Evil Spirits, Monsters and Benevolent Protectors: Demonology in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, ISAW, New York, 23 April 2012

The origin, nature, and function of supernatural beings, conventionally called 'demons,' in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, has not yet been clearly defined. This workshop, organized by Visiting Research Scholar Rita Lucarelli, brings together scholars of Egyptology, History of Religion, and Near Eastern Studies to perform a cross-cultural analysis of textual, iconographical, and material sources in an attempt to further develop a comparative study of demonology focused on the ancient Mediterranean world and Near East.

Locus: Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (ISAW), NY

Date: 23 April 2012

Attendance at this event is by invitation only. Additional seats may be available, please email isaw@nyu.edu if you are interested in attending.

Program

9:00am Beate Pongratz-Leisten (ISAW): Opening Remarks/Welcome

9:15am Rita Lucarelli (organizer, ISAW): For a Comparative Approach to Demonology in Antiquity: the Case of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia

9:45am R. Lucarelli/K. Szpakowska/P. Kousoulis: The Demonology Project - Overview

10:15am Kasia Szpakowska (Swansea University): The Devil is in the Details: The Demonology 2K Project
10:45am Coffee Break

11:00am Colleen Manassa (Yale University): Divine Phylogeny in the Underworld Books: Gods and Daimones

11:30am Ludwig Morenz (University of Bonn)/Rita Lucarelli: Demons at Deir el Medinah: The Magical Papyrus of Mutemheb Reconsidered

12:00pm Panagiotis Kousoulis (University of the Aegean): Rebellious Identities and Demonic Diversity: msw-bdšt and the Apophian Children

12:30pm Lunch Break

2:00pm Karen Sonik (UCLA): Defining the Terms of Mesopotamian Demonology

2:30pm Lorenzo Verderame (Sapienza University of Rome): Their Divinity is Different, their Nature is Distinct! Origin and Features of Demons in Mesopotamian Cultures

3:00pm Eckart Frahm (Yale University): A Tale of Two Lands and Two Thousand Years: The Origins of Pazuzu

3:30pm Coffee Break

3:45pm Sarah Graff (The Metropolitan Museum of Art): Humbaba's Head: A New Interpretation

4:15pm David Frankfurter (Boston University): Amente Demons and Christian Syncretism

4:45pm Christopher A. Faraone (University of Chicago): Theriomorphic vs. Monstrous Demons in the Ancient Near East and Greece

5:15pm Coffee Break

5:45pm Final Discussion: the Role and Meaning of Demons in Egypt and the Ancient Near East

XI International Congress of Egyptologists, Alexandria, 13-20 September 2013

Μετά την προσωρινή αναβολή του 11ου Διεθνούς Συνεδρίου των Αιγυπτολόγων, λόγω της έκρυθμης κατάστασης στο Κάιρο, το Συνέδριο θα πραγματοποιηθεί τελικά στην Αλεξάνδρεια από τις 13 έως 20 Σεπτεμβρίου του 2013. Παραθέτω τη σχετική πρόσκληση από τους διοργανωτές του Συνεδρίου:

Dear Colleagues,

The Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the General Assembly of the International
Association of Egyptologists cordially invite Egyptologists from all
countries to participate in the Eleventh International Congress of
Egyptologists, which will be held in Bibliotheca Alexandria, Alexandria,
Egypt, from 13 to 20 September 2013.

The congress will be organized by the Calligraphy Center in Bibliotheca
Alexandria under the auspices of the International Association of
Egyptologists and the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Egypt. The aim is to
provide a meeting point for all Egyptologists based on some selected
themes.

The International Congress of Egyptologists is traditionally open to all
areas of Egyptological research, and its goal is to seek for research
papers focusing on all major themes of Egyptology. However, the
contributions are organized on a series of major themes within Egyptology:

1- The Ancient Egyptian Language in the form of writings and inscriptions.
2- The Cultural Heritage in ancient Egypt.
3- Funerary beliefs and practices.
4- Egyptian Archeology, Art and Religion.
5- Sociology, Literature, Economy and Philology.
6- Egyptian History, Foreign Relations and Diplomacy.
7- Fieldwork and Site management.

The ICE 2013 organizing committee will administer a refereed congress with
the Bibliotheca Alexandria, whereby abstracts will be peer-reviewed. In
the same manner, articles submitted for publication of the ICE 2013
proceedings will also be subject to peer-review. Also proposals of the
keynote speakers and the closed session’s papers will be considered by the
scientific committee of the ICE and BA, and time slots will be allocated
upon approval of the proposal.

More themes may be added as the overall subject-matter of the proposed
papers becomes apparent. Papers are to be sent to
Calligraphy.Center@bibalex.org or to ahmed.mansour@bibalex.org.

Looking forward to seeing you in September 2013,

Ahmed Mansour, Deputy Director, Calligraphy Center, Bibliotheca Alexandria
James P. Allen, President, IAE
Laure Pantalacci, Vice-President, IAE
Ursula Verhoeven-van Elsbergen, General Secretary, IAE

"Towards a New History for the Egyptian Old Kingdom

A (free, no registration required) one-day International Egyptology
symposium to consider questions of kingship, religion, art, economics,
and old and new archaeological excavations at the Giza Pyramids and
beyond (3rd millennium BCE).

The Pyramid Age represents the first of several highpoints in ancient
Egypt's long history. But critical questions remain on the history of the
period, its social structure and economic organization, and the long-term
implications of its artistic achievements. On the occasion of the fifth
anniversary of the new Journal of Egyptian History, The University of
British Columbia, Harvard University, and Brill Academic Publishers, Boston,
are planning to hold a conference at Harvard University on April 25-26,
2012. Faculty, students, and colleagues in the Boston area will have an
opportunity to mix with a distinguished group of Egyptological scholars from
around the world.

(Please note: there will also be a special lecture on Tell ed-Daba by
Prof. Manfred Bietak on Wednesday, April 25 at 5:00 pm)

For the schedule of papers and abstracts, please see:
http://tinyurl.com/giza2012

Politik des Austauschs: Internationales Symposion

"Politik des Austauschs: Internationales Symposion Modelle politischer Systeme und Interaktionsformen in der Ägäis und im Vorderen Orient im 2. Jt. v. Chr."

Following the detailed discussions about modes of culture contacts and exchanges in previous research the symposion addresses questions of the specific mechanisms and routes of exchange. How and by which means did material commodities and knowledge circulate among the Great Powers, lesser independent states and vassal kingdoms of the Aegean, Anatolia, Syria, the Levant, Mesopotamia and Egypt in the 2nd millennium BC? Combining written and archaeological sources the aim is to develop a perspective on the specific forms of exchange (re)considering the interaction of political and economic forces. One of the sessions is "Egypt and its External Relations".
Date: May 30, 2012-June 2, 2012

Info: http://www.iaw.uni-freiburg.de/politik-des-austauschs

http://www.iaw.uni-freiburg.de/politik-des-austauschs/pdaprog