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Happy Thanksgiving!

Today in the USA is the Thanksgiving Holiday, which is a day where we gather with our families to express our gratefulness for all that we have. As Iโ€™m sure it comes as no surprise to anyone who follows this account, I am incredibly thankful for my Nonno.

Iโ€™m thankful for everything that he taught me and for how he made learning so fun.  Iโ€™m thankful that he loved books and showed me the power of books and the knowledge they contain. Iโ€™m thankful for all of the knowledge and encouragement he gave me, because without him, I would not be able to read hieroglyphs.

Iโ€™m thankful for all of his hard work and the sacrifices he made in order to make sure my family is able to live a good life. Everything good we have is because of him.

Iโ€™m thankful that he showed me the power of hard work and Iโ€™m thankful he always encouraged me to work hard and to do my best. I wouldnโ€™t be where I am today (a successful teacher, a self-taught (or Nonno-taught) Egyptologist) without him.

Iโ€™m thankful for the day we spent together in Pompeii (pictured above) because it was the best day of my life. It was my dream to go to Pompeii with my Nonno and I am so happy we were able to go. Iโ€™m thankful for every museum trip, every Disney vacation, and for the days we all just simply hung out together.

I also want to say thank you to the rest of my family – my mom, dad, sister and brother who all support me with this account. My dad drives us to museums and carries my bags, my mom is the director/video recorder/photographer, my sister is also a photographer and my brother gives me lots of support!

Also, a big THANK YOU to everyone on here who has followed along! I appreciate every single one of you!

๐“™๐“‹น๐“†–๐“Ž›๐“‡ณ๐“Ž›

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Blog Egyptian Artifacts

“Wonderful Things”

โ€œWonderful Things.โ€ย 

That quote is from Howard Carter when he first peered into the tombย ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ย of Tutankhamunย ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“. Honestly, every time I walk through a museum all I can think is โ€œWonderful Thingsโ€ – I feel like that sums up my feelings pretty well!ย 

While I have posted this picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ before, it is one of my absolute favorites and one of the many wonderful things that I have seen! This is my Nonno and I with Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ at the British Museum! I am posting this again because today ๐“‡๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ is the 100 ๐“ฒ year anniversary of the discovery of Tutankhamunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰! 

As a child (and even now) I love the story about howย Tutankhamunโ€™sย ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ย tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ย was discovered! The funerary mask, Anubisย ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃย shrine, cartouche box, and so many of the other artifacts in the tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ completely fascinated me and definitely played a part in me becoming so interested in ancient Egyptย ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–ย as a child. I have my Nonno to thank for telling me about Tutankhamunย ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ย and for encouraging my love and fascination with Egyptian history!ย 

In this particular statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ, Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ is wearing the nemes head cloth ๐“ˆ–๐“…“๐“‹ด, false beard, and broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹. These are all very common things for pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ to wear to represent themselves as pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป, which Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ felt he needed to do in order to legitimize his rule ๐“‹พ. The bottom part of the statue is ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ decorated with lotus flowers ๐“†ธ๐“ช and papyrus reeds ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Ž›๐“†ฐ. 

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Memories at the MET

This picture is one of my absolute favorites. It kinda looks like we are in Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–! It was from one of my birthday trips to the MET – I believe this is my 16th birthday (I am 30 now).

I have such amazing memories here – there was a time when there was no glass covering the walls inside the mastaba (fun fact: mastaba means bench in Arabic)- I will never forget being inside this tomb seeing it without glass – as it was meant to be seen. Nonno was so happy ๐“„ซ๐“…ฑ๐“› that I would be able to experience that!! The inside of the tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ is beautifully decorated with hieroglyphics ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช and paintings!

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Egyptian Artifacts

Statue of Sekhmet at the Brooklyn Museum

Every time I go to a museum, I need to get a picture with Sekhmet ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“!

Sekhmet ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“ was one of my Nonnoโ€™s absolute favorite Egyptian goddesses ๐“Šน๐“๐“ช. Whenever I see Sekhmet, ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“ she makes me think of my Nonno. He probably really liked her due to her strength and power!

In Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–, most of the feline ๐“…“๐“‡‹๐“…ฑ๐“ƒ  deities were female! This was most likely intentional – much like a lioness ๐“Œณ๐“น๐“„ฟ๐“๐“„› can be gentle and nurturing with her cubs, she can also be extremely fierce and aggressive when she needs to protect ๐“…“๐“‚๐“Žก๐“€œ them. This duality is quintessential to not only Sekhmetโ€™s ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“ role in the Egyptian pantheon, but to the other feline ๐“…“๐“‡‹๐“…ฑ๐“ƒ  goddesses ๐“Šน๐“๐“ช as well!

Sekhmet ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“ is always seen with a sun-disk on her head, which shows that she is the daughter of Ra ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“›. She was known as the goddess ๐“Šน๐“ of destruction/war, and her name means โ€œshe who is powerful.โ€ She could also represent the destructive aspects of the sun ๐“‡ณ๐“บ. There were many religious rituals designed to appease her. Sekhmet ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“ was feared for being a very powerful and very destructive goddess ๐“Šน๐“.

This particular statue ๐“„š๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ of Sekhmet ๐“Œ‚๐“๐“…“๐“๐“ was made during the rule of Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  during the 18th Dynasty.

