T H E O R I E N T A L I N S T I T U T E

NEWS & NOTES

fall 2012 PAGE1

NO. 215 fall 2012 THE Oriental INSTITUTE OF THE University OF CHICAGO

new technology and

the earliest writing

also inside:
Birds in Ancient Egypt
Babylonian Astrology
Oriental Institute Travel Program:
The Wonders of Ancient Egypt
PAGE 2 NEWS & NOTES

IN THIS ISSUE
From the Directors Study
The invention of writing is one of humankinds greatest achievements a creative
From the Directors Study 2 leap made independently by several emerging civilizations in both the Old and New
Early Writing and Administrative Practice3 Worlds. It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of this innovation, which
transformed the spoken word into a symbolic system expressed visually through a
Members Lectures 8 set of conventionalized signs. This made it possible to store information and ideas
and transmit them with precision across space and across time. Writing seems to
Between Heaven & Earth 9
have been invented at roughly the same time in the later fourth millennium bc in
Registration Form 15 both Mesopotamia and Egypt.
Although the idea of writing was invented independently in several locations,
Calendar of Events 16 each culture developed writing through its own unique pathway, and writing func-
Adult Education 18 tioned very differently in Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and Mesoamerica. For this
reason, studying the precursors of writing in each of these civilizations can give
Sunday Films 19 us unique insights into the actual processes through which writing was invented.
Christopher Woods article in this issue of News & Notes gives us the first look
Volunteer Spotlight 20 at an exciting new project using advanced imaging technology to investigate the
Oriental Institute in the News 24 enigmatic hollow clay balls and tokens that were used in Mesopotamia immedi-
ately before the invention of writing. The key question is whether these differently
Stargazing in Ancient Babylonia 20 shaped clay objects, and the clay balls that contained them, were the first stage in
Suq Corner Back Cover the evolution of the cuneiform writing system. Were the complex and simple clay
tokens the ancestors of individual cuneiform signs or were they parts of an entire-
ly different kind of information recording system? Were the simple and complex
tokens used in different ways? Were they recording the same kinds of information,
or did they represent two (or more?) parallel ways of information storage? We can
News & Notes only answer questions like these by looking inside the sealed clay balls, and then
comparing the contents with those tokens that are found outside of the clay balls
A Quarterly Publication of as groups or isolated finds in the archaeological record. In short, the archaeological
The Oriental Institute, context and associations of the tokens are as important as the shapes of the tokens
printed exclusively as one of themselves in solving the mystery of the invention of writing. Working with his
archaeological colleague Abbas Alizadeh, Christopher Woods has been applying
the privileges of membership powerful CT scans and sophisticated 3-D image processing software to peer inside
Amy Weber, Editor the clay balls from the Oriental Institutes excava-
tions at the fourth-millennium bc site of Choga Mish
in southwest Iran. This non-destructive technology
The Oriental Institute allows us to keep the artifacts whole and unbroken,
1155 East 58th Street while still having the benefit of seeing what they
Chicago, IL 60637 contained. The results are unexpected and in some
Telephone: (773) 834-9777 ways quite surprising. As this innovative research
Facsimile: (773) 702-9853 project proceeds, it is certain to shed new light on
E-mail: [email protected] the symbolic systems of the earliest Mesopotamian
civilization, and on the invention of writing itself.
All inquiries, comments, and
suggestions are welcome

World-Wide Web site:

http://oi.uchicago.edu

Cover illustration:
3-D CT image of Ch.M. III-752 with digitally Broken clay envelope with tokens inside
applied false-color surface; Statuette of a ba- (Ch.M. III-925A) from Choga Mish, Iran.
bird. OIM E446 (photo by Anna Ressman)
fall 2012 PAGE3

early writing and administrative practice

in the ancient near east
New Technology and the Study of Clay Envelopes from Choga Mish
Christopher Woods, Associate Professor of Sumerology*

S mall, unassuming clay balls have

come to play a central role in the de-
bate over the origins of writing, having
impressions match the number and size
of the tokens enclosed within. That to-
kens were impressed on the surface
discovery, it contained forty-nine small
pebbles. What is remarkable about this
object, and what distinguishes it from
been made famous by Denise Schmandt- of the envelopes prior to being sealed the archaic envelopes, is that it bears
Besserat and her theory of the origins within suggested to the French archae- an inscription, written in Akkadian.
of writing (1992). The balls, which range ologist Pierre Amiet in the 1960s that The inscription on the envelope makes
from the size of golf balls to baseballs the tokens were numerical counters and reference to forty-nine sheep and so
(fig. 1), are better described as enve- that each envelope was the record of a matches the number of pebbles en-
lopes, as they are hollow and contain transaction a type of primitive ac- closed, identifying the pebbles as the
small clay artifacts commonly referred counting system in which it was neces- stones of the sheep. A receipt tablet,
to as clay counters, or tokens (fig. 2). sary to impress the tokens on the outer which clearly concerns the same trans-
The envelopes with their associated to- surface of the envelope so that it would action, was found together with the en-
kens have been excavated in Iran, Syria, not have to be broken to inspect its con- velope and also makes mention of the
and Iraq, and they make their first ap- tents. The very act of impressing tokens forty-nine sheep. The tablet provides
pearance in the archaeological record onto envelopes, Amiet reasoned, could the additional information that the
in the middle of the fourth millennium have led to the creation of writing. sheep in question were placed in the
and so are contemporaneous with, or Amiets understanding of the func- care of a shepherd, Ziqarru, by a sheep
slightly earlier than, the first texts (ca. tion of the envelopes was seemingly owner, Puhishenni. So there can be no
3200 bc). There is a general consensus corroborated by a much later, second- question that this particular envelope
that the envelopes represented an early millennium artifact found at Nuzi. This represents a simple accounting device
administrative device, which served as object, the so-called egg-shaped tab- for a specific transaction. And, although
a means to monitor and control the let (fig. 3), was first discussed in 1959 it postdates the proto-literate envelopes
flow of materials, various commodities, by A. Leo Oppenheim of the Oriental by some two thousand years, it seems
and labor. The tokens, which are con- Institute. This object is a type of enve- reasonable to suggest that those earlier
tained within the envelopes, represent lope, but, again, much later in date than artifacts served a similar function.1 As
quantities and/or commodities of the those discussed by Amiet. At the time of
proto-literate economies. Essentially,
these devices served as receipts for
various economic transactions. In fact,
the presence of the impressions of one
to three seal impressions on most en-
velopes strongly suggest an adminis-
trative usage for these artifacts and the
involvement of multiple parties in their
transactions. On the other hand, the act
of sealing the tokens within the enve-
lope would have protected them from
tampering and fraud. If the contents
were contested, the envelope could be
broken open and the tokens verified.
In some cases the envelopes bear im-
pressions of tokens on their surfaces Figure 1ab. Intact clay envelope (Ch.M. III-775) from Choga Mish, Iran, with line drawings of the
indeed, in a few rare instances, these seal impressions. (photo by Anna Ressman)
PAGE 4 NEWS & NOTES

Figure 2a (top) and b (bottom).

Proto-literate clay tokens from
Choga Mish: simple (a) and
complex (b) (photos by Anna
Ressman)

to why such a primitive device would Returning to our fourth-millenni-

remain in use at Nuzi, where writing um envelopes, Amiet stopped short of
was well known, and why this transac- equating specific token shapes with
tion would be recorded in two different specific cuneiform signs. This is the
media, it might be suggested that the critical point at which Schmandt-
exchange of sheep involved an illiterate Besserats theory about the origins of
shepherd.2 Because the shepherd could writing departs from that of Amiet. In
not verify the accuracy of the written Schmandt-Besserats view, both the
document, it was necessary to draft a numerical and logographic signs of cu-
second parallel receipt that would be neiform evolved directly out of the ear-
comprehensible to him, this one con- lier token system. This theory is based
sisting of the pebbles within the sealed primarily on the visual similarities be-
envelope.3 tween the elements of the token and
writing systems (fig. 4). Tokens, which
also occur in contexts outside of the
envelopes, belong to one of two groups
according to Schmandt-Besserats
somewhat arbitrary categorization: the
so-called simple tokens (fig. 2a), which
are unmarked and represent simple
geometric shapes (spheres, cones, disks,
lozenges, etc.); and the complex tokens
(fig. 2b), geometric shapes that bear
markings and perforations of various
kinds. Tokens of the simple variety, in
Schmandt-Besserats understanding,
which first make their appearance with
the beginnings of agriculture in the
Figure 3. The egg-shaped tablet from Nuzi ninth millennium, developed into the Figure 4. Comparison of complex tokens with
(SMN 1854 = HSS 16:499) numeral graphs. The so-called complex the respective cuneiform graphs (from top to
bottom) for sheep and goats, wool, and silver
fall 2012 PAGE5

tokens, on the other hand, appear much

later in the archaeological record and
are regarded as a hallmark of the bur-
geoning urban societies of the fourth
millennium. These complex tokens, in
Schmandt-Besserats schema, became
the logograms of cuneiform. In Uruk
and Susa, early bureaucrats organized
them by threading them on strings and,
of course, sealing them within clay en-
velopes after occasionally impressing
them on the surface. From this point it
is supposedly a simple and logical step
to the development of writing (fig. 5).
Early accountants soon realized that
the process of enclosing tokens within
envelopes was entirely unnecessary,
since their two-dimensional impres-
sions on the surface conveyed the same
information with far less effort. So the
envelopes were replaced by tablets. The
cones and spheres of the complex token
system were now translated to two-di-
mensional pictographs and were drawn
with a stylus on clay tablets. By compar-
ing the geometric shapes and designs
of the tokens with those of the early
cuneiform signs, Schmandt-Besserat Figure 5. The development of cuneiform after Schmandt-Besserat (1992)
assigned meanings to some fifty com-
plex tokens. systems. The assumption that a symbol would leave more evidence of keeping
Although there is an elegant sim- present in two distinct systems in accounts of nails than of livestock?4
plicity to much of this argument, our case the tokens of a prehistoric ac- A m a j o r o b s t a cl e i n t e s t i n g
and Schmandt-Besserat is certainly counting system and proto-cuneiform Schmandt-Besserats theory and,
to be praised for reigniting the de- must necessarily have the same moreover, in understanding these
bate over the origins of writing, many value is a well-known methodological proto-literate accounting devices
Assyriologists and Archaeologists find pitfall in decipherment efforts, as it is has been our inability to easily inspect
the theory problematic. It is difficult to entirely possible that the shared sym- the contents of the vast majority of
accept, for instance, that tokens found bol has different values, or meanings, clay envelopes. According to a recent
over such a vast time period and over in the respective systems. Indeed, in estimate, some 80 of the 130 or so
such a vast geographical range from several cases there is solid circumstan-
the Mediterranean to Iran, from the tial evidence to suggest that that this is
ninth to the end of the fourth millen- in fact the case with our evidence. As
nium bc constituted a uniform ac- the archaeologist Paul Zimansky has
counting system, as Schmandt-Besserat pointed out, the alleged sheep and goat
argues. Moreover, the proposed rela- token (see fig. 4), perhaps Schmandt-
tionship between the word signs and Besserats most compelling piece of ev-
the complex tokens the lynchpin of idence on visual grounds, occurs only
Schmandt-Besserats theory is par- fifteen times over seven thousand years.
ticularly difficult to accept because the This is indeed troubling, given all we
argument is based on the mere visual know about the importance of livestock
similarities between the two. A number in the ancient Near East. Conversely, the
of tokens do in fact resemble cuneiform most common tokens are those that
signs (for instance, those in fig. 4), but supposedly signify nails and work
it does not necessarily follow that they days, prompting Zimansky to ask, is
shared the same meanings in the two it really credible that early villagers
Figure 6. Broken clay envelope with tokens
inside (Ch.M. III-745). (photo by Anna Ressman)
PAGE 6 NEWS & NOTES

