With a special emphasis on Queens and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt, this tour visits many ‘must see’ sites including the Pyramids of Giza; the Labyrinth at Hawara; Akhenaten’s city and tomb at Amarna; the colossal statue of Queen Merytamun at Akhmim; the beautiful Temple of Seti I and the enigmatic Oseiron at Abydos; The Temple of Hathor at Dendera with the unique depiction of Cleopatra; the Valley of the Kings, and the spectacular walk over the hills to the tomb-Builders Village at Deir el Medina; the tomb of Nefertari; Hatshepsut’s Temple at Deir el Bahari; the Tomb of Ramose; Medinet Habu; the Colossi of Memnon; Luxor Temple; and Karnak.

Nofret, Hetepheres, Meritites, Henutsen, Meresankh, Neferuptah, Sobekneferu, Ahmose Nefertari, Senisoneb, Ahmes, Hatshepsut, Neferure, Sitia, Meryetre, Mutemwia, Tiye, Nefertiti, Meritaten, Meketaten, Ankhesenpaaten/amun, Neferneferure tasherit, Beketaten, Teye, Mutnodjmet, Nefertari, Isitnofret, Meritamun, Bintanath, Takhat, Twosret, Tyti, Maatkare, Henttawy, Amenerdis, Shepenwepet, Ankhenesneferibre, Nitocris, Cleopatra.

Isis Nephthys Maat Nut Heqet Seshat
Amentet Meretseger Hathor Sekhmet Tauret Paket

For further details see the TOURS pages on this site. Contact Ancient World Tours at: 0844 357 9494, visit: www.ancient.co.uk.

 Why Sinuhe Ran Away: Conspiracies at the Middle Kingdom Court was, in any case, a quite a new talk, but I found a number of new images to illustrate the story, and was able to confirm at Worthing (Sussex Egyptology Society) on Saturday 23/2/2013 that it now runs a little more smoothly.

The Tale of Sinuhe is arguably the greatest of all ancient Egyptian literary works, and may be admired for the many subtle literary devices employed in it’s composition, but it has an additional layer of interest in the light it throws upon real events.

Specifically these relate to the fate of the last 11^th Dynasty king, Mentuhotep IV, and the untimely demise of his successor, Amenemhet I, founder the 12^th Dynasty. Sinuhe is but one of a number of texts that bear upon this period, and offers a great deal of additional insight through the layers of meaning built into the story, and offering clues through subtle innuendo.

 Seekers of the Sacred Stone was previously only available as a slide show, but – after some considerable labour – has now been revamped as a Powerpoint presentation with much additional material, and was successfully (re)launched at Plymouth (Plymouth and District Egyptology Society) on 2/3/2013.

The talk examines the work of ancient expeditions into the Egyptian Eastern desert to extract special stones – in particular, the purple porphyry (prized by the Romans), and the sacred Bekhen stone (greywacke), revered from the earliest times. The images are largely drawn from visits to the sites in recent times, which uncover many intriguing puzzles along the way.

CRETE OF THE MINOANS

A fourteen-night, four-centre tour of Crete by air-conditioned minibus, focussing on the monuments of the Minoan period.

September 28^th – October 12^th 2012, flying from Birmingham, UK.

Many visitors to Crete visit Knossos – and perhaps some of the other palaces, such as Phaestos or Mallia – but there are a whole host of
other sites from the Bronze Age which are much more rarely seen.

Apart from the palaces, this tour will visit several Minoan Towns, Sacred Caves, Peak Sanctuaries, Cemeteries, Temples, and numerous Villas, giving a clear picture of how the Minoan culture fitted into the dramatic Cretan landscape.

Based at four centres – Heraklion, Matala, Siteia, and Elounda – we are able to see a large number of sites at an easy pace, over
short distances, each day. The transfers between accommodation centres will also visit interesting sites and traverse spectacular scenery, adding to the comprehensive picture of Crete in the Bronze Age, (and in the periods following) gained by our party. You will feel that you have got to know Crete and its history during the course of this tour.

Price: £1750 (Single Supplement, £200). Deposit: £500. Ground Only prices available.

See full details under Study/Adventure Tours CRETE OF THE MINOANS. Numbers limited.

I am no longer speaking to the Leicestershire Ancient Egyptian Society on February 18th. This meeting is now an AGM.

I shall be speaking on the same topic – Poison, Forgery, Voodoo: The Harem Conspiracy Against Ramesses III, for The Friends of the Petrie Society, on Friday 20th April at 6.30pm, Lecture Theatre G6, Institute of Archaeology, 31 Gordon Square, London WC1. Contact: 020 7679 2369; janpicton@ijnet.demon.co.uk

However, Land of the Red Crown – 3rd – 11th November 2012, which appeals more to the experienced visitor, is booking well and should run. As well as popular sites in Cairo, Giza and Saqqara, this tour includes – the pyramids of Dahshur; The Serapeum and New Kingdom Tombs at Saqqara; one of my special areas of expertise – the Hawara Labyrinth, and other Middle Kingdom sites in the Faiyum at Illahun, Medinet Madi, Biahmu, Qasr el Sagha; and also the delta cities of Tanis and Bubastis. 

