LibriVox
32 episodes listed below
PRESS PLAY
A handbook of Egyptian archaeology, issued by the British Museum, considered suitable for British tourists traveling to Egypt in the 19th Century. (Introduction by Timothy Ferguson)
A pair of painted sandals for the afterlife? This is your kind of material history.
Press play if you want
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
Egyptian temple ornament becomes a charged religious system, from the bare Sphinx temple to walls crowded with figures and hieroglyphs.
Egyptian temple decoration comes through as a charged religious system, traced from the bare Temple of the Sphinx to later surfaces so crowded that stone almost gives way to image and inscription.
A clear, technique-focused look at Egyptian artists balancing convention, movement, colour, and composition.
Egyptian art comes through as a working alliance between sculpture and painting. Sandstone, limestone, and wood were often treated as surfaces for colour, while granite, basalt, diorite, serpentine, and alabaster could stand on their own.
A brisk survey of Egyptian metals, from practical bronze to rare sacred survivals.
Egyptian metalwork is framed here through material, purpose, and status. Gold, electrum, and silver sit among the noble metals, while copper, iron, lead, and later tin form the base group.
A close look at Egyptian luxury and daily craft as they survive in stone, clay, pottery, and rescued fragments.
Egyptian industrial art comes through as a record of everyday taste, moving from worked stones and costly amulets to pottery shaped for homes and tombs.
A steady tour of Egyptian tomb design, from brick pyramids to rock-cut chambers and objects made to protect the dead.
Egyptian tombs come through as works of practical design, shaped by the limits and advantages of the ground itself. The episode moves from mastabas and pyramid tombs at Abydos to chambers cut into rock, keeping the architecture easy to follow: when the rock below could not hold…
Egyptian fortresses are framed as practical responses to geography and political pressure.
Maspero treats Egyptian fortresses as a story of geography and political pressure, moving from walled towns and village strongholds to Abydos, El-Kab, Semneh, and other sites.
Mexican history, from the excavated to the conjectured.
Overlooked lives, read from the sources, talked through warmly.
This episode details the technical processes used in ancient Egyptian painting and sculpture, focusing on surface preparation and material challenges in structures like the Theban catacombs.
This episode explores the architectural design and historical significance of Egyptian pyramids as royal tombs, detailing their components like chapels, passages, and sepulchral vaults.
This episode explores the history and artistic significance of the Great Sphinx of Giza as the most ancient known statue, detailing its creation, deterioration, and enduring expression of power.
This episode introduces the preface to Gaston Maspero's manual on Egyptian archaeology, discussing its enduring value as a handbook despite ongoing discoveries in the field.
This episode explores the use of wood, ivory, leather, and textile fabrics in ancient Egyptian industrial arts, detailing materials, craftsmanship, and historical context.
This episode explores how ancient Egyptian statues and bas-reliefs were typically painted, the materials used, and the teaching methods for drawing and composition in Egyptian art.
This episode explores the evolution of tomb architecture in ancient Egypt's Theban Empire, focusing on the transition from mastaba tombs to rock-cut systems and their construction details.
This episode explores the use of wood, ivory, leather, and textile fabrics in ancient Egyptian industrial arts, detailing materials, craftsmanship, and historical context.
This episode examines the architecture and strategic importance of ancient Egyptian fortresses, focusing on walled towns like Abados, El-Kab, and Semneh that protected against desert tribes and rival nobles.
This episode explores the materials and construction principles used in ancient Egyptian religious architecture, focusing on the preference for stone over brick for durability.
This episode explores the history and architectural features of ancient Egyptian temples, focusing on their restoration, design, and materials like Tura limestone and red granite.
This episode explores ancient Egyptian beliefs about the soul and afterlife, focusing on mastaba tombs and practices like embalmment to preserve various spiritual entities.
This episode explores how ancient Egyptians classified and used metals like gold, silver, copper, iron, and bronze in their industrial arts, detailing their applications in tools, weapons, and artifacts.
This episode explores the industrial arts of ancient Egypt, focusing on the use of stone, clay, and glass in creating luxury items like jewels and amulets.
This episode explores the history and artistic significance of the Great Sphinx of Giza as the most ancient known statue, detailing its creation, deterioration, and enduring expression of power.
This episode explores the technical processes used in ancient Egyptian painting and sculpture, focusing on how artists prepared and repaired wall surfaces for decoration despite construction imperfections.
This episode examines how ancient Egypt's geography and reliance on the Nile shaped its public works system, focusing on transportation, infrastructure, and government administration.
This episode discusses the often-overlooked remains of ancient Egyptian civil and military architecture, including houses and fortresses, highlighting various archaeological sites where these structures are preserved.
This episode introduces the preface to a revised edition of Gaston Maspero's manual on Egyptian archaeology, highlighting its continued importance as a handbook despite ongoing discoveries in the field.
This episode explores the architectural design and historical significance of Egyptian pyramids as royal tombs, detailing their components like chapels, passages, and sepulchral vaults.
This episode explores the evolution of decoration in Egyptian religious architecture, from early simplicity to elaborate symbolic carvings that depicted cosmic and divine relationships.
This episode explores ancient Egyptian beliefs about the soul's components and tomb practices, focusing on mastabas as described in Gaston Maspero's manual.
This episode explores the history and architectural features of ancient Egyptian temples, focusing on their restoration, design, and materials like Tura limestone and red granite.
This episode explores the materials and construction principles of ancient Egyptian religious architecture, focusing on the use of stone for durability in temples.
Gaston Maspero’s chapter on Egyptian metals classifies gold, electrum, and silver as noble metals, while copper, iron, lead, and later tin form the base-metal group.
This episode introduces the study of Egyptian civil and military architecture, arguing that archaeologists have overlooked private dwellings and fortifications despite abundant preserved ruins.
This episode explores public works in ancient Egypt, focusing on the minimal road network due to reliance on the Nile, the rarity of bridges, and government priorities like storage and irrigation.
This episode examines the architecture and defensive strategies of ancient Egyptian fortresses, detailing sites like Abydos and El-Kab.
This episode explores how ancient Egyptian statues and bas-reliefs were typically painted, the materials used, and the teaching methods for drawing and composition in Egyptian art.
This episode explores the industrial arts of ancient Egypt, focusing on stone, clay, and glass, and how Egyptians used various materials to create luxurious and beautiful objects for daily life and burial.
This episode explores the evolution of decoration in ancient Egyptian religious architecture, from early simplicity to elaborate symbolic carvings that formed a mystical narrative.
This episode explores the architectural evolution of tombs during the Theban Empire, focusing on the transition from mastaba structures to rock-cut tombs and their construction details.