Visiting Turin last summer, I had the opportunity to see the splendidly rebuilt Museo Egizio, now directed by Leiden’s old friend Dr Christian Greco. The contrast with the museum as I had seen it several years ago, with its still partially 19th century design, could not have been bigger. Turin houses one of the most beautiful…
Carnarvon and the search for Tutankhamun
In the summer of 2011, I had the pleasure to visit Highclere Castle with a tour group I was guiding together with a friend and fellow Egyptologist from the Huis van Horus foundation. Upon arrival I was impressed by its rolling lawns (lazy pheasants included), charming garden temple and majestic façade reminiscent of London’s Houses of Parliament….
Two online courses about ancient Egypt
Over the past year, many universities have started experimenting with MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses). Free of charge, these courses offer interesting video lectures and readings and often invite the ‘student’ to take part in online discussions. In the field of Egyptology, the universities of Manchester and Liverpool have taken the lead. Two of the…
A year in the life of Ancient Egypt
Should you judge a book by its writer? Or a writer by just one book? In other words, are author and work one and the same? In this case, I would argue no. To start with the author, Ann Rosalie David is a pioneering expert in the field of biomedical research in Egyptology. She basically invented…