Videos by Marissa Stevens
The Achaemenid empire embraced cultural, linguistic, and religious diversity within its expansive... more The Achaemenid empire embraced cultural, linguistic, and religious diversity within its expansive territory and practiced a strategic willingness to tolerate – and even support – these heterogeneous customs for the greater benefit of the empire’s political cohesion. The examples of the inscription on the naoforo vaticano statue of Udjahorresnet and the archaeological evidence from Mit Rahina reveal the Persian strategy of utilizing Egyptian collective memory to their advantage. By purporting to understand Egyptian religious traditions and to restore Egyptian cultic spaces, Achaemenid rulers were overtly showcasing both their authority in Egypt and their legitimate right to rule via religious sanction. These actions imbedded Persian dominion within the religious traditions of Egypt, making a strong political and economic statement of power in the process. 668 views
Textual references of family members and inclusion of their images on private monuments – especia... more Textual references of family members and inclusion of their images on private monuments – especially those of a funerary nature – are common throughout pharaonic Egyptian history. The function of the incorporation of these family members, however, is often integral and inseparable from the time period in which they occur. This paper will analyze the inclusion of family on a number of objects from the Third Intermediate Period and contextualize them within the era of political instability, conflict, and compounded social identity. In what light were family members often depicted, and to what end? Through the study of funerary papyri, deification decrees, coffins, and statuary, it becomes clear that the function of the venerated family was multifaceted: supporting political claims, maintaining economic rights, strengthening property ownership, and enhancing family status. These functions were veiled within a religious tradition of highlighting one’s ancestors with respect and praise. 2 views
21st Dynasty funerary papyri have much to inform us about Egyptian funerary practices and religio... more 21st Dynasty funerary papyri have much to inform us about Egyptian funerary practices and religious beliefs. The preserved texts can be read to enrich our views of cosmogony and can further our knowledge of Egyptian language and writing systems. By examining the materials and tools used to create the documents, one can gain insight of production techniques. And by studying the owners of these documents, we can uncover facts about family genealogies, social structures, and a wealth of information about the rank and titles of the deceased, as well as the implications these societal positions held for living descendants. One interesting feature of this corpus of papyri that has largely been overlooked by scholars is the significant quantity of them that have an unfinished edge at the end of the document. Many papyri have vignettes that simply trail off, being left incomplete. This understudied observation can shed much light on how funerary papyri were procured. 145 views
Book Chapters by Marissa Stevens
Ancient Egypt and Early China: State, Society, and Culture, 2021
Although they existed more than a millennium apart, the great civilizations of New Kingdom Egypt ... more Although they existed more than a millennium apart, the great civilizations of New Kingdom Egypt (ca. 1548-1086 BCE) and Han dynasty China (206 BCE-220 CE) shared intriguing similarities. Both were centered around major, floodprone rivers-the Nile and the Yellow River-and established complex hydraulic systems to manage their power. Both spread their territories across vast empires that were controlled through warfare and diplomacy and underwent periods of radical reform led by charismatic rulers-the "heretic king" Akhenaten and the vilified reformer Wang Mang. Universal justice was dispensed through courts, and each empire was administered by bureaucracies staffed by highly trained scribes who held special status. Egypt and China each developed elaborate conceptions of an afterlife world and created games of fate that facilitated access to these realms. This groundbreaking volume offers an innovative comparison of these two civilizations. Through a combination of textual, art historical, and archaeological analyses, Ancient Egypt and Early China reveals shared structural traits of each civilization as well as distinctive features.
Articles by Marissa Stevens
Navigating the Worlds of History: Studies in Honor of Robert Rollinger on the Occasion of His 60th Birthday, 2024
“Layered Meanings: Spears, Enemies, and Achaemenid Iconography through Egyptian Eyes,” Navigating... more “Layered Meanings: Spears, Enemies, and Achaemenid Iconography through Egyptian Eyes,” Navigating the Worlds of History: Studies in Honor of Robert Rollinger on the Occasion of His 60th Birthday, editors Kai Ruffing, Brigitte Truschnegg, Andres Rudigier, Julian Degen, Sebastian Fink, and Kordula Schnegg (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2024) 1079-1090.