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Egyptian Artifacts

Wooden Boat Models

I absolutely love the wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ models. I could literally spend hours just looking at them!

Wooden Boat Models at the Louvre (featuring Nonno’s reflection)

Wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ models were very popular in the Middle Kingdom and were usually put in tombs ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰. The boats ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž๐“ฆ were symbolic, and were meant to help the deceased on their journey in the afterlife ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰. When a person died, their body was carried in a boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž across the Nile ๐“‡‹๐“๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ—๐“ˆ˜๐“ˆ‡๐“บ in a symbolic representation of the journey of the soul ๐“‚“- from the land of the living to the land of the dead ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰. This directly mirrors Raโ€™s ๐“‡ณ๐“บ๐“› daily journey across the sky ๐“Šช๐“๐“‡ฏ.

Tombs usually contained two ๐“ป boats ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž๐“ฆ: one sailing in a northward direction, and one sailing in a southward direction.

So many wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ model boats ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž๐“ฆ have been found because boats ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž๐“ฆ were essential to daily Egyptian life along the Nile River ๐“‡‹๐“๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ—๐“ˆ˜๐“ˆ‡๐“บ. Boats ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž๐“ฆ were not only essential for transporting people, goods and construction materials, but also for the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน and their journeys as well.

This particular boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž is so beautiful ๐“„ค because so many of the oarsmen are there! I also love this picture because my Nonno took it – you can even see his reflection in the glass ๐Ÿ’™.

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Blog Egyptian Artifacts

Wooden Ushabtis of Seti I

My Nonno took this picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ and I love the fact that you can see his reflection in the glass. I know that technically makes this โ€œnot a good pictureโ€ in photography terms, but that is what makes the picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ so special to me. I love being able to see him and his point of view while going through old pictures ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“ฆ because I miss him so much.

Wooden Ushabtis of Seti I at the Vatican Museum

These are the wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ of Seti I ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“ . While only about 700 of these wooden ๐“†ฑ๐“๐“บ ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ remain, it is estimated that Seti I ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“  had over 1000 of them. What happened to the ones that are missing? They were used for firewood ๐Ÿคฆ๐Ÿฝโ€โ™€๏ธ My Nonno frequently told me about this – he was not happy that artifacts were destroyed! Anytime Seti I ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“  came up in conversation (which was often because he was one of my Nonnoโ€™s favorite pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ) my Nonno would say โ€œcan you believe some idiots used his ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ as torches??!!โ€

Seti Iโ€™s ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“  remaining ushabtis ๐“†ท๐“„ฟ๐“ฏ๐“ƒ€๐“๐“ฎ๐“€พ are in museums throughout the world and I have always been on the lookout for them whenever I go to a museum! Originally, my Nonno and I would always point them out to each other. Now whenever I see them, they are a reminder of my Nonno.

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Keeping a Person’s Name Alive

๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ – Nonno โค๏ธ

This was my Christmas gift to myself this year – it is a bracelet ๐“‚๐“ ๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“‡› that says Nonno ๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ in hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช. I can now carry his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– with me every day. I love this bracelet ๐“‚๐“ ๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“‡› and Iโ€™m so happy I was able to have it made for myself and for my sister ๐“Œข๐“ˆ–๐“ too.

Talking about my Nonno ๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ and saying his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– is so important to me. Wearing his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– has been so important to me – Nonno would not have been happy with me getting a tattoo (๐Ÿ˜‚) so this bracelet ๐“‚๐“ ๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“‡› is perfect. My students know all about Nonno ๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ–๐“ฏ too and I will talk about him any chance I get to anyone who will listen! I want everyone to know who he was and what an absolutely incredible person he was.

I have likened this account to a Stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ in the past, but I also truly believe in the Egyptian cultural aspect of the importance of a personโ€™s name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–, and it being essential to them living on. Me wearing his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–, speaking his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–, and writing about him is how I help my Nonno to live on even if he isnโ€™t here with me presently (which really really hurts – the grief has been unimaginable).

In ancient Egyptian culture, a name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– was considered the most essential part of the person because the other four ๐“ฝ elements could not exist without the name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–. If a person wanted to survive after death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ, not only was mummification essential, but even more so was preserving the name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–. If a name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– was removed from a monument or forgotten, it meant that the person was deprived of their entire existence.

I donโ€™t want my Nonnoโ€™s name to ever be forgotten. Thank you all for listening to me and helping me to have Nonnoโ€™s name live on!

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Welcome to Ancient Egypt Blog!

Nonno and Nicole at the Vatican Museum

My name is Nicole and I have a passion for history, most notably ancient Egypt. My Nonno has the same love for history, and he taught me basically everything I know. Together, we read books all about Egypt, ever since I was a little girl. He brought me my first book on hieroglyphs when I was six years old, and from there I taught myself how to read them. By the time I was twelve years old, I was able to go to museums and read the hieroglyphs off of the artifacts. Nonno was so proud of me and as my sister said โ€œhe had been waiting his whole life for someone to care about this stuff like he did.โ€ We loved going to museums and studying history together.

Unfortunately, my Nonno passed away in February 2020. He was my person and I am completely devastated. I started my Instagram account @ancientegyptblog and this website so I could share our love of history, share all of the amazing things he taught me, all the books he gave me, and all places he took me to.