 An Archaeological Study Tour
The Splendors of Ancient Egypt
November
6 – 25, 2009
Led
by Professor Lanny Bell,
Brown University
January
29 – February 17, 2010
Led
by Professor Lanny Bell,
Brown University
Popular
interest in Ancient Egypt is often limited to pyramids and
mummies, but Egypt played a significant part in the development
of Western thought and culture. The great temples of Egypt,
such as those at Karnak, the striding male figures in the
Cairo Museum, and the reliefs and inscriptions on the temples
of Esna, Kom Ombo, and Philae had their impact on the civilizations
of the ancient Greeks and Romans. By visiting these outstanding
archaeological sites with our lecturer, we will gain significant
insights into the culture of Ancient Egypt and appreciate
its profound influence on the West.
The Splendors of Ancient Egypt tour has been revised and
is exceptional in many ways. There is time in Cairo to explore
this fascinating city in depth. A day will be spent in the
Delta, visiting the site of Tanis, first excavated by Flinders
Petrie in 1884. We will travel into the Faiyum Oasis and
to the unique site of Meydum, known for its collapsed pyramid.
A new highlight of this tour will be the days spent in Middle
Egypt visiting the rock-cut tombs at Beni Hassan, Hermopolis,
the necropolis at Tuna el-Gebel and Akhenaten’s capital
at el-Amarna. Five days will be spent in Luxor...time for
a thorough exploration of Thebes on both the West and East
Banks, as well as the temples of Hathor at Dendera, decorated
in the name of Cleopatra the Great, and of Seti I at Abydos.
During a five-day Nile cruise on the deluxe Oberoi "Philae,”
one of the most luxurious vessels plying the Nile, we will
visit Edfu’s Temple of Horus, the most perfectly preserved
ancient Egyptian temple in existence today, as well as the
Kalabsha Temple near Aswan. A visit to the new Nubian Museum
in Aswan and a flying visit to Abu Simbel will complete
this tour.
Friday, Saturday, November 6 & 7/January 29
& 30:
CAIRO:
Depart
from New York. We arrive into Cairo and transfer to the
Mena House Hotel, situated on the Giza plateau.
Meals: Opening dinner
Sunday, November 8/ January 31: CAIRO: We
begin our touring at Memphis, the first capital of a united
Egypt, and Sakkara, the necropolis of Memphis. At Sakkara
we will visit the newly opened museum and tour the Step
Pyramid complex of Djoser, which predates the Giza pyramids
and is the world’s first monumental building constructed
entirely in stone. We will also tour the smaller Pyramid
of Teti, built for a Sixth Dynasty king, whose burial chamber
is covered with pyramid texts to ensure the survival of
his soul, and the mastaba tombs of the Nobles Ti and Ptahhotep.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Monday,
November 9/February 1: CAIRO: Our
first stop this morning will be the Citadel, famed as the
stronghold of Salah el-Din. We then continue to Old Cairo
to visit the Coptic Church of Abu Sarga and the Ben Ezra
Synagogue. We will spend the full afternoon at the Egyptian
Museum, where we will view the highlights of its huge collection,
including the new mummy room and the objects from the tomb
of Tutankhamun. As the museum is open late tonight, it will
be possible to remain as long as you like.
Meals:
Breakfast & lunch
Tuesday,
November 10/February 2: CAIRO: Today
we will have the opportunity to observe the Delta landscape
as we travel to and from Tanis. Tanis, Zoan of the Bible,
was the capital of Egypt during Dynasties XXI-XXII and served
as the burial place of some of the dynasties’ most
important leaders. These Pharaohs brought decorated stones
and monumental sculptures from all over the Delta to embellish
their temples. Today the site is an impressive outdoor museum.
The day ends with a late lunch at Ismailia on the Suez Canal.
Meals:
Breakfast & lunch
Wednesday, November 11/February 3: CAIRO: After
a breakfast lecture, touring begins at the only surviving
representatives of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World,
the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. We will also stop at
the museum, where the remarkably preserved remains of the
Solar Boat of Cheops are displayed.
Meals: Breakfast & lunch
Thursday,
November 12/February 4: MINYA: An
early departure takes us through the lush agricultural region
of the Fayyum Oasis to the collapsed Pyramid of Meydum,
built by Snefru, possibly the earliest true pyramid. Our
final visit of the day will be to the Middle Kingdom rock-cut
tombs at Beni Hassan, with their lively paintings of daily
life. Mercure Minya Hotel.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Friday,
November 13/February 5: SOHAG: A
morning visit to the remains of Hermopolis, whose patron
was Thoth, the baboon god of wisdom and the moon. Continue
to the necropolis, Tuna el-Gebel, with tombs and catacombs
of sacred baboon and ibis burials dating to the Graeco-Roman
period, as well as Akhenaten’s Amarna boundary stelae.