provenience and administrative con- James, and Christopher Woods, along

texts of these artifacts crucial infor- with William Harms of the universitys
mation for understanding these objects News Office brought the Institutes
and their function. collection of eighteen proto-literate
Since the 1960s scholars have x- envelopes to North Star Imagings
rayed these envelopes and scanned Rogers, MN, facility for a two-day scan-
them with computed tomography (CT) ning session. Multiple high-resolution
equipment. Typically, these techniques scans were made of each of the artifacts
could not offer the resolution and clar- (fig. 8); these 2D radiographs were then
ity necessary to determine the exact combined to create 3-D CT images of
number of tokens and whether they each of the artifacts. Using North Star
have markings critical data for un- Imagings proprietary software, we can
derstanding their meaning (fig. 7). digitally surface the envelopes, a pro-
However, major advances in CT and cess that clearly distinguishes regions
Figure 7. X-ray of a clay envelope from Susa, Sb
digital imaging technology have been of differing densities by digitally creat-
1911 (Drilhon et al. 1986, p. 342, fig. 12)
made in recent years, and it is now pos- ing a well-defined boundary, or surface,
excavated clay envelopes are intact. 5 sible to obtain the requisite resolution, between them (fig. 9). The resultant
Naturally, for many of those envelopes fidelity, and much more. The Oriental digital envelopes can be rotated in a
that have been discovered broken, it Institute is currently collaborating with 3-D space, dissected, and inspected for
is impossible to reconstruct with cer- North Star Imaging of Rogers, MN, a their contents, construction, and clay
tainty their original contents. Writing leading manufacturer of state-of-the- composition at remarkably high mag-
in 1992, Schmandt-Besserat estimated art industrial CT systems, and Kinetic nifications (fig. 10).
that the contents of only five envelopes, Vision of Cincinnati, OH, to scan and In August of 2011, Kinetic Vision,
or less than 3 percent of the known en- analyze the eighteen clay envelopes in a leading engineering firm special-
velopes, are known with certainty (fig. our collection, all of which the Oriental izing in digital media creation, joined
6).6 Museums, understandably, are typi- Institute excavated from Choga Mish, our collaboration with North Star
cally reluctant to open these artifacts as Iran, in the 1960s and early 1970s. The Imaging. Kinetic Vision generated 3-D
doing so would destroy them and the value of the Oriental Institutes enve- digital models of each of the envelopes
seal impressions that most of them bear. lopes lies not only in the fact that they based on the raw, high-resolution CT
Recently, several envelopes belonging roughly double the corpus of envelopes data (figs. 1112). These models allow
to a private collection in Norway were for which the contents are known, but us to digitally remove the tokens from
opened, increasing the number for also in their well-documented archaeo- the envelopes so that they may be ro-
which the contents are fully known. 7 logical context, having been excavated tated and analyzed in isolation; the
It must be pointed out, however, that using relatively modern scientific meth- models also facilitate measurements of
the Norwegian envelopes were likely ac- ods and recording techniques. the inner dimensions of the envelopes
quired on the antiquities markets and In July of 2011, a team from the as well as the analysis of the organiza-
discovered through illicit excavations. University of Chicago the Oriental tion of the tokens within. Together the
Thus, we are completely ignorant of the Institutes Laura DAlessandro, Tom 3-D CT images and digital models allow

Figure 8. Radiograph of Choga Mish clay Figure 9. 3-D CT image of Ch.M. III-752 with Figure 10. Cross section of Ch.M. III-752 (plane
envelope Ch.M. III-752 digitally applied false-color surface of cut indicated in green) revealing tokens
within
fall 2012 PAGE7

that are found within the envelopes

differ from those found in other con-
texts? What are the similarities and
differences between the Choga Mish
assemblage of sealed tokens and those
from other sites, most notably, that of
Uruk in southern Iraq? Naturally, hav-
ing access to the field records of these
Oriental Institute excavated artifacts fa-
cilitates our attempts to answer these
questions.
Additionally, we are interested in
how bureaucrats constructed these ad-
ministrative devices more than 5,000
Figure 11. Transparent digital model of Ch.M. Figure 12. Digital model of token assemblage years ago. One of the great benefits of
within Ch.M. III-752
III-752 revealing inner surface cavity and token
scanning our envelopes, as opposed
assemblage
to opening them, is not only the non-
destructive nature of the testing, but
us to investigate the structure and in- or x-rayed. While our investigation
also the ability to inspect the internal
teriors of these critically important naturally revolves around determining
structure of the clay. The CT scans allow
artifacts in ways unfathomable just a the token contents of the envelopes,
us to inspect folds, inclusions, and den-
few years ago. Indeed, we are now at a the more far-reaching goal is to un-
sity changes in the clay that yield clear
point in terms of technology where we cover any correlations that may exist
indications of how these artifacts were
can collect more and better data using between the types of tokens, the seal
constructed. For instance, it is appar-
non-destructive methods than we could impressions, and the provenience of
ent from the radiographs that differ-
if we physically opened the balls for the artifacts. If patterns of these types
ent methods were employed to seal the
with the CT technology we can return could be established, it may be possible,
envelopes, and that there is consider-
again and again to these objects and ultimately, to put forward a convinc-
able variation in the quality of clay
investigate their internal structures at ing theory for the units represented
and the manufacture as well. We have
microscopic levels. by the enclosed tokens. Of course, any
complemented these observations with
A team consisting of Christopher hope of doing so rests upon amassing
hands-on token- and envelope-making
Wo o d s , a s s o c i a t e p r o f e s s o r o f a sufficiently large corpus of envelopes
practicums where we experiment with
Sumerology, Tate Paulette, an advanced for which the contents are known.
different clays and envelope-making
graduate student in Mesopotamian ar- Certainly, our project will represent a
techniques (fig. 13). Attempting to re-
chaeology, and Sneha Elango, a Metcalf major step forward toward this goal.
produce the ancient manufacture of the
intern at the Oriental Institute, is cur- Although discovering the number
envelopes and tokens has given us new
rently reviewing the data, recording ob- and types of tokens contained within
insights into the design of these devices
servations, and making measurements the Choga Mish envelopes is an obvious
and allowed us to better interpret the
using the 3-D CT images in conjunction desideratum, there are several addition-
CT images and digital models.
with Kinetic Visions 3-D digital models. al and interrelated
We are also relying upon the expertise goals of our inquiry.
of Oriental Institute senior research as- Specifically, we are
sociate Abbas Alizadeh, editor of the interested in learn-
Choga Mish excavation reports, who ing more about the
has an intimate knowledge of these role of these devices
envelopes, their seal impressions, and within their broader
their archaeological context, as well as administrative con-
Oriental Institute preparator and ce- texts, for instance:
ramist Brian Zimerle, who is assisting What is the relation-
us with understanding the clay com- ship between the en-
position and construction of the en- velopes and the other
velopes. The data we are collecting are proto-literate admin-
being organized into a comprehensive istrative devices that
database, to which we will add what is often accompany
known about the envelopes in other col- them archaeologi-
lections that have been either opened cally? Do the tokens Figure 13. Oriental Institute preparator and ceramicist Brian Zimerle
fashioning a clay envelope and tokens
PAGE 8 NEWS & NOTES

We are currently in the midst of

2
Abusch 1981, pp. 78; cf. Oppenheim 1959, of Nuzi and the Hurrians 1. Winona Lake:
pp. 12324. Eisenbrauns, 1981.
our investigation. Now that the techno- 3
Steinkeller 1984, p. 6.
logical aspects of the project are nearly 4 Amiet, Pierre. Il y a 5000 ans, les Elamites
Zimansky 1993, p. 516.
complete, we need to understand these 5 inventaient lcriture. Archeologia 12 (1966):
Englund 1998, p. 49.
results within the greater administra- 6 1623.
Schmandt-Besserat 1992, p. 117.
tive, historical, and cultural context of 7
Available on the Cuneiform
these artifacts. We look forward to com- Drilhon, F.; Pr. M. Laval-Jeantet; and A.
Digital Library Initiative (CDLI)
Lahmi. tude en laboratoire de seize
pleting our work and publishing the re- website: http://cdli.ucla.edu/
bulles msopotamiennes appartenant au
sults this year. Dpartement des Antiquits Orientales. In
Prhistoire de la Mesopotamie: la Msopotamie
notes bibliography prhistorique et lexploration rcente du Djebel
Hamrin, Paris 171819 dcembre 1984 (Paris
* The first part of this essay, describing the Abusch, Tzvi. Notes on a Pair of Matching 1987), pp. 33544. Paris: ditions du Centre
context and state of research of the proto- Texts: A Shepherds Bulla and an Owners National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1984.
literate clay envelopes, stems from the au- Receipt. In In Honor of Ernest R. Lacheman
thors essay The Earliest Mesopotamian on His Seventy-fifth Birthday, April 29, 1981, Lieberman, Stephen J. Of Clay Pebbles,
Writing (Woods 2010). edited by M. A. Morrison and D. I. Owen, pp. Hollow Clay Balls, and Writing: A Sumerian
1
Lieberman 1980, pp. 340, 352. 19. Studies on the Civilization and Culture View. American Journal of Archaeology 84
(1980): 33958.

Oppenheim, A. Leo. On an Operational De-

vice in Mesopotamian Bureaucracy. Journal
of Near Eastern Studies 18 (1959): 12128.

Members Lectures Englund, Robert K. Texts from the Late

Uruk Period. In Mesopotamien: Spturuk-Zeit
The Oriental Institute Members Lecture Series is a unique opportunity for supporters of the Oriental Institute to und Frhdynastische Zeit, edited by J. Bauer,R.
learn about the ancient Near East from world-renowned scholars. Unless specified below, all lectures are held the K. Englund, and M. Krebernik, pp. 15233.
first Wednesday of every month, November through June, at 7:00 pm in Breasted Hall at the Oriental Institute. These Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis 160/I. Freiburg:
lectures are made possible by the generous support of Oriental Institute members. Universittsverlag; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck
& Ruprecht, 1998.
Feasting on the High Road:
The Median Palace at Godin Tepe Schmandt-Besserat, Denise. Before Writing,
Volume 1: From Counting to Cuneiform. Austin:
December 5, 2012 University of Texas Press, 1992.
Hilary Gopnik
Steinkeller, Piotr. Observations on the
Ancient Mediterranean Studies, Function and Use of the Uruk Clay Bullae
Emory University and Numerical Tablets. Paper Read at the
The horse-riding Medes of the Zagros 194th Meeting of the American Oriental So-
Mountains of Iran remain one of the ciety, 1984.
enigmas of ancient history. They are best Woods, Christopher. The Earliest Mesopo-
James Henry Breasted: known to us through the colorful anec- tamian Writing. In Visible Language: Inven-
A New Appreciation dotes of Greek historian Herodotus and tions of Writing in the Ancient Middle East and
contemporaneous Assyrian inscriptions. Beyond, edited by C. Woods, pp. 3350. Ori-
November 7, 2012 The recent publication of the excava- ental Institute Publication 32. Chicago: The
Emily Teeter tion of the Median citadel-palace at Go- Oriental Institute, 2010.
Research Associate and Coordinator din Tepe provides some new, firsthand
Zimansky, Paul. Review of Before Writing,
of Special Exhibits evidence for the way in which Median
Volume 1: From Counting to Cuneiform, by D.
leaders negotiated power by entertain- Schmandt-Besserat. Journal of Field Archaeol-
In recent years, a considerable amount of ing guests in unique columned halls with
new research on Breasted has appeared ogy 20 (1993): 51317.
feasts of suckling pig, lamb, and wine.
ranging from our special exhibit Pioneers
to the Past to Jeffrey Abts acclaimed bi-
ography and PhD dissertations. This lec-
ture draws upon these sources as well
as on Breasteds letters in the Oriental
Institute Archive to examine some of his
sources of inspiration and his motivation
for creating one of the worlds leading re-
search centers for the ancient Near East.
fall 2012 PAGE9

