The History of Egypt Podcast

Newly researched and updated in 2024.

Intef the Great, Part 2. The war for Ta-Wer. The Thebans had seized the sacred city of Abdju (Abydos) in the district of Ta-Wer. The northern rulers, from the House of Khety, contested this violently. Inscriptions and art reveal the movements of armies, the clashes on field and river, and the sieging of major towns. Soon, things going downright apocalyptic. Also... dogs!

• Music and interludes by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.net.
• Music and interludes by Jeffrey Goodman www.jeffreygoodman.com.
• Interludes by Luke Chaos www.chaosmusick.com.
• Logo image: Intef II, from a stela in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
• Intro: Saruman's Speech from The Two Towers (2002), adapted by Dominic Perry.
• Fawlty Towers excerpts via Britbox Don't Mention the War | Fawlty Towers (youtube.com).

The History of Egypt Podcast:

• Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com.
• Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast.
• Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.

Partial Bibliography:

• M. D. Adams, ‘Community and Society in Egypt in the First Intermediate Period: An Archaeological Investigation of the Abydos Settlement Site’, Unpublished PhD. Thesis, University of Michigan (2005).
• D. Arnold, Gräber des Alten und Mittleren Reiches in El-Tarif (Mainz, 1976).
• D. D. Baker, Encyclopedia of the Pharaohs Volume I: Predynastic to the Twentieth Dynasty 3300 - 1069 BC (Cairo, 2008).
• H. Brunner, Die Texte aus den Gräbern der Herakleopolitenzeit von Siut mit Übersetzung und Erläuterungen (Glückstadt, 1937).
• J. J. Clère and J. Vandier, Textes de la Première Période Intermédiare et de la XIeme Dynastie (Brussels, 1948).
• J. C. Darnell and D. Darnell, ‘New Inscriptions of the Late First Intermediate Period from the Theban Western Desert and the Beginnings of the Northern Expansion of the Eleventh Dynasty’, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 56 (1997), 241--258.
• W. Ejsmond, ‘The Nubian Mercenaries of Gebelein in Light of Recent Field Research’, Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections 14 (2017), 11--13.
• N. Fields, Soldier of the Pharaoh: Middle Kingdom Egypt 2055--1650 BC (2007).
• H. G. Fischer, Inscriptions from the Coptite Nome: Dynasties VI-XI (Analecta orientalia 40; Rome, 1964).
• H. G. Fischer, ‘Provincial Inscriptions of the Heracleopolitan Period’, Varia Nova, Egyptian Studies 3 (New York, 1996), 79--90.
• G. P. Gilbert, Weapons, Warriors, and Warfare in Early Egypt (Oxford, 2004).
• H. Goedicke, ‘The Inscription of Dmi’, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 19 (1960), 288--291.
• W. Grajetzki, The Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt (London, 2006 & 2024).
• R. Landgráfová, It Is My Good Name That You Should Remember: Egyptian Biographical Texts on Middle Kingdom Stelae (Prague, 2011).
• M. Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature Volume I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms (Los Angeles, 1973).
• M. Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Autobiographies Chiefly of the Middle Kingdom: A Study and an Anthology (Freiburg, 1988).
• D. O’Connor, Abydos: Egypt’s First Pharaohs and the Cult of Osiris (London, 2009).
• S. Seidlmayer, ‘The First Intermediate Period (c. 2160--2055 BC)’, in I. Shaw (ed.), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (Oxford, 2000), 108--136.
• I. Shaw, Ancient Egyptian Warfare (Oxford, 2019).
• J. Wegner, ‘The Stela of Idudju-Iker, Foremost-One of the Chiefs of Wawat: New Evidence on the Conquest of Thinis Under Wahankh Antef II’, Revue d’égyptologie 68 (2018), 153--209.
• T. Wilkinson, The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt: The History of a Civilisation from 3000 BC to Cleopatra (London, 2010).

