Hana Navratilova – författare

This cultural biography of a major ancient Egyptian monument maps the inception, life, and afterlife of the pyramid complex of King Senwosret III at Dahshur in Egypt, spanning five millennia from the beginnings of the ancient Egyptian state to modern times. The study transcends traditional chronological narratives, not only focussing on the primary stages of planning, building, and use of the funerary monument, but also including its later stages, its abandonment, dismantlement, and reuse. The pyramid continues to serve as a resource for social, cultural, and material capital, revealing centuries of interaction tied to identity, memory, and power dynamics.This study draws on a broad range of sources, from the archaeological record and ancient administrative texts, literary works, and graffiti left by early 'tourists' visiting the site to travellers' accounts from Medieval times and the Early Modern period, as well as contemporary observations on the heritage site. It combines Egyptology and landscape archaeology with research history, reception history, and cultural memory studies. The cultural biography of the pyramid of Senwosret III highlights the changing relationship of an ancient culture with its monuments, prefiguring later changes in the reception and use of the sites that ultimately became archaeological heritage and tourist attractions. Dahshur's palimpsest landscape offers insights into socio-political events through time as well as individual histories, positioning the pyramid of Senwosret III as a microcosm of Egypt's enduring cultural dialogue with its monumental past.

This Element seeks to characterize the scribal culture in ancient Egypt through its textual acts, which were of prime importance in this culture: writing, list-making, drawing, and copying. Drawing upon texts, material objects, and archeological evidence, this Element will touch upon main themes at the heart of the study of this culture, while building on current discussions in literacy and literary as well as social history.

The modern view of the ancient Egyptian world is often through the lens of a scribe: the trained, schooled, literate individual who was present at many levels of Egyptian society, from a local accountant to the highest echelons of society. And yet, despite the wealth of information the scribes left us, we know relatively little about what underpinned their world, about their mentality and about their everyday life.Tracing ten key biographies, Ancient Egyptian Scribes examines how these figures kept both the administrative life and cultural memory of Egypt running. These are the Egyptians who ran the state and formed the supposedly meritocratic system of local administration and government. Case studies look at accountants, draughtsmen, scribes with military and dynastic roles, the authors of graffiti and literati who interacted in different ways with Pharaohs and other leaders. Assuming no previous knowledge of ancient Egypt, the various roles and identities of the scribes are presented in a concise and accessible way, offering structured information on their cultural identity and self-presentation, and providing readers with an insight into the making of Egyptian written culture.