British Museum Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan
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The Department of Ancient Egypt is a department forming an historic part of the
British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...
, with Its more than 100,000 pieces making it the largest and most comprehensive collection of Egyptian antiquities outside the
Egyptian Museum The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, commonly known as the Egyptian Museum (, Egyptian Arabic: ) (also called the Cairo Museum), located in Cairo, Egypt, houses the largest collection of Ancient Egypt, Egyptian antiquities in the world. It hou ...
in
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
.


History

Egyptian antiquities have formed part of the British Museum collection ever since its foundation in 1753 after receiving 160 Egyptian objects from Sir
Hans Sloane Sir Hans Sloane, 1st Baronet, (16 April 1660 – 11 January 1753), was an Irish physician, naturalist, and collector. He had a collection of 71,000 items which he bequeathed to the British nation, thus providing the foundation of the British ...
. After the defeat of the French forces under
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
at the
Battle of the Nile The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; ) was fought between the Royal Navy and the French Navy at Abu Qir Bay, Aboukir Bay in Ottoman Egypt, Egypt between 1–3 August 1798. It was the climax of the Mediterranean ca ...
in 1798, the Egyptian antiquities collected were confiscated by the
British army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
and presented to the British Museum in 1803. These works, which included the famed
Rosetta Stone The Rosetta Stone is a stele of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a Rosetta Stone decree, decree issued in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt, Egypt, on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts ...
, were the first important group of large sculptures to be acquired by the museum. Thereafter, the UK appointed Henry Salt as
consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...
in Egypt who amassed a huge collection of antiquities, some of which were assembled and transported with great ingenuity by the famous Italian explorer
Giovanni Belzoni Giovanni Battista Belzoni (; 5 November 1778 – 3 December 1823), sometimes known as The Great Belzoni, was a prolific Italian explorer and pioneer archaeologist of Egyptian antiquities. He is known for his removal to England of the seven-tonn ...
. Most of the antiquities Salt collected were purchased by the British Museum and the
Musée du Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...
. By 1866 the collection consisted of some 10,000 objects. Antiquities from excavations started to come to the museum in the latter part of the 19th century as a result of the work of the
Egypt Exploration Fund The Egypt Exploration Society (EES) is a British non-profit organization founded in 1882 for the purpose of financing and facilitating the exploration of significant archeological sites in Egypt and Sudan, founded by writer Amelia Edwards and coin ...
under the efforts of
E.A. Wallis Budge Sir Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge (27 July 185723 November 1934) was an English Egyptologist, Orientalist, and philologist who worked for the British Museum and published numerous works on the ancient Near East. He made numerous trips t ...
. Over the years more than 11,000 objects came from this source, including pieces from
Amarna Amarna (; ) is an extensive ancient Egyptian archaeological site containing the ruins of Akhetaten, the capital city during the late Eighteenth Dynasty. The city was established in 1346 BC, built at the direction of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, and a ...
,
Bubastis Bubastis ( Bohairic Coptic: ''Poubasti''; Greek: ''Boubastis'' or ''Boubastos''), also known in Arabic as Tell-Basta or in Egyptian as Per-Bast, was an ancient Egyptian city. Bubastis is often identified with the biblical ''Pi-Beseth'' ( ''p ...
and
Deir el-Bahari Deir el-Bahari or Dayr al-Bahri (, , ) is a complex of mortuary temples and tombs located on the west bank of the Nile, opposite the city of Luxor, Egypt. This is a part of the Theban Necropolis. History Deir el-Bahari, located on the west ...
. Other organisations and individuals also excavated and donated objects to the British Museum, including
Flinders Petrie Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie ( – ), commonly known as simply Sir Flinders Petrie, was an English people, English Egyptology, Egyptologist and a pioneer of systematic methodology in archaeology and the preservation of artefacts. ...
's Egypt Research Account and the British School of Archaeology in Egypt, as well as the
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
Expedition to Kawa and
Faras Faras (formerly , ''Pakhôras''; ; Old Nubian: Ⲡⲁⲭⲱⲣⲁⲥ, ''Pakhoras'') was a major city in Lower Nubia. The site of the city, on the border between modern Egypt and Sudan at Wadi Halfa Salient, was flooded by Lake Nasser in the 196 ...
in Sudan. Active support by the museum for excavations in Egypt continued to result in important acquisitions throughout the 20th century until changes in antiquities laws in Egypt led to the suspension of policies allowing finds to be exported, although divisions still continue in Sudan. The British Museum conducted its own excavations in Egypt where it received divisions of finds, including
Asyut AsyutAlso spelled ''Assiout'' or ''Assiut''. ( ' ) is the capital of the modern Asyut Governorate in Egypt. It was built close to the ancient city of the same name, which is situated nearby. The modern city is located at , while the ancient city i ...
