Joyce Ann Tyldesley (born 25 February 1960) is a British

Archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and

Egyptologist Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , ''-logia''; ) is the scientific study of ancient Egypt. The topics studied include ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end ...

, academic, writer and broadcaster who specialises in research on women in ancient Egypt. She was interviewed on the TV series '' Cunk on Earth'', about

Egyptian pyramids The Egyptian pyramids are ancient masonry structures located in Egypt. Most were built as tombs for the pharaohs and their consorts during the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old and Middle Kingdom of Egypt, Middle Kingdom periods. At least 138 identi ...

, in 2022.

Education and early life

Tyldesley was born in Bolton, Lancashire and privately educated at Bolton School. In 1981, she earned a first-class honours degree in

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

from the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

specialising in the

Eastern Mediterranean The Eastern Mediterranean is a loosely delimited region comprising the easternmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, and well as the adjoining land—often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It includes the southern half of Turkey ...

. She moved to the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, 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 List of oldest un ...

; initially at

St Anne's College, Oxford St Anne's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 and gained full college status in 1959. Originally a women's college, it has admitted men since 1979. ...

then, following the award of a scholarship, at St Cross College, Oxford. In 1986, she was awarded a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

degree in

Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic ( years ago) ( ), also called the Old Stone Age (), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone tools, and which represents almost the entire period of human prehist ...

archaeology, for her thesis on

Mousterian The Mousterian (or Mode III) is an Industry (archaeology), archaeological industry of Lithic technology, stone tools, associated primarily with the Neanderthals in Europe, and with the earliest anatomically modern humans in North Africa and We ...

biface A hand axe (or handaxe or Acheulean hand axe) is a Prehistory, prehistoric stone tool with two faces that is the longest-used tool in human history. It is made from stone, usually flint or chert that has been "reduced" and shaped from a larger ...

s (handaxes) in Northern Europe.

Career and research

After her

DPhil A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

, Tyldesley then returned to Liverpool as a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

in Prehistoric Archaeology. Tyldesley next worked as a freelance Egyptologist/archaeologist; writing books, working with television companies, and teaching in further and higher education and online. In 2007, she joined the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

, as a joint appointment between the

Manchester Museum Manchester Museum is a museum displaying works of archaeology, anthropology and natural history and is owned by the University of Manchester, in England. Sited on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road (A34 road, A34) at the heart of the university's group ...

and the Faculty of Life Sciences. , she is Professor of Egyptology in the Department of Classics, Ancient History, Archaeology and Egyptology where she is tutor and Programme Director of the three-year online Certificate in Egyptology programme, the two-year online

Diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...

in Egyptology programme and the two year part-time online

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA) degree in Egyptology programme. She has devised, writes, directs and teaches a suite of on-line Short Courses in Egyptology, and has created several free online Egyptology

massive open online course A massive open online course (MOOC ) or an open online course is an online course aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the World Wide Web, Web. In addition to traditional course materials, such as filmed lectures, readings, and p ...

(MOOCs), working in conjunction with the Manchester Museum. ''Mumford the Mummy'' is a series of lessons aimed at

Key Stage 2 Key Stage 2 is the legal term for the four years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6, when the pupils are aged between 7 and 11 years. England and Wales Legal definition The ...

children

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

, freely available online. Tyldesley is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and a Research Associate of the Manchester Museum. Tyldesley is President of Bolton Archaeology and Egyptology Society and a former trustee of the Egypt Exploration Society. Tyldesley has extensive archaeological fieldwork experience, having excavated in Britain, Europe and Egypt where she worked with 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 ...

at Ashmunein, with the University of Liverpool in the Eastern

Nile Delta The Nile Delta (, or simply , ) is the River delta, delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's larger deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the eas ...

, and where she conducted her own field survey at Tuna el-Gebel. Tyldesley has been interviewed on various TV series including ''Empires: Egypt's Golden Empire'' (2001), and ''The Nile: Egypt's Great River with Bettany Hughes'' (2019).

Accountancy and Rutherford Press Limited

Tyldesley is a part-qualified Chartered Accountant, and spent 17 years supporting her writing career by working as a small business manager for Crossley and Davis Chartered Accountants in Bolton. In 2004 Tyldesley established, with Steven Snape, Rutherford Press Limited, a publishing firm dedicated to publishing serious but accessible books on ancient Egypt while raising money for Egyptology field work. Donations from Rutherford Press Limited totalling £3,000 were made to Manchester Museum, the Egypt Exploration Society and the University of Liverpool fieldwork project at Zawyet Umm El Rakham. Rutherford Press closed in February 2017, to allow Tyldesley to concentrate on her teaching.

Publications

Tyldesley has written academic and popular books for adults and children, including books to accompany the television series ''Private Lives of the Pharaohs'' (Channel 4), ''Egypt's Golden Empire'' (Lion Television) and ''Egypt'' (BBC). In January 2008 book ''Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt'', was the Book of the Week on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

. Her play for children, The Lost Scroll, premiered at Kendal Museum in 2011. Her book ''Tutankhamen's Curse'' was awarded the Felicia A. Holton Book Award by the

Archaeological Institute of America The Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) is North America, North America's oldest learned society and largest organization devoted to the world of archaeology. AIA professionals have carried out archaeological fieldwork around the world and ...

in 2014.

Gender and ancient history

Tyldesley has written about the role of women in ancient Egypt, such as

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 ...

, a female pharaoh, in the 18th dynasty. She has written about Egyptian women and their lives, as well as the roles of power women held in ancient societies. She has described how in ancient Egypt, women:

'enjoyed a legal, social and sexual independence unrivalled by their Greek or Roman sisters, or in fact by most women until the late nineteenth century'.

