A crime scene with no crime? In 1925, archaeologists working at Giza uncovered a remarkable monument. The tomb chamber of Queen Hetep-Heres (c.2630-2580 BCE) contained a wealth of beautiful, high-quality items. But the monument itself was strange, the excavation was a serious challenge, and the results were baffling in many ways. In this episode, we explore ... Show More
May 25
234: Destroying Amarna / Splitting Heirs
Sometime in Ramesses II's reign, royal artisans dismantled the city of Akhet-Aten (Amarna). Carefully, methodically, they removed the talatat blocks and carted them away to the nearby town Hemenu (Hermopolis) for reuse in a temple. This demolition of the Horizon of Aten remains a ... Show More
28m 20s
May 18
233: Friendship in Dark Times (The Bronze Age Collapse Begins?)
Ramesses and Hattusili (Part 2). After the marriage to a Hittite princess in Year 34, Ramesses II had much to offer his northern family. A visit from the King of Hatti's son, seeking food supplies, may relate to repeated hunger crises in Syria and Hatti. Pharaoh's support brought ... Show More
34m 51s
Apr 27
The 100 Children of Ramesses II with Prof. Peter Brand
Ramesses is famous for fathering 100+ children. But what did all these princes and princesses do? Prof. Peter Brand joins us once more to explain the lives and roles of these children, how we know about them (or don't), what's up with those "Daughter Wives," and where all the 100 ... Show More
42m 39s
Jun 2021
What Egyptian Crocodile Mummies Tell us About Life, Death, and Taxes Thousands of Years Ago
Our story begins in 1899, when two archaeologists — Arthur Hunt and Bernard Grenfell — were on an expedition in Northern Egypt in an ancient town once known as Tebtunis on a search for mummies and other ancient artifacts.<br>This was during a growing Western fascination with anci ... Show More
54m 55s
Feb 2024
The Great Pyramid of Giza
<p>Built by Pharaoh Khufu some 4,500 years ago, the Great Pyramid was the first ancient wonder to be built and is the only one still standing. Towering above the Giza Plateau, this stone behemoth was to be Khufu's tomb, the place from which he would travel to the afterlife.</p><b ... Show More
28m 8s
Nov 2023
L'île de pâque et le mystère de ses statues Moaï
Bienvenue dans Les Fabuleux Destins. Dans cet épisode, nous allons vous raconter l’histoire d’une île qui fait l’objet de nombreux mystères et fantasmes depuis sa découverte. Un petit caillou triangulaire, à peine plus grand que la ville de Nîmes, mais dont les statues moaï n’ont ... Show More
13m 44s
Aug 2022
Tutankhamun | 1. Unearthing the boy king’s lost tomb
One hundred years ago, in 1922, Egyptologist Howard Carter made one of the most spectacular discoveries in the history of archaeology, when he unearthed the tomb of Tutankhamun in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. In the first episode in our new series on the life, death and legacy of ... Show More
45m 30s
Mar 2023
Judith Bunbury: Unearthing the secrets of Ancient Egypt
Think Sahara Desert, think intense heat and drought. We see the Sahara as an unrelenting, frazzling, white place. But geo-archaeologist Dr Judith Bunbury says in the not so distant past, the region looked more like a safari park.In the more recent New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, fr ... Show More
27m 24s