(1907),
Mostagedda Mostagedda is an archaeological site in Upper Egypt, 10 km south of Asyut and on the east bank of the Nile, which includes a necropolis that covers several different periods of Egyptian history from predynastic Badarian culture to Greco Roman. N ...
and Matmar (1920s),
Ashmunein Hermopolis (or ''Hermopolis Magna'') was a major city in antiquity, located near the boundary between Lower and Upper Egypt. Its Egyptian name ''Khemenu'' derives from the eight deities (the Ogdoad) said to reside in the city. A provincial capi ...
(1980s) and sites in Sudan such as
Soba Soba ( or , "buckwheat") are Japanese noodles made primarily from buckwheat flour, with a small amount of wheat flour mixed in. It has an ashen brown color, and a slightly grainy texture. The noodles are served either chilled with a dipping sau ...
, Kawa and the Northern
Dongola Reach The Dongola Reach is a reach of approximately 160 km in length stretching from the Fourth downriver to the Third Cataracts of the Nile in Upper Nubia, Sudan. Named after the Sudanese town of Dongola which dominates this part of the river, the r ...
(1990s). The size of the Egyptian collections now stand at over 110,000 objects. In autumn 2001 the eight million objects forming the museum's permanent collection were further expanded by the addition of six million objects from the Wendorf Collection of
Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...
and
Sudanese The demographics of Sudan include the Sudanese people () and their characteristics, Sudan, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population. In Sudan' ...
Prehistory Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins   million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use ...
. These were donated by Professor
Fred Wendorf Denver Fred Wendorf (July 31, 1924 – July 15, 2015) was an American archaeologist known primarily for his groundbreaking research in northeast Africa. He also founded the Fort Burgwin Research Center and Department of Anthropology at Southern ...
of
Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...
in
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, and comprise the entire collection of artefacts and environmental remains from his excavations at Prehistoric sites in the
Sahara Desert The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
between 1963 and 1997. Other fieldwork collections have recently come from Dietrich and Rosemarie Klemm (
University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...
) and William Adams (
University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...
). The seven permanent Egyptian galleries at the British Museum, which include its largest exhibition space (Room 4, for monumental sculpture), can display only 4% of its Egyptian holdings. The second-floor galleries have a selection of the museum's collection of 140
mummies A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and Organ (biology), organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to Chemical substance, chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the ...
and coffins, the largest outside
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
. A high proportion of the collection comes from tombs or contexts associated with the cult of the dead, and it is these pieces, in particular the mummies, that remain among the most eagerly sought after exhibits by visitors to the museum.


Collections

Key highlights of the collections include the following: Predynastic and Early Dynastic period (c. 6000 BC – c. 2690 BC) *Mummy of ''Ginger'' from Gebelein (c. 3400 BC) *Flint knife with an ivory handle (known as the ''Pit-Rivers Knife''), Sheikh Hamada, Egypt (c. 3100 BC) *The
Battlefield Palette The Battlefield Palette (also known as the Vultures Palette, the Giraffes Palette, or the Lion Palette) may be the earliest battle scene representation of the dozen or more ceremonial or ornamental cosmetic palettes of ancient Egypt. Along with t ...
and
Hunters Palette The Hunters Palette or Lion Hunt Palette is a cosmetic palette from the Naqada III period of late prehistoric Egypt. The palette is broken: part is held by the British Museum and part is in the collection of the Louvre. Content The Hunters Pale ...
, two cosmetic palettes with complex decorative schemes (c. 3100 BC) *Ivory statuette of a king, from the early temple at Abydos, Egypt (c. 3000 BC) * King Den's sandal label from Abydos, mid-1st Dynasty (c. 2985 BC) *Stela of King
Peribsen Seth-Peribsen (also known as Ash-Peribsen, Peribsen and Perabsen) is the serekh name of an early Egyptian monarch (pharaoh), who ruled during the Second Dynasty of Egypt (c. 2890 – c. 2686 BC). His chronological position within this dyna ...