Arts 13, no. 3: 76 / Ancient Egyptian Art Studies: Art in Motion, a Social Tool of Power and Resistance, 2024
This paper aims to highlight examples of artistic motifs common throughout Egyptian history but a... more This paper aims to highlight examples of artistic motifs common throughout Egyptian history but augmented in novel ways during the 27th Dynasty, a time when Egypt was part of the Achaemenid empire and ruled by Persian kings. These kings represented themselves as traditional pharaohs within Egypt's borders and utilized longstanding Egyptian artistic motifs in their monumental constructions. These motifs, however, were manipulated in subtle ways to send targeted messages to audience(s) of this art. Art historians tend to situate visual styles and motifs within the longue durée of artistic tradition and pick a singular, official, and centralized perspective to narrate the history and reception of that art. In the case of Egypt, this perspective is often that of the king, and there is an assumption that there was a monolithic message sent to his people. But we are not dealing with a homogenous people; a diverse population would have had varied reactions to and interpretations of this visual signaling. By highlighting both the augmentation of traditional motifs undertaken by the Achaemenid administration and the multiplicity of perspectives they held for their audience(s), we can better understand ancient art as being dynamic in function and interpretation, rather than as a static snapshot of carbon-copied royal authority.
Ancient Near East Today, 2022
Ancient Egypt and Early China had no points of contact and did not influence one another. But a c... more Ancient Egypt and Early China had no points of contact and did not influence one another. But a closer look shows both similarities and differences as states tried to control their own worlds and beyond.
Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections , 2020
While many scholars have interpreted Achaemenid religious policy as one of indifference, the insc... more While many scholars have interpreted Achaemenid religious policy as one of indifference, the inscriptions on the Naoforo Vaticano statue of Udjahorresnet tell a different tale. These texts demonstrate a strategic willingness to allow—and even support—heterogeneous religious customs to the benefit of the Achaemenid Empire. On the statue of Udjahorresnet, both the religious and political importance of Neith is clear: She, as the mother of the sun god Re, was at the center of the religious cult in Sais, the political center of power for Egypt’s Twenty-sixth Dynasty. A reading of the inscriptions of Udjahorresnet’s statue reveals a deliberate policy on the part of Cambyses, and later Darius, to reestablish and maintain a critical Egyptian cult, thus imbedding Persian dominion within the religious tradition of Egypt and making a strong political statement.
Invisible Archaeologies: Hidden aspects of daily life in ancient Egypt and Nubia, 2019
Decentralization was a fundamental element of the 21st Dynasty, as the physical split and politic... more Decentralization was a fundamental element of the 21st Dynasty, as the physical split and political division between the Tanite kings and the Theban High Priesthood of Amun illustrated. For the Theban priesthood and their families, this decentralization created complications with regards to social identity. Elite members of Egyptian society traditionally emphasized relationships to the king and highlighted important positions held within the palace structure. With Tanite kingship marginalized to the north at the beginning of the Third Intermediate Period, the Theban ruling priesthood could not use traditional methods of self-identification, such as strong connections to the palace, to maintain and promote their social status. It was thus necessary to prioritize connections to other institutions. The temple was an obvious choice for this theocratic regime, but it was not the only framework for illustrating social status. Family connections also grew in importance during this time of political fragmentation, as the study of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri suggests.
Funerary papyri became common in 21st Dynasty Theban burials, as reliance on extended burial caches and the distillation of the funerary assemblage to mainly the coffin set warranted the incorporation of funerary imagery and text deemed necessary for the deceased to be incorporated into the burial in a more compact way. With this limitation of decorative space to the coffin set and one or two papyri, choices were made regarding the content of the funerary iconography. The relationship between funerary materiality and social identity is constant throughout pharaonic history, but holds a distinct importance in this time of decentralization and crisis. By studying the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri and the specific choices made for their content, one can better understand how the individual socially defined himself or herself by placing increased emphasis on family relationships, ethnic diversity, and hereditary temple titles.