For the first time in the United those whose condition required urgent
between States, an exhibit dedicated entirely to
the birds of ancient Egypt will open at
care on the part of the Museum conser-
vators. When it came time to establish
heaven & the Oriental Institute for its members a list of potential objects for the exhibi-

earth: birds on October 15th. For the duration of this

exhibit, the Marshall and Doris Holleb
tion, my focus was set on artifacts that
had not recently or had never been
in ancient Family Gallery for Special Exhibits will
be transformed into an Egyptian marsh-
egypt land. Bird songs will echo throughout
the exhibit while videos will showcase
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer, bird migration and the variety of habi-
Exhibit Curator1 tats and avifauna of Egypt. Panels de-
picting birds and papyrus stems will
Bird watching is one of the most pop- complete the dcor. Artifacts from the
ular hobbies in the United States. Oriental Institute collection will illus-
Indeed, many of us enjoy spending trate the omnipresence of birds in the
hours observing birds, so as to famil- life of ancient Egyptians. Our artifacts
iarize ourselves with their fascinat- will be complemented by a few key ob-
ing behavior, or to catch a glimpse of jects from the Art Institute of Chicago,
a new species. Others choose to bring the Brooklyn Museum, and the Field
birds into their home, making them Museum. These important loans will
part of the family as pets and compan- further emphasize the major themes
ions. Moreover, birds have become a and leave a lasting impression on our
stylish fashion motif, used in interior visitors.
design, on clothing and in jewelry, and This curatorial project started Figure 1. Pharaoh represented as the falcon
as tattoos. Several species of birds have three years ago. After learning that god Horus, wearing the double crown
even become famous icons for many the Oriental Institute Museum was of Upper and Lower Egypt. FMNH 31279

sport teams, such as the Saint Louis welcoming suggestions for special ex- (courtesy of the Field Museum of Natural
History)
Cardinals or the Baltimore Orioles. The hibits from graduate students, I submit-
University of Chicago chose a mythical ted a proposal to the Special Exhibits
bird as its mascot, the phoenix, whose Committee as soon as my comprehen-
origins go back to the ancient Egyptian sive exams were completed and my
benu-bird. And what about Twitter, the dissertation research was on its way.
trendy online social-networking ser- Indeed, since perusing a book that
vice, whose founders chose avian vo- Bettina Schmitz and Dina Faltings pub-
cabulary, tweeting, to communicate lished in 1987 in conjunction with their
the fast pace with which information exhibit on birds in ancient Egypt at the
can now be shared? The proliferation Pelizaeus-Museum in Hildesheim, 2 I
of birds into our culture clearly demon- have aspired to set up a similar exhibit
strates that they continue to mesmerize at the Oriental Institute showcasing the
us and make their way into our every- fascinating ancient Egyptian avifauna.
day life, just as these winged creatures My proposal was accepted, and I thus
permeated every aspect of the ancient joined the Oriental Institute Museum
Egyptians lives through their religion, team as guest curator, and with their as-
art, writing system, and diet. sistance I began designing this exhibit.
With the help of Susan Allison, assistant
registrar, I spent many afternoons re-
viewing all the objects of our collection
connected with Egyptian birds. After
some training with conservator Alison
Whyte, who showed me how to carefully
Examples of birds handle such unique and fragile artifacts,
used in modern I started closely examining all these Figure 2. Comparison of a rekhyt hieroglyph
logos: Twitter logo objects, selecting those which could be from the Red Chapel of Hatshepsut at Karnak
and University of
displayed in the show, and identifying with a northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus)
Chicago emblem (courtesy of Jackie Garner, from an original
watercolor)
 PAGE10 NEWS & NOTES

Figure 3. Ostrich egg. A-Group, ca. 3100 bc.

From Qustul. OIM E21384 (D. 17994; photo by Figure 4. Ivory knife that may have been used to protect mothers and newborn children. OIM
Anna Ressman) E10788 (D. 17954; photo by Anna Ressman)

on display, thus giving the Oriental to the research undertaken to docu- Green, chief curator, who have advised
Institute Museum visitors a chance to ment them, and the publication of the and supported me all along when writ-
further discover the remarkable hold- exhibit catalog, has been an amazingly ing the exhibit narrative, selecting con-
ings of our collection. enriching experience for me. I have had tributors for the catalog, and organizing
Every phase of the exhibit prepara- the chance to closely work with regis- the show. It was extremely rewarding
tion, from the selection of the objects tration when selecting the objects; for me to be part of the team that is
with conservation when reviewing the composed of the many talented people
state and discuss- of the Oriental Institute Museum staff,
ing the potential and I cannot thank all of them enough
for display of each for their constant kindness and pa-
object; with pho- tience with me, a novice in this domain.
tography and with Forty objects, featuring a wide
the Department of variety of ancient Egyptian artifacts,
Public Education as well as facsimiles of wall paintings
and Outreach to from Beni Hassan and Thebes by Nina
design and sched- de Garis Davies, will transport the visi-
ule activities that tor into the cycle of life, death, and re-
will be offered in birth that each ancient Egyptian aspired
conjunction with to follow. According to several Egyptian
the exhibit; with creation myths, in the beginning there
exhibit design to was an egg, laid on the primeval mound
discuss the best emerging from the watery Nun from
options for the dis- which hatched the sun god, creator of
play of objects and the rest of the universe and humanity.
information panels; These humans, whom the creator god
and finally with the fashioned, were also imparted with
Publications Office avian characteristics. At their head,
who has beauti- pharaoh embodied the god Horus on
fully designed the earth, the divine falcon who was chosen
catalog that will when he was still in the egg (fig. 1).
accompany the His subjects, the rekhyt, are depicted as
exhibit. Since the lapwings, raising worshipping and sub-
beginning of this missive hands toward their ruler (fig. 2).
project, I have es- Just as the world ultimately
Figure 5. Tempera by Nina Davies, from the tomb of Khnumhotep II at p e c i a l l y wo r ke d emerged from the primeval egg (fig.
Beni Hassan. A hoopoe (Upupa epops), a masked shrike (Lanius nubicus), a with Emily Teeter, 3), every human being was conceived
special exhibits co- and fashioned in the egg and was born
red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio), and a redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus)
are perched on an acacia tree beside a pond (D. 17882; photo by Anna
Ressman) ordinator, and Jack from her/his mothers womb, like a
 fall 2012 PAGE11

Figure 6. Tempera by Nina Davies, from the Theban tomb-chapel of Nebamun. The geese from Nebamuns aviaries are gathered and brought before a scribe
who is in charge of recording their number (D. 17884; photo by Anna Ressman)

chick hatching from the egg. The new- and wading birds finding food aplenty and temples (fig. 6). Some others were
born child, no longer protected by the in the low water and mudflats. These killed straightaway and processed for
eggshell that is, the womb was migratory birds would have been seen immediate consumption, or preserved
vulnerable to diseases and required the as a further manifestation of the cyclic in fat and salt for later use. While not
help of protective deities. The vulture rebirth of the universe, whose poten- as frequent in the diet as fish, poultry
goddess Nekhbet, quintessential sym- tials were exploited both pragmatically was indeed included among the com-
bol of protection whose large wings em- and symbolically. mon dishes available to the majority of
brace and envelop her young , was Fowlers organized expeditions the population.
called upon in spells and was depicted to catch large numbers of waterfowl These vibrant and colorful flocks
on amulets and other magical imple- using clap nets. To maximize their of birds did not fail to inspire Egyptian
ments (fig. 4). chances of filling their game bag, an- craftsmen and artisans. As early as the
Children growing up on the banks cient Egyptians made use of birds, often Predynastic period, they incorporated
of the Nile would have been surround- herons, as decoys tied near the pond in the waterfowl motif into their work.
ed by a multitude of bird species whose which the net had been installed be- Just as the seasonal gatherings of birds
numbers increased exponentially dur- forehand. Flying ducks and geese, re- in the marshlands of Egypt became a
ing migration (fig. 5). The spectacular assured by the presence of this wading literary metaphor for bustling mul-
arrival of millions of waterfowl in the bird seemingly indicative of a pond titudes and the passage of time, birds
fall coincided with the Nile flood. As the teeming with fish without human dis- also became a symbol of bounty, fertil-
water receded, the rich sediments from turbance land on the pond to join it, ity, and even love. Thus, the depictions
the Ethiopian highlands brought a re- unaware of their fate. Some of the birds of ducklings and goslings, when careful-
newed potential for life in the land and trapped under the net were intended ly held in the arms of a young woman,
welcomed large flocks of ducks, geese, to fill the poultry yards of households were filled with erotic symbolism. Birds

Figure 7. Cosmetic
dish in the shape of a
sleeping duck, with its
reflection in the water
AIC 1894.610 (courtesy
of the Art Institute of
Chicago)

Figure 8. Small gaggle

of goslings following
their parents. Detail of
upper right corner of
figure 6
 PAGE12 NEWS & NOTES

were indeed aware also have been part of the curriculum.

of this sentiment Once again, birds have left their mark
and exploited the in this discipline. Fractions could be
large quantities of memorized by using the eye of the fal-
feces, also called con god Horus. Myths indeed recorded
guano, produced in how this eye had been torn into frag-
these massive tow- ments by Seth and later was magically
ers filled with birds. restored by Thoth, to be complete and
This guano was a rich sound again (hence its name of wedjat).
source of nutrient to Each fragment had a specific value,
fertilize the agricul- which almost adds up to 1 Thoth
tural plain and be- must have supplied the missing 1/64
came a worthwhile (fig. 12).
commodity. Birds impact on the life of ancient
Children could Egyptians was most significant in the
Figure 9. Modern dovecote in the Fayum. Photo courtesy of Salima Ikram
not spend their religious realm. Bird imagery is omni-
fluttering in the marshes were common whole time exploring present in the decoration of the temples
motifs on palace walls (for example, the and playing in the countryside: training where ancient Egyptians went to cele-
palace of Amenhotep III at Malkata and for a future profession had to be con- brate the cult of the various gods. Large
of his son, Akhenaten, at Amarna), as sidered at a young age. Theoretically, winged disks above doorways, as well as
well as on more mundane objects, such any Egyptian male could enter the vultures with outstretched wings de-
as vases, bowls, and cosmetic boxes, scribal profession in reality, since picted on ceilings, protected whoever
thus ensuring fertility and bounty pro- it has been estimated that 1 to 5 per- walked underneath (fig. 13). Many dei-
vided by the rich land of the Nile Valley cent of the population were literate, ties of the Egyptian pantheon could take
(fig. 7). such apprenticeships were restricted the form of a bird and/or a bird-headed
Live birds thus made their way to a small margin of the total popula- human. For example, the falcon, de-
into ancient Egyptian houses and tion. For these lucky few, learning the pending on its attributes, can represent
courtyards. Just like children nowa- Egyptian scripts would have been a pri- Horus, Re-Horakhty, Montu, and many
days, young Egyptians were keen to ority. The pupils had to become familiar other deities. Thoth is often shown as
have a pet: it could have been a cat, a with the many bird hieroglyphs (more an ibis. Goddesses can also take wing,
dog, or even a bird. Hoopoes are some- than sixty) that continue to give head- such as Nekhbet the protective vulture,
times represented being held by chil- aches to Egyptologists (fig. 10ab). To as well as Isis and Nephthys, as kites or
dren. These attractive songbirds may help him learn these signs, the young kestrels, mourning beside the body of
have been caught by means of a spring apprentice undoubtedly placed himself Osiris. Finally, the Nile goose is closely
trap, carefully hidden under trees in under the protection of the patron deity connected to the cult of the Theban god
which hoopoes eat and roost. In addi- of scribes, the ibis god Thoth (fig. 11). Amun.
tion to wild birds, farmyard birds such Most scribes were involved in account- The Late Period and Greco-Roman
as ducks, geese, and (much later in ing practices, and mathematics would era (664 bcad 395) witnessed a
Egyptian history) chickens were most
likely wandering in the streets and al-
leys of every village, not unlike in mod-
ern Egypt. When hunting was no longer
sufficient to provide the fowl needed for
all the religious and funerary offerings
as well as the kitchens of the ancient
Egyptians, birds were gathered in farm-
yards and reared in captivity, which
eventually led to the domestication of
the greylag goose (fig. 8). After settling
in Egypt, the Greeks and the Romans
brought with them their culinary taste
for pigeons and doves. Thus, large dove-
cotes became landmarks in the coun-
tryside and remain so to this day (fig.
10). Waste not, want not! Egyptians Figure 10. (a, above left) Plaque with a falcon hieroglyph. OIM E9802 (D. 17929)
and (b, right) detail of the owl hieroglyph. OIM E17972 (D. 17981; photos by Anna Ressman)
fall 2012 PAGE13