, Abydos (c. 2720–2710 BC) Old Kingdom (2690–2181 BC) *Artefacts from the tomb of King
Khasekhemwy Khasekhemwy (ca. 2690 BC; ', also rendered ''Kha-sekhemui'') was the last Pharaoh of the Second Dynasty of Egypt. Little is known about him, other than that he led several significant military campaigns and built the mudbrick fort known as S ...
from the 2nd Dynasty (2690 BC) *Granite statue of Ankhwa, the shipbuilder,
Saqqara Saqqara ( : saqqāra ), also spelled Sakkara or Saccara in English , is an Egyptian village in the markaz (county) of Badrashin in the Giza Governorate, that contains ancient burial grounds of Egyptian royalty, serving as the necropolis for ...
, Egypt, 3rd Dynasty (around 2650 BC) *Several of the original casing stones from the
Great Pyramid of Giza The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest Egyptian pyramid. It served as the tomb of pharaoh Khufu, who ruled during the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt, Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old Kingdom. Built , over a period of about 26 years ...
, one of the
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, also known as the Seven Wonders of the World or simply the Seven Wonders, is a list of seven notable structures present during classical antiquity, first established in the 1572 publication '' Octo Mundi M ...
(c. 2570 BC) *Statue of Nenkheftka from Dishasha, 4th Dynasty (2500 BC) *Limestone false door of
Ptahshepses Ptahshepses () was the vizier and son-in-law of king Nyuserre Ini during the Fifth Dynasty. As such he was one of the most distinguished members of the royal court. Ptahshepses' mastaba complex in Abusir is considered by many to be the most ...
(2380 BC) *Wooden tomb statue of Tjeti, 5th to 6th Dynasty (about 2345–2181 BC) Middle Kingdom (2134–1690 BC) *Inner and outer coffin of Sebekhetepi,
Beni Hasan Beni Hasan (also written as Bani Hasan, or also Beni-Hassan) () is an ancient Egyptian cemetery. It is located approximately to the south of modern-day Minya in the region known as Middle Egypt, the area between Asyut and Memphis.Baines, John ...
(about 2125–1795 BC) *Limestone stela of Heqaib, Abydos, Egypt, 12th Dynasty (1990–1750 BC) *Quartzite statue of Ankhrekhu, 12th Dynasty (1985–1795 BC) *Granite statue of
Senwosret III Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret III or the hellenised form, Sesostris III) was a pharaoh of Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC during a time of great power and prosperity, and was the fifth king of the Twelfth Dynasty of th ...
(1850 BC) *Block statue and stela of Sahathor, 12th Dynasty, reign of
Amenemhat II Nubkaure Amenemhat II, also known as Amenemhet II, was the third pharaoh of the 12th Dynasty of ancient Egypt. Although he ruled for at least 35 years, his reign is rather obscure, as well as his family relationships. Family Archaeological fin ...
(about 1922–1878 BC) *Limestone statue and stelae from the offering chapel of Inyotef, Abydos, 12th Dynasty (about 1920 BC) New Kingdom (1549–1069 BC) *Schist head of Pharaoh
Hatshepsut Hatshepsut ( ; BC) was the sixth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, Egypt, ruling first as regent, then as queen regnant from until (Low Chronology) and the Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Thutmose II. She was Egypt's second c ...
or her successor
Tuthmosis III Thutmose III (variously also spelt Tuthmosis or Thothmes), sometimes called Thutmose the Great, (1479–1425 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt. He is regarded as one of the greatest warriors, military commanders, and milita ...
(1480 BC) *Fragment of the beard of the
Great Sphinx of Giza The Great Sphinx of Giza is a limestone statue of a reclining sphinx, a mythical creature with the head of a human and the body of a lion. Facing east, it stands on the Giza Plateau on the west bank of the Nile in Giza, Egypt. The original sh ...
(14th century BC) * Colossal head from a statue of Amenhotep III (1350 BC) *Colossal limestone bust of
Amenhotep III Amenhotep III ( , ; "Amun is satisfied"), also known as Amenhotep the Magnificent or Amenhotep the Great and Hellenization, Hellenized as Amenophis III, was the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Eighteenth Dynasty. According to d ...
(1350 BC) * Amarna Tablets, 99 out of 382 tablets found, second greatest collection in the world after the Vorderasiatisches Museum,
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
(203 tablets) (1350 BC) * List of the kings of Egypt from the Temple of Ramesses II (1250 BC) Third Intermediate Period (1069–664 BC) *Statue of the Nile god Hapi, Karnak (c.900 BC) *Mummy case and coffin of Nesperennub,
Thebes Thebes or Thebae may refer to one of the following places: *Thebes, Egypt, capital of Egypt under the 11th, early 12th, 17th and early 18th Dynasties *Thebes, Greece, a city in Boeotia *Phthiotic Thebes Phthiotic Thebes ( or Φθιώτιδες Θ ...
