To culminate the EES’ Visualising Egypt theme for 2023, we hosted the Society's first Hybrid Study Day on Saturday 15 July 2023 at the Society of Antiquaries of London and Online via Zoom. This marked our first large-scale in-person event since the Covid-19 pandemic. The highly successful event (thankfully, major technical difficulties were avoided!) saw around 200 in-person and online attendees. 

Dr Carl Graves leading the final discussion session of the Hybrid Study Day with virtual speakers Professor Peter Brand and Dr Campbell Price plus in-person speakers Jen Turner and Professor Rosalie David.

This study day considered the artistic traditions seen during the Ramesside Period (1292-1189 BCE) through four different perspectives on how people presented their image. EES Director Carl Graves chaired the event and brought together our two virtual and two venue-based presenters for the afternoon of lively discussion.

This day also launched our 2023 Annual Appeal: Sponsor a book: Ancient Egypt in 50 Discoveries. This book will be a comprehensive but accessible guide to ancient Egyptian history as told by 50 artefacts, people, and places connected to the Egypt Exploration Society. We need your help to make this a reality, please donate to our Appeal before the end of 2023.

Sponsor a Book: Ancient Egypt in 50 Discoveries

Professor Peter Brand presenting on Divine Kingship via Zoom during the hybrid study day.

Our first online presenter was Professor Peter J. Brand, who zoomed in from the OTHER Memphis, as Professor of Ancient History at the University of Memphis, to discuss innovation and tradition in the iconography of Divine Kingship under the early 19^th Dynasty. Chair of the EES and Curator of Egypt and Sudan at Manchester Museum, Dr Campbell Price was our second virtual speaker. He spoke about his “first love”: Ramesses II and his cult in both artistic and textual sources.

Dr Campbell Price presenting the cult of Ramesses II via Zoom during the hybrid study day.

Our first in-person speaker for the day was Jen Turner from the Griffith Institute at the University of Oxford. She presented an alternative view of private individual statues during the reign of Ramesses II. The study day’s final speaker at the Society of Antiquaries was Professor Rosalie David, Emerita Professor of Egyptology and former Director of the KNH Centre for Biomedical Egyptology at The University of Manchester. She spoke on her longtime research expertise - the temple of Seti I at Abydos - specifically the contributions of Ramesses II to the ritual art of the temple.

Our in-person presenters Jen Turner (above) and Professor Rosalie David (below) within the Society of Antiquaries of London.

 

The EES is very grateful to our event sponsor: Adams Kaye Property Law and Private Client Specialists, who helped make this day possible. This support enables us to dedicate the funds raised to facilitating more research and dissemination of Egyptian cultural heritage. If you are interested in sponsoring an event in future, please contact us.

After this event’s success, we look forward to organising a bigger and better hybrid programme next year!