EGYPT IN SWANSEA: A 2,000-year-old ‘magic’ stone that warded off crocodiles is now on show in the city

A free summer exhibition pairing an ancient Egyptian treasure with artwork by Swansea schoolchildren is now open to the public.

Ancient Egypt: magic and medicine has opened at Swansea University’s Egypt Centre, where it will run until 20 September.

At its heart is a cippus — a hieroglyph-inscribed stone, more than 2,000 years old, on loan from the British Museum.

To the ancient Egyptians, the cippus was a magical object, believed to shield people from dangers such as lions and crocodiles.

The protection came from spells carved into the stone, with the god Horus shown overpowering the threats and the face of the household-protector deity Bes above him.

Around it sits a burst of colour from much younger hands: brightly painted masks, collages, models and a full-sized sarcophagus made by pupils at Terrace Road and St Helen’s primary schools.

The children’s work earned its place beside the treasure through months of sessions with curators, after the schools were chosen to help bring the loan to the city.

The project is part of the British Museum in Your Classroom programme, which puts real ancient objects in front of children who might never otherwise encounter one.

Its high point came when the cippus itself travelled to both schools, letting pupils meet the 2,000-year-old object face to face.

Egypt Centre curator Dr Ken Griffin, whose own fascination with Egyptology started with a childhood museum trip, said the pupils’ enthusiasm had produced some wonderful art.

“We are so lucky to have been able to work with the British Museum on this project and to welcome this remarkable ancient Egyptian cippus to Swansea,” he said.

Teacher Tim Sudbury, from St Helen’s Primary, said the pride had been visible when the stone was displayed alongside the children’s creations.

“When the cippus visited our school and was displayed alongside their work you could see the sense of pride in the faces of the pupils and their parents,” he said.

He said the project had left the children far more curious about the ancient world.

John Stokes, head of national programmes at the British Museum, said the aim was to instil the wonder of meeting an ancient object first-hand and to inspire “a new generation of museumgoers.”

Visitors to the exhibition can also see the Egypt Centre’s own pieces, among them a 3,200-year-old ostracon — a limestone fragment once used to write a letter.

The centre, on Swansea University’s Singleton Park campus, holds thousands of Egyptian artefacts and is free to visit year-round.

For families looking for something to do over the summer, the exhibition offers a rare chance to see a British Museum object up close in Swansea.

Ancient Egypt: magic and medicine is open from 10am to 6pm, Tuesday to Saturday, until 20 September. Entry is free.

The launch was attended by schools, university staff, volunteers and Swansea West MP Torsten Bell, alongside some of the young artists whose work is now on show.

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SWANSEA: Pupils help bring a 2,500-year-old treasure to the city as their own Egypt work goes on show

Children from two Swansea primary schools have helped bring a 2,500-year-old Egyptian treasure to the city — and their own work is now on display beside it.

Pupils at Terrace Road and St Helen’s primary schools took part in the first Welsh “British Museum in your classroom” scheme, which brings world-class artefacts and learning directly into schools.

As part of the project, the children helped choose an ancient cippus — a carved Egyptian healing statue — from the British Museum‘s collection.

The 2,500-year-old artefact was taken into their classrooms before going on display at Swansea University’s Egypt Centre.

The pupils then created their own array of work exploring ancient healing, belief and everyday life in Egypt, including building their own sarcophagus and producing artwork.

Much of it is now on show as part of the centre’s summer exhibition, Ancient Egypt: Magic and Medicine, sitting alongside the British Museum loan.

Swansea West MP Torsten Bell, who opened the exhibition, said he had been struck by what the schools produced.

“I have been completely blown away by the imagination and hard work of these two wonderful schools,” he said.

He said seeing the children’s work displayed alongside a statue that had travelled from ancient Egypt via the British Museum was something they should be proud of.

He encouraged local families, residents and visitors to head to the Egypt Centre over the summer to see the exhibition for themselves.

The project is the latest chapter for a centre that has had a busy couple of years.

It reopened in April after a major revamp, including a transformed House of Death gallery with staff and supporters’ names inscribed in hieroglyphs on the ceiling.

That followed a £300,000 Welsh Government funding boost to improve its facilities and let visitors experience the sounds and smells of ancient Egypt.

The Ancient Egypt: Magic and Medicine exhibition runs until 20 September, open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10am to 4pm. Entry is free.

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SWANSEA: Egypt Centre reopens after major revamp — with staff names written in hieroglyphs on the ceiling

The museum, based on the university’s Singleton Park campus, closed its doors six months ago to undergo the renovation. Visitors returning to the House of Death gallery — home to some of the centre’s most celebrated ancient Egyptian artefacts — will find a transformed space with immersive tomb scenes painted along the walls, new information panels, modernised display cases and a series of discovery drawers giving visitors closer access to the collection than ever before.