We continue to el-Amarna, Akhenaten’s capital, built
around 1380 BC for the worship of his god, Aten. The decorated
tombs of his officials are a beautiful example of the art
of this period. Overnight at the very simple El Safa Hotel.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Saturday, November 14/February 6: LUXOR:
We continue to Abydos, where we will tour the Temple of
Seti I, viewing the famous List of Kings and some of the
most beautifully painted reliefs surviving from Pharaonic
times. We drive south through villages of baked-mud houses
and lush cultivated lands bordering the Nile to Dendera
to visit the Temple of Hathor, named for the goddess of
love, music and wine. On the roof of the temple is a plaster
cast of the famous Zodiac of Dendera (original in Paris),
one of the three circular representations of the heavens
found in Egypt. After completing our touring we continue
to Luxor. Steigenberger Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Sunday,
November 15/February 7: LUXOR:
We will spend the full morning touring the magnificent sanctuary
of Amun-Re at Karnak, with its maze of monumental gateways,
obelisks, pillared halls and subsidiary shrines. In the
late afternoon we will explore the Temple of Luxor, including
the procession of the Opet Festival and scenes of the divine
conception and birth of Amenhotep III.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Monday,
November 16/February 8: LUXOR: This
morning we will cross the Nile to visit the Valleys of the
Kings and Queens. The tombs to be visited are those of Tutankhamun
and others selected from the tombs open to the public today.
We will also visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, at Deir
el-Bahri, one of Egypt’s most spectacular monuments.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Tuesday,
November 17/February 9: LUXOR: We
return to the West Bank to continue our touring at the temples
and chapels of Medinet Habu, the largest built by Ramesses
III, and the most famous of the hundreds of tombs of the
Nobles, spread over two square miles. These tombs are of
special interest for their artistic and naturalistic murals,
which give us an intimate view of life in ancient Egypt.
Returning to the East Bank, we board the deluxe Oberoi Philae
Nile Cruiser, our floating hotel for the next four nights.
Each of the Philae’s superbly appointed cabins has
its own balcony, allowing guests solitude and privacy as
we sail the Nile. This evening we will visit the Luxor Museum.
Meals:
All meals are included on board the ship
Wednesday, November 18/February 10: SAIL/EDFU:
Our last visit on the West Bank begins at the ancient village
of the artisans, Deir el-Medina, one of the best-preserved
town sites in Egypt and the subject of the television series
Ancient Lives. We continue to the Ramesseum, where the fallen
statue of Ramesses II inspired Shelley’s famous poem
“Ozymandias,” and the rarely visited tombs of
Kheruef and Ankh-Hor, completing our touring at the Colossi
of Memnon. During lunch on the Philae, we sail to Edfu to
dock for the night.
Meals: All meals are included on board the ship
Thursday, November 19/February 11: SAIL/KOM OMBO:
Touring begins this morning at the Temple of Edfu, a completely
preserved Ptolemaic temple of the falcon god Horus. We will
have several hours to enjoy the sundeck and pool as well
as the ever-changing panorama of life along the Nile. In
the late afternoon we arrive at Kom Ombo, often called the
Acropolis of Egypt for its spectacular site overlooking
the Nile. It is also unusual in being dedicated equally
to two gods, Horus the Elder and the crocodile god Sobek.
We will dock in front of the illuminated temple for the
night.
Meals:
All meals are included on board the ship
Friday, November 20/February 12: ASWAN:
We sail on to Aswan to tour the Quarry, where an unfinished
obelisk remains embedded in its native stone, the High Dam
and Philae, the Ptolemaic temple dedicated to Isis, an incredible
complex of chapels and shrines as well as the last bastion
of paganism in the Byzantine Empire.
Meals:
All meals are included on board the ship
Saturday, November 21/February 13: ASWAN:
This morning we will disembark and transfer to the Aswan
Mövenpick Hotel. Touring begins at the Kalabsha Temple,
built in the reign of Augustus on the site of an earlier
sanctuary founded by Amenhotep II. The temple, which was
later converted to a church, was dedicated to the Nubian
god Mandulis, who was associated with Isis. In the same
antiquities park we will visit the relocated Graeco-Roman
kiosk of Qertassi and the shrine of Ramesses II, from Beit
el-Wali. Touring continues at the new Museum of Nubian Civilization.
In the afternoon we will sail by felucca to the south end
of Elephantine Island to visit the extensive excavations
and small museum there.
Meals: Breakfast & dinner
Sunday,
November 22/February 14: ASWAN:
A memorable day! We fly to Abu Simbel, where the rock-cut
temples of Ramesses II and his favorite queen, Nefertari,
have been saved from the rising waters of the Nile resulting
from the Aswan High Dam. The temples were built to honor
the deified royal pair and to awe the Nubians. That awesome
feeling exists today no less than it did 3,200 years ago.
The remainder of the day will be at leisure to explore the
town and its fascinating spice bazaar, charter a felucca,
or relax at the pool.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Monday, Tuesday, November 23 & 24/February 15 &
16: CAIRO: Our
morning flight brings us back to Cairo with time to relax
at the Intercontinental Semiramis Hotel before our gala
farewell dinner at the hotel. Tuesday will be at leisure
for last-minute shopping or a return visit to the Egyptian
Museum.
Meals: Breakfast daily & 1 dinner
Wednesday, November 25/February 17: Transfer
to the airport for our flight to New York.
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