Distinguished Egyptologist Nigel Strudwick Will Speak April 16

For release: April 8, 2008
For press information, contact Dr. Patricia Podzorski, 901-678-2649

Dr. Nigel Strudwick

Dr. Nigel Strudwick, assistant keeper in the Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan at the British Museum and visiting professor of art history at the University of Memphis, will present the illustrated lecture “City of One Hundred Gates: Luxor in the Past Two Millennia” at 7 p.m., April 16, in the Fogelman Executive Center, Room 123.  A reception will precede the lecture at 6:15 p.m.

The event is free and open to the public.  Paid parking is available in the Fogelman Executive Center garage.

Luxor, ancient Thebes of the fabled hundred gates, is probably the largest archaeological site in Egypt and the location of many temples and tombs. The greatest religious structure in the ancient world, the temple of the god Amon at Karnak, is found there. Although the best known of these structures date to the time of the Pharaohs (3000-332 B.C.), Luxor boasts an additional 2,000 years of more recent history.

Entrance to Luxor Temple

At the British Museum, Strudwick is concerned with the sculpture collection, traveling exhibitions, and technological issues. He has excavated in Egypt for many years and has a long-standing interest in the Tombs of the Nobles at Thebes. Currently he directs the excavation of the tomb of Senneferi in Thebes.

Strudwick publishes extensively on ancient Egypt. His list of books includes both scholarly and popular works on ancient Egyptian history and archaeology. A versatile scholar, he has recently produced a volume of translations of ancient Egyptian texts from the Old Kingdom (2500-2000 B.C.) and several books on Egyptian objects in the collections of the British Museum. Some of his field work and publications are done in collaboration with his wife, Helen, who is also a noted Egyptologist.

The annual Legacy of Egypt lecture series highlights the contributions of ancient Egypt to later cultures and the modern world. It is sponsored by the U of M’s Institute of Egyptian Art and Archaeology.  For more information, call 901-678-2555.