Latest news with #soulhouse
CNN
a day ago
- Science
- CNN
4,000-year-old handprint found on ancient Egyptian tomb
FacebookTweetLink A 4,000-year-old handprint has been discovered on a clay model used for offerings in an Ancient Egyptian tomb. Researchers from Cambridge University's Fitzwilliam Museum, in the United Kingdom, stumbled upon the imprint while preparing for an exhibition, which is set to open this fall. It was found on the base of a 'soul house,' a building-shaped clay model typically found in burials and said to have provided a place for the soul to live, according to a press release from the museum. The model has an open space at the front where food offerings, like bread, lettuce or an ox's head, could be placed. Dating back to about 2055–1650 BCE, the soul house underwent extensive examinations that revealed how it was made four millennia ago. It showed that the unnamed potter would have first created a framework of wooden sticks for the two-story building, which was then coated with clay. The firing process would have burnt the wood away. The handprint was found underneath the soul house and was most likely formed when the potter moved the model while the clay was still damp and before it was fired in a kiln. 'We've spotted traces of fingerprints left in wet varnish or on a coffin in the decoration, but it is rare and exciting to find a complete handprint underneath this soul house,' said Helen Strudwick, senior Egyptologist at the museum and curator of the exhibition. 'This was left by the maker who touched it before the clay dried,' she said in the release. 'I have never seen such a complete handprint on an Egyptian object before. You can just imagine the person who made this, picking it up to move it out of the workshop to dry before firing.' 'Things like this take you directly to the moment when the object was made and to the person who made it, which is the focus of our exhibition,' Strudwick added. Vast amounts of pottery have survived from the ancient Egyptian period as ceramics were widely used for functional objects and decorative pieces. It was common for pottery containing food and drink to feature in burials. While much is known about ancient Egyptian rulers like Tutankhamun, the stories of those who made some of the many artifacts discovered in their tombs is often overlooked. The ready availability of clay and low value of pottery is likely to have affected social status of potters, according to the museum. The soul house will be on display at the Cambridge museum as part of the 'Made in Ancient Egypt' exhibition, which aims to highlight the stories of artisans like the one who left this handprint behind. It opens on October 3. Discover your world Go beyond the headlines and explore the latest scientific achievements and fascinating discoveries. Sign up for CNN's Wonder Theory science newsletter.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Rare 4,000-year-old Egyptian handprint found
A 4,000-year-old handprint has been found on an ancient Egyptian tomb offering by curators preparing for an exhibition. The discovery was made by University of Cambridge researchers on a "soul house", a type of clay model in the shape of a building, typically found in burials. Curator Helen Strudwick said the complete handprint, which dates to 2055 to 1650BC, was "a rare and exciting" find. The ceramic will go on display as part of the university's Made in Ancient Egypt exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum opening on 3 October. Ms Strudwick, senior egyptologist at the Fitzwilliam Museum, said: "We've spotted traces of fingerprints left in wet varnish or on a coffin in the decoration, but it is rare and exciting to find a complete handprint underneath this soul house. "This was left by the maker who touched it before the clay dried. "I have never seen such a complete handprint on an Egyptian object before." The exhibition concentrates on the people who made the ancient Egyptian crafts. While ceramics were widely used and vast amounts of pottery survive, there are relatively few details known about the potters themselves, in comparison to other ancient Egyptian craftsmen. The ready availability and generally low value of pottery may have affected their status, according to the museum, which cited a text known as the Teaching of Khet, comparing potters to pigs who wallow in mud. Soul houses may have acted as offering trays or provided a place for the soul of the deceased to live within the tomb. They had an open front space where items of food were laid out, in this example loaves of bread, a lettuce and an ox's head. Analysis of the item suggested the potter who made it first created a framework of wooden sticks and then coated it with clay to make a building with two storeys supported by pillars. During firing the wooden framework burnt away, leaving empty spaces in their place. The handprint found underneath was probably made when someone, perhaps the potter, moved the house out of the workshop to dry before firing in a kiln, according to the researchers. The stories of Egyptian rulers, like Tutankhamun, have received a great deal of attention but the makers of the artefacts themselves are often overlooked. Made in Ancient Egypt aims to show who these people were, how they thought of themselves and what other Egyptians thought of them. Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. More on this story Ancient Egyptian history may be rewritten by DNA bone test Researchers help uncover ancient Egyptian city Scientists may have solved mystery behind Egypt's pyramids Related internet links Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge Solve the daily Crossword
CBS News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Rare 4,000-year-old Egyptian handprint discovered on a "soul house"
Researchers have discovered a 4,000-year-old handprint on an ancient Egyptian tomb offering, which will appear at a museum exhibit in the United Kingdom this October, reported CBS News partner BBC News. The handprint likely dates to 2055 to 1650 B.C.E., Helen Strudwick, a curator working on the exhibition, told the news outlet. Strudwick called the discovery "rare and exciting," BBC News reported. Researchers at Cambridge University found it pressed into one side of a "soul house," which is a clay model resembling a building that can be traced to burials in ancient Egypt, according to the British Museum. Strudwick, a senior Egyptologist at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, England, said the unusually detailed handprint was left by whoever constructed the ceramic piece, before the clay dried. "We've spotted traces of fingerprints left in wet varnish or on a coffin in the decoration, but it is rare and exciting to find a complete handprint underneath this soul house," she told BBC News, adding: "I have never seen such a complete handprint on an Egyptian object before." The "soul house" will be displayed at the Fitzwilliam Museum starting October 3, as part of its upcoming exhibit titled "Made in Ancient Egypt." It will spotlight relics of ancient Egyptian civilization, focusing on different forms of art, the people who made them, and the techniques they used to do so, according to the museum. "Revealing the untold stories of the Egyptian makers, technology and techniques behind these extraordinary objects, our exciting new exhibition is the first to explore ancient Egypt through the lives of its craftspeople," reads a description of the exhibit on the museum's website, which notes that the display will feature jewelry, ceramics, sculptural pieces and some "spectacular objects never before seen" in the U.K. CBS News has reached out to the Fitzwilliam Museum for more details.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Science
- BBC News
Cambridge researchers find 4,000-year-old Egyptian handprint
A 4,000-year-old handprint has been found on an ancient Egyptian tomb offering by curators preparing for an discovery was made by University of Cambridge researchers on a "soul house", a type of clay model in the shape of a building, typically found in Helen Strudwick said the complete handprint, which dates to 2055 to 1650BC, was "a rare and exciting" find. The ceramic will go on display as part of the university's Made in Ancient Egypt exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum opening on 3 October. Ms Strudwick, senior egyptologist at the Fitzwilliam Museum, said: "We've spotted traces of fingerprints left in wet varnish or on a coffin in the decoration, but it is rare and exciting to find a complete handprint underneath this soul house."This was left by the maker who touched it before the clay dried."I have never seen such a complete handprint on an Egyptian object before." The exhibition concentrates on the people who made the ancient Egyptian ceramics were widely used and vast amounts of pottery survive, there are relatively few details known about the potters themselves, in comparison to other ancient Egyptian ready availability and generally low value of pottery may have affected their status, according to the museum, which cited a text known as the Teaching of Khet, comparing potters to pigs who wallow in mud. Soul houses may have acted as offering trays or provided a place for the soul of the deceased to live within the had an open front space where items of food were laid out, in this example loaves of bread, a lettuce and an ox's of the item suggested the potter who made it first created a framework of wooden sticks and then coated it with clay to make a building with two storeys supported by firing the wooden framework burnt away, leaving empty spaces in their handprint found underneath was probably made when someone, perhaps the potter, moved the house out of the workshop to dry before firing in a kiln, according to the stories of Egyptian rulers, like Tutankhamun, have received a great deal of attention but the makers of the artefacts themselves are often in Ancient Egypt aims to show who these people were, how they thought of themselves and what other Egyptians thought of them. Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Telegraph
2 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Ancient Egyptian handprint found on bottom of 4,000-year-old clay model
A handprint left 4,000 years ago on a clay model crafted to go inside an Egyptian tomb has been discovered during preparation for an exhibition at a museum. The 'rare and exciting' complete handprint was probably made by the maker of the item who touched it before the clay dried, an Egyptologist at Cambridge's Fitzwilliam Museum said. The imprint was left on the base of a 'soul house' – a clay model in the shape of a building which would then be placed inside a burial. The model on which the handprint was discovered has been dated to around 2055-1650 BCE. It had an open front space where items of food were laid out, in this example loaves of bread, a lettuce and an ox's head. Soul houses may have acted as offering trays or provided a place for the soul of the deceased to live within the tomb. Helen Strudwick, senior Egyptologist at the Fitzwilliam Museum, said: 'We've spotted traces of fingerprints left in wet varnish or on a coffin in the decoration, but it is rare and exciting to find a complete handprint underneath this soul house. 'This was left by the maker who touched it before the clay dried. I have never seen such a complete handprint on an Egyptian object before.' The researcher, who is also curator of the museum's new Made in Ancient Egypt exhibition, continued: 'You can just imagine the person who made this, picking it up to move it out of the workshop to dry before firing. 'Things like this take you directly to the moment when the object was made and to the person who made it, which is the focus of our exhibition.' Analysis of the item suggests the potter who made it first created a framework of wooden sticks and then coated it with clay to make a building with two storeys supported by pillars. Staircases were formed by pinching the wet clay. During firing the wooden framework burnt away, leaving empty spaces in their place. The handprint found underneath was probably made when someone, perhaps the potter, moved the house out of the workshop to dry before firing in a kiln, according to the researchers. Ceramics were widely used in ancient Egypt, mostly as functional objects but occasionally as decorative pieces. The soul house will be on display in the Fitzwilliam's Made in Ancient Egypt exhibition which opens to the public on October 3.
