Search

According to Kebra Nagast, which is the subject of the Ethiopian national legend, the Zagwe Dynasty seized the throne of Israel by violating God's law and created an interim period between the Aksum Kingdom and the Solomon Dynasty. In these conditions, where the legitimacy of the throne completely preceded the lineage, ancestral stories also emerged for the Zagwe Dynasty lineage. There are stories among the people that add to the narrative of Kebra Nagast, that they, too, are descendants of King Solomon. However, there is a rumor in Arabic sources that the Zagwe Dynasty was descended from Moses and Aaron. Beyond that, the Negus of that period was defined as a priest. Looking at the members of the Zagwe Dynasty, it is seen that they have a close relationship with religion, supporting the rumors. Yemrehanna Kristos is called "Kıssis King" reminiscent of Presbyter John, and Harbay, Lalibela, and Nakuto Laab, who follow him, are among the saints of the Ethiopian church. In our study, it is analyzed the discourses about the lineage of the Zagwe Dynasty and their religious figures. It has been seen in the sources that a story like the union of Solomon-Makeda is told about Moses and a woman from Kush. According to this, the prophet Moses came to Ethiopia and married a woman from Kush. However, the lineage of the prophet Moses is not related to the Zagwe Dynasty. At this point, the mention of Moses, Aaron, and Tabot together in the source where the genealogical discourse takes place reveals the possibility of this being inspired by the 248th verse of Surat al-Baqara. Because in this verse, Tabot is presented as a sign of sovereignty, and there are remains of Al-i Musa and Al-i Harun (family of Moses and the family of Aaron). Therefore, we have expressed that this discourse may be a modeling effort to legitimize the dynasty as a style frequently used in this period. The information we have about the Zagwe Dynasty does not give precise details on the number of kings, when they came to power, and how they were destroyed. However, looking at the Gadls (hagiography) written during an anti-Zagwe government after this dynasty, it can be seen that they were canonized - while keeping their usurpation secret. At this point, in our study, information about the dynasty will be given by making use of their gadls and modern studies on them, and the saints of the members of the dynasty, especially Yemrehanna Kristos, who is the King of Kissis, will be mentioned. The life of the king, who gave the name to the city known as Lalibela today, will be discussed, and information will be given about the churches he had built in this region. I will try to describe the status of the abuna authority, which is accepted as the head of the Ethiopian church, during the dynasty and, therefore, the relationship of the Zagwe dynasty with the Coptic church in Egypt and Islamic administration. it has been argued in our study that one of the most critical factors in their acceptance as saints is their position in the face of political and religious authority, and conditions in Egypt. These kings, who conducted rites in the church, tried to make the Ethiopian Church independent and build the "New Zion" by carving the rocks, were not the successors of Moses and Aaron lineage, but still, like them, they were the people who brought together the power of religion and politics in one person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human history, as far as the written memory goes back in time, is full of war conflicts. The records of victorious battles have been preserved in diverse forms, carved into rocks, drawn on the walls of the tombs of the pharaohs of ancient Egypt, written on the pages of manuscript codices, and after inventing of the printing press, printed in the periodicals of that era. For just as long time, mankind has been warned against wars, but without a response. By means of words of the Austrian columnist Karl Kraus, humanity is unteachable, "a bullet goes in one ear and out the other". And at the same time, the loss of human life and material damage is bigger, the more perfect weapons are used. The aim of our study is to focus on the situation of Slovak journalism from the breakthrough year 1900 to the outbreak of World War I, during the war and until the disintegration of the multinational Austro-Hungarian empire at the end of World War I. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analytical study of granitic pictographs and petroglyphs on rock cliffs in the open air site by polarized microscopy (PM), scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM-EDX), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (IR) and microbiological study proved that, salts and transformation the feldspars to clay minerals are the main deterioration aspects at the unfinished obelisk quarry south Egypt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aristotle saw a great winter comet with a tail reaching up to Orion. It was Comet Encke on 31 December in 372 BC. When it became visible in the morning, after 9 January 371 BC, Ephoros saw its nucleus split up in two parts. The sword of the Angel of the Lord seen above Jerusalem, as punishment for the sins by King David, was Comet Encke in 964 BC. The sword was redrawn at Ornan's threshing floor on 8 June 964 BC. David bought this place and built an altar that later became the Altar of Salomon's Temple in Jerusalem. A second century BC text contains a unique record of a bright comet observed at the end of the Shang Dynasty: 'When King Wu [of Zhou] attacked King Zhou [of Shang], a comet appeared and tendered its handle to Yin'. This was Comet Encke on 22 June 1060 BC and 17 days later, on 9 July in 1060 BC, Encke was depicted on a rock carving in Sweden. A stele at the temple of Amon at Gebel Barkal in Nubia, mentions first the important victories at Megiddo, in year 33, and Mittani, in year 23 of the reign of Pharaoh Thutmosis III. However, the text also mentions an important celestial phenomenon during his 47th year of reign. The description fits very well with the bright appearance of Comet Encke at the end of January in 1460 BC. This supports the High Chronology for Egypt with 1506 BC as the first year of reign of Thutmosis III, the sixth Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty