Egypt has one of the longest histories of any country, tracing its heritage along the Nile Delta back to the 6th–4th millennia BCE. Considered a cradle of civilisation, Ancient Egypt saw some of the earliest developments of writing, agriculture, urbanisation, organised religion and central government. Egypt was an early and important centre of Christianity, later adopting Islam from the seventh century onwards. Alexandria, Egypt's former capital and currently second largest city, was a hub of global knowledge through its Library. Cairo became the capital of the Fatimid Caliphate in the tenth century and of the subsequent Mamluk Sultanate in the 13th century. Egypt then became part of the Ottoman Empire in 1517, until its local ruler Muhammad Ali established modern Egypt as an autonomous Khedivate in 1867. The country was then occupied by the British Empire along with Sudan and gained independence in 1922 as a monarchy.
The only completely preserved portrait of the king is a small ivory figurine found in a temple ruin of a later period at Abydos in 1903. All other reliefs and statues were found in fragments, and many buildings of Khufu are lost. Khufu's has a conflicting legacy: while the king enjoyed a long-lasting cultural heritage preservation during the period of the Old Kingdom and the New Kingdom, the ancient historians Manetho, Diodorus and Herodotus hand down a very negative depiction of Khufu's character. As a result, an obscure and critical picture of Khufu's personality persists. (Full article...)
Image 10Rectangular fishpond with ducks and lotus planted round with date palms and fruit trees, Tomb of Nebamun, Thebes, 18th Dynasty (from Ancient Egypt)
Image 42A tomb relief depicts workers plowing the fields, harvesting the crops, and threshing the grain under the direction of an overseer, painting in the tomb of Nakht. (from Ancient Egypt)
Image 75Umm Kulthum, an icon of Egyptian music, often referred to as "Egypt's Fourth Pyramid". In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Umm Kulthum at number 61 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time. (from Egypt)
Image 81Hunting game birds and plowing a field, tomb of Nefermaat and his wife Itet (c. 2700 BC) (from Ancient Egypt)
Image 82E1b1b is the most common paternal haplogroup across Africa, including Egypt, with modern genetic studies rooting the origin of the E haplogroup in East Africa. (from Ancient Egypt)
Image 83Menna and Family Hunting in the Marshes, Tomb of Menna, c. 1400 BC (from Ancient Egypt)
... that Rabab Al-Kadhimi was threatened with deportation from Egypt due to the political nature of her poetry?
... that the four sons of Horus were believed to have protected deceased people in the afterlife by creating a specialized connection with the deceased's internal organs?
... that the discovery of a coffin belonging to Ahhotep I, which had been reused to bury a high priest, ignited a debate among scholars over the true number of Egyptian queens named Ahhotep?
... that the suppression of the Diaspora Revolt of 115–117 CE led to the near-total annihilation and displacement of Jewish communities in Cyrenaica, Cyprus, and much of Egypt?
... that terracotta cones found at al-Moghraqa in Palestine are unique in the region, but resemble artefacts from ancient Egypt?
Al-Nasir Shihab ad-Din Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Qalawun (1316 – 16July 1344), better known as al-Nasir Ahmad, was the BahriMamluk sultan of Egypt, ruling from January to June 1342. A son of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad, he became embroiled in the volatile succession process following his father's death in 1341. Al-Nasir Ahmad lived much of his life in the desert fortress of al-Karak in Transjordan and was reluctant to assume the sultanate in Cairo, preferring al-Karak, where he was closely allied with the inhabitants of the city and the Bedouin tribes in its vicinity. His Syrian partisans, emirs Tashtamur and Qutlubugha al-Fakhri, successfully maneuvered to bring Syria under al-Nasir Ahmad's official control, while sympathetic emirs in Egypt were able to oust the Mamluk strongman Emir Qawsun and his puppet sultan, the five-year-old half-brother of al-Nasir Ahmad, al-Ashraf Kujuk. Al-Nasir Ahmad eventually assumed the sultanate after frequently delaying his departure to Egypt.
Al-Nasir Ahmad was known to be a seclusive sultan, surrounding himself with his coterie of supporters from al-Karak, rarely making direct contact with the Mamluk emirs of Egypt and avoiding the public view. Two months into his reign, he relocated to al-Karak with substantial sums from the treasury and several horses and senior administrative officials. He ruled from the desert fortress, leaving a deputy, Emir Aqsunqur al-Salari, to oversee affairs in Egypt on his behalf. His unorthodox rule, alleged frivolity, and his execution of loyal partisans, namely Tashtamur and Qutlubugha, led to al-Nasir Ahmad being deposed from the sultanate by his half-brother, al-Salih Isma'il. He remained in the fortress of al-Karak, which the Mamluks besieged at least seven times, until being captured in July 1344. He was killed later that month on the orders of al-Salih Isma'il. (Full article...)
Selected cuisines, dishes and foods - show another
Ful medames (Arabic: فول مدمس, romanized: fūl midammisIPA:[fuːlmeˈdammes]; other spellings include ful mudammas and foule mudammes), or simply fūl, is a stew of cooked fava beans served with olive oil, cumin, and optionally with chopped parsley, garlic, onion, lemon juice, chili pepper and other vegetables, herbs, and spices. Ful medames is traditionally made in and served out of a large metal jug. It is notably a staple food in Sudan and Egypt and is considered a national dish, especially in the northern cities of Cairo and Gizah. Fava beans can also sometimes be found in other cuisines in the Middle East, and Africa, though cooked differently. (Full article...)
... that the Lavon Affair was a failed Israeli false flag operation in which bombs were planted inside Egyptian-, American-, and British-owned civilian targets such as cinemas, libraries, and American educational centers?
... that the entrance of Djoser’s pyramid complex features columns fashioned to resemble bundled reeds and ceiling blocks carved into the shape of tree trunks?
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