Egyptian Museum Cairo Egypt

by Terry Randolph | Nov 16, 2024 | Museum

archaeology

Egyptian Sarcophagi

Visit to the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, Egypt

November 5, 2024

I arrived in Cairo from Malaysia via Dubi on 3rd Nov 2024 for a seven day stay and participate in the UN World Urban Conference, which was occurring at the Cairo, Egypt Exhibition Centre from 4th to 8th November. Conference sessions allowed little time to tour the attractions in Cairo and elsewhere in Egypt. But I found time to visit two local museums, this one being The Egyptian Museum, Cairo, Egypt. I place my photos here to highlight my adventures. I was not disappointed about time limitations because on a previous trip to Egypt, I visited major attractions in various locations in the country during my two-week stay.

Mentuemhat

Black granite bust of Mentuemhat, Priest of Amun, Mayor of Thebes, and Counselor.

Mentuemhet was a rich and powerful mayor and priest of Thebes and Governor of Upper Egypt who rebuilt the city after the Assyrians destroyed it. The Son of Nesptah; who was the mayor of Thebes, and a third Prophet of Amun; husband to three (Neskhonsu, Shepenmut, Wadjerenes), Mentuemhat was a fourth Prophet of Amun, mayor of Thebes, and governor of upper egypt. He lived c. 700 BC in Thebes, Egypt during the 25th Dynasty. His tomb (TT34, Theban Necropolis) was the largest tomb that was built for non-royalty.

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Ancient African history

“With each passing decade as quality research supported by scientific evidence becomes available, the so-called ‘Africanists’ who hold sway to Eurocentric ideas of the inferiority of African peoples, their heritage and contributions to civilization, will increasingly lose ground but not without bitter fighting because ‘whiteness’, i.e., skin color, though by far the weakest of all arguments, and seemingly not the last, remains as a powerful tool put forth to justify the false discourse of racial superiority, for which humanity will face continuous dire circumstances of an ever-heightening and unfathomable magnitude.”
—Prof. Martin Bernal (1937-2013)

According to the evidence we now have, humankind started in Africa. But the question raised by people who should know better is: “But what has Africa contributed to world progress? “ Let’s not forget scientists who agree that Africa was the birthplace of humans, and that for many centuries after that, Africa led the way in world progress. The prehistoric native of Egypt, both in the old and in the new Stone Ages, was an African, and the earliest settlers came from the South. The manners, customs, and religions of the ancient Egyptians suggest that their prehistoric ancestors originated in a region near Uganda and Punt, the biblical land in present-day Somalia; facts still being misappropriated by various scholars bent on maintaining a ‘White’ racial characterization.

The land of the Blacks was a vast territory covering 12,000,000 squire miles. Its northernmost point in what is now Tunisia to Cape Agulhas is 5,000 miles, and east to west is 4,600 miles. This area was once “The Land of the Blacks”. This was long before Asian, Greek, and Roman occupations; after which the term “Sudan” came to show the areas not yet taken from the Blacks, yet were coextensive with the Ethiopian empire. We encourage an unbiased research of ancient Greek scholars, through Herodotus, who with pride referred to completing their education in Ethiopia, her ‘oldest daughter’ being Egypt, the north-eastern region of ancient Ethiopia. The six cataracts of the Nile River were the predominant watermarks in the heartland of the Blacks whence African culture spread over the continent, but nowhere was it pronounced as in Egypt.

The prime significance of African history becomes manifest when acknowledged that the deliberate denial of African history arose from European expansion and invasion of Africa, which began in the middle of the fifteenth century; an attempt to justify conquest, domination, enslavement, and plunder of the continent based to a successful extent on the misunderstanding and misappropriation of Christianity. Of note is the fact that the civilization of Egypt, which outlasted any other known civilization, about 10,000 years, had reached its height and was in decline before Europe was born.

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Peacock the Sentinel

by Terry Randolph | Sep 19, 2024 | Museum

Peacock (peafowl) ⎯ the sentinel

peacock symbolism

Peacock the Sentinel. The peacock symbolism represents beauty, grace, renewal, and spiritual awakening. The peacock is native to India, Asia, and Central Africa, where various tales give it deep significance.

Peacocks symbolize beauty, as they have vivid feathers pleasing to the eye. The rich colors of its feathers, combined with its crown-like crest on the top of its head, conveys stateliness, a employing majestic quality. It deploys masculine power in its highest expressing during the mating season when the colors of its feathers are at the height of maturity.

The male peacock exemplifies the beauty of masculinity at its pinnacle. Male peacocks gather, demonstrating the brotherhood of men. With a fierce and unyielding nature, they embody aggression, serving as a symbol of protection to safeguard their loved ones and keep them secure. Translated in human terms, it conveys spiritual, emotional, and psychological well-being both for self and the ones we love; relating to fulfillment of the oneness of humankind.

Female peacocks have a reputation for assisting each other in raising and caring for their chicks. Because of this, people consider female peacocks as symbols of sisterhood and the spirit of women supporting other women.

