The topic

The ancient Egyptians left us some of the earliest records of the night sky, in which they noted the sun, the moon, planets, and several constellations. Many of these celestial objects are associated with—or personified by—certain gods, such as Re and the sun. Yet how the Egyptians conceptualized the Milky Way remains unclear. This talk will focus on the popular suggestion that the Milky Way was a manifestation of Nut, the Egyptian goddess of the sky.

The speaker has tested this theory by combining astronomical simulations of the Egyptian night sky, readings of primary sources (the Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, and the Fundamentals of the Course of the Stars), research on ancient Egyptian material culture (coffins, funerary papyri, and tomb murals), and anthropological studies of Milky Way creation stories from around the world. 

This talk will show how Nut's depictions changed over the course of Egyptian history, and will present the first visual evidence for the Milky Way in ancient Egyptian art. Dr. Graur concludes that the Milky Way was not a manifestation of Nut but one more astronomical phenomenon that graced her body in her role as the goddess of the sky.

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Our events typically last an hour—50 minutes for the lecture, 10 minutes for Q+A.

Alert: We do not allow recording or imaging of our presentations in any way.

The speaker

Dr. Or Graur is an Associate Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Portsmouth's Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation in the UK. Alongside his observational studies of supernovae and tidal disruption events, Dr. Graur investigates the multicultural mythology of the Milky Way. In this talk, he will present the results of three papers he has written on the subject of the Milky Way in ancient Egypt.