The History of Egypt Podcast

The tomb of Queen Nefertari is one of the masterpieces of New Kingdom funerary monuments. The tomb is stunningly preserved, with an array of exquisite images, evocative texts (from the Book of the Dead), and traces of her burial goods. In this episode we explore the sepulchre, its decoration, and its conservation in the modern era.

Music: Ihab Mahna and Luke Chaos.
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Around 1300 BCE, King Sety I selected a group of "beauties" for his son, to marry and produce children. One of these was Nefertari (Nefret-Iry, "She Has Become Beautiful"). A girl of unknown origins (but some tantalising possibilites) who would rise to the rank of King's Chief/Great Wife. Nefertari is world-famous, especially for her monuments. But the Queen herself is remarkably shadowy. We go in search of her tale...

Music: Ancient Lyric (intro) & Keith Zizza (outro).

Logo image: Nefertari and Ise/Isis, from the Queen's tomb QV66. Photo by Edward Hutt.
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Livestream recording about the Abu Simbel Temples, with a particular focus on Nefertari's monument (Part 1) and the political-religious context of Ramesses' Nubian monuments (Part 2). We also have a fun epilogue about some Greek mercenaries...

Video versions available on the History of Egypt Podcast YouTube channel.

Part 1 (Nefertari) https://youtu.be/B5FLkAtPpdM

Part 2 (Religious/Political Context) https://youtu.be/D7ZTYFOtrA4
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In the Cretaceous Period (c.100 million years ago) Egypt and North Africa were radically different environments. With vast tidal flats and mangroves, and a shallow sea, the continent fostered numerous animal and plant species. Creatures like Paralititan (sauropods); the sprinting Deltadromeus; the infamous Spinosaurus; and the newcomer Tameryraptor. These have been preserved in the fossil record from Egypt and other countries in North Africa. Today, we meet some of the inhabitants of this ancient landscape…

Logo image: Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, by Paleogeeksquared, via Wikimedia.

Animals mentioned in this episode:

Paralititan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralititan

Deltadromeus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deltadromeus

Mawsonia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mawsonia_(fish)

Leptostomia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptostomia

Spinosaurus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinosaurus

Tameryraptor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tameryraptor

Select references:

Dal Sasso, C., Maganuco, S., & Iurino, D. (2014). Update on the internal structure of the snout of Spinosaurus aegyptiacus. Second North African Vertebrate Palaeontology Congress, Ouarzazate.

Darwish, M. H., & Attia, Y. (2007). Plant impressions from the mangrove-dinosaur Unit of the Upper Cretaceous Bahariya Formation of Egypt. Taeckholmia, 27, 105--125.

Hone, D., & Holtz Jr, T. R. (2021). Evaluating the ecology of Spinosaurus: Shoreline generalist or aquatic pursuit specialist? Palaeontologia Electronica, 24(1), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.26879/1110

Hone, D., & Witton, M. P. (2025). Spinosaur Tales: The Biology and Ecology of the Spinosaurs.

Ibrahim, N., Sereno, P. C., Dal Sasso, C., Maganuco, S., Fabbri, M., Martill, D. M., Zouhri, S., Myhrvold, N., & Iurino, D. A. (2014). Semiaquatic adaptations in a giant predatory dinosaur. Science, 345(6204), 1613--1616. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1258750

Roach, J. (2001, May 31). “Tidal Giant” Roamed Coastal Swamps of Ancient Africa. National Geographic News. https://web.archive.org/web/20010605022420/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/05/0531_tidaldinosaur.html

Sereno, P. C., Myhrvold, N., Henderson, D. M., Fish, F. E., Vidal, D., Baumgart, S. L., Keillor, T. M., Formoso, K. K., & Conroy, L. L. (2022). Spinosaurus is not an aquatic dinosaur. eLife, 11, e80092. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.80092

Smith, J. B., Lamanna, M. C., Lacovara, K. J., Dodson, P., Smith, J. R., Poole, J. C., Giegengack, R., & Attia, Y. (2001). A Giant Sauropod Dinosaur from an Upper Cretaceous Mangrove Deposit in Egypt. Science, 292(5522), 1704--1706. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1060561
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The New Kingdom "Book of Gates" explores Ra's journey through the Duat (Underworld). Passing the western horizon at sunset, Ra sails through the land of the dead. His journey is beset by dangerous creatures, and Ra himself experiences a kind of death at the darkest time of night. Fortunately, Heis not alone. Guided and assisted by friends, the lord of light journeys deep into the night. Hour by hour, he traverses the realm of Osiris, moving towards his own rebirth...

This is a compilation of previously released material (episodes 175 & 176).

First known appearance: KV57 the royal tomb of Horemheb (c.1305 BCE). 

Website: www.egyptianhistorypodcast.com.

Support the show via Patreon www.patreon.com/egyptpodcast.

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Source: KV57, the tomb of Horemheb; KV17, tomb of Sety I, and others.

Music intro, interludes, and outro: Luke Chaos. Adapted from original compositions by Gorillaz, from the album "Demon Days." 

Modern Book of Gates Translations:

J. C. Darnell and C. Manassa Darnell, The Ancient Egyptian Netherworld Books (2018).

E. Hornung, The Egyptian Book of Gates, trans. T. Abt (2014).

DON'T use Budge. His version is over 100 years out-of-date on language and scholarly understanding of Egyptian religion.
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