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North Side of the West Wall of Nakht's Offering Chapel; Metropolitan Museum of Art
'The Tale of the Two Brothers': a story to unlock Ancient Egypt - five online talks by Professor Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
Tickets from
US$65
31st July 2025
If you wish to register for this series after 31-Jul-25, please e-mail onlinetalks@martinrandall.co.uk
Ancient Egypt, a civilisation of deep antiquity with a profoundly complex history and culture, continues to hold huge appeal for academic and popular audiences alike. But unlocking the rich world of these ancient peoples – with their animal-headed gods, arcane funerary beliefs and complex ideas of rulership and state – can seem overwhelming – even baffling. This series examines the lives and mindset of the ancient Egyptians via a popular folktale created during the New Kingdom (c. 1570-1069 BCE). The Tale of the Two Brothers has all the traditional elements of a good story (talking animals, a heroic quest, a wicked stepmother, and a land far, far away), which allow us to investigate the realities of life at this time, as well as the belief systems and religious thinking that underpinned them. In these carefully illustrated talks, we will discuss Egyptian religion, the body, conceptions of justice and order, attitudes to foreigners, feasting and drinking, and love and sexuality.
They take place every Thursday from 31st July to 28th August 2025 at 4.30pm (London) and, including Q&A, will last just under an hour. They are available for viewing for eight weeks after the last episode is streamed (23rd October 2025).
Talks
After hearing the Two Brothers story itself, the basis for the series, we will focus on certain folkloric themes and motifs that emerge from the story. Particular attention will be given to the ‘Potiphar’s Wife’ motif.
This talk explores the types of places referenced in the story – from the homes of villagers and the ploughed fields of Egypt, to the mysterious Valley of the Pine. Inevitably, we will also look at the space of the living and of the dead.
Represented as a teenage girl, Ma’at was the personification of the most important theological and cultural ideals of the ancient Egyptian – ‘truth’ and ‘justice’ and ‘order.’ Here we examine the role of Ma’at in Egyptian society and how it is reflected in the Tale of the Two Brothers.
The body plays an important role in the story. Handsome bodies, deformed bodies and changeable bodies are all represented in The Tale of the Two Brothers. We will also look at the image of the royal body in ancient Egyptian thought and what it means in The Tale of the Two Brothers.
Our final talk explores Egyptian conceptions of sex and sexuality and the use of eroticism in The Tale of the Two Brothers. We will also look at the notion of feasting and celebrations for the dead in the ‘Beautiful Festival’.
Expert speaker
Reverend Professor Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
A renowned historian with an extensive publication portfolio, Lloyd’s scholarship spans global histories, with an emphasis on cultural interconnections through diplomacy, trade, literature, art and architecture. He has spent considerable time researching in Egypt, Iran, Japan, China and Cambodia and has major interests in the ancient, medieval and early modern Middle East, Far East and South East Asia, with a special focus on court society, monarchy and nobility. He is a regular guest on podcasts such as Empires hosted by William Dalrymple and The Ancients. In addition, he is an ordained priest in the Church in Wales.
More tours led by Reverend Professor Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
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