Lecture 5a: Egyptian Culture

Links for Web assignment

(Brians: 22-32)

Questions about "Hymn to Sekhmet-Bast": Who created the other gods? Does this hymn try to discourage wicked behavior? Where?

Questions about "Hymn to Osiris:" What pairs of opposites are used to describe various aspects of Osiris? *What is one of Osiris' functions?

Question about "Your love, dear man, is as lovely to me:" *What are the qualities that the speaker prizes in a good marriage?

Questions about "Once more you pass her house, deep in thought:" Why does the lover want to replace the wooden door with a new one? How is this poem flattering to the man?

Questions about "If I could just be the washerman:" What fantasy is the speaker indulging in here?

Question about "Dialogue of a Man With His Soul:" *What are some of the experiences in life that the poet seems most to prize?

Question about "In Praise of Learned Scribes:" *What are the main advantages of being a scribe?

Question about "Hymn to the Aton of Akhnaton:" *What are some of the blessings of sunlight listed in this poem?

Lecture topics:
Religion
Akhnaton's monotheistic revolution
Nefertiti
Art & Architecture
Tutankhamen's tomb, temples, pyramids
Themes from daily life depicted in tomb paintings
Music and Dance
Literature

Helpful Hints

• Take special note of some of the names and attributes of the female gods you learn about in this lesson.
• Take careful notes on the love poems from the New Kingdom: they are very useful in answering questions about the roles of women in Egypt.
• When noting the roles women played, don't confine yourself to what Duiker says; pay attention to the material presented in class and write down brief notes about the pictures.

• Secrets of the Pharoahs
• The History of Ancient Egypt, Northwestern University (lots of pictures)
• Culture of Egypt
• Splendors of Ancient Egypt Museum of Fine Arts Houston
• Index of resources for the study of ancient Egypt
• Images from excavations in Egypt (click on the city you are interested in)
• University of Memphis Institute of Egyptian Art and Archaeology
• Ancient Egyptian Art at Emory University
• Papyrus manuscripts
• Egyptian picture archive at the University of Pennsylvania
• Splendors of Ancient Egypt from Houston Museum of Fine Arts
• Pilgrimage to Abydos
• An excerpt from the Egyptian Book of the Dead
• Nefertiti Resurrected
• More links from Richard Hooker