(c.800 BC) *
Shabaka Stone The Shabaka Stone, sometimes Shabaqo, is a relic incised with an ancient Egyptian religious text, which dates from the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt. In later years, the stone was likely used as a millstone, which damaged the hieroglyphs. This ...
from Memphis, Egypt, 25th Dynasty (around 700 BC) * Statue of Amun in the form of a ram protecting King
Taharqa Taharqa, also spelled Taharka or Taharqo, Akkadian: ''Tar-qu-ú'', , Manetho's ''Tarakos'', Strabo's ''Tearco''), was a pharaoh of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt and qore (king) of the Kingdom of Kush (present day Sudan) from 690 to 664 BC. ...
(683 BC) *Inner and outer coffins of the priest Hor, Deir el-Bahari, Thebes, 25th Dynasty (about 680 BC) *Granite statue of the
Sphinx of Taharqo The Sphinx of Taharqo is a granite gneiss statue of a sphinx with the face of Taharqo. He was a Nubian king, who was one of the 25th Egyptian Dynasty (about 747–656 BC) rulers of the Kingdom of Kush. It is now in the British Museum in Londo ...
(680 BC) Late Period (664–332 BC) *Saite Sarcophagus of Sasobek, the vizier (prime minister) of the northern part of Egypt in the reign of
Psammetichus I Wahibre Psamtik I (Ancient Egyptian: ) was the first pharaoh of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt, the Saite period, ruling from the city of Sais, Egypt, Sais in the Nile delta between 664 and 610 BC. He was installed by Ashurbanipal of the Neo- ...
(664–610 BC) *Bronze figure of Isis and Horus, North
Saqqara Saqqara ( : saqqāra ), also spelled Sakkara or Saccara in English , is an Egyptian village in the markaz (county) of Badrashin in the Giza Governorate, that contains ancient burial grounds of Egyptian royalty, serving as the necropolis for ...
, Egypt (600 BC) *Sarcophagus of Hapmen, Cairo, 26th Dynasty or later (600–300 BC) *Kneeling statue of Wahibre, from near
Lake Mariout Lake Mariout ( ', , also spelled Maryut or Mariut), is a brackish lake in northern Egypt near the city of Alexandria. The lake area covered and had a navigable canal at the beginning of the 20th century, but at the beginning of the 21st century, ...
(530 BC) *
Sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...
of
Ankhnesneferibre Ankhnesneferibre was an ancient Egyptian princess and priestess during the 26th Dynasty, daughter of pharaoh Psamtik II and his queen Takhuit. She held the positions of Divine Adoratrice of Amun and later God's Wife of Amun between 595 and 525 ...
(525 BC) *
Obelisks An obelisk (; , diminutive of (') ' rotisserie, spit, nail, pointed pillar') is a tall, slender, tapered monument with four sides and a pyramidal or pyramidion top. Originally constructed by Ancient Egyptians and called Obelisk (hieroglyph), ...
and sarcophagus of Pharaoh
Nectanebo II Nectanebo II (Egyptian language, Egyptian: ; ) was the last native ruler of ancient Egypt, as well as the third and last pharaoh of the Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt, Thirtieth Dynasty, reigning from 358 to c.340 BC. During the reign of Nectanebo ...
(360–343 BC) Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BC) *The famous
Rosetta Stone The Rosetta Stone is a stele of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a Rosetta Stone decree, decree issued in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt, Egypt, on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts ...
, trilingual stela that unlocked the ancient Egyptian civilisation (196 BC) *Giant sculpture of a
scarab beetle The family Scarabaeidae, as currently defined, consists of over 35,000 species of beetles worldwide; they are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family has undergone significant change. Several groups formerly tre ...
(32–30 BC) *Fragment of a basalt Egyptian-style statue of
Ptolemy I Soter Ptolemy I Soter (; , ''Ptolemaîos Sōtḗr'', "Ptolemy the Savior"; 367 BC – January 282 BC) was a Macedonian Greek general, historian, and successor of Alexander the Great who went on to found the Ptolemaic Kingdom centered on Egypt. Pto ...