The peacock symbolizes good-luck, wealth, renewal, rebirth, and immortality. Peacocks shed their feathers at the end of the mating season and grow new feathers in time for the next mating season, a symbol of renewal, rebirth. In human terms, this symbolizes the appropriateness of transitioning into a new era.

Peacocks symbolize versatility: able to live in different climates, thrive in warm and tropical conditions, and tolerate winter-like temperatures. In human terms, this means adapting to changing times and in ways that value sustainable environmental conditions and the benefits derived from a diversity-inclusive humanity.

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was the north-eastern region of ancient Ethiopia, the northern sector of the Ethiopian empire that is the object of world attention from the earliest times. The six cataracts of the Nile were the abiding watermarks. They are in the heartland of the black peoples, from which African culture spread throughout the continent, but remained more pronounced in Egypt. In this area, peacocks were symbols of healing, protection, well-being, and the large circle on a peacock’s feather was a symbol of protection.\

West Africa

The Congo peafowl (Afropavo congensis), also known as the African peafowl or mbulu by the Bakôngo, is a species of peafowl native to the Congo Basin. It belongs to one of the three species of peafowl and is the sole member of the Pavoninae subfamily that is native to Africa.

Chieftains use the feathers, which have a sacred significance, based on tradition. The Yoruba People associate the peacock with the goddess Oshun, the ruler of water, fertility, purity, love, and sensuality. There is also a legend that shares how the peacock saved the world.

Buddhism

In Buddhism, the way the peacock is able to regenerate his feathers is thought to be a symbol of reincarnation. It also symbolizes the ability for us to learn and transform ourselves. The peacock’s ability to open its feathers symbolizes how we expand our consciousness to become enlightened.

Chinese

In China, the peacock is symbolic of majesty, protection, divinity, and beauty, as well as the triumph over evil. In Chinese myths, the peacock was associated with Guan Yin, a goddess who could turn evil into beauty.

Islam

In Islam, the peacock comes with various meanings, and meanings excite controversy. In one tale, the peacock was tricked by the devil, who came in the form of a snake. The snake appealed to the peacock’s vanity. Therefore, the snake entered the gates of Paradise, and after, the snake would corrupt it. In some Islamic stories, the peacock is thought to have the ability to move in and out of paradise.

India and Hinduism

The peacock is India’s national bird, making it an important figure in Indian and Hindu culture. In addition, the peacock is much like the Phoenix. Some say that the Phoenix is part peacock.

Dravidian tribes thought that the peacock’s feathers are sacred, which makes them an essential totem animal. The Dravidians, an ethnolinguistic group that includes people from India and other parts of Southern Asia, view the peacock as a symbol of Mother Earth.

Greek Mythology

Alexander the Great was perhaps the first one to introduce the ancient Greeks to peacocks, perhaps during the 4th century BC. Later, the ancient Greeks incorporated the peacock into their creation myths.

Persia

The peacock is the symbol of the Persian/Iranian monarchy. This symbolism originates from the Peacock Throne, a famous golden throne stolen from India by the Persians in 1739. The peacock is a popular motif in Persian designs.

Akhenaten

by Terry Randolph | Sep 18, 2024 | Out And About

King Akhenaten, “Living centuries before King David, he wrote psalms as beautiful as those of the Judean [Judaea] monarch. Thirteen hundred years before Christ he preached and lived a gospel of perfect love, brotherhood, and truth. Two thousand years before Mohammed he taught the doctrine of the One God. Three thousand hears before Darwin, he sensed the unity that runs through all living things.” (C. 1350 B.C.)

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King Akhenaten, Ancient Egypt, 18th Dynasty

Dedicated to Ancient Egypt ⎯ resounding epoch in world history

Arabesque Exhibition

by Terry Randolph | Sep 10, 2024 | Islamic, Art

Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

Art, design and culture of the Islamic world

Special Exhibition

The Arabesque

Arabesque Exhibition. The arabesque is characterised by intricate scrolls of bifurcating stylised leaves that embellished many objects that were produced within the Islamic world. It is one of the main Islamic decorative repertoire, which normally avoid the figurative imagery. The main principle is to symbolise the perception of Islamic belief, reflecting the oneness of God, eternity and the allure of the Gardens of Bliss in Paradise. Visitors will discover the origin and the regional variations of the arabesque, from the fundamental Persian Islimi and Arabian Tawriq to the glorious Rumi and Hatayi of the Ottoman Turkey. It will also highlight how arabesque inspired other parts of the world; from the West to as far as China and Southeast Asia. A selection of historical miniature paintings and the artworks of prominent Orientalist painters will provide the visual aid about the application and the appreciation of this perpetual art tradition. The chronological and thematic storyline of this exhibition will bring the visitors through the inception, evolution and the contemporary adaptations that reflects the essence of arabesque, which is harmony between rhythm, symmetry and intricacy. My visit: 4 Sep 2024.

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Orientalists paintings; 19th C. European origins.

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Additions on Display

The layout and nature of The Arabesque display was not positioned in a way that allowed for a quality photographic rendering. Therefore, the below additions are presented for viewing.

Concern for the Gaza Holocaust

The current hostility between Palestinians and Israelis betrays the ardent memory of so
many of their ancestors who died over eons while crying out for peace and justice.