Around 650 objects are now on display in the gallery, including 250 in the new drawers, which allow visitors to uncover items from the collection at close range.

Curator Dr Ken Griffin oversaw the entire project, including the painstaking task of arranging the display of each object. He said the refurbishment was driven by a desire to deepen the connection between the museum and its community.

“Looking up at the ceiling — where the names of our staff, volunteers, and even pets are inscribed in hieroglyphs — reminds us that while this gallery explores the ancient past, it is a living space built for the future of our community,” Dr Griffin said.

The vaulted ceiling is the centrepiece of the revamped gallery. Alongside the staff and volunteer names, a separate section is dedicated to members of the public who helped support the refurbishment financially.

Dr Griffin added: “We are thrilled to be able to welcome the public and local schools back. The new layout, with its vibrant tomb scenes and clever discovery drawers, allows us to showcase more of our collection than ever before. Thanks to the generous support of the Welsh Government’s Cultural Transformation Capital Grant Programme, the Wolfson Foundation, and the Garfield Weston Foundation, we have transformed the space from a gallery into a truly immersive journey.”

The refurbishment has been designed with school visits in mind, with the new layout aligned to the curriculum and the tactile discovery drawers offering a hands-on learning experience for younger visitors.

Dulcie Engel, who has volunteered at the centre for almost 12 years, was among the first to see the new gallery. “The first impression is one of spaciousness,” she said. “The lighting in the cases and new labels are truly visitor friendly. And I love the ceiling of night stars and cartouches, which includes my name!”

She added: “The murals of tomb paintings set the scene as soon as the doors open. I think everybody will be blown away by this transformation.”

The Egypt Centre is one of the leading Egyptology museums in the UK, holding a collection of around 6,000 objects spanning thousands of years of ancient Egyptian history. It is free to visit and open to the public on the Singleton Park campus.

Further information is available at egypt.swansea.ac.uk.

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From Young Carer to Changemaker: Neath Graduate’s Journey of Strength and Self-Discovery

For most students, graduation marks the end of a journey. For 25-year-old Karen Armitage from Neath, it’s the beginning of something far bigger — a life built not only on academic achievement, but on extraordinary compassion, resilience and quiet advocacy.

Last week, Karen graduated from Swansea University with a degree in Egyptology and Ancient History. But behind the cap and gown is a story of a young woman who spent much of her childhood supporting three generations of her family, while navigating undiagnosed dyslexia and personal health struggles.

Karen’s caregiving journey began when she was just nine, stepping in to support siblings while her parents faced ongoing mental health challenges. By her teens, she had taken on a near full-time role at home, including caring for her grandparents and helping her younger siblings through their autism diagnoses.

“By 15, I realised I was in charge of my household,” she said. “And I’ve really been in that role ever since.”

At school, academic challenges began to mount — exacerbated by a severe bout of glandular fever and the ongoing effects of what would later be diagnosed as dyslexia. Her diagnosis didn’t come until 2016, and Karen describes it as “the first time I felt truly seen.”

Despite setbacks, a seed of curiosity remained — especially for history. That spark was reignited during the COVID-19 lockdown, when Karen found the space to re-evaluate her future. She enrolled at Swansea University, where she’d previously volunteered at the Egypt Centre, and began to pursue her academic dream in earnest.

University life brought new purpose. Karen became a vocal advocate for inclusion, serving as a subject and school rep and helping to build support networks for fellow student carers. Her lived experience, she says, shaped everything.

“My brain naturally looks for ways to reduce stress for people who are often overlooked,” Karen said. “Everything I do is shaped by my role as a carer and by my siblings’ neurodivergence.”

She now plans to pursue a master’s degree in public history and heritage, alongside her work as a Part-Time Officer at the Students’ Union — a role through which she hopes to strengthen access, visibility, and belonging for students from all walks of life.

Karen also shares credit with those who’ve grown alongside her. “Mum and I are more of a team now,” she said. “And I’m so proud of her for stepping up while I’m at university.”

“Being the first in my direct family to graduate is something I’m deeply proud of. But the best part is seeing the opportunities my siblings now have. While I missed out on a lot in childhood, I’m so grateful to see them live theirs fully.”

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#AncientHistory #dyslexia #education #EgyptCentre #Egyptology #Graduation #heritage #history #Neath #SwanseaUniversity #YoungCarers

Swansea University’s Egypt Centre is set to revamp and improve its House of Death gallery after securing the support from the Cultural Transformation Capital Grant Programme.