Figure 12. Eye of the falcon god Horus, with

the value of each of its fragments (from
Gardiners 1957 Egyptian Grammar, p. 197)

returned into an egg, in the form of a

coffin, hoping to be reborn in the after-
life. Especially from the New Kingdom
Figure 11. Carnelian amulet in the shape of
Thoth the ibis, patron god of scribes. OIM
onward, coffins were frequently cov-
E10537 (D. 17935; photo by Anna Ressman) ered with deities spreading their large
wings to envelop the deceased, just as
a mother vulture protected her brood
dramatic rise in popularity of the cults from the many potential predators sur-
of animals associated with major dei- rounding them. Everything in the tomb
ties, in particular the ibis of Thoth and the iconography, texts and spells,
the birds of prey of Horus. Millions of the coffin and mummy was intend-
mummy bundles were manufactured at ed to guarantee the deceased access
a quasi-industrial rate at temple sites; to the afterlife. In this netherworld, Figure 13. Ceiling from the temple of Medinet Habu,
their burials, most likely sponsored by birds continue to maintain a strong decorated with large vultures spreading their wings
(photo by Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer)
visiting pilgrims, were performed en presence. At death, one of the aspects
masse in large catacombs located in of the personality, the ba-bird, was re- many dangers, demons, and other pit-
the necropoleis of major cult centers leased and could travel between the falls that could deny the deceased the
such as at Tuna el-Gebel and Saqqara. tomb and the world of the living (fig. possibility of being reborn. Figurines
Ancient Egyptians could also appeal to 15). Many other avian transformations of crouching falcons were placed be-
these gods when facing troubles in their were also desired, as clearly stated in side the mummy, seemingly ready to
life and call the bird oracle to the rescue the Book of the Dead and the Book of attack any potential enemy. The falcon
(fig. 14) when a third party was needed Transformations. Protection continued Qebehsenuef, one of the sons of Horus,
to resolve a judicial issue. to be needed, and winged deities are of protected the intestines after they were
Life came full circle at death. Just as special significance in warding off the mummified and placed in a canopic jar
the baby emerged from the egg (i.e., his (fig. 16) to guarantee a functioning di-
mothers womb) at birth, the deceased gestive system in the new life and a

Figure 16. Canopic jar with the head of

Figure 14. Statue of Horus. Dynasties 2526 Qebehsenuef, the son of Horus, who was in
(ca. 722525 bc), which may have been used in charge of protecting the deceased persons
oracular consultations. OIM E10504 (D. 17932; Figure 15. Statuette of a ba-bird. OIM E4461 intestines. OIM E969AB (D. 17899; photo by
photo by Anna Ressman) (D.17908; photo by Anna Ressman) Anna Ressman)
 PAGE14 NEWS & NOTES

conservation and preservation efforts

being enacted by the Egyptian state.
The exhibit will end with a re-
minder that Chicago itself is built on
a series of wetlands, some of which
are still extant and being restored in
the southeast side of Chicago. Indeed,
while writing the narrative for this ex-
hibit, I further realized that similarities
between Chicago and the Nile Valley
made the Oriental Institute Museum
the ideal location for such a special
exhibit. Both Egypt and Chicago are lo-
cated on migration pathways, making
them paradises not only for birds fly-
ing back and forth between their winter
quarters and breeding grounds, but also
for bird-watchers. With the help of the
Audubon Society, we hope to give visi-
tors a greater appreciation for the birds
in their surroundings, just as the an-
cient Egyptians had, and a new aware-
ness of the need to preserve marshes
and wetlands, so that we may continue
to enjoy birds for generations to come.
Figure 17. Tempera by Nina Davies, from the Theban tomb-chapel of Nebamun. The deceased, in To complement the exhibit, a cata-
the company of his wife and daughter, is shown fowling in the marshes, simultaneously controlling log will be available that includes essays
the forces of chaos embodied in the many birds inhabiting the papyrus thicket, and providing fresh on the major themes presented in the
poultry for his table (D. 17883; photo by Anna Ressman)
exhibit, as well as recent scholarship
on avian topics by prominent schol-
continued appreciation for tasty dishes of stone and then wood were also in- ars in both Egyptology and scientific
(see below). cluded in funerary assemblages. Finally, disciplines.
While the large flocks of migratory to further guarantee the provisioning of This exhibit would not have been
birds were seen as a symbol of life and birds, the traditional offering formula possible without early and pace-setting
rebirth, they simultaneously represent- carved on tomb walls and stela included support from Oriental Institute Visiting
ed the forces of chaos unleashed in the 1,000 birds to keep the deceased Committee members Misty and Lewis
marshes that had to be conquered and persons plate full at all times. Gruber. Along with the Grubers, addi-
controlled to allow peace and justice As the exhibit comes to an end, tional support has been received from
to flourish anew. Scenes of the tomb visitors will be brought back to the Joan Fortune, David and Carlotta Maher,
owner fowling in the marshes were twenty-first century by a panel brief- and Anna White.
therefore common motifs in offering ly presenting the current state of the A symposium, Birds in Ancient
chapels from the Old Kingdom to the avian population in Egypt. Sherif Baha Egypt, will take place at the Oriental
Late Period (fig. 17). The deceased, suc- el-Din, research associate at the Field Institute on Saturday November 10,
cessfully hitting the birds flying from Museum and environmental consultant 2012, from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. For more in-
the papyrus thicket with his throwstick, in Egypt, will explain how birds have formation, see p. 22
both imposed his control over the nat- been dealing with the many environ-
ural elements and provided delicious mental challenges associated with the
meat for his pantry. Even in the after- building of the Aswan dam in the 1960s notes
life, the ancient Egyptians wanted to and the extensive land reclamation 1
I thank Bob LeSuer and Lauren Lutz for re-
continue enjoying good meals. Hence that has resulted from the population viewing this essay and giving me some valuable
the need to place many victuals in the explosion of the past forty years and advice.

tombs, as models or mummified goods. the subsequent need for agricultural

2
Bettina Schmitz and Dina Faltings, Vgel im
Alten gypten: Informationen zum Thema und
Many more were depicted on the walls land. Dr. Baha el-Din will also report on Kurzfhrer durch die Ausstellung, Pelizaeus-
of the offering chapel, carried by long the threats that birds inhabiting and Museum (Hildesheim, 1987).
lines of offering bearers. During the migrating through Egypt face, such as
Old and Middle Kingdoms, statuettes intensive hunting, and on the growing *****
fall 2012 PAGE15

Rozenn Bailleul-
LeSuer with
Harris hawk on
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer is a PhD candidate in Egyptology in the Department of Near Eastern Languages hand (photo by
Bob LeSuer)
and Civilizations at the University of Chicago and curator of the exhibit Between Heaven & Earth:
Birds in Ancient Egypt. After studying chemical engineering in France, as well as Greek and Latin in
Vermont, she is now able to combine her passion for birds and her academic interest in Egypt. Her dis-
sertation is entitled The Exploitation of Avian Resources in Ancient Egypt: A Socio-economic Study.

education programs registration form Dont miss out register early!

Please enroll me in the following Public Programs:

Members Non-members Total
The Dawn of History Online Course $295 $345
Hieroglyphs by Mail $275 $355
Junior Archaeologists $7 $9
The following programs are free, but advance registration is required.

Medicine and Magic in the Ancient World: A Search for the Cure
Wed Oct 10 Wed Oct 17 Wed Oct 24 Sat Oct 27 OR Entire 4-week series
Bird Walk in Jackson Park
The Birds of Ancient Egypt Symposium
OI/ASOR Educators Event
K12 teachers seeking CPDUs for eligible programs, please check here
grand Total
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REGISTRATION AND REFUND POLICY
For multi-session on-campus courses, a full refund will be granted to anyone who notifies us about his/her cancellation before the first class
meeting. Those who cancel after the first class meeting, but before the second class meeting, will receive a full refund minus a $50 cancellation
fee. After the second class meeting, no refunds will be granted unless the course is canceled by the Education Office. Failure to attend a class
does not entitle a registrant to a refund. Some courses require a small materials fee to be paid at the first class meeting.
For correspondence or online courses, full refunds will be given if cancellation is received at least one week prior to the courses an-
nounced starting date. After that time, no refunds will be granted.
For single-session programs, where tickets are sold by the Oriental Institute, no refunds will be granted, but if the Education Office is
notified of cancellation at least 48 hours before the program begins, a credit voucher will be issued for the full amount. With less than 48
hours notice, a voucher for the full amount, less a $5 cancellation fee, will be issued. Credit vouchers can be used for any Oriental Institute
single-session program for one full calendar year from the date on the voucher. Tickets sold by other organizations for programs held at the
Oriental Institute are subject to the cancellation policies of the organization selling the tickets. Only those registered for classes may attend
them. The Education Office reserves the right to refuse to retain any student in any class at any time.
PAGE16 NEWS & NOTES

fall 2 0 1 2 Cal e nda r

Unless otherwise noted, all programs take place at the Oriental Institute. All programs subject to change.

october 21 | Sunday

Bird Walk
Bird Walk in Jackson Parks
Wooded Island
7 | Sunday The Bibles Buried Secrets 8:00 am
Film
See page 22 for details
2:00 pm
See page 19 for details Iran: Seven Faces of a Civilization
Film
10 | Wednesday The Theory and Practice of Medicine and 2:00 pm
Magic in Ancient Egypt See page 19 for details
Volunteer Mini-Series
5:00 pm 22 | Monday Hieroglyphs by Mail
See page 23 for details Adult Education Correspondence
Course
13 | Saturday Open House Chicago at the See page 18 for details
Oriental Institute
Event 24 | Wednesday Diseases and Epidemics in Ancient
10:00 am Mesopotamia and Religious and Magical
See page 24 for details Elements in Babylonian Medical Practice
Volunteer Mini-series
14 | Sunday Open House Chicago at the 5:00 pm
Oriental Institute See page 24 for details
Event
12:00 pm 25 | Thursday Visiting the Museum and The Mummy
See page 24 for details Films
7:00 pm
Pioneer to the Past: The Life and Times See page 29 for details
of James Henry Breasted
Film 27 | Saturday Mesopotamian Texts and the
1:30 and 4:30 pm Knowledge Assumptions of Medical
See page 19 for details Diagnosis and Panel Discussion
Volunteer Mini-series
15 | Monday The Dawn of History: Society and Culture 10:00 am
in Ancient Mesopotamia See page 23 for details
Adult Education Online Course
See page 18 for details 28 | Sunday The Secret of the Mummies
Family Program
Between Heaven & Earth: 1:30 pm
Birds in Ancient Egypt See page 20 for details
Members Preview Event
6:00 pm Mummies Made in Egypt
See page 24 for details Film
2:00 and 2:30 pm
17 | Wednesday Between Heaven & Earth: See page 19 for details
Birds in Ancient Egypt
Gallery Talk
12:15 pm
See page 22 for details
Magical Healing in Ancient Greece and
november
4 | Sunday Islam: Empire of Faith
Medical Healing in Ancient Greece Film
Volunteer Mini-Series 2:00 pm
5:00 pm See page 19 for details
See page 23 for details
fall 2012 PAGE17

fall 2012 Calendar

7 | Wednesday James Henry Breasted: 22 | Thursday Oriental Institute Closed for Holiday
A New Appreciation 27 | Tuesday Members Exclusive Suq Sale
Members Lecture
See back cover for details
7:00 pm
See page 8 for details
10 | Saturday
Public Symposium
1:00 pm
Birds in Ancient Egypt
december
See page 22 for details 2 | Sunday Nile: River of the Gods
Film
11 | Sunday The Sun Was the Only Witness 2:00 pm
Film See page 19 for details
2:00 pm
See page 19 for details 5 | Wednesday Feasting on the High Road:
The Median Palace at Godin Tepe
14 | Wednesday The Behind-the-Scenes Story Members Lecture
of Between Heaven & Earth 7:00 pm
Gallery Talk See page 8 for details
12:15 pm
See page 22 for details 9 | Sunday Pale Male
Film
17 | Saturday Beyond Indiana Jones: 2:00 pm
Archaeology in the Classroom See page 19 for details
Event All K12 Educators
8:15 am
16 | Sunday The Silver Pharaoh
Film
See below for details
2:00 pm
18 | Sunday Junior Archaeologists See page 19 for details
Family Programs
25 | Tuesday Oriental Institute Closed for Holiday
2:00 pm
See page 20 for details 27 | Thursday LamaSeuss: Fine Feathered Friends
Family Programs
The Mummies of the Heretics 2:00 pm
Film See page 20 for details
2:00 pm
See page 19 for details

ORIENTAL INSTITUTE/AMERICAN SCHOOL OF ORIENTAL

RESEARCH EVENT FOR ALL K12 EDUCATORS
Beyond Indiana Jones: The Oriental Institute and the American sessions at this one-day professional-
Archaeology in the Classroom School of Oriental Research (ASOR) invite development program will be led by ar-
Saturday, November 17 you to dig like an archaeologist and inter- chaeologists, elementary and high school
pret your finds, create your own ancient- educators, and museum professionals.
8:15 am5:30 pm style pottery, explore online resources
FREE. Pre-registration required for the twenty-first-century classroom, Free, but pre-registration is required. To
and gather materials to incorporate into register, mail in the form on page 15 or visit
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 9
your Common Core or state curriculum. us online at http//oi.uchicago.edu/events.
Designed for K12 educators, the unique Questions? Call (773) 834-7606.
hands-on workshops and discussion
PAGE18 NEWS & NOTES

The following courses are co-sponsored by the Graham School of General Studies.
fall Adult Each course provides Teacher Recertification CPDUs from the Illinois State Board of
Education, and each counts as an elective for the Graham Schools non-credit certificate
Education Courses in Arabic Language and Cultures. For more information, call Public Education at (773)
702-9507.