(305–283 BC) *Mummy of
Hornedjitef Hornedjitef was an ancient Egyptian priest in the Temple of Amun at Karnak during the reign of Ptolemy III (246–222 BC). He is known from his elaborate coffins, mummy mask and mummy, dating from the Early Ptolemaic Period (around 220 BC) ...
(inner coffin), Thebes (3rd century BC) *Wall from a chapel of Queen
Shanakdakhete Shanakdakhete, also spelled Shanakdakheto or Sanakadakhete, was a queen regnant of the Kingdom of Kush, ruling from Meroë in the early first century AD. Shanakdakhete is poorly attested, though is known to have constructed a temple in Naqa. Shan ...
,
Meroë Meroë (; also spelled ''Meroe''; Meroitic: ; and ; ) was an ancient city on the east bank of the Nile about 6 km north-east of the Kabushiya station near Shendi, Sudan, approximately 200 km north-east of Khartoum. Near the site is ...
(c. 150 BC) * Naos of
Ptolemy VII Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator (, ''Ptolemaĩos Néos Philopátōr'' "Ptolemy the Father-loving od) was, ostensibly, a Ptolemaic king of Egypt. His identity and reign are controversial, and it is likely that he did not reign at all, but was only gr ...
, Philae (c. 150 BC) Roman Period (30 BC-641 AD) *Schist head of a young man,
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
(after 30 BC) *The Meriotic
Hamadab Stela The Hamadab Stela is a colossal sandstone stela found at Hamadab just south of the ancient site of Meroë in Sudan. Now kept at the British Museum, the significance of the stela resides in the fact that it is inscribed with one of the longest kno ...
from the
Kingdom of Kush The Kingdom of Kush (; Egyptian language, Egyptian: 𓎡𓄿𓈙𓈉 ''kꜣš'', Akkadian language, Assyrian: ''Kûsi'', in LXX Χους or Αἰθιοπία; ''Ecōš''; ''Kūš''), also known as the Kushite Empire, or simply Kush, was an an ...
found near the ancient site of Meroë in Sudan, 24 BC *Lid of the coffin of Soter and Cleopatra from Qurna, Thebes (early 2nd century AD) *Mummy of a youth with a portrait of the deceased,
Hawara Hawara is an archaeological site of Ancient Egypt, south of the site of Crocodilopolis ('Arsinoë', also known as 'Medinet al-Faiyum') at the entrance to the depression of the Fayyum oasis. It is the site of a pyramid built by Pharaoh Amenemhat ...
(100–200 AD) *Bronze lamp and patera from the X-group tombs,
Qasr Ibrim Qasr Ibrim (; Meroitic: ''Pedeme''; Old Nubian: ''Silimi''; Coptic: ⲡⲣⲓⲙ ''Prim''; Latin: ''Primis'') is an archaeological site in Lower Nubia, located in the modern country of Egypt. The site has a long history of occupation, ranging ...
(1st–6th centuries AD) *Coptic wall painting of the
martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In colloqui ...
of saints, Wadi Sarga (6th century AD)


Gallery

File:Bm-ginger.jpg, Room 64 - Egyptian grave containing a Gebelein predynastic mummy, late
predynastic Prehistoric Egypt and Predynastic Egypt was the period of time starting at the first human settlement and ending at the First Dynasty of Egypt around 3100 BC. At the end of prehistory, "Predynastic Egypt" is traditionally defined as the period ...
, 3400 BC File:HuntersPalette-BritishMuseum-August21-08.jpg, Room 64 - Fragmentary ceremonial palette known as the
Hunters Palette The Hunters Palette or Lion Hunt Palette is a cosmetic palette from the Naqada III period of late prehistoric Egypt. The palette is broken: part is held by the British Museum and part is in the collection of the Louvre. Content The Hunters Pale ...
, from the late predynastic period, Naqada III, c. 3250-3100 BC File:London - British Museum - 2273.jpg, Room 4 – Three black granite statues of the pharaoh
Senusret III Khakaure Senusret III (also written as Senwosret III or the hellenised form, Sesostris III) was a pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, Egypt. He ruled from 1878 BC to 1839 BC during a time of great power and prosperity, and was the fifth king of the Twelfth ...