Current Research in Egyptology 2018: Proceedings of the Nineteenth Annual Symposium, Czech Institute of Egyptology, Faculty of Arts, Charles University, Prague, 25-28 June 2018, 2019
Decentralization characterized the 21st Dynasty, resulting from the political division between th... more Decentralization characterized the 21st Dynasty, resulting from the political division between the Tanite kings and the Theban High Priesthood of Amun. For the Theban priesthood, this decentralization created complications with regards to social identity. The temple was an obvious choice for this theocratic regime to physically and socially connect in order to maintain status and identity. These changes also resulted in funerary papyri becoming common in burials, as reliance on extended burial caches and the distillation of the funerary assemblage warranted. With this limitation of decorative space to the coffin set and usually one or two papyri, choices were made regarding the content of the funerary iconography. By studying the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri and the specific choices made for their content, particularly as these choices reflect positions within the priesthood, one can better understand how the individual socially defined himself or herself.
Book Reviews by Marissa Stevens
Bryn Mawr Classical Review, 2017
Rogério Sousa marks the first complete publication of a group of four 21 st Dynasty coffin sets d... more Rogério Sousa marks the first complete publication of a group of four 21 st Dynasty coffin sets discovered in 1891 in the Bab el-Gasus cache of Deir el-Bahri in the Theban necropolis, and now housed in Lisbon. The Bab el-Gasus cache contained 153 21 st Dynasty (1070-945 BCE) coffin sets belonging to members of the Theban priesthood of Amun. This archaeological find was of major significance for Egyptology, particularly in the areas of Egyptian religion, mummification, and coffin studies. Despite its importance, however, the materials of the Bab el-Gasus, scattered across museums worldwide, have received scant and inconsistent scholarly study and publication. Sousa's publication consequently stands as a great contribution to the field of Egyptology and a call for scholars with access to similar material to continue the research dialogue in the field of coffin studies. Sousa's descriptions and commentaries of the four coffin sets are supplemented by 121 black-and-white plates and 16 color plates to provide a full research record of the coffins.
Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt Volume 52, Dec 2016
Edited Volumes (Participant) by Marissa Stevens
All Things Egyptian: An Encyclopedia of the Ancient Egyptian World, 2019
“Ammit,” “Amun,” Amun-Re,” “Aten,” “Atum,” “Horus,” “Introduction,” “Isis,” Mut,” “Osiris,” “Ptah,” “Re,” and “Thoth,” Lincoln Library of World Mythology: Ancient Near East Volume, editor Derek Gleason (Cleveland: The Lincoln Library Press, 2013). Lincoln Library of World Mythology: Ancient Near East Volume, 2013
Conference Papers by Marissa Stevens
Each of the dynasties that comprise the New Kingdom is marked with distinct changes to Egyptian c... more Each of the dynasties that comprise the New Kingdom is marked with distinct changes to Egyptian culture and society. Several of these shifts can be witnessed through the designs of tomb architecture and decoration. While some of these transitions – such as evolving floor plans and decorative motifs – are easier to discern, some changes are more nuanced, difficult to detect, and even more difficult to interpret. One such iconographic theme that warrants temporal study is the depiction of and reference to family members within tomb space. Does the representation of family members change throughout the New Kingdom? If so, what does this change imply with regard to the agency of each individual tomb owner? Finally, what can be extrapolated from this data in order to address the broader social implications of expressed family relationships in mortuary contexts? The proposed poster would showcase a study of a select subset of Theban family tomb depictions from the 18th, 19th, and 20th Dynasties, as well as the general corresponding information of each tomb owner. Through this study, patterns emerge that speak to the changing social mindset from the beginning to the end of the New Kingdom. These changes reflect an increasing importance placed on family connections and an inversely downplayed importance on the deceased’s relationship with the king. Emphasis on family connections can be seen as a mechanism used by the tomb owner to establish himself within society in a meaningful way when an intimate relationship to the throne loses its prestige.