CORRESPONDENCE COURSE online course: in-depth online tutorials, readings, and

Hieroglyphs by Mail the dawn of history: web-based discussions, students will
Brittany Hayden & Jessica Henderson society and culture learn about the economy, politics, reli-
in ancient mesopotamia gion, and social life of one of the worlds
October 22February 25 great early civilizations.
Kathryn W. E. Grossman
Registration Deadline: October 14
October 15December 9 Instructor: Kathryn W. E. Grossman is a PhD
Taught by correspondence, this course Registration Deadline: September 28
candidate in Mesopotamian archaeology in the
introduces students to an in-depth University of Chicagos Department of Near Eastern
study of Middle Egyptian, the classi- Mesopotamia the land between the Languages and Civilizations. She has excavated in
cal language of ancient Egypt. Learn rivers, heartland of cities, and cra- Syria, Egypt, and Cyprus.
the fundamental structure and gram- dle of civilization. Along the banks of CPDUs: 24
mar of the language by completing the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers the
the first eight lessons and exercises of worlds first cities developed, writing Course participants must have a reliable In-
Middle Egyptian Grammar by James Hoch. was invented, and a series of power- ternet connection, a technical facility with
Mail, e-mail, or fax completed lessons to ful empires flourished and died. This computers, and downloading software, as
the instructor, who will correct them, eight-week, asynchronous, online well as the ability to navigate the Internet
answer any questions, and return the course provides an accessible introduc- as a learning tool. To register, mail in the
lessons by your preferred mode. Those tion to the archaeology and history of form on page 15 or visit us online at http://
who complete all course assignments Mesopotamiathe region that includes oi.uchicago.edu/events. Questions? Call 773-
will receive a certificate of course com- modern-day Iraq and Syria. Through 702-9507.
pletion from the Oriental Institute. The
course will begin on Monday, October
22, and continue for sixteen weeks, with
a two-week break during the winter
holidays.
Instructors: Due to the popularity of this course,
students will be divided between two instructors.
Brittany Hayden is an advanced graduate student
in the University of Chicagos Department of Near
Eastern Languages and Civilizations. She specializes in
the economic history of Greco-Roman Egypt. Jessica
Henderson is an advanced graduate student in Egyptian
archaeology in the University of Chicagos Department
of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. She studies
royal iconography as well as the archaeology of the Late
Period.
Required texts:
James Hoch. Middle Egyptian Grammar. Available
from the Suq for $65; James Hoch. Middle Egyptian
Sign List. Available from the Suq for $18
Oriental Institute members receive a 10% discount; Illinois
residents must pay 9.5% sales tax. Give the Gift of Membership this Holiday Season!
Give the gift that lasts throughout the year: an Oriental Institute membership. Let
Books may be purchased online at us take care of the wrapping and shipping for you holiday membership includes a
http//oi.uchicago.edu/order/suq/products/egypt_ personalized note on a colorful Oriental Institute note card, the most recent edition
langlit.html of News & Notes, and the 20112012 Annual Report. Memberships begin at $25, and gifts
are tax deductible. Membership gifts can be ordered online at http//oi.uchicago.
To register, mail in the form on page 15 or
edu/getinvolved or over the phone at (773) 834-9777. Gifts should be purchased by
visit us online at http//oi.uchicago.edu/
December 14 to ensure a December 25 arrival.
events. Questions? Call (773) 702-9507.
fall 2012 PAGE19

Each Sunday afternoon, enjoy the best in documentary and feature films on the ancient Near East at

Sunday Films the Oriental Institute. Films begin at 2:00 pm, and running times range from 30 to 50 minutes unless
otherwise noted. There is no admission fee. Following the films, museum docents will be available in
the galleries to answer questions about our exhibits.

October 7 The Bibles Buried Secrets ancient Egyptian mummies are studied some of the worlds richest wildlife
(2008) 110 min and preserved. This half-hour film is habitats and has shaped the ways and
A powerful intersection of science, shown at 2:00 pm and repeated at 2:30 beliefs of cultures since the beginning
scholarship, and scripture, this pm. of recorded history. Narrated by
landmark documentary from the Academy Award winner F. Murray
PBS NOVA series presents the latest November 4 Islam: Empire of Faith Abraham, this spectacular film takes
in archaeological scholarship and (2000) you on an odyssey of exploration as
explores some of the biggest questions This highly acclaimed two-part PBS you journey down the entire length of
in biblical studies: Where did the film tells the story of Islams first the Nile.
ancient Israelites come from? Who thousand years, showing how it
wrote the Hebrew Bible, when, and sustained the intellectual legacies of December 9 Pale Male
why? How did the worship of one God Greece, Egypt, and China and brought See below for details.
the foundation of modern Judaism, immeasurable advances in science,
medicine, and art to Europe in the December 16 The Silver Pharaoh
Christianity, and Islam emerge? (2010)
Middle Ages. This film is being shown
October 14 Pioneer to the Past: The in conjunction with Arab Heritage This film tells the story of pharaoh
Life and Times of James Henry Breasted Month in Chicago. Part 1 screens at Psusennes, whose royal tomb is one
(2004) 1:00 pm and is 90 minutes long. Part of the most spectacular and least
From WTTWs Chicago Stories, this 2 screens at 3:30 pm and also runs 90 well known in Egypt. Discovered
film presents the scholarly vision and minutes. on the eve of World War II, the tomb
entrepreneurial flair of Chicago-area received little fanfare, and treasures
The following two films, shown on succes- such as the pharaohs remarkable
native James Henry Breasted, founder
sive Sundays, are episodes from Akhenaten silver sarcophagus remained forgotten
of the Oriental Institute. Pioneer to the
and Nefertiti: Rulers of Egypt (2002). This until now.
Past will be shown on the half hour
series explores the reign of the revolution-
from 1:30 to 4:30 pm in conjunction
ary pharaoh who replaced the Egyptian pan- December 23 and 30, 2012 Holiday
with Open House Chicago at the
theon with a single deity, the sun god Aten. break, no film screenings.
Oriental Institute.
November 11 The Sun Was the Only
October 21 Iran: Seven Faces of a
Witness
Civilization (2007)
This major documentary uses the
latest technology to showcase the
Filmed on location in Egypt, the expert
commentary and lavish reenactments FILM SCREENING
in this episode bring Akhenatens
celebrated art and archaeology of Iran
religious revolution dramatically to
Pale Male
over the past 7,000 years. A cinematic
life. Sunday, December 9
adventure that features spectacular
graphic reconstructions superimposed November 18 The Mummies of the
2:00 pm
on images of actual architectural Heretics FREE
remains, the film brilliantly recaptures After his death, Akhenaten was
the ancient treasures of Iran in ways Of the millions of newcomers who flock
declared a heretic, and efforts were
never before possible. to New York City, a red-tailed hawks
made to erase all traces of his reign.
astounding arrival in 1991 made his-
This episode explores the nineteenth-
October 28 Mummies Made in Egypt tory when he chose an exclusive Fifth
century discovery of the pharaohs
(2001) Avenue apartment building as his
famed city of Amarna and the search
This award-winning childrens film home. Oscar winner Joanne Woodward
for the mummies of the heretic king
from the Reading Rainbow series uses narrates this award-winning film that
and his queen, Nefertiti.
live-action and animation to take shows how a powerful bird of prey, af-
an in-depth look at the ancient and November 25 No film showing during fectionately dubbed Pale Male, be-
fascinating world of mummies. Shown Thanksgiving weekend came an instant celebrity as he courted
in conjunction with the special family his mate on Woody Allens balcony, built
event The Secret of the Mummies (see December 2 Nile: River of the Gods a penthouse nest and fiercely protected
p. 20). The film goes on a unique visit (1994) 102 min it, and then taught his baby chicks to
behind the scenes at the Museum of Coursing 4,000 miles through three fly. The Audubon Society proclaims this
Fine Arts in Boston to explore how countries, the Nile River sustains film a classic (85 min).
PAGE20 NEWS & NOTES

Volunteer Spotlight: by Cathy Dueas &

robert Wagner Terry Friedman

Who makes the Oriental Institute a spoken. His facility with languages led
leader in research on the ancient Near him to study comparative cultures at
East? You do! The Oriental Institute has Wesleyan University in Connecticut
wonderful volunteers who are constantly and to ultimately receive his PhD in
working with the public as well as behind Germanic languages and letters from
the scenes on a wide variety of research the University of Michigan.
projects. News & Notes has added an In his professional life, Robert
ongoing special section to spotlight was a technical translator for intel-
some of our outstanding volunteers each lectual property at a Chicago-area law is a left-handed pitcher and an enthusi-
quarter. firm. Upon his retirement, it seemed

R
astic St. Louis Cardinals fan!
obert Wagners life-long passion only natural for Robert to return to Robert describes himself as very
for Egyptology began as a young his fascination with Egyptology and driven and takes his volunteer work
boyhood dream. As a child he kept a the ancient Near East. He was eager to very seriously. When he is in town, you
scrapbook in which his very first entry apply his skills and talents to help the can find him working in the west base-
was a Chicago Tribune article on an Oriental Institute. In 2003 Robert be- ment, deeply engrossed in his current
Egyptian discovery, the Khufu funeral came a volunteer for Clemens Reichel project. Robert takes great pride in all
bark. As an inquisitive seventh-grader, on the Diyala Project. Later he began that he has accomplished as a volunteer.
Robert took the opportunity to come to volunteering in the Museum Archives
the Oriental Institute to speak to Robert with John Larson on the Medinet Habu If you are interested in finding out more,
McCormick Adams for a writing assign- papers from Berlin. come join Robert and become a docent or
ment. The assignments purpose was to Robert and his wife reside in volunteer at the Oriental Institute! Become
interview someone he admired and who Beverly. They both love music and at- a part of the Oriental Institute Volunteer
exemplified what he wanted to become. tend many concerts and cultural events Program.Explore the many options avail-
Robert was fortunate to grow up throughout the area. Robert is an avid able at http://oi.uchicago.edu/getinvolved/
in a bilingual home where German was stamp collector and enjoys baseball. He volunteer