The award-winning Centre at the Singleton Campus is Wales’ only dedicated museum of ancient Egyptian antiquities and attracts around 20,000 visitors every year.

It is home to several internationally significant collections and most recently took possession of a restored coffin that dates back more than 2,000 years.

The House of Death gallery has not been redeveloped since the museum opened over 25 years ago. Staff say the funding will enable them to bring the Egypt Centre up to current sector standards, enhance access to the collection, and attract new and diverse audiences with the support of volunteers, schools, and community organisations.

The improvements will see the:

• Creation of more spaces for interactive experiences include smellscapes and soundscapes;
• Installation of automatic doors to the galleries to make them more accessible for wheelchairs;
• New improved cases to display more objects and under better environmental/lighting; and,
• New interpretation panels and labels to reflect current research.

Curator Dr Ken Griffin said:

“We are absolutely thrilled to have received this grant. The redevelopment of the House of Death gallery has been a long-term ambition of the Egypt Centre and this funding will help us achieve that. 

“We are grateful to the Welsh Government for their support, and we are excited to share our redevelopment plans as the work progresses.”

The project at the Egypt Centre was one of six cultural schemes to receive funding in 2024/25 from the Cultural Transformation Capital Grant Programme which helps organisations preserve collections for future generations, as well as improve accessibility and sustainability.

Jack Sargeant MS, Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership said:

“It’s great news that the House of Death gallery in its new form will be accessible to many more people for years to come.

“The Egypt Centre is a fantastic resource for learning and engagement, and I’m delighted the funding has enabled Swansea University to redevelop this gallery for the first time, making more of its collections accessible.”

The work at the gallery is set to be carried out in towards the end of 2025 and Dr Griffin said the Egypt Centre will continue to look to the future. It is currently applying for additional grants to secure around £800,000 towards ambitious plans to develop the museum facilities.

[Lead image: Swansea University]

https://swanseabaynews.com/2024/10/07/university-egypt-centre-wins-major-funding-boost-to-improve-facilities/

#EgyptCentre #SwanseaUniversity #WelshGovernment

The artefact, believed to date back to around 650 BC, is now at Swansea University’s award-winning Egypt Centre once again after thousands of hours of conservation work at Cardiff University.

The coffin, originally made for a man called Ankhpakhered in the city of Thebes, was transported back under the watchful eye of the museum’s curator Dr Ken Griffin.

Dr Griffin speaking on the resteration work put in said:

“The coffin had to be painstakingly cleaned, reconstructed, and consolidated to prevent it from deteriorating further and we are thrilled to have it back again.

“It was gifted to us by Aberystwyth University in 1997 but details about its history are sketchy. It actually ended up being used as a storage box at one time, with other Egyptian objects placed in it for safekeeping.”

Appropriately enough, among those on hand to carefully unpack it on its arrival was museum manager Wendy Goodridge, who had originally brought the coffin to Cardiff’s School of History, Archaeology and Religion.

She said: “We weren’t sure what they would be able to do with it as it was in such a poor state. To see it now, so wonderfully restored after so much hard work, is beyond the wildest dreams we had back then. It has definitely been worth waiting for.”

During its time in Cardiff it has been worked on by conservation experts and generations of students. Cardiff University’s Phil Parkes explained that the wooden coffin was covered in textile and then had a thin layer of decorated plaster over the top.

He said: “Much of that textile had become detached over time and was just hanging loose. The separate wooden head was detached and there were a couple of large pieces of wood missing, the side of the base had fallen off and it was in a very sorry condition overall.

“The students have brought it back to a condition where the entire coffin is now stable and can go on display.”

Dr Griffin added: “It is fantastic that it has played such a unique role in so many students’ learning – we know of at least 50 who have used it as part of their research. Besides being such an interesting piece of history, it has played a part in shaping the skills of our future experts.”

Now the coffin has been repaired, brightly coloured depictions of Egyptian gods and hieroglyphs bearing messages for the afterlife can be clearly seen, allowing Egyptologists to gain a better understanding of its history.

They say markings on the lid show that it was later used for another occupant, a man called Djedher, but when it arrived in the UK at the turn of the century it actually contained a different mummy, a female. It is speculated that this body may have been put in there to increase the coffin’s sale value to eager British collectors at the time.

The coffin is currently in storage but it is planned to put it on display in the House of Death gallery at the Egypt Centre.

To read more about the coffin’s history, complete with photographs and 3D images, go to Dr Griffin’s latest blog

[Lead image: Swansea University]

https://swanseabaynews.com/2024/09/01/coffin-finally-returns-to-the-egypt-centre-after-remarkable-restoration-project/

#EgyptCentre #restoration #SwanseaUniversity