, c. 1850 BC File:British Museum el-Amarna Hoard.jpg, Room 68 - Part of the
el-Amarna Amarna (; ) is an extensive ancient Egyptian archaeological site containing the ruins of Akhetaten, the capital city during the late Eighteenth Dynasty. The city was established in 1346 BC, built at the direction of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, and ab ...
hoard, Egypt, c. 1850-1800 BC (18th dynasty) File:WoodenCoffinOfIntef-BritishMuseum-August21-08.jpg, Room 63 - Wooden coffin of pharaoh
Nubkheperre Intef Nubkheperre Intef (or Antef, Inyotef, sometimes referred to as Intef VI) was an Egyptian king of the Seventeenth Dynasty of Egypt at Thebes during the Second Intermediate Period, when Egypt was divided by rival dynasties including the Hyksos in L ...
of Egypt's 17th dynasty, 1600 BC File:ThreeStatuesOfGoddessSakhmet-ProfileView-BritishMuseum-August19-08.jpg, Room 4 – Three black granite statues of the goddess Sakhmet, c. 1400 BC File:British Museum Egypt 086.JPG, Room 4 – Colossal statue of Amenhotep III, c. 1370 BC File:Colossal quartzite head of Amenhotep III, British Museum EA7.jpg, Great Court –
Colossal quartzite statue of Amenhotep III The colossal quartzite statue of Amenhotep III is an ancient Egyptian sculpture dating from the 18th Dynasty ( BCE). It was found in the massive mortuary temple of the pharaoh Amenhotep III on the West Bank of the River Nile at Thebes (Luxor) i ...
, c. 1350 BC File:TombofNebamun-2.jpg, Room 61 – The famous false fresco 'Pond in a Garden' from the
Tomb of Nebamun The lost Tomb of Nebamun was an ancient Egyptian tomb from the Eighteenth Dynasty located in the Theban Necropolis located on the west bank of the Nile at Thebes (present-day Luxor) in Egypt. The tomb was the source of a number of famous decorate ...
, c. 1350 BC File:Egyptian Couple BM (1).JPG, Room 4 - Limestone statue of Horemheb and Amenia, 1300-1250 BC File:P1050700 (5022075232).jpg, Room 63 - Gilded outer coffins from the tomb of Henutmehyt, Thebes, Egypt, 19th Dynasty, 1250 BC File:Book of the Dead of Hunefer sheet 5.jpg, Book of the Dead of
Hunefer Hunefer was a scribe during the 19th Dynasty (''fl.'' ). He was the owner of the Papyrus of Hunefer, a copy of the funerary Egyptian Book of the Dead, which represents one of the classic examples of these texts, along with others such as the P ...
, sheet 5, 19th Dynasty, 1250 BC File:British Museum Egypt 101.jpg, Room 4 - Ancient Egyptian bronze statue of a
cat The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the ...
from the Late Period, about 664–332 BC File:British Museum Egypt 107.jpg, Room 4 - Green siltstone head of a Pharaoh, 26th-30th Dynasty, 600-340 BC File:London_11-0313_-_17_-_British_Museum_(6466050303).jpg, Room 4 - Sarcophagus of
Ankhnesneferibre Ankhnesneferibre was an ancient Egyptian princess and priestess during the 26th Dynasty, daughter of pharaoh Psamtik II and his queen Takhuit. She held the positions of Divine Adoratrice of Amun and later God's Wife of Amun between 595 and 525 ...
, 26th dynasty, about 530 BC File:The black siltstone obelisk of Pharaoh Nectanebo II, c.350 BCE. From Cairo, Egypt. British Museum.jpg, Great Court - Black siltstone obelisk of King Nectanebo II of Egypt, Thirtieth dynasty, about 350 BC File:Rosetta Stone.JPG, Room 4 – The
Rosetta Stone The Rosetta Stone is a stele of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a Rosetta Stone decree, decree issued in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt, Egypt, on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts ...
, key to the decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphs, 196 BC File:Fayum-66.jpg, Room 62 - Detail from the mummy case of Artemidorus the Younger, a Greek who had settled in
Thebes Thebes or Thebae may refer to one of the following places: *Thebes, Egypt, capital of Egypt under the 11th, early 12th, 17th and early 18th Dynasties *Thebes, Greece, a city in Boeotia *Phthiotic Thebes Phthiotic Thebes ( or Φθιώτιδες Θ ...
, Egypt, during Roman times, 100-200 AD


References

{{Coord, 51, 31, 9.62, N, 0, 7, 39.87, W, scale:1563_region:GB, display=title Archaeological museums in London * Egyptology History of museums Museums established in 1753 Egypt–United Kingdom relations Sudan–United Kingdom relations