She has written about the lives of women in ancient Egypt. Tyldesley commented that she thought Hatshepsut may have been 'keenly conscious of her exceptional place in history', as there were inscriptions on a pair of obelisks erected, which said:

"Now my heart turns this way and that, as I think what the people will say—those who shall see my monuments in years to come, and who shall speak of what I have done."

Tyldesley was also on a panel, hosted by

Bettany Hughes Bettany Mary Hughes (born May 1967) is an English historian, author, and broadcaster, specialising in classical history. Her published books cover classical antiquity and myth, and the history of Istanbul. She is active in efforts to encourag ...

of the BBC, on how

Nefertiti Nefertiti () () was a queen of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, 18th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, the Great Royal Wife, great royal wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten. Nefertiti and her husband were known for their radical overhaul of state religious poli ...

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

, and Hatshepsut ruled in positions of power, and 'flipped gender roles'. The panel discussed examples of women who were able to take and hold power via 'bravery, guile... self-reinvention... and the ability to control their own image'.

Publications

Tyldesley's publications include: *''The Wolvercote Channel Handaxe Assemblage: A Comparative Study''The Wolvercote Channel Handaxe Assemblage: A Comparative Study (Oxford: British Archaeological Reports, 1986) *''The Bout Coupe Biface: a Typological Problem''The Bout Coupe Biface: a Typological Problem (Oxford: British Archaeological Reports, 1987) *''Nazlet Tuna: An Archaeological Survey in Middle Egypt''Nazlet Tuna: An Archaeological Survey in Middle Egypt (with Steven Snape) (Oxford: British Archaeological Reports, 1988) *''Daughters of Isis: Women of Ancient Egypt'' *''Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh'' *''Nefertiti: Egypt's Sun Queen''Nefertiti: Egypt's Sun Queen (London: Viking/Penguin, 1999) *''The Mummy: Unwrap the Ancient Secrets of the Mummy's Tombs''The Mummy: Unwrap the Ancient Secrets of the Mummy's Tomb (London: Carlton Books Ltd., 1999) *''Ramesses: Egypt's Greatest Pharaoh''Ramesses: Egypt's Greatest Pharao (London: Viking/Penguin, 2000) *''Judgement of the Pharaoh: Crime and Punishment in Ancient Egypt''Judgement of the Pharaoh: Crime and Punishment in Ancient Egypt (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2000) *''The Private Lives of the Pharaohs''The Private Lives of the Pharaohs (London: Channel 4 Books, 2000) *''Egypt's Golden Empire: The Age of the New Kingdom''Egypt's Golden Empire: The Age of the New Kingdom (London: Headline, 2001) *''Tales from Ancient Egypt''Tales from Ancient Egypt (Rutherford Press Ltd., 2001) *''Pyramids: The Real Story behind Egypt's most Ancient Monuments''Pyramids: The Real Story behind Egypt's most Ancient Monuments (London: Viking/Penguin, 2003) *''Unearthing the Past''Unearthing the Past (with Paul Bahn and Douglas Palmer) (London: Mitchell Beazley, 2005) *'' Egypt: How a Lost Civilization was Rediscovered''Egypt: How a Lost Civilization was Rediscovered: Companion book, (London: BBC Books, 2005) *''Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt''Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt (London: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 2006) *''Egyptian Games and Sports''Egyptian Games and Sports (Princes Risborough: Shire Books, 2007) *''INSIDERS: Egypt (Ancient Egypt Revealed)''INSIDERS: Egypt (Ancient Egypt Revealed) (Templar, 2007) *''Mummy Mysteries: The Secret World of Tutankhamun and the Pharaohs''Mummy Mysteries: The Secret World of Tutankhamun and the Pharaohs (London: Carlton Books Ltd., 2007) *''Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt''Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt (London: Profile Books Ltd., 2008)M *''The Pharaohs''The Pharaohs (London: Quercus, 2009) *''Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt''Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt (London: Viking/Penguin, 2010) *''Stories from Ancient Greece and Rome''Stories from Ancient Greece and Rome (Oxbow Books, 2017) *''Tutankhamen's Curse: The Developing History of an Egyptian King''Tutankhamen's Curse: The Developing History of an Egyptian King (London: Profile Books Ltd., 2012) (published in the USA as ''Tutankhamen'') *''Stories from Ancient Egypt: Egyptian Myths and Legends for Children''Stories from Ancient Egypt: Egyptian Myths and Legends for Children (Oxbow Books, 2012) *''Nefertiti's Face: The Creation of an Icon''Stories from Ancient Egypt: Egyptian Myths and Legends for Children (London: Profile Books Ltd., 2018) *''From Mummies to Microchips: A Case Study in Online Learning'' From Mummies to Microchips: A Case Study in Online Learning (with Nicky Nielsen) (Routledge 2020)

Awards and honours

Tyldesley was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) in the

2024 New Year Honours The 2024 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Hono ...

for services to Egyptology and heritage. Other awards include: * 2014 - Felicia A. Holton Book Award from the

* 2019 - Outstanding Technology Enhanced Learning Award * 2011 - Tyldesley was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

by the

University of Bolton The University of Greater Manchester (legally: The University of Bolton Higher Education Corporation) is a public university in Bolton, Greater Manchester in England. The university is commonly referred to as a 'post-92' institution, which is a ...

in recognition of her contribution to education.

Personal life

Tyldesley has two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tyldesley, Joyce People from Bolton Living people English archaeologists English Egyptologists People educated at Bolton School British women archaeologists 1960 births Alumni of the University of Oxford Academics of the University of Manchester Officers of the Order of the British Empire