For release: November 8, 2012
For press information, contact Dr. Lorelei Corcoran, 901-678-2555

The Institute of Egyptian Art & Archaeology (IEAA) and the History Department at the University of Memphis and the Tennessee Chapter of the American Research Center in Egypt will co-host the seventh annual William J. Murnane Memorial Lecture on Thursday, Nov. 15, in the University Center Fountain View Room (Room 350). Edwin C. Brock, research associate at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada, will present an illustrated lecture, “The Merenptah Sarcophagi Restoration Project,” at 7 p.m. A reception will precede the lecture at 6:15.

Both events are free and open to the public. Parking is available in the Zach Curlin garage adjacent to the University Center.

The Egyptian pharaoh Merenptah, who ruled from 1212 to 1202 BC, was the 13th son of Ramesses the Great. One of the military rulers of the 19th Dynasty, Merenptah’s famous victory stela contains the first mention of Israel in Egyptian records. Merenptah is the only Egyptian king to have had four stone coffins (sarcophagi), nestled one inside the other, as part of his burial in the Valley of the Kings. About 150 years after his burial, his tomb was robbed. Although his mummy was re-buried by the Egyptian priests, his burial equipment was repurposed by later kings.

Brock, a Canadian archaeologist who has worked in Egypt for nearly 30 years, will detail his efforts since 1982 to collect, document and reconstruct the fragments of Merenptah’s original sarcophagi. One of the highlights of the talk will be his evidence for the method of lowering the massive granite sarcophagi into the tomb and how the sarcophagi were later destroyed.

For more information, call the IEAA at 901-678-2555.