Tag: pop culture

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Stargate Graphing Project

Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis are my most favorite tv shows of all time! I started watching them when I was a teenager and instantly loved them. As someone who loves both ancient Egypt and science, StargateΒ π“‹΄π“‡Όπ“ƒ€π“Š€π“ˆ–π“‹΄π“ƒ€π“„Ώπ“‡Όπ“‡³π“¦Β was the perfect combination of both! This picture is of a project that I did for my pre-calc class in high school! We had to make a picture on a graphing calculator using equations, and of course I chose to graph a StargateΒ π“‹΄π“‡Όπ“ƒ€π“Š€π“ˆ–π“‹΄π“ƒ€π“„Ώπ“‡Όπ“‡³π“¦!Β 

I idolized both Daniel Jackson (archaeologist) and Samantha Carter (astrophysicist) and wanted to be just like both of them! I guess my wish came true because over 15 years later, I am teaching hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ to all of you, and I teach astrophysics to high school students! Sam Carter is actually the reason I became a scientist – seeing her do science inspired me! I wanted (and still want) to be just like her! Its crazy how a tv show had such a tremendous and positive impact on my life – its honestly hard to put it into words how much Stargate π“‹΄π“‡Όπ“ƒ€π“Š€π“ˆ–𓋴𓃀𓄿𓇼𓇳𓏦 means to me. 

So how do you write β€œStargate” in hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ? Let’s take a look at the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ from the movie: π“‹΄π“‡Όπ“ƒ€π“Š€π“ˆ–𓋴𓃀𓄿𓇼𓇳𓏦 – β€œGate to the Stars” (Stargate)

π“‹΄π“‡Όπ“ƒ€π“Š€ – Gate/Doorway

π“ˆ– – To 

𓋴𓃀𓄿𓇼𓇳𓏦 – Stars

I love how the root word of both gate/doorway and star are the same word: π“‹΄π“ƒ€π“„Ώ. They would both be pronounced like β€œsba” – its just the determinative symbols that are different! In the movie, π“‹΄π“‡Όπ“ƒ€π“Š€ is a little messed up and should be spelled like this: π“‹΄π“ƒ€π“‡Όπ“Š€, but I’ll forgive it because the hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ are actually quite good! 

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Hieroglyphs and Korean!

So something you might have guessed about me is that I love to learn!! Something else about me is that when I like something – I really REALLY like it and need to learn everything about it. I’m very passionate and enthusiastic about my hobbies and interests. My normally stoic/cold exterior completely changes when I’m talking about stuff I love! My Nonno always got similarly excited when speaking about topics he loved.

One of the things I’m learning right now is Korean! I already speak English, Italian, and can read/write hieroglyphs (I would’ve failed as a scribe because I am awful at drawing the symbols – I’m kinda embarrassed to post my β€œhandwriting” πŸ˜‚) – so why do I want to learn Korean? It’s because of BTS!! I love their music and want to be able to understand it instead of reading translations!

One thing I noticed when I was learning the Korean alphabet (called Hangeul ν•œκΈ€) was that my name (Nicole) is written β€œsimilarly” in both hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ and ν•œκΈ€!!!

π“ˆ–π“‡‹π“Ž‘π“―π“ƒ­
λ‹ˆμ½œ

Now, obviously they don’t look similar at all but both are written as β€œNikol” in romanized letters! When I was a kid I was insistent that my name in hieroglyphs be written as π“ˆ–π“‡‹π“Ž‘π“―π“ƒ­π“‡Œ so it would match the English as much as possible – I was stubborn and didn’t care about phonetics.

Learning Korean has been so fun and so interesting (and very difficult) because it is so different from the other languages I know, however, I did like this similarity between hieroglyphs and Korean! It seems like I relate everything back to ancient Egypt in one way or another!

If you read this, κ°μ‚¬ν•©λ‹ˆλ‹€!!!! (gam-sa-hab-ni-da AKA Thank You)!

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The Mummy

This post is a little bit different for today but that’s okay! I have had this picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏 in my drafts for a while!

I don’t think that anyone is surprised to hear that my absolute favorite movie of all time is The Mummy (and I also love the Mummy Returns too)! I’ll never forget watching the movie for the first time when I was eleven years old with my mom. I related so much to Evie because she could read hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ and loved ancient Egypt π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š– just like me!! Evie instantly became my favorite movie character, and she still is to this day!

At Universal Studios in Hollywood, I ran into the Golden π“‹žπ“ƒ‰π“ƒ‰π“ƒ‰ Book 𓅓𓍑𓏏𓏛 of Amun-Ra π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“‡³π“Ί from the movie and felt like I met a celebrity (you can definitely see how happy I am in this picture)!! Even though the Golden Book of Amun-Ra and the Book of the Dead (as it is in the movie at least) does not exist historically, they are still such fun and iconic movie props – I always wanted one of my own!