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Warring gods, divided dynasties. Following the First Dynasty of rulers, the Egyptian royal family seems to divide. Shadowy records hint at civil conflicts, and archaeological information reveals climate change and economic decay. These troubles shattered royal unity, but they may have had a larger legacy: inspiring tales of the gods Horus and Seth, who waged a decades-long battle for the kingship of Egypt...

• Time period: 2850 – 2700 BCE.
• Kings: Peribsen, Khasekhemwy.
• Notable sites: Saqqara, Abydos.
• Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com.
• The History of Egypt Podcast website www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com.
• Support the show at www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast.com.
• Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.

Select Bibliography:

• Erik Hornung, Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt: the One and the Many, 1996 (Amazon).
• John Romer, A History of Egypt: from the First Farmers to the Great Pyramid, 2013 (Amazon).
• Toby Wilkinson, Early Dynastic Egypt, 2001 (Amazon).
• David Wengrow, The Archaeology of Early Egypt, 2006 (Amazon).
• Robert Wenke, The Ancient Egyptian State, 2009 (Amazon).

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The wondrous monuments of King Sneferu. Around 2650 BCE, Egypt's Fouth Dynasty began. King Sneferu kick-started a golden age of pyramid building. Over thirty-plus years, the King's architects and labourers designed three magnificent monuments, eventually culminating in the first "true" pyramid.

• Date c.2620 - 2580 BCE www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com.
• Support the Show at www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast.
• Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.
• Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com.

Select Bibliography:

• Nicolas Grimal, A History of Ancient Egypt, 1994 (Amazon).
• Erik Hornung, Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt: the One and the Many, 1996 (Amazon).
• Mark Lehner, The Complete Pyramids, 2008 (Amazon).
• John Romer, A History of Egypt: from the First Farmers to the Great Pyramid, 2013 (Amazon).
• Toby Wilkinson, Early Dynastic Egypt, 2001 (Amazon).
• David Wengrow, The Archaeology of Early Egypt, 2006 (Amazon).
• Robert Wenke, The Ancient Egyptian State, 2009 (Amazon).

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Atum Creates the Universe. The stories of how ancient Egypt (and the world) came into existence are beautiful. In this episode, we explore three Creation myths: the tale of Atum and the primeval Ocean; the tale of Ptah and the divine word; and the story of the Ogdoad, the Council of Eight Gods. Each tale gives its own spin on the origins of life, the universe, and everything...

• Date c.4.5 billion years ago - 10,000 BCE
• Website: https://egyptianhistorypodcast.com
• Support the Show at www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast
• Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.
• Follow the show on social media www.facebook.com/egyptpodcast and www.twitter.com/egyptianpodcast
• Music by Keith Zizza www.keithzizza.com

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Hardcore Edition. In a special presentation, I compile my “Tomb of Tutankhamun” miniseries into a single mega episode. With updated information, and some new revelations, this 7-hour special is the full story, as best I can tell it.

Reference materials:

• For the full archive of Harry Burton’s photographs, showing the tomb of Tutankhamun in its original state, at the Griffith Institute.
• See other images, including the treasures, at Wikimedia.
• The Tomb of Tutankhamun at The Theban Mapping Project.
• The life and reign of Tutankhamun at The History of Egypt Podcast.

The Tomb of Tutankhamun episodes (with references and pictures):

• Part 1 (Chapters 1 to 5).
• Part 2 (Chapters 6 and 7).
• Part 3 (Chapters 8 and 9).
• Part 4 (Chapters 10 to 12).
• Part 5 (Chapters 13 and 14).
• Part 6 (Chapters 15 and 16).
• The “DNA Study” (Episode 128).
• The Tomb of Nefertiti (Episode 137b).

Episode Details

• Date: 1340 BCE and 1922 - 1932 CE.
• Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com.
• Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast.
• Make a one-time donation via PayPal payments.
• Logo image: The gold mummy mask of Tutankhamun via Wikimedia.
• Music by Keith Zizza https://www.keithzizza.net/
• Music by Michael Levy http://www.ancientlyre.com/
• Music by Ancient Lyric http://www.bettinajoydeguzman.com/
• Sound interludes by Luke Chaos https://twitter.com/Luke_Chaos

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