas.

See also

References

Further reading

  • David, Rosalie. Religion and magic in ancient Egypt. Penguin Books, 2002. ISBN 0-14-026252-0
  • Jacq, Christian. Magic and mystery in ancient Egypt. Souvenir Press, 1998. ISBN 0-285-63462-3
  • Manley, Bill (ed.). The Seventy Great Mysteries of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05123-2
  • Mertz, Barbara. Red Land, Black Land: Daily Life in Ancient Egypt. Dodd Mead, 1978. ISBN 0-396-07575-4
  • Mertz, Barbara. Temples, Tombs and Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt. Bedrick, 1990. ISBN 0-87226-223-5
  • Mysteries of Egypt. National Geographic Society, 1999. ISBN 0-7922-9752-0

External links

Template:Wiktionary

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