Let’s learn some actual vocabulary associated with the movies!
π“‹žπ“ƒ‰π“ƒ‰π“ƒ‰ – Gold
𓅓𓍑𓏏𓏛 – Papyrus Roll (Book)
π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“‡³π“Ί – Amun-Ra
𓇋𓁹𓅱𓀾 – Mummy

While the movies are obviously not historically accurate, The Mummy and the Mummy Returns are my absolute favorite movies so I wanted to make this post about how much I love them! My Nonno really enjoyed them too and we would watch them together! He was always so disappointed that he couldn’t ride Revenge of the Mummy because we all loved it so much (it’s a rollercoaster and he was too old to ride it safely).

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Egyptian Artifacts

Amulets of Taweret

Here are some faience π“‹£π“ˆ–π“π“Έπ“Ό amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ of the goddess π“ŠΉπ“ Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗! More people are now familiar with Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 because of Moon Knight, but let’s dive into some history/information about her!

While the ancient Egyptians π“†Žπ“π“€€π“π“ͺ both feared and revered π“‡‹π“Œ΄π“„ͺ hippos π“Œ‰π“π“ƒ―π“¦ due to their strength and power, Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 was a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ who was a protector π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ of women π“Šƒπ“π“‚‘π“π“π“ͺ and children π“π“‡Œπ“€•π“ͺ! The name π“‚‹π“ˆ– Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 actually means β€œthe great (female) one!” That is certainly a name π“‚‹π“ˆ– that suits her!

While many amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ were usually placed on mummies 𓇋𓁹𓅱𓀾π“ͺ to help the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱 on their journey to the Duat 𓇼𓄿𓏏𓉐 (afterlife), amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ of Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 were usually found in homes because she was a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ who was essential to family 𓅕𓉔𓅱𓏏𓀀𓁐𓏦 life. The family 𓅕𓉔𓅱𓏏𓀀𓁐𓏦 unit was an incredibly important feature not only in daily life π“‹Ή, but in religious observances as well. The amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ of Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 would provide protection π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ in the home, especially during childbirth, which was quite deadly for mothers 𓄿𓏏𓁐π“ͺ at the time. For this reason, Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 was usually worshipped in the home instead of in temples π“‰Ÿπ“π“‰π“ͺ!

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Egyptian Artifacts

Khonsu

Let’s talk about Khonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€―!

The god π“ŠΉ Khonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€― is definitely getting some media attention due to Moon Knight! While this gold π“‹žπ“ƒ‰π“ƒ‰π“ƒ‰ pendant may look like Ra 𓇳𓏺𓁛 at quick glance, this is actually the god π“ŠΉ Khonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€―! When they are both in their falcon π“ƒ€π“‡‹π“Ž‘π“…„ form, they might be mistaken with each other, especially since Ra 𓇳𓏺𓁛 is represented with the sun disk 𓇳𓏺 on his head 𓁢𓏺, while Khonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€― is represented with the moon π“‡‹π“‚π“Ž›π“‡Ή on his head 𓁢𓏺 – since both are circles, they do look similar!

Khonsu’s π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€― role in the pantheon has changed throughout time, and he was quite the bloodthirsty god π“ŠΉ in the Pyramid Texts, however in the New Kingdom he was a more peaceful god π“ŠΉ of the moon π“‡‹π“‚π“Ž›π“‡Ή. He was considered to be the son π“…­ of Amun π“‡‹π“ π“ˆ–π“€­ and Mut 𓏏𓄿𓀭, and together the three of them made up the Theban triad.

While Khonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€― does take the form of a falcon π“ƒ€π“‡‹π“Ž‘π“…„, he is usually represented as a man π“Šƒπ“€€π“€ wrapped in mummy bandages and wearing a crescent 𓇹 shaped necklace! He can also be depicted with his hands/arms 𓂝𓏦 restrained. That representation sounds familiar, doesn’t it?! The anthropomorphic form of Khonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€― definitely inspired parts of the Moon Knight comics and tv show!

The name π“‚‹π“ˆ– β€œKhonsu π“π“ˆ–π“‡“π“…±π“€―β€œ is thought to come from the verb β€œto traverse” and it means β€œhe who traverses (the sky).” This piece is dated to the 19th-20th Dynasties (c. 1295–1070 B.C.E).

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Egyptian Artifacts

Ammit – The Devourer

Ammit in the Book of the Dead of Imhotep at The MET

Never did I think I would see the day where Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 was the main villain on a Marvel tv show but here we are! Let’s learn a bit about the Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 from Egyptian π“†Žπ“π“€€π“ mythology – there are some similarities to the Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 we saw on Moon Knight! In ancient Egypt π“†Žπ“…“π“π“Š–, Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 was not formally worshipped 𓇼𓄿𓀒 in any formal cult (unlike on Moon Knight) and the Egyptians π“†Žπ“π“€€π“π“ͺ saw her as a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ to be feared and overcome!

Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 was a combination of animals that were most feared by the ancient Egyptians π“†Žπ“π“€€π“π“ͺ: she had the head 𓁢𓏺 of a crocodile π“…“π“‹΄π“Ž›π“†Œ, the neck and mane of a lion π“Œ³π“Ήπ“„Ώπ“„›, and the rear of a hippopotamus π“Œ‰π“π“ƒ―! Since she was the combination of both land and marine animals there was no escaping Ammit’s 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 wrath no matter where you went!

Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 was known as β€œthe devourer” or β€œeater of hearts” and her name π“‚‹π“ˆ– means β€œfemale devourer” or β€œfemale devourer of the dead.” That is in reference to Ammit’s 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 role in the Weighing of the Heart of the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱; if the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱 led a life full of bad deeds, Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 would eat their heart 𓇋𓃀𓄣 when it weighed more than Maat’s π“™π“Œ΄π“‚£π“π“¦ feather. When Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 eat their heart 𓇋𓃀𓄣, the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱 would not be granted access to the Duat 𓇼𓄿𓏏𓉐 (afterlife).

This image 𓏏𓅱𓏏 of Ammit 𓂝𓅓𓅓𓏏 is from the Book of the Dead of Imhotep (Early Ptolemaic Period) at the MET!

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Reading Hieroglyphs

“I Have the High Ground” Hieroglyph

β€œI have the high ground 𓀠” is one of the most quoted lines from Star 𓋴𓃀𓄿𓇼 Wars 𓂋𓆱𓂝𓏏𓏦! The hieroglyph π“ŠΉπ“Œƒ in the picture 𓏏𓅱𓏏 literally means β€œhigh ground 𓀠” and looks very similar to Obi-Wan during the end fight scene on Mustafar from Revenge of the Sith! When I found this in an inscription π“Ÿπ“›π“₯ at the MET, I got very excited!!!!

This particular hieroglyphic π“ŠΉπ“Œƒ symbol has been named the β€œexcited man” by James Allen (but I will be calling it β€œKenobi”), and I happen to think that is a very fitting description! The β€œexcited man 𓀠” functions as both an ideogram and a determinative.

When acting as an ideogram, π“€  means β€œhigh ground.”

When acting as a determinative, π“€  can be found at the end of words such as:

π“„Ώπ“Ž›π“€  – Mourn
π“Ž›π“‚π“‚π“…±π“π“€  – Joy
π“―π“„Ώπ“ˆ™π“€  – be strong, be honored
π“‹΄π“ˆŽπ“„Ώπ“€  – raise, to set right
π“ˆŽπ“„Ώπ“€  – to be high, to be loud

These words all express strong emotions, so the β€œexcited man π“€ β€œ is definitely a symbol that summarizes the meaning of the word!

Since β€œRevenge of the Sith” is one of my absolute favorite movies, I am really quite amused by the meaning of this hieroglyph π“ŠΉπ“Œƒ! It is such a cool coincidence!

Are any of you guys Star 𓋴𓃀𓄿𓇼 Wars 𓂋𓆱𓂝𓏏𓏦 fans too?! I absolutely loved the Kenobi show on Disney+ because I am a huge fan of Anakin and Obi-Wan!

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Egyptian Artifacts

The Goddess Taweret

Taweret at The MET (photo by Amanda)

Here is a gorgeous π“„€ (and ADORABLE) faience π“‹£π“ˆ–π“π“Έπ“Ό amulet π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†/statue π“„šπ“ˆ–π“π“­π“€Ύ of the goddess π“ŠΉπ“ Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗! More people are now familiar with Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 because of Moon Knight, but let’s dive into some history/information about her because I think she’s an amazing figure in the Egyptian pantheon!

While the ancient Egyptians π“†Žπ“π“€€π“π“ͺ both feared and revered π“‡‹π“Œ΄π“„ͺ hippos π“Œ‰π“π“ƒ―π“¦ due to their strength and power, Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 was a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ who was a protector π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ of women π“Šƒπ“π“‚‘π“π“π“ͺ and children π“π“‡Œπ“€•π“ͺ! The name π“‚‹π“ˆ– Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 actually means β€œthe great (female) one!” That is certainly a name π“‚‹π“ˆ– that suits her!

While many amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ were usually placed on mummies 𓇋𓁹𓅱𓀾π“ͺ to help the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱 on their journey to the Duat 𓇼𓄿𓏏𓉐 (afterlife), amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ of Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 were usually found in homes because she was a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ who was essential to family 𓅕𓉔𓅱𓏏𓀀𓁐𓏦 life.

The amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ of Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 would provide protection π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ in the home, especially during childbirth, which was quite deadly for mothers 𓅐𓏏𓁐π“ͺ at the time. For this reason, Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 was usually worshipped in the home instead of in temples π“‰Ÿπ“π“‰π“ͺ!

Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 was a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ who was also associated with the inundation of the Nile River π“‡‹π“π“‚‹π“…±π“ˆ—π“ˆ˜π“ˆ‡π“Ί. Since the Nile River π“‡‹π“π“‚‹π“…±π“ˆ—π“ˆ˜π“ˆ‡π“Ί needed to flood in order for the soil to be fertile enough for crops to grow, and Taweret 𓏏𓄿𓅩𓂋𓏏𓆗 was a goddess π“ŠΉπ“ of fertility, this association is perfect!

Taweret at The MET (photo by Amanda)