FAMILY pROGRAMS LamaSeuss: Fine Feathered

Friends
The Secret of the Mummies Junior Archaeologists Moriah Grooms-Garcia
Sunday, October 28 Sunday, November 18 Thursday, December 27
1:303:30 pm 2:004:00 pm 2:003:00 pm
How did the ancient Egyptians make Forty-tons and 16 feet high, Lamassu
Let loose your inner Indiana Jones!
those mummies? What are canopic hopes that you will stop by! Our winged
Children and parents get a chance to dig
jars, and what goes into them? Find bull has become quite taken with the
into our simulated dig in the Oriental
out at the Oriental Institute! Come feathered friends featured in our special
Institutes Kipper Family Archaeology
to our pre-Halloween event to get up exhibit Birds in Ancient Egypt. Lamassu
Discovery Center. Program also includes
close and personal with a reproduc- invites you and your family to hear a
an interactive guided tour of the galler-
tion mummy, join in a special gal- reading of the Cat in the Hat book Fine
ies.
lery tour, browse the latest books on Feathered Friends and to go on a chil-
ancient Egypt, and enter our Guess Fee: $7 for Oriental Institute members; $9 for drens birding expedition in the gal-
the Mummy Lollipops contest. non-members. Includes guided tour, workshop leries. Learn about birds both common
Special feature: See Mummies Made instruction, and all materials. Suggested for ages 5 and rare as well as what people 3,000
in Egypt, an award-winning childrens to 12 accompanied by an adult. years ago thought of them.
film from the Reading Rainbow series.
Pre-registration required. To register, mail Free. Pre-registration not required. Recom-
Free. Pre-registration not required. Suggest- in the form on page 15 or visit us online at mended for children ages 49, though all are
ed for children ages 5 and up, accompanied http//oi.uchicago.edu/events. Questions? welcome! Children must be accompanied by
by an adult. Call (773) 702-9507. an adult.
fall 2012 PAGE21

a living legacy of the Oriental Institute and took at

least a dozen trips to Egypt, each time
stopping at Chicago House to check
market value of those shares appreci-
ated, so too did the amount of capi-
tal gains tax Mr. Oster would have
A dear friend of the Oriental Institute, on the progress of the Universitys had to pay if the shares were sold.
Donald Oster, AB 1950, passed away in research. After considering several options, Mr.
January 2012. It was a 1981 expedition Mr. Osters career in informa- Oster decided to combine his finan-
to Egypt that sparked a lifelong inter- tion systems with Mobil Oil provided cial and charitable goals by using the
est in that country and his subsequent him the luxury to travel all over the appreciated securities to fund a chari-
decision to fund a life-income gift for world, including stints at the compa- table remainder unitrust to benefit
the Oriental Institute. The trip, which nys offices in France, Japan, Australia, the Oriental Institute. The unitrust al-
was sponsored by the Oriental Institute, New Zealand, Singapore, and Hong lowed Mr. Oster to accomplish several
included visits to major temples and Kong. He eventually settled down in objectives: he was able to sell off his
tombs throughout Egypt. At Luxor, Mr. London. Another set of the benefits shares at a particularly favorable time,
Oster visited Chicago House, where Mr. Oster received from his time with with no tax cost and some tax benefit;
Oriental Institute students, faculty, and Mobil was an annual award of stock receive income for his retirement at
staff are working on the Epigraphic options, the value of which rose con- a rate that was considerably higher
Survey. Using a method developed by siderably after his retirement. As the than his shares were paying; and have
James Henry Breasted, the Epigraphic the knowledge that his gift would ben-
Survey documents inscriptions and re- efit Oriental Institute in the future.
lief scenes on the major monuments at The Oriental Institute is grateful to
Luxor for publication. The excursion Donald Oster and the many donors who
introduced Mr. Oster to the Oriental plan thoughtful future gifts to foster
Institutes work in the region and un- the research, discovery, and preserva-
derscored the importance of maintain- tion of Near Eastern civilizations. For
ing the University of Chicagos research information on creative ways you can
facilities at Luxor. plan a gift to Oriental Institute, please
As his enthusiasm grew, Mr. Oster visit giftplanning.uchicago.edu or con-
became a generous financial supporter tact Heather McClean at (773) 834-2117.

join/renew today!
I would like to become a Member of the Oriental Institute / Please renew my Oriental Institute membership
Name: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Address: ___________________________________________________ City/ State/Zip: _________________________________________
Daytime phone: _______________________________________________ E-mail: ______________________________________________
$50Annual Member
$40Senior Member (65+)
$40National Associate (US residents 100 miles from Chicago)
$75Overseas Member (residents outside the US)
$100Supporting Associate
$500Sponsoring Associate
$1,000James Henry Breasted Society
I prefer to pay by Check (payable to the Oriental Institute) MasterCard Visa
Account number: ____________________________________________________________ Exp. date: _________ 3-digit security code: ________
Signature: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
You can also renew by calling (773) 834-9777 or visiting us online at http//oi.uchicago.edu/getinvolved/
Questions? E-mail or call the Membership Office: [email protected] / (773) 834-9777
Cut out and send form to: The Oriental Institute Membership Office, 1155 East 58th Street, Chicago, IL 60637
PAGE22 NEWS & NOTES

between heaven & earth: birds in ancient egypt

The following programs are presented in conjunction with the Oriental Institutes latest special exhibit, opening October 16, 2012.

ORIENTAL INSTITUTE/AUDUBON ed kingfishers searching for food, and

SOCIETY PUBLIC SYMPOSIUM several species of warblers and kinglets
Birds in Ancient Egypt fluttering in the trees. Please dress for
the weather and bring a bird guide if you
Saturday, November 10 have one and also your own binoculars.
1:005:00 pm, Reception follows All levels of birders whether new or ex-
Oriental Institute perienced are welcome! Metered park-
ing in the Hayes Drives is available for
FREE. Pre-registration required $2.25, cash or credit card, for three hours.
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 4
Free, but group size is limited so pre-regis-
Until the building of the Aswan dam in
tration is required. To register, mail in the
the 1960s, the millions of migratory birds
form on page 15 or visit us online at http//
from Eurasia that filled the Egyptian
oi.uchicago.edu/events. Questions? Call
skies each autumn coincided with the
(773) 702-9507.
rising of the Nile waters and the flood-
ing of the valley. To the ancient Egyp-
tians, the arrival of these migrants re-
GALLERY TALKS
affirmed their belief in the cyclic rebirth Between Heaven & Earth:
of the universe and transformed birds Birds in Ancient Egypt
into powerful symbols of life, protection, Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer
and sensuality. Join a panel of scholars Gay Robins, professor of art history at Emory
Wednesday, October 17
at this half-day symposium to explore University with a specialty in ancient Egyptian art
the complex and fascinating roles birds Special presentation by the Audubon Society
12:15 pm
played in the lives of the ancient Egyp- FREE. Pre-registration not required
tians. Learn the integral role of birds in Admission to the symposium is free, but pre-
Be among the very first to take a guided
many religious ceremonies and cults, registration is required. To register, mail in
tour of Between Heaven & Earth: Birds
the degree to which they appeared in art the form on page 15 or visit us online at
in Ancient Egypt. Join exhibit curator
and the meaning behind those portray- http//oi.uchicago.edu/events. Questions?
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer to see how the
als, and how interdisciplinary research Call (773) 702-9507.
millions of migratory birds that filled the
has revealed intriguing new information skies every spring and fall influenced all
through CT scans of ancient avian mum- Bird Walk aspects of ancient Egyptian life and cul-
mies. Then compare the bird species of Bird Walk in Jackson Parks Wooded Island ture.
ancient Egypt with those of today, and
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer &
discover the importance of wetlands to The Behind-the-Scenes Story of Between
Randy Shonkwiler
migrating waterfowl, not only in ancient Heaven & Earth
Egypt but also in our own city of Chicago. Sunday, October 21
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer
8:0010:30 am
Speakers from the Oriental Institute Wednesday, November 14
include:
Meet in parking lot at the corner of Cornell
and Hayes Drives (Entrance to lot is on 12:15 pm
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer, PhD candidate in Egyptology Hayes) FREE. Pre-registration not required
at the University of Chicago and curator of the special FREE. Pre-registration required Join Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer, curator of
exhibit Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient
Egypt In late October, large numbers of birds
fly through Chicago during their migra- Egypt, for a guided tour addressing this
Foy Scalf, PhD candidate in Egyptology at the tion to warmer climates. Come join us in unique exhibits planning and processes,
University of Chicago, head of Research Archives, Jackson Park to witness this spectacular including development of themes and
Oriental Institute phenomenon. Visit the Wooded Island content selection, new research, and
and Bobolink Meadow with birding ex- exhibit design.
Guest speakers currently include:
perts Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer and Randy
John Wyatt, Independent researcher and specialist in Shonkwiler. We hope to see 3040 spe-
African birds and mammals cies, including colorful wood ducks, belt-
fall 2012 PAGE23

Medicine and Magic in the Ancient World:

A Search for the Cure
Fall Mini-series 2012 Oriental Institute, Breasted Hall
Session I
Wednesday, October 10; 57 pm
The Theory and Practice of Medicine and Magic in Ancient Egypt
Robert Ritner, professor of Egyptology, Oriental Institute
Session II
Wednesday, October 17, 2012; 57 pm
Magical Healing in Ancient Greece
Christopher Faraone, professor, Department of Classics
Medical Healing in Ancient Greece
Elizabeth Asmis, professor, Department of Classics
Session III
Wednesday, October 24, 2012; 57 pm
Diseases and Epidemics in Ancient Mesopotamia:
Medical Conceptualization and Responses
Walter Farber, professor of Assyriology, Oriental Institute
Religious and Magical Elements in Babylonian
Medical Practice
Robert Biggs, professor Emeritus of Assyriology,
Oriental Institute
Session IV
Saturday, October 27, 2012; 10 am12 pm
Mesopotamian Texts and the Knowledge
Assumptions of Medical Diagnosis
John Wee, postdoctoral scholar,
Department of Near Eastern Languages
and Civilizations
Panel Discussion
All Presenters
FREE. Pre-registration required. To register
go to http//oi.uchicago.edu/events or
mail in the form on page 15
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 2 per session;
8 for the entire series. Figurine that might represent Kubu, the premature stillborn baby-turned-
demon; dates to the OB period. Cincinnati Art Museum no. 1956.14
PAGE24 NEWS & NOTES

The Oriental Institute in the News

UChicagoNews
A selection of recent coverage of the Oriental Institute in Chicago and national media sources
Chicago Now Trip Advisor
June 18, 2012 June 25, 2012 The Oriental Institute Museum was
Gil Stein Appointed to Third Term as Chicago Museums: Whats on Tap awarded a Certificate of Excellence,
Oriental Institute Director news.uchi- this Summer at Chicagos World Class 2012 by Trip Advisor on the basis of the
cago.edu/article/2012/06/18/gil-stein- Museums www.chicagonow.com/ favorable reviews on their Web site.
appointed-third-term-oriental-institute- show-me-chicago/2012/06/chicago- http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g35805-
director museums-whats-on-tap-this-summer-at- d110090/Chicago:Illinois:Oriental.Institute.
chicagos-world-class-museums/ Museum.html
Aikenstandard.com
April 13, 2012 World Journal (Chinese language
Another review of the Windy City, by press)
Jeffrey Wallace www.aikenstandard. Article on Picturing the Past
Oriental Institute
com/story/0414-Jeff-Wallace-Column- www.worldjournal.com/view/wjil-
Memberships
Windy-City-review--3929598 news/17978766/article- Time to renew your membership?
Call (773) 834-9777 or visit http//
oi.uchicago.edu/getinvolved

Save the date!

Oriental institute/chicago Members opening & preview
architecture foundation Between Heaven & Earth:
Birds in Ancient Egypt
collaboration Monday, October 15, 6:00 pm
Join us for a special program and pre-
open house chicago at view of our new exhibit on birds in
the oriental institute ancient Egypt that features sculpture,
paintings, carved vessels, and bird
Saturday, October 13 mummies. The show explores how
Continuous 10:00 am5:00 pm birds were an integral part of the lives
and of ancient Egyptians, from their birth to
their death. The exhibit features guest
Sunday, October 14 curator Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuers new-
Continuous 12:005:00 pm est research on bird mummies in our
FREE. Pre-registration not required collection.

