Description
Book SynopsisEver since Herodotus, it has been observed that Egypt – that is, ancient Egyptian civilisation – was a gift of the Nile. However, only recently have Egyptologists come to appreciate that Egypt was as much a gift of the desert as a gift of the water, at least as regards its very beginnings. To understand the civilisation that originally settled along the Nile Valley and in the Delta, we must study not only the remains of ancient monuments, excavated artefacts and reconstructed texts, but take proper account of the landscape, conditions and environment that shaped Egypt’s culture, religion and ideology. This volume addresses various aspects of how the world was perceived in the minds of Egyptians, and how Egyptians subsequently reshaped their surrounding landscape in harmony with their view of geography and cosmological ideas. Profane landscape and sacred space thus blend into one multi-faceted concept.
Table of ContentsPreface Miroslav Bárta and Jiří Janák 1. Climate Change, Fishing and the Nile: Changes in Fishing Techniques and Technologies at the End of the Old Kingdom John Burn, Macquarie University 2. The Pyramid of the Theban Mountain Andrzej Ćwiek, Adam Mickiewicz University and Archaeological Museum, Poznań 3. Some Profane and Sacred Features from Thebes: Hunting Grounds and High Places in the West Bank Andrés D. Espinel, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid 4. Ancient Egyptian Response to the Natural World Linda Evans, Macquarie University 5. Running with Images: Ritualized Script in the Vogellauf, Rudderlauf and Vasenlauf Jiří Janák 6. The Sacred Landscape of Dra Abu el-Naga María de los Ángeles Jimenez Higueras, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid 7. Ancient Egyptians and the Representation of Foreign Landscapes: The Ash-tree Reconsidered Claudia M. Kemna, Independent scholar 8. Visitors’ Graffiti -Traces of a Re-appropriation of Sacred Spaces and a Demonstration of Literacy in the Landscape Hana Navrátilová, University of Reading 9. Did Hatshepsut Inherit Djeser-djeseru? Claire Ollett, University of Liverpool 10. Sacred Places in the Profane Landscapes of Lower Nubia: A Case Study from the Czechoslovak Concessions Lenka Varadzinová Suková, Charles University, Prague 11. Lake Khufu: On the Waterfront at Giza - Modelling Water Transport Infrastructure at Fourth Dynasty Giza Mark Lehner, University of Chicago
