Sameh Iskander – författare

Of all the enormous monuments throughout Egypt and Nubia that Ramesses II (the Great; ca. 1279-1212 BCE) left behind, his temple at Abydos, built early in his reign, stands as one of his most elegant monuments, with its simple architectural layout and dramatic and graceful painted relief scenes. Though best known for its dramatic reliefs depicting the battle of Kadesh, the temple also offers a wealth of information about religious and social life in ancient Egypt. It reflects, for example, the strenuous efforts of the early Ramessides to reestablish the Osiris cult in Egypt-and particularly at Abydos-in the aftermath of the Amarna period.Over a seven-year period, the authors of The Temple of Ramesses II in Abydos conducted a field project with the aim of producing an up-to-date and comprehensive architectural, photographic, and epigraphic record of the temple.This lavish volume, the first of two documenting their results, is presented in two parts ('Part 1: Exterior Walls and Courts' and 'Part 2: Chapels and First Pylon') is the first of two volumes documenting their results. It presents more than two hundred detailed line drawings-accurately rendered according to modern epigraphical standards-of the temple's carved relief scenes, placed alongside their corresponding full-color photographs. The result is a masterpiece of modern epigraphic research and publication.Volume 1 consists of of two books, with a total of over 400 illustrations and Preface. Volume 2, "Pillars, Miscellany, and Inscriptions", contains additional elements of the temple, as well as translations of the inscriptions found in the temple.

Of all the enormous monuments throughout Egypt and Nubia that Ramesses II (the Great; ca. 1279-1212 BCE) left behind, his temple at Abydos, built early in his reign, stands as one of his most elegant monuments, with its simple architectural layout and dramatic and graceful painted relief scenes. Though best known for its dramatic reliefs depicting the battle of Kadesh, the temple also offers a wealth of information about religious and social life in ancient Egypt. It reflects, for example, the strenuous efforts of the early Ramessides to reestablish the Osiris cult in Egypt-and particularly at Abydos-in the aftermath of the Amarna period. Over a seven-year period, the authors of The Temple of Ramesses II in Abydos conducted a field project with the aim of producing an up-to-date and comprehensive architectural, photographic, and epigraphic record of the temple. The result is a masterpiece of modern epigraphic research and publication.This volume - Volume 2, Pillars, Niches and Miscellaea - is the second of two volumes documenting their results. It presents more than two hundred illustrations including detailed line drawings - accurately rendered according to modern epigraphical standards - of elements of the temple as well as translations of the inscriptions found in the temple. .

Building on the comprehensive photographic and epigraphic documentation of the temple presented in The Temple of Ramesses II at Abydos volumes 1 (Wall Scenes) and 2 (Pillars, Niches and Miscellanea), volume 3 (Architectural and Inscriptional Features) offers a detailed analysis of the overall architectural layout and decorative programme of the temple and its symbolism. Of all the enormous monuments throughout Egypt and Nubia that Ramesses II (the Great; ca. 1279-1212 BCE) left behind, his temple at Abydos, built early in his reign, stands as one of his most elegant, with its simple architectural layout and dramatic and graceful painted relief scenes. Though best known for its dramatic reliefs depicting the battle of Kadesh, the temple also offers a wealth of information about religious and social life in ancient Egypt. It reflects, for example, the strenuous efforts of the early Ramessides to reestablish the Osiris cult in Egypt -- and particularly at Abydos -- in the aftermath of the Amarna period. This discussion approaches the religious history of the site through its archaeology, its inscriptions-both planned and secondary (graffiti)-and its situation in the complex religious landscape of Abydos. Of particular interest are the temple's role as a staging point for the great Osiris Festival and its procession, among the most important of all ritual events in the Egyptian religious calendar during the Ramesside period; the promotion of an active, unbound form of Osiris; and the evidence for important cult activities that took place on the rooftop of the temple, the presence of which is documented today by the staircase that accessed it from Court B.

This book is the first of a three-volume study of the structures and objects discovered during nine seasons of excavations (2017–2025) within the Ramesses II temple precinct conducted under the direction of Sameh Iskander.Volume One contains five chapters organised in two parts; the first presents in three chapters a clear understanding of the precinct site, its extant architectural mud-brick structures outside the stone temple, and a careful investigation of the archaeological objects and ceramic data obtained from the excavation. The second part focuses on the data obtained from the excavation of a mysterious mixed deposit of materials that were brought from unknown locations and dumped in one of the temple’s magazines (S15). This deposit offers new insights into our understanding of Abydos, a site rich in historical and archaeological significance.

This book is the second volume of a three-volume study presenting the remarkable archaeological discoveries made over nine excavation seasons (2017–2025). The work was conducted under the direction of Dr. Sameh Iskander at the Ramesses II Temple in Abydos, under the auspices of New York University-Institute for the Study of the Ancient World. The findings span more than three millennia of history. The volume begins with the recent discovery of a massive Old Kingdom mud-brick wall, which offers important new insights into the ancient landscape of Abydos and the location of its early town. Covering much later periods as well, the book also presents multifaceted discoveries from the Greco-Roman era through the late antique and early Arab periods. These materials provide valuable evidence for economic history, festival songs, letters, and legal contracts preserved on papyri and ostraca written in Demotic, Greek, Coptic, and Arabic. The volume also discusses the unprecedented large well-preserved leather remains that make them some of the most important and remarkable leather discoveries in Egypt to date.