Research Update #5: Manchester Egyptologists at the Bloomsbury Summer School

Dr Tyldesley lecturing on Nefertiti

This year saw a veritable invasion of University of Manchester academics at the Bloomsbury Summer School hosted in the UCL Institute of Archaeology at the picturesque Gordon Square in London. The Bloomsbury Summer School was founded in 1990 and is perhaps the most noted summer school in Egyptology at the United Kingdom. For 29 years, the BSS has been providing quality content delivered by noted Egyptologists, but also courses on Mesoamerican and Near Eastern culture, history and archaeology. Along with courses on the history and archaeology of Egypt, the BSS continues to run an enviable suite of language courses covering Middle Egyptian and Coptic.

Dr Nielsen in full flow about Seti I’s ancestry

This year, one of the courses Ancient Egypt Rediscovered: News Methods and Techniques in Egyptology was run by University of Manchester academics Dr Lidija McKnight and Dr Iwona Kozieradzka-Ogunmakin. Among their guest speakers was also Dr Campbell Price, Curator of Egypt and Sudan at the Manchester Museum. Dr Price will also be running his own course Ancient Egypt in 100 People from July 15th.

Egyptology staff members Dr Joyce Tyldesley and Dr Nicky Nielsen were also invited along to present their research. Dr Tyldesley gave a talk on her long-running research into the enigmatic Nefertiti (a previous blog post on Joyce’s research can be found here and her recent book on the subject can be purchased here) while Dr Nicky Nielsen gave two lectures, one on his research into subsistence strategies and nomad-sedentary interactions at the Ramesside fort at Zawiyet Umm el-Rakham (a published summary of the research in Antiquity can be found here) and one on his recent work on the life and legacy of the important Ramesside pharaoh Seti I (Dr Nielsen’s book on the topic can be found here).

The BSS lectures provided not just an excellent opportunity for staff to disseminate their research, but also a chance to meet old and new students, including several students currently studying on the Certificate and Diploma in Egyptology at the University of Manchester.