THE EGYPTIAN SOCIETY OF SOUTH AFRICA
Shemu Articles
SHEMU
Shemu is the Society’s quarterly newsletter, issued in January, April, July and October. Shemu is an Egyptian word meaning ‘harvest’.
The rise of the Nile flood in July marked the New Year for ancient Egyptians and this, the first season from July to October, was called akhet (inundation), go be followed by peret (time of emergence) from November to February as the Nile waters subside. The final season from March to June was shemu, a word that came to mean ‘harvest’.
The TESSA newsletter is sent to members, relevant organisations and institutions in South Africa, the USA, UK and Egypt. Please e-mail the Secretary on capevent1@gmail.com.
Astronomical Alignments in the temples of Egypt
By David Furlong In my early visits to Egypt, which started in 1991, I often used to stand on the central axis of different temples and wonder at the alignment intention of their founders. In those early days there was no simple way of determining accurately temple...
Wadi Abu Subeira, Egypt: Palaeolithic rock art on the verge of destruction
By Dr Per Stormyr In 2006 one of the most important recent archaeological discoveries in Egypt were made in Wadi Abu Subeira near Aswan. A team led by Adel Kelany of the MSA [Ministry of State for Antiquities] found a stunning assemblage of petroglyphs dating to...
Revisiting the Amarna Royals: Part 2
Dr. Stephen Buckley Following the first part of this article by Jo giving the background to our work on the royal mummies of the Amarna Period, it is now possible to discuss our recent mummification project, the science involved and the wider implications for mummy...
Revisiting the Amarna Royals: Part 1
Dr. Joann Fletcher Exactly a year ago in September 2010, Dr. Stephen Buckley and I were invited to Cape Town as guests of the Egyptian Society of South Africa. During our stay we gave lectures about ‘the Search for Nefertiti’ and ‘Recent DNA studies of Tutankhamen and...
Arsinoë II Philadelphos – a female pharaoh?
By Dr Maria Nilsson QUEEN Arsinoë II Philadelphos has been a topic of scholarly discussion for many generations, primarily focusing on her socio-political role as the wife of Ptolemy II. The academic world is divided as one part argues for and the other against a...
Discovering the Valley of the Golden Mummies
By Dr. Zahi Hawass The discovery of more than one hundred Greaco-Roman mummies in Bahariya Oasis has swept the media worldwide with a force not seen since the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb. The Valley of the Golden Mummies at Bahariya Oasis is the final...
Black Kings on Pharaohs Throne
By Jil Kamil EGYPTOLOGY is constantly enriched as new evidence comes to light, and every discovery provides food for thought One of the most important finds of recent years has been a cache of statues found in 2003 by the Universityof Geneva’s archaeological mission...
Updated Article on the Frederick Goodall painting The Subsiding of the Nile
By Keith Grenville The famous painting The Subsiding of the Nile – Frederick Goodall 1822 – 1904 held in Cape Town The Subsiding of the Nile shows the Giza Plateau from the south-east, with the Great Pyramid of Khufu on the right, and the Pyramid of Khafra on the left...