Oracle Omens Odyssey

04/08/2024

Tomb of Ramses VI

04/08/2024

Egyptian Bust of Prince Ankhhaf
2520–2494 B.C. Old Kingdom, Dynasty 4, reign of Khafra

In ancient Egypt, artists almost never created true portraits. This bust of Ankhhaf, therefore, breaks the rule. It is made of limestone covered with a thin layer of plaster, into which details have been modeled by the hand of a master. Rather than a stylized representation, the face is of an individual. From inscriptions in his tomb, we know that Ankhhaf was the son of a king, probably Sneferu, brother of another, Khufu, and that he served Khafre as vizier and overseer of works. In this last capacity, he may have overseen the building of the second pyramid and carving of the sphinx.

Ankhhaf"s features are those of a mature man. His skull shows a receding hairline. His eyelids droop slightly over eyes originally painted white with brown pupils. Puffy pouches are rendered underneath. Diagonal furrows set off a stern mouth. Apparently, he once had a short beard made from a separate piece of plaster. It was lost in antiquity, as were his ears. His gaze is that of a commanding and willful man, someone who was accustomed to having his orders obeyed. It was the way he wanted to be remembered for eternity.

Findspot: Egypt, Giza, tomb G 7510

Museum of Fine Arts Boston

04/08/2024

Trundholm Sun Chariot :

This unique Nordic bronze piece was discovered in Trundholm moor in Odsherred in the northwestern part of Zealand, Denmark, with no accompanying objects, in 1902.

The object was dated to the Early Bronze Age, 1400 BC. Composition illustrates the eternal journey of the sun, a divine horse pulling an ornate golden disc, all on rotating wheels. Sun Chariot is 54cm long, and the sun disc, which is gilded on one side, is about 25cm in diameter. It was cast using the ‘lost wax’ method, damage on the back of the Sun Chariot’s horse reveals its inner clay core.

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04/07/2024

Kiya usurped by Meritaten
New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, reign of Akhenaten, c.1353–1336 B.C.
Findspot: Egypt, Hermopolis; Object Place: Egypt, el-Amarna (Akhetaten)
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. 1971.294

This limestone talatat shows a depiction of Queen Kiya, secondary wife of Akhenaten, making an offering of a cone of scented fat to the Aten. It is believed, however, that this piece was later reused and usurped to actually depict Akhenaten’s daughter, with his Great Royal Wife Nefertiti, Meritaten. The reason for this belief is the presumed changing of the hair.

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04/07/2024

A column capital at the Temple of Khnum in Esna, Egypt.

Interesting Egyptian artifacts:

04/06/2024

It is as old as city itself; being a military fortress, it is also a small palatial city that throughout history has been seat of several royal courts that existed in and around Bukhara.

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04/06/2024

نِبِت - حت

04/05/2024

A 2,500 year old tomb depicting the sacrifice of princess Polyxena to the ghost of Achilles after the end of the Trojan War

04/04/2024

04/04/2024

Over 100,000 ceramic wares from two Chinese shipwrecks, 1500 meters deep in the South China Sea. Discovered in May 2023. Ships dated to the Ming dynasty, 1506-1522

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04/04/2024

The ‘melted’ stairs and fascinating reliefs in Temple of Hathor in Dendera, Egypt.

Temple has been modified on same site starting as far back as Middle Kingdom (2030-1650 BC). Existing structure began construction in late Ptolemaic period at time of Ptolemy Auletes, 54 BC.

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04/04/2024

Maiden Castle is the largest hill fort in Britain and one of the largest in Europe. Built in 600 BC and greatly expanded in 450 BC, the fort is on top of a large hill which is 914 m long, that"s about as long as 10 football pitches. In the Iron Age, hundreds of people lived there

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04/04/2024

Partial dentures consisting of a pair of teeth in a gold mount, Etruscan, 600 BC.

Etruscans, people living in Etruria (Umbria and Tuscany, Italy), were the first to make dentures and false teeth in Europe. Etruscan civilization was one of the most advanced of antiquity also in the dental field.

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04/03/2024

Cave di Cusa was an ancient stone quarry in Sicily, that was the source of stone used to build the temples in the ancient Greek city Selinunte. This site was quarried beginning in the 6th century BC until it was abandoned in 409 BC when the city was captured by the Carthaginians

Stone Age artifacts:

04/03/2024

Grotesque male character performing auto-fellatio under the statue of the Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden, City Hall of Cologne (Germany), circa 1406

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04/03/2024

Ramesses the Great, Ancient Egypt Pharaoh.

04/03/2024

The Temple of Khnum is an ancient Egyptian temple in the city of Esna in Luxor Governorate, Upper Egypt, about 55 kilometers south of Luxor. It had the ancient Egyptian name Hout-Khenmu (“House of Khnum”). The only surviving part of the temple is the pronos, the actual temple vestibule. The hall is supported by 24 columns and has an intact roof. It is located in the city center on the Nile River, 200 meters west of the river bank.
Copyright ©️ Samuel Lawandy

04/03/2024

Ancient Egypt Pharaoh.

04/02/2024

Pomander in the form of a skull, made of enamel, gold and rubies, Denmark, circa 1600

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04/02/2024

Remains of the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine in the Roman Forum in Rome. Built between 308-312 CE, the 35 metres high basilica was the largest building in the Forum (with an area of about 5,600 square meters), and the last Roman basilica built in the city

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03/28/2024

A photo from outside Tutankhamun"s hall.

📸 Egypt With Ahmed
‏♦️ All Rights Reserved ©♦️

03/28/2024

This small limestone figurine of a woman holding a male child on her lap is only 4cm in height and dates from around 1550–1450 B.C, making it a product of the 18th Dynasty and New Kingdom era of Ancient Egypt.

This little figure is a rather unique piece, as usually the bond between a child and mother, when often depicted in sculpture form, showcases either suckling, or a child figure sat upon the lap of the mother figure in the role of goddess Isis. This figurine, however, shows a little boy child laying limp upon the mother’s lap, he is either at rest or has possibly even succumbed to death. We can see the mother figure has her hand upon the centre of her chest, possibly the heart region, which could indicate mourning.

It is unknown what the exact meaning behind this little figure represents, the Met Museum, where it currently resides (44.4.64), sadly offers us no insight to where exactly in Egypt the piece was discovered either. For now, it is up to the viewer to decide what he or she reads into this statuette.

03/28/2024

Statue of Satmeret, Wife of Neferherenptah
Old Kingdom, 5th to 6th Dynasty, around 2345 BC.
Painted limestone, found in situ in serdab of G 8412, Giza.
Now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo. JE 87806

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03/28/2024

Pictured above is the marble lace neckerchief carved by French sculptor Louis-Philippe Mouchy (1734 - 1801), who masterfully created the marble statue in 1781.

The statue was commissioned as a posthumous tribute to the Duke of Montausier, Charles de Sainte-Maure. The nobleman was one of the guardians of the Great Dauphin of France, Louis, son and heir of the Sun King, Louis XIV.

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03/27/2024

A hoard of Roman nails found at Inchtuthil, Perth and Kinross, Scotland, c87 AD. After the Roman army abandoned their forward fortification on the site they buried 875,400 iron nails on the site to prevent the enemy Caledonian tribes reforging the iron for weapons

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