This paper explores the twenty-two monochrome burial chambers in the western cemetery of Deir el-... more This paper explores the twenty-two monochrome burial chambers in the western cemetery of Deir el-Medina. These chambers, constructed and decorated in the Ramesside Period, are best known for their uniquely muted color scheme, consisting of white, yellow, red, and black pigments. When compared with contemporary polychrome tomb chambers, the visual difference is striking. Upon closer inspection, the differences go beyond preferences in color palette. While both monochrome and polychrome tomb chambers feature funerary scenes from the Book of the Dead, the inclusion and exclusion of certain motifs reveal clear patterns, which can only reflect deliberate, religious iconographic choices on behalf of the tomb owner. This calls into direct question the function of the tomb space and decoration. The monochrome tomb chambers feature the same motifs that appear on coffins of the Ramesside era, suggesting that the tomb’s function shifted from a purely transformative religious space to one of a more protective nature. While it cannot be definitively proven due to tomb looting, it seems plausible that this particular theme of tomb decoration was used by individuals that could not afford a coffin, or could not reasonably expect to remain in their coffin indefinitely. As a result, the monochromes could represent a defensive tomb practice by ensuring particular religious motifs exist in the deceased’s space when the assurance of a coffin could not be guaranteed.
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Videos by Marissa Stevens
Book Chapters by Marissa Stevens
Articles by Marissa Stevens
Funerary papyri became common in 21st Dynasty Theban burials, as reliance on extended burial caches and the distillation of the funerary assemblage to mainly the coffin set warranted the incorporation of funerary imagery and text deemed necessary for the deceased to be incorporated into the burial in a more compact way. With this limitation of decorative space to the coffin set and one or two papyri, choices were made regarding the content of the funerary iconography. The relationship between funerary materiality and social identity is constant throughout pharaonic history, but holds a distinct importance in this time of decentralization and crisis. By studying the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri and the specific choices made for their content, one can better understand how the individual socially defined himself or herself by placing increased emphasis on family relationships, ethnic diversity, and hereditary temple titles.
Book Reviews by Marissa Stevens
Edited Volumes (Participant) by Marissa Stevens
Conference Papers by Marissa Stevens
Funerary papyri became common in 21st Dynasty Theban burials, as reliance on extended burial caches and the distillation of the funerary assemblage to mainly the coffin set warranted the incorporation of funerary imagery and text deemed necessary for the deceased to be incorporated into the burial in a more compact way. With this limitation of decorative space to the coffin set and one or two papyri, choices were made regarding the content of the funerary iconography. The relationship between funerary materiality and social identity is constant throughout pharaonic history, but holds a distinct importance in this time of decentralization and crisis. By studying the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri and the specific choices made for their content, one can better understand how the individual socially defined himself or herself by placing increased emphasis on family relationships, ethnic diversity, and hereditary temple titles.
the social identity of elite classes and the funerary materiality of these elites. The correlation between social status and funerary materiality is constant throughout pharaonic history, but the dynamics of the Twenty-first Dynasty ushered in several
changes unique to this time period. First, with a lack of connection to traditional kingship ideals, the elite emphasized personal connections to state temples. Second, defensive burial practices required a more concealed and abbreviated
funerary assemblage, prompting the widespread use of funerary papyri among the elite. Third, these discrete and singular burials permitted women to utilize their own personal funerary assemblages on a par with men for the first time in Egyptian history. Indeed, half of the Twenty-first Dynasty funerary assemblages represent women, and this, coupled with a new freedom of choice in the content of the papyri led to new and innovative ways of illustrating social identity through funerary materiality for men and women alike.