The Oriental Institute joins the Chicago

Architecture Foundation for Open
House Chicago, a free weekend fes-
tival providing access to over 150 of
Chicagos greatest places and spac-
es. Come and discover the Oriental
Institute as you may never have seen
it before. Designed in 1930 by H. O. Elaborately wrapped
Murray of Goodhue Associates, the proof, limestone-clad building into a ibis mummy AEABB56
from the catacombs
building is embellished inside and Hyde Park temple of Middle Eastern at North Saqqara. This
out with a riot of ancient motifs research. Special-access tours will specimen displays a
Phoenician boats, snarling lions from take you into the private Directors tight herringbone design
Nimrud, pharaohs in chariots, and Study, the most elegant office on the formed from pale linen
decorations from Egyptian tombs. University of Chicago campus, and and an appliqu motif
to the proximal aspect
Join our docents to see how Institute the Directors Research Library, which depicting Thoth seated
founder James Henry Breasted and his evokes the atmosphere of a Gothic ca- on a throne and surmounted by the Atef crown (
Symbolism Committee turned a fire- thedral. University of Manchester / Manchester Museum)
fall 2012 PAGE25

Scout Programs

Archaeology Badge Workshop

Dig for artifacts!

See real mummies autumn workshops
and more Sunday
Work toward your archaeology badge August 19, 35 pm
at the Oriental Institute! Wednesday
Scouts experience a simulated dig in the September 12, 68 pm
Kipper Family Archaeology Discovery Sunday
Center, go on a scavenger hunt in the October 28, 35 pm
museums world-renowned galleries, and
participate in a ceramic reconstruction. Wednesday
Cost is $15/scout, $10 for those with a family membership. This
November 21, 68 pm
program fulfills 14a, 6, 8c, 9b, and 11 of the Archaeology Merit
Badge Workbook. Please note there are some additional To register, visit
items that scouts must complete on their own. Blue cards http://oi.uchicago.
will not be signed without the scout having fulfilled all badge
requirements. Scouts must be accompanied by an adult.
edu/events
PAGE26 NEWS & NOTES

in memoriam Eleanor
Your Story
Did you meet your significant other
On July 28, the Oriental Institute lost Guralnick.
at the Oriental Institute? We want to
a dear friend and valued colleague. Image
hear your story! Please contact the
used with
Eleanor Guralnick, who served as a permission Membership Department at (773) 834-
research associate with the Institute, from the AIA 9777 or [email protected]
passed away in Chicago. Since 2006, to share your experience.
Eleanor focused her efforts at the
Institute on the Khorsabad Relief
Project, working to identify, clean, pho-
tograph, and catalogue carved stone Scholarship, a Ryerson Fellowship for
relief fragments from King Sargon IIs Travel, and a University Scholarship.
palace at Khorsabad. Using her imagi- Eleanor was actively engaged with the
nation combined with diligent schol- Archaeological Institute of America at
arship, Eleanor pieced together many both the local and national society lev-
fragments to form an enormous, rich els. She held every possible office with
portrait of a vanished civilization. Her the Chicago Society of the AIA and built
work on the Khorsabad reliefs formed the organization to become a model for
the basis of many published papers outreach to both adults and children. At
on topics ranging from use of color to the national level, Eleanor also served
studies on detailed elements and new as AIA general trustee and chaired the
drawings of the reliefs. Along with her Regional Symposia committee. Her
scholarly articles, Eleanor edited three work on behalf of the AIA was recog-
books: The Ancient Eastern Mediterranean, nized with that organizations presti-
Sardis: Twenty-seven Years of Discovery,and gious Martha and Artemis Joukowsky
Vikings in the West. Distinguished Service Award in 2004.
A University of Chicago alumna, All of us at the Oriental Institute
Eleanor was awarded her masters de- count ourselves as fortunate to have
gree in art history in 1967 and subse- worked with Eleanor. We will remember
quently earned her PhD in classical art her with respect for her dedication and
and archaeology with a specialization in important contributions to understand-
Near Eastern art in 1970. During her stu- ing the art, archaeology, and history of
dent days at the University of Chicago, the ancient Near East. Eleanor was our
she was a recipient of a Ryerson friend and we will miss her.

electronic publications
As part of the Oriental Institutes Electronic Initiative,
all new titles are simultaneously issued in print and online as
Adobe Acrobat PDF (Portable Document Format) files deliv-
ered through the Internet. Older titles are scanned and saved
as .tif and .pdf files, with the latter being posted online, as
time and funds permit. The older titles not-scanned-in-office
are scanned by Northern MicroGraphics (NMT Corporation,
http://normicro.com), located in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
The Electronic Initiative is very successful. The uploaded
PDFs are available wherever the Internet reaches, and our
older titles all our titles, old and new are especially ap-
preciated in the countries where data were gathered and li-
brary shelves do not hold Oriental Institute titles. Over 400 titles published by the Oriental Institute from its beginnings
through 2000 are contained on these 103 disks
fall 2012 PAGE27

Granddaughter of painter
Joseph Lindon Smith visits
the Oriental Institute
by Emily Teeter
On June 8, Linden and Jay Gaspar of several other paintings that the Oriental
Gainesville, Georgia, visited the Oriental Institute commissioned JLS to paint and
Institutes exhibit Picturing the Past: I wanted to see what you had available.
Imaging and Imagining the Ancient The article which Dennis wrote about
Middle East, which features one in a JLS for the exhibit publication was won-
series of paintings of Persepolis by derful and it should inspire future inter-
Lindens grandfather Joseph Lindon est in learning more about the talents
Smith. The Gaspars heard about the ex- and abilities of my grandfather. I am
hibit from Chicago researcher Dennis so glad that one of his paintings from
OConnor, who is writing a biography Persepolis was chosen to be displayed
of Smith and who also wrote an essay in this marvelous exhibit. Jay and Linden Gaspar with a painting of
on the artist for the exhibit catalog. The As a special treat, the Gaspars Persepolis by Lindens grandfather, Joseph
Smith paintings were commissioned by also visited the office of the Oriental Lindon Smith
James Henry Breasted in 1935. They Institutes director Gil Stein to see
have not been on exhibit since 1940, another Smith painting of Scythians and importance. The rediscovery and
when they were part of an important presenting tribute from Persepolis. display of the Smith paintings signify
exhibit called Persian Art held at the Recently, Gil replaced an Egyptian- just one of many residual benefits of
Iranian Institute in New York. themed painting that hung in the office the special exhibits program that al-
During her visit, Linden recount- since at least the 1940s with the Smith lows us to use our diverse collections
ed, Dennis told me that there were work, an acknowledgment of its beauty in many different ways.

Field Projects Archaeological Treasures

of Eastern Turkey
The Oriental Institute has sponsored archaeological and survey expeditions in nearly every
country of the Middle East. There are projects currently active in Egypt, Turkey, Israel, and
Led by Gil Stein, Oriental
the West Bank. These completed and ongoing excavations have defined the basic chronolo- Institute Director
gies for many ancient Near Eastern civilizations and made fundamental contributions to May 18June 3, 2013
our understanding of basic questions in ancient human societies, ranging from the study of
More details are online at
ancient urbanism to the origins of food production and sedentary village life in the Neolithic
http://oi.uchicago.edu/travel
period. Follow the upcoming project through their websites:

Epigraphic Survey
October 15April 15
Ray Johnson
Save the date
http://oi.uchicago.edu/ 2013 Oriental Institute Gala
research/projects/epi/ Saturday, May 11, 2013

Tell Edfu, Egypt Please Join the Visiting Committee, fac-

October 3November 28 ulty, and staff of the Oriental Institute
for the 2013 Oriental Institute Gala!
Nadine Moeller
www.telledfu.blogspot.com For details on Table Sponsorship or Invita-
tions, please contact Development Director
If youre interested in supporting one of the Oriental Institutes ar- Tracy Tajbl at (773) 702-5062 or ttajbl@uchi-
chaeology field projects, please call Tracy Tajbl, director of develop- cago.edu.
ment, at (773) 702-5062, or e-mail her at [email protected]
 PAGE28 NEWS & NOTES

Planetarium on September 13, 2011,

star gazing in ancient babylonia
Jack Green and Mnica Vlez
where Professor John Steele of Brown
University presented Anu-Belshunu,
Astronomer and Scribe of Uruk.1 This

M
fascinating lecture focused on the im-
odern astronomers observe stars, portance of the Babylonian tradition
planets, galaxies, and other celes- of astronomy and its relevance today,
tial bodies, often using high-powered as well as the motivations and activi-
telescopes and transmitters, attempting ties of astronomer-scribes. He also dis-
to unravel secrets surrounding the cre- cussed several of the Late Babylonian
ation and development of the universe. Seleucid-era tablets from Uruk in the
Although high-tech pieces of equipment collections of the Oriental Institute at
such as the Hubble space telescope are the University of Chicago.
modern inventions, the science of as- The three tablets currently dis-
tronomy really has its beginnings in played at the Adler highlight the so-
the ancient Near East. Astronomical phistication of Babylonian astronomy
observations were inscribed on cu- and its influence on later astronomical
neiform tablets from Mesopotamia thought and practice.
(modern Iraq) from as early as the Old One tablet (OIM A3409), dated to
Babylonian period, nearly four thou- the third century bc, is a table of co-
sand years ago, and continued toward ordinates that plots the morning posi-
the end of the first millennium bc. The tions of the planet Mercury. This piece
astronomical traditions of Babylonia, is particularly interesting as it describes
in Central and Southern Mesopotamia, the rotation of one of the quickest plan-
were passed on to the ancient Greeks, in ets in orbit around the sun, all without
turn leading to innovations in Islamic Figure 1. Image of the display featuring Oriental the advantage of modern astronomical
astronomy, knowledge later to be inher- Institute clay tablets at the Adler Planetarium. The technology.
ited by scholars in medieval Europe. Anu-Belshunu tablet (OIM A3405) is at the front. The second tablet (OIM A3413),
In acknowledgment of the as- Installed April 2012 dating to circa 200150 bc, explains
tronomical achievements of an- the procedure for determining the
cient Mesopotamia, Chicagos Adler that can be seen on permanent dis- various lunar phases and positions that
Planetarium is currently displaying play in the Edgar and Deborah Jannotta marked the beginning, middle, or end of
(until Spring 2015) three cuneiform Mesopotamian Gallery at the Oriental a month in the Mesopotamian calendar.
clay tablets on loan from the Oriental Institute Museum, which is accompa- The start of a new month was marked
Institute of the University of Chicago. nied by a star chart showing the major by the appearance of a new crescent
This small display (fig. 1) highlights Babylonian constellations (fig. 2). moon in the night sky.
the role of astronomy in Babylonia dur- The suggestion to display these The third tablet (OIM A3405) is per-
ing the Seleucid (Hellenistic) period three tablets at the Adler Planetarium haps the most intriguing (fig. 3). It was
(30565 bc). The display also informs followed the Roderick S. Webster written by the astronomer-scribe Anu-
visitors of the astronomical tablets Memorial Lecture held at the Adler Belshunu and contains calculations of

