INTRODUCTION TO PHARAONIC EGYPT: MIND AND MEMORY OF AN ANCIENT CIVILIZATION

Il modulo d’insegnamento è un corso di base nell’ambito della laurea triennale inter-ateneo Ancient Civilizations for the Contemporary World e appartiene all’area storico-archeologica. Il corso intende fornire una conoscenza di base dell’Egitto faraonico (inquadramento storico e culturale, archeologia); una particolare attenzione sarà prestata ai fenomeni di ricezione e continuità di elementi semantici egizi nel Mediterraneo, in particolar modo Roma. In una possibile prospettiva comparativa, il corso intende fornire gli strumenti utili per definire il ruolo dell’Egitto nel rapporto Oriente-Occidente.

1. Knowledge and understanding: at the end of the course, students will have acquired knowledge of the fundamental tools for the study of the pharaonic civilisation in its essential features (culture, written and archaeological sources, iconography, religion).
2. Ability to implement knowledge: the course will provide students with the basic tools for research (repertories, bibliography, on-line resources).
3. Development of critical skills: at the end of the course students will have developed critical skills in approaching the various themes of Egyptian civilisation and their discussion.
4. Communication: students will be able to present their acquired knowledge in a comprehensive and correct manner.

There are no pre-requisites for admission to the course. A basic knowledge of the ancient eastern Mediterranean and the fundamentals of a historical approach are suggested.

Duration: 40 hours (6 CFU). The course offers an introduction to the Egyptian state and the basic cultural patterns of the Pharaonic civilisation. Topics dealt with will be:
1. Territory and its cultural and political interpretation, the basis of the territorial state.
2. The development of the discipline of Egyptology.
3. The social model and hierarchy as a characterising element of the archaic period.
4. The interpretation of reality: the ordered world and chaos as tools for reading the world.
5. The historical framework and its reconstruction; direct and indirect sources of Egyptian history.
6. The structure of religious thought.
7. Formal languages: architecture and representation. Materials and techniques.
8. The relationship with Rome and the birth of an idea of "Egypt" beyond Pharaonic culture

1 – J. Assmann, The Mind of Egypt: History and Meaning in the Time of the Pharaohs, Harvard Univeristy Press, Cambridge Mass., 2003.
2 – J. Baines, J. Málek, Cultural Atlas of ancient Egypt, Checkmark Books, Oxford 2000.
3 – E.M. Ciampini, Cercando un altro Egitto. Sopravvivenze di un'antica civiltà nella cultura europea, Unicopli, Trezzano sul Naviglio (MI), 2013.

Written exam: multiple-choice test. Evaluation: minimum 18/30; maximum 30/30 with distinction. The exam covers the topics discussed during the lectures and the bibliography listed in the reference texts.

Lectures. Teaching materials used during the course will be made available to students on the course moodle platform.

English

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Human capital, health, education" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development