These funerary assemblages consisted mainly of coffin sets and funerary papyri, as burial space was limited and the threat of theft and reuse was high. Much of the funerary iconography used by Twenty-first Dynasty elites were confined to these two object types. Unfortunately, it is all too often the case that coffins and papyri are disassociated from each other, and consequentially disassociated from their original owners. Reconnecting these pieces into cohesive assemblages and then
studying iconography and function as a whole can lead to new insight into the way funerary texts and image were used and provide a social understanding of how the selection of these texts and images reflected the social identity of their owners. It is only by reconnecting these coffins and papyri that one can begin to understand how they functioned in tandem. By looking at a select group of 21st Dynasty funerary assemblages, a greater understanding of social position, self identification, and personal agency for this unique period in Egyptian history can be understood.
Levant, the use of the word “western” is curious and deliberate; so also is the term “foreign lands.” The Levant is not to the west of Egypt, but of Persia proper. It is also no longer a “foreign land,” but part of the same Achaemenid empire as Egypt. This phrase thus presents a discontinuity of directionality and perspective in an Egyptian context, despite being situated in a context of otherizing terminology traditionally used by the Egyptians. It is this tension, and the possible resolution(s) of this tension, that will be explored in this presentation.
Funerary papyri became common in 21st Dynasty Theban burials, as reliance on extended burial caches and the distillation of the funerary assemblage to mainly the coffin set warranted the incorporation of funerary imagery and text deemed necessary for the deceased to be incorporated into the burial in a more compact way. With this limitation of decorative space to the coffin set and one or two papyri, choices were made regarding the content of the funerary iconography. The relationship between funerary materiality and social identity is constant throughout pharaonic history, but holds a distinct importance in this time of decentralization and crisis. By studying the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri and the specific choices made for their content, one can better understand how the individual socially defined himself or herself by placing increased emphasis on family relationships, ethnic diversity, and hereditary temple titles.
Simultaneous to the expansion of coffin reuse, the funerary papyrus as an object type grew in importance to become a standard burial element. While these papyri contained Book of the Dead and Amduat texts, it appears the goal was not to reproduce a “complete” version of any one underworld book, but to provide the deceased with customized and unique components from multiple compositions to represent the individual in a socially defining way. Clearly used as components of social display and competition, these papyri were embedded with elevated meaning. When one cannot place all desired decoration onto a reused coffin, and tomb walls are no longer a canvas for these compositions, how do papyri develop to undertake the burden of both containing sacred texts and representing the individual? By examining the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri, with special attention paid to papyri associated with reused coffins, one can gain a greater understanding of the function of this object type.
Simultaneous to the expansion of coffin reuse in the 21st Dynasty, the funerary papyrus as an object type grew in importance to become a standard element in burials of the Theban priesthood. While these papyri contained Book of the Dead and Amduat texts, it appears the goal was not to reproduce a “complete” version of any one underworld book, but to provide the deceased with customized and unique components from multiple compositions to represent the individual in a socially defining way. Clearly used as components of social display and social competition, these papyri were embedded with elevated meaning when the context of reuse is taken into consideration. When one cannot place all desired text and decoration onto a reused coffin, and the walls of a tomb are no longer a canvas for these compositions, how do funerary papyri develop to undertake the burden of both containing sacred text and representing the individual? By examining the corpus of 21st Dynasty funerary papyri, with special attention paid to papyri associated with reused coffins, one can gain a greater understanding of the function of this object type and its growth during the new decorum of the 21st Dynasty.
These funerary assemblages consisted mainly of coffin sets and funerary papyri, as burial space was limited and the threat of theft and reuse was high. Most of the funerary iconography used by 21st Dynasty elites were confined to these two object types. Studying iconography and function as a whole can lead to new insight into the way funerary texts and image were used and provide a social understanding of how the selection of these texts and images reflected the social identity of their owners. By looking at a select group of 21st Dynasty Bab el-Gasus funerary assemblages, a greater understanding of social position, self-identification, and personal agency for this unique period in Egyptian history can be understood.