e-mail: info@ancient.co.uk. Tel: +44 844 357 9494. (UK 0844 357 9494)

The Land of the Red Crown (Nov 3 – 11, 2012) is already attracting a lot of interest.   This tour focuses on some of my areas of especial interest, including the Hawara Labyrinth and the rare surviving monuments of the Middle Kingdom in the Faiyum region; Bubastis and Tanis (and a chance to see the treasures of Tanis, and the Royal Mummies at the Museum); and Saqqara, with clues to the form of the Labyrinth in the Step Pyramid complex, the wonderful Post-Amarna tombs, and the awesome Serapeum. Apart from this, we travel to see a large number of Old and Middle Kingdom pyramids, including those at Dahshur, Meidum and Illahun, as well as Giza. A really fascinating tour, and I know that bookings have already been received.

The Grand Tour (Feb 26th – Mar 11th 2012) ‘does what it says on the tin’ and goes from one end of Egypt to the other, taking in all the ‘must see’ sites along the way. The Giza Pyramids; Islamic Cairo; the Egyptian Museum; Saqqara with the Step Pyramid; Alexandria; the Valley of the Kings; mighty Karnak; the spectacular mortuary temples of Hatshepsut, Ramesses II, and Ramesses III; Luxor Temple and Museum; the tombs of the nobles and the tomb-builders’ village; the Colossi of Memnon; the beautiful temples of Abydos and Dendera; the fabulously well-preserved temples of Esna, Edfu and Kom Ombo; the temple of Isis on the island of Philae; the unfinished obelisk; the Nobles’ Tombs; and the superb Nubia Museum. I’ve probably missed a few items here! A great experience.

Contact me or AWT direct: e-mail: info@ancient.co.uk ; UK Phone: 0844 357 9494; International Phone: +44 844 357 9494;

 web site: www.ancient.co.uk

This talk was recently developed and updated with the new subtitle of  Before and After Akhenaten; and I shall concentrate on this part of the content in the time available.

e-mail Contact: info@ancient.co.uk Web Site: www.ancient.co.uk

 I believe there are still some places left on Journey To The Oracle (from October 8^th 2011 – 12 days) which starts in Cairo where I, for one, will be very interested to see the situation in the Museum following the raid and subsequent restorations. After this it is off to the desert where we probably follow the route taken by Alexander the Great in reverse. First stop is the Bahariya Oasis with its tombs and vestigial temple of Alexander. The next stretch of desert is one of the least travelled and takes us eventually to the remote oasis of Siwa, home to the Temple of the Oracle, where Alexander had his divine ancestry confirmed. Having explored the sites and taken in the atmosphere over two days, we head up to the coast, and on via El Alamein to Alexandria. Here we see all the key monuments before returning to Cairo and making the most of the spectacular sites of Giza and Saqqara. See www.ancient.co.uk for further details.

The Grand Tour (from February 26^th 2012 – 15 days) travels virtually the full length of Egypt – from Alexandria to Abu Simbel – visiting all the major sites, and thus providing an excellent introduction to ancient Egypt. Cairo – including the Egyptian Museum, highlights of the old Islamic city, and trips to Saqqara and Giza to see the mastabas, pyramids, and sphinx; Alexandria – including the National Museum, the catacombs, serapeum, Anshufi tombs, Pompey’s Pillar, and Qaitbay Fort on the site of the legendary Pharos; Luxor – including the elegant Museum, tombs in the Valley of the Kings (including Ay, and optional Tutankhamun), the vivid and beautiful tombs of the nobles, the Ramesseum, Karnak and Luxor Temples, the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, the workers’ village at Deir el Medina, the fabulous temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu, the Colossi of Memnon; a day trip to the sublime temples of Seti I at Abydos (with also that of Ramesses II), and Dendera with the depiction of Cleopatra; the Temples of Esna, Edfu and Kom Ombo; Aswan – including the unfinished obelisk, the magical Temple of Isis at Philae, the Nubian Museum, the tombs of the nobles at Kubbet el Hawa, and an optional trip to Abu Simbel.

We are still confirming some details of the Cairo-based Lower Egypt Tour (from November 3^rd 2012 – 9 days), but certainly included are the Egyptian Museum; the Giza pyramids and sphinx; trips to Bubastis and Tanis; and to the Faiyum – certainly including the legendary Labyrinth at Hawara, and probably also Medinet Madi, Qasr Qarun, and Biahmu. At Saqqara we hope to include the newly-opened New Kingdom tombs of Horemheb, Maya, Tia and Tia etc., and maybe the Serapeum, as well as the Step Pyramid, the Old Kingdom mastabas, and the pyramid of Teti. More to follow.

Hope to see some of you on these!

The recent published findings will be placed in the context of previous work on the royal mummies, and the methods by which identifications were arrived at through DNA will be demonstrated. You will be able to decide for yourself how strong you believe the identifications of various relatives of Tutankhamun really are!

 I look forward to seeing you there.