monuments

Pyramid renovation controversy

Following a public outcry over new ‘renovation’ work on the Pyramid of Menkaura at Giza, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has decided not to approve the continuation of the project. The original aims were to restore, document, and…

Is the answer blowing in the wind?

The lion-shaped Great Sphinx at Giza may have been shaped by wind erosion, according to new research from New York University. Laboratory experiments suggest that sphinx-like shapes can form naturally when clay is subjected to a fast-flowing stream of water,…

Ramesses The Great: Egypt’s Kings of Kings

REVIEW BY CATHIE BRYAN Ramesses II is notorious for his self-promotion and propaganda, rather than being famous for his many achievements and cultural advances. To adjust the balance, Wilkinson addresses what Ramesses, the only king of Egypt known as ‘the…

Screenshot 2023 09 06 at 12.02.30

Ballynahatty: Reconstructing a rare Neolithic timber monument

Ballynahatty, in County Down, Northern Ireland, is an astonishing site that deserves to be far better known for what it tells us about Neolithic timber monuments. At the core of the site is a series of deep post pits that once held 471 tree-sized wooden posts. The newly published excavation report seeks to reconstruct the original appearance of the monument and tell the story of its creation, use, and deliberate destruction, as Chris Catling reports.

The Bare Bones: Presenting a very regional Neolithic

During the early Neolithic period, a distinctive regional tradition of funerary architecture developed on either side of the waters stretching between Northern Ireland and south-western Scotland. Matt Ritchie explores how archaeological research and interpretation is helping to illuminate the chambered cairns of the North Channel and the people who built them, and describes the role they can play in developing an understanding of place and time in younger audiences.

Ancient Egyptian Architecture In 15 Monuments

REVIEW BY JPP This relatively slim volume (with only 109 pages) is full of insightful analysis, tracing the development of architecture throughout the entire span of ancient Egyptian civilisation, from the Predynastic Period to the Graeco-Roman era. The author has…

Neolithic Silbury Hill, Wiltshire

Neolithic Quiz

In which English county would you find Silbury Hill, the tallest Neolithic human-made mound in Europe?

Wren 300

In CA 373, we lamented the lack of a society ready to take on the task of managing the tercentenary of the death of Sir Christopher Wren. Fortunately, the Georgian Group has put on the mantle of chief co-ordinator of…

Image

This week: Pharaohs

For almost 200 years, visitors to the British Museum have stood in awe in front of the statue known as the Younger Memnon – one of two colossal granite heads which originally flanked the entrance to the Ramesseum mortuary temple…