in Egypt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces one of the largest rock art sites found in the central Dakhleh Oasis. Firstly, an overview of all the panels with petroglyphs is provided and the images briefly described. The panels' description contains basic information on their location and visibility, motifs and their compositional aspects, and chronology. This is followed by a brief summary of the presented data and a discussion situating the site in the broader context of Dakhleh and the surrounding Western Desert. Particular motifs and their arrangements, like a herd of giraffes, are further briefly discussed, and parallels from the Dakhleh region and the Nile valley cited in order to compare the CO178 rock art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document Granite quarries in Aswan, south of Egypt, have many rock paintings and engravings. This rock art in Aswan's granite quarries is exposed to many weathering factors that threaten its survival. To protect these arts, the research focused on a comparative study to evaluate the application of certain reinforcing materials such as Paraloid B44, Paraloid B48, Estel 1000 and SILRES® BS OH 100 to strengthen crumbling rock. Examination and analysis methods such as polarized microscopy (PM), scanning electron microscopy and analysis with energy-dispersed X-ray unit (SEM-EDX) and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) have been used to determine the chemical and mineral composition of the rock and the degradation and damage to rocky art. These treatments were evaluated after artificial aging by scanning electron microscopy. The results show that treatment with Estel 1000 is suitable for studied rock paintings and engravings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A petroglyph of a smiting pharaoh located in the Central Negev may offer new evidence of contact with pharaonic Egypt. With a schematic enemy, the pharaoh is the centre of the composition emphasising the message of strength and dominance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hedgehogs held a special place in ancient Egyptian life like many other desert- and marsh-dwelling animals. Their natural defensive qualities were admired by ancient Egyptians and their bodily parts, notably their hardened spines, were used as ingredients in medico-magical prescriptions. In tomb reliefs of the late 3rd Millennium BCE, hedgehogs are represented being carried alive by offering bearers or as background participants in desert hunting scenes. In later periods of Egyptian history, rattles, small unguent vessels, and scaraboid amulets were made in their shape, all of which are presumed to have had apotropaic purposes. A particular votive object of the Old Kingdom (c. 2686–2181 BCE) is a palm-sized modelled boat with a prow in the shape of a hedgehog head, which has been discovered at sites throughout Egypt. A similar representation of this motif is the so-called 'Henet'-boat (from the word ḥnt[j]) with a hedgehog head at the prow facing inwards, which is found in late Old Kingdom art. This article reassesses the role of hedgehogs as protective or apotropaic entities and their association with boats, considering how ancient Egyptians understood their ecology and their predation of snakes, scorpions, and similar stinging creatures. An updated list is provided of known representations of hedgehog-head boats, including petroglyphs and as yet unpublished examples from tombs at Giza and Saqqara. The meaning of the ancient Egyptian word ḥnt(j) is also rexamined in relation to the representation of riverine and marsh-water boats in Old Kingdom tombs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Satellite images and aerial photos are among continuous sources of data for mapping lineaments which frequently reflect surfaces of discontinuity in the rocks. The analysis of lineaments not only provides a method for detecting past tectonic trends but also helps in the exploration of minerals, oil and ground water and the seismic risk assessment for nuclear sites and repository studies as well. In the present study, lineaments have been extracted from the digital satellite scene (Landsat 7, ETM + data) for the Gebel Gharib-Dara area using GeoAnalyst PCI EASI/PACE software. In a small test area, the lineaments that were digitally extracted for different settings of the GeoAnalyst parameters were compared with the visually interpreted lineaments for optimal settings of the parameters for lineament extraction. The visual interpretation of the present false colour composite map (FCC) led to tentatively classify the rocks into 24 units to study the spatial distribution of the extracted lineaments. Lineament patterns in the form of lineament azimuth profiles (LAPs) are prepared and they are very characteristic for each unit. The NE lineament trend predominates over all the rock units while the NW trend characterizes those units located towards the Gulf of Suez. LAPs show that the younger granitic rock units of Gebel Gharib, Gebel Abu Khashaba and Gebel Dara (having relatively high radioactivity) are characterized by short amplitude of NW trends relative to the NE trends. Correlating lineament density maps (LDM) with aeroradiometry total count contour maps and other ground radiometric maps show that rock units with high radioactivity are also characterized by high lineament density and lineament intersection density. Using the same reasoning, new possible uranium targets have been located. The present study also shows that the younger granitoid is the only rock unit which has been classified into four sub-lithologic units—G1, G2, G3 and G4—and they probably have a compositional variation that needs further field checking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A program simulating artifact diversity is applied to excavated data from el-Amarna (14th century B.c.), the largest and best-preserved Egyptian town-site of the pharaonic period. The results of the simulation are used to reassess the function and history of two unusual areas of settlement at el-Amarna: the Eastern and Central Villages, which are traditionally known as the ‘Workmen's Village’ and the ‘Clerks’ Houses’ respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]