Figure 2. Star chart showing approximate locations for some Babylonian constellations. The capitalized Latin names of constellations, as known today, can
be compared with translations of Akkadian names immediately below. The images derive from ancient Mesopotamian sources (Hanau-Strain Associates)
fall 2012 PAGE29

the positions of the five planets visible using cuneiform script, a time in which Committee of the Oriental Institute and mem-
ber of the Steering Committee of the Webster
to the naked eye: Mercury, Venus, Mars, scribes from the Greek world came into Club for the History of Astronomy at the Adler
Jupiter, and Saturn. Although inscribed direct contact with scribes in Babylonia, Planetarium, for her interest in and encourage-
in around 191 bc, it actually projected perhaps exchanging and sharing ideas ment of this loan.
back the movement of these planets to and knowledge that would be passed on
5
The lecture can be accessed online via the fol-
make calculations for the period 252 and transformed down the ages to the lowing link: http://www.adlerpodcast.com/adler-
mix/episodes/2011/september.m4v
241 bc. This information was used to present day.3 3
A selection of further reading related to
create a horoscope for someone born Babylonian astronomy includes: John M. Steele,
during a period around sixty or seventy Calendars and Years: Astronomy and Time in the
years before the time it was composed. notes Ancient Near East (Oxford, 2007) and A Brief
Professor Steele speculates that the in- 1
The Oriental Institute thanks staff of the
Introduction to Astronomy in the Middle East
(London, 2008); Hermann Hunger, Astronomical
formation recorded in this tablet may Adler Planetarium, especially Vice President
Diaries and Related Texts from Babylonia, Volume
have been used by Anu-Belshunu to cre- for Collections Dr. Marvin Bolt and Collections
5: Lunar and Planetary Texts (Vienna, 2001); Otto
Manager Jennifer E. Brand. We also thank Walter
ate his own personal horoscope. Farber, professor of Assyriology and curator of
Neugebauer, A History of Ancient Mathematical
Such tablets were used for a num- the Tablet Collection of the Oriental Institute;
Astonomy: Part One (New York, 1975); and Erica
ber of purposes, from serving as calen- Andrew Dix, assistant curator of the Tablet
Reiner (formerly Oriental Institute), Babylonian
Celestial Divination, in Ancient Astronomy and
dars for religious rituals, to creating Collection; and Oriental Institute Museum staff
Celestial Divination, edited by N. M. Swerdlow,
horoscopes and reading omens. They for making this happen. We extend our appre-
pp. 2138 (Cambridge, 1999).
ciation to Andrea Dudek, member of the Visiting
could have been used to predict out-
comes, both positive and negative, as
well as prepare for rituals enacted when
astronomical events were predicted
to take place, such as a solar or lunar
eclipse.
Most importantly, Babylonian as-
tronomy opened the gateway to the
future development of astronomy. The
Seleucid (Hellenistic) period in which
these tablets were written was the final FILM PREMIERE &
stage in a nearly 3,000-year tradition of
SPECIAL FILM
SHOWING
Visiting the Museum
and
The Mummy
Thursday, October 25
7:00 PM
Breasted Hall
FREE. Pre-registration not required
Thrills and chills await you at this pre-
miere screening of Visiting the Museum
(17 min.) produced by Latino Art Beat,
a not-for-profit national arts organiza-
tion that encourages filmmaking by tal- We invite you to come in an an-
ented Latino youth. In this short film, cient Egyptian-style costume or even
two teenaged boys see a clip of the clas- as an Egyptologist and stay for more
sic Boris Karlov movie The Mummy on scary entertainment with a screening
Figure 3. Fragmentary cuneiform clay tablet their way to do research at the Oriental of the 1932 Karlov classic (73 min.). This
featuring calculations of planetary movements. Institute. Filmed in the Institutes gal- film will be introduced by John Larson,
It was composed in the late Babylonian dialect leries, the suspense builds as the boys Oriental Institute Museum archivist and
of Akkadian by the astronomer-scribe Anu-
Belshunu in Uruk, in what is now southern Iraq,
discover and then much to their dis- film historian, who will also be a judge
around 191 BC (OIM A3405) may! accidentally bring an ancient as we award prizes for the best Egyptian
Egyptian mummy to life. costume.
PAGE30 NEWS & NOTES

The O r i e n t al In s t i t u t e T r av e l Program Presents

the wonders of ancient egypt
Escorted by Dr. Lanny Bell March 925, 2013

Saturday, March 9 Thursday, March 14: LUXOR Saturday, March 16: LUXOR
Depart Chicago on Lufthansa Airlines. After a morning flight to Luxor, tour- Returning to the Niles west bank, we
ing begins at the magnificent sanctuary tour some of the hundreds of tombs
Sunday, March 10: CAIRO
of Amun-Re at Karnak with its maze of of the nobles, spread over two square
Arrive in Cairo and transfer to Mena
monumental gateways, obelisks, pil- miles. These tombs are of special in-
House Oberoi Hotel, located at the foot
lared halls, and subsidiary shrines. We terest for their naturalistic murals,
of the Great Pyramid. This evening we
will also visit Karnaks open-air muse- which give us an intimate view of life
meet with Dr. Bell for dinner.
um. The remainder of the day will be in ancient Egypt. We will also stop at
Mena House Oberoi Hotel (D)
at leisure. This evening we attend a re- the ancient village of the artisans, Deir
Monday, March 11: CAIRO ception at Chicago House, the home of el-Medina, one of the best-preserved
We begin our touring with an explora- the Oriental Institute Epigraphic Survey town sites in Egypt and the subject of
tion of Memphis, the first capital of a project. the television series Ancient Lives.
united Egypt, and Saqqara, the necropo- Steigenberger Hotel (B/D) Option: An early morning hot-air bal-
lis of Memphis. At Saqqara we tour the loon ride over the spectacular monu-
Step Pyramid complex of Djoser, which
Friday, March 15: LUXOR
Today we cross the Nile to visit the ments of Luxor.
predates the Giza Pyramids and is the Steigenberger Hotel (B/L)
tombs of the Valleys of the Kings and
worlds first monumental building
Queens. Among the tombs to be visited Sunday, March 17: LUXOR
constructed entirely in stone. We also
are those of Tutankhamun and three Today we drive north through villages
visit the Saqqara Museum, the smaller
other pharaohs selected from the tombs of baked-mud houses and lush cultivat-
Pyramid of Teti a Sixth Dynasty king
opened to the public today. We will also ed lands bordering the Nile to Dendera
whose burial chamber is covered with
visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut at to visit the Temple of Hathor, goddess
Pyramid Texts to ensure the survival of
Deir el-Bahri, one of the most spectacu- of love, music, and wine. Although this
his soul and the tombs of the nobles
lar monuments in Egypt, and the Colossi temple was built largely in the first
Ti and Ptahhotep and Mereruka.
of Memnon. century bc, it occupies the site of a
Mena House Oberoi Hotel (B/L/D)
Steigenberger Hotel (B/L/D) much older building. On the roof of the
Tuesday, March 12: CAIRO temple is a plaster cast of the famous
Our touring today brings us to the only Zodiac of Dendera (original in Paris),
surviving representatives of the Seven one of three circular representations
Wonders of the Ancient World, the of the heavens found in Egypt. We con-
Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. We tinue to Abydos, where we will tour the
will have an opportunity to enter one Temple of Seti I, viewing the famous
of the pyramids and to visit the mu- List of Kings and some of the most beau-
seum where the remarkably preserved tifully painted reliefs surviving from
remains of the Solar Boat of Cheops are Pharaonic times, and the nearby small
displayed. temple of Ramesses II.
Mena House Oberoi Hotel (B/L) Steigenberger Hotel (B/L/D)
Wednesday, March 13: CAIRO Monday, March 18: CRUISE/LUXOR
The focus of this day is the Egyptian This morning our luggage will be trans-
Museum, where we will view the ferred to the new deluxe MS Farah, our
highlights of its huge collection in- floating hotel for the next four nights.
cluding the mummy room and the ob- We continue our touring on the west
jects from the tomb of Tutankhamun. bank with the temples and chapels
Touring continues with a walking tour of Medinet Habu, the largest built by
in Islamic Cairo. This warren of streets Ramesses III, and the Ramesseum,
is lined with a multitude of fascinating where lies the fallen statue of Ramesses
architecture. We end our walk in the re- II that inspired Shelleys famous poem
nowned Suq Khan al-Khalili. Ozymandias. We will have our lunch
Mena House Oberoi Hotel (B/L/D) on board the Farah and, in the late af-
fall 2012 PAGE31

Option 1: A morning Old Cairo tour,

which includes the Coptic Museum and
the Coptic Church of Abu Sarga.
Option 2: A day trip to Alexandria,
which includes lunch visits to the
Museum of the Alexandria Bibliotheca,
Roman Amphitheater (Kom el-Dik-
ka), Catacombs of Kom Shukafa, and
Pompeys Pillar at the Serapeum site.
Intercontinental Semiramis (B/D)
Monday, March 25: CAIRO/CHICAGO
Transfer to the airport for our
Lufthansa flights to Chicago.
ternoon, visit Luxor Temple begin- Isis, known as Philae for the island on
Cost of Tour:
ning at the newly renovated Avenue which it was originally built. This after-
$8,095 including group airfare from
of Sphinxes, which originally linked noon we sail by felucca to Elephantine
Luxor and Karnak temples. We will ex- Island to visit the excavations and Chicago Single Supplement: $1,270
amine the Roman fresco paintings re- Nilometer, an ancient means of measur- Land only: $7,035
stored jointly by Chicago House and the ing the height of the Nile River. For additional information about the tour,
American Research Center in Egypt, as MS Farah (B/L/D) call the Oriental Institute at (773) 834-
well as the open-air museum and block- 9777 or e-mail oi-membership@uchicago.
Friday, March 22: ASWAN
yard, conserved by Chicago House. edu. For questions about bookings, call
We disembark this morning and begin
MS Farah (B/L/D) Archaeological Tours at (866) 740-5130 or e-
our touring at the Kalabsha Temple
Tuesday, March 19: CRUISE/EDFU built in the reign of Augustus on the mail [email protected]. To join our e-mail
This morning we are at leisure in Luxor site of an earlier sanctuary founded notification list for Oriental Institute Travel
giving us an opportunity to explore the by Amenhotep II. The temple, which Programs, please send your name and e-mail
bazaar, visit the Luxor Museum and the was later converted to a church, was address to [email protected].
new Mummy Museum, or relax at the originally dedicated to the Nubian god
pool. During lunch we sail to Edfu for Mandulis, who was associated with Isis.
the night. In the same antiquities park we will Dr. Lanny Bell received his PhD
MS Farah (B/L/D) visit the relocated Greco-Roman kiosk in Egyptology from the University of
of Qertassi and the shrine of Ramesses Pennsylvania and is now associate profes-
Wednesday, March 20: CRUISE/ASWAN sor emeritus at the University of Chicago.
II from Beit el-Wali. After lunch we will
Touring begins at the Temple of Edfu, a In 1977 Professor Bell began to teach at the
spend the remainder of the day visiting
well-preserved Ptolemaic temple of the University of Chicago and became field
the Museum of Nubian Civilization.
falcon god Horus. We then sail on to director of the Epigraphic Survey of the
Aswan Movenpick Hotel (B/L/D)
Kom Ombo. Often called the acropolis Oriental Institute. For the next twelve years
of Egypt for its spectacular site over- Saturday, March 23: CAIRO he spent nine months a year at Chicago
looking the Nile, Kom Ombo is unusual This morning we fly to Abu Simbel, House in Luxor. The activities of the expedi-
for its equal dedication to two gods, where the rock-cut temples of Ramesses tions under his direction have ranged from
Horus the Elder and the crocodile god II and his favorite queen Nefertari have epigraphy to excavation and conservation.
Sobek. We will study the unique archi- been saved from the rising waters of An expert on the Luxor area, he has pub-
tectural features of this temple before the Nile resulting from the Aswan High lished articles on divine kingship and temple
sailing on to Aswan. Dam. The temples were built to honor and society in ancient Egypt, as well as a
MS Farah (B/L/D) the deified royal pair and to awe the groundbreaking chapter on Luxor Temple
Nubians, and that awesome feeling ex- in Temples of Ancient Egypt, published
Thursday, March 21: CRUISE/ASWAN
ists today no less than it did 3,200 years by Cornell University Press. Professor Bell
Todays touring includes the granite
ago. This afternoon we fly back to Cairo. has also been a consultant for National
quarries where an unfinished obelisk
Intercontinental Semiramis (B/L) Geographic magazine and has appeared
remains embedded in its native stone.
This immense monument would have Sunday, March 24: CAIRO in its documentary Egypt: Quest for
been Egypts tallest monolith, weighing After a full day at leisure, we gather for Eternity, as well as A&Es presentation
over 2.3 million pounds at its comple- our farewell dinner. Mummies: Tales from the Egyptian
tion. We continue to the Aswan High Crypts. Professor Bell is a very popular lec-
Dam, a project that forever changed the turer and has been appointed three times to
Niles annual cycle. The morning ends endowed lectureships of the Archaeological
with the Ptolemaic temple dedicated to Institute of America.
 the
PAGE32 NEWS & NOTES

Oriental Institute
The University of Chicago
1155 East 58th Street Chicago, Illinois 60637
(773) 702-9514

CORNER
THE SUQ

Members Holiday Sales at the Suq, the

Oriental Institutes Gift Shop
November 27December 9
Oriental Institute Members have a big advantage in their
holiday shopping. Drop by the Suq to get 20 percent off
all your in-store purchases. Whether youre shopping for
a budding Egyptologist or fashion aficionado, well help
you find something special.

New Title
Between Heaven & Earth: Birds in Ancient Egypt
Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer
Catalog of the exhibit of the same name.
Pp. 232; 210 illustrations (mostly in color). $29.95

Suq, The Oriental Institute Gift Shop Telephone: (773) 702-9509 E-mail: [email protected]