Description of Activity
Title: The Milky Way and the Ancient Egyptian Goddess of the SkyAbstract: The ancient Egyptians left us some of the earliest records of the night sky, where they noted the Sun, Moon, planets, and several constellations. Many of these objects are associated with - or personified by - certain gods (such as Re and the Sun). Yet how the Egyptians conceptualized the Milky Way remains unclear. In my talk, I will focus on the popular suggestion that the Milky Way was a manifestation of Nut, the Egyptian goddess of the sky. I have tested this theory by combining astronomical simulations of the Egyptian night sky, readings of ancient Egyptian religious texts (the Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, and the Book of Nut), ancient Egyptian material culture (coffins, funerary papyri, and tomb murals), and anthropological studies of Milky Way origin stories from around the world. I will show how Nut's depictions changed over the course of Egyptian history and present the first visual evidence for the Milky Way in ancient Egyptian art. I will conclude by arguing that the Milky Way was not a manifestation of Nut but one more astronomical phenomenon that graced her body in her role as the sky.
| Period | 3 Mar 2025 |
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| Held at | University College London, United Kingdom |
| Degree of Recognition | National |