How Beer Made Kings in Early Egypt

Explore Abydos archaeology in a virtual lecture on Thursday, Oct. 14. The remains of a 5000 year old brewery found in the ancient Egyptian city of Abydos are providing insights into the relationship between large-scale beer production and the development of kingship in Egypt. Archaeological evidence indicates that the Abydos brewery produced beer on a truly industrial scale—something unparalleled in early Egypt. Matthew Adams, director of Abydos archaeology and senior research scholar at the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University, will share findings from recent excavations at the brewery and will consider it in context as part of a broad pattern of royal activity at the site that served to define the very nature of kingship at the beginning of Egypt’s history. This free event is presented by the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East and the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture.