Archaeology | Penn Today

Meskalamdug's Helmet: One of the world's oldest helmets depicts a Mesopotamian prince's man bun

The Penn Museum contains one copy of Meskalamdug’s helmet, a 15-karat gold helmet discovered in a royal tomb at the ancient Mesopotamian city of Ur.

Lynn Meskell elected Fellow to the British Academy

The honor recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding contributions to the humanities and social sciences.

3 min. read

Archaeologists discover untouched tomb linked to King Midas’ dynasty: ‘High level of wealth’

C. Brian Rose of the School of Arts & Sciences and colleagues at the Penn Museum have uncovered a tomb in Turkey linked to the family of King Midas.

Archaeologists found a 2,700-year-old tomb. It may be home to King Midas’s family

Brian Rose of the School of Arts & Sciences and Penn Museum discusses the excavation of a tomb in Turkey related to King Midas’s dynasty.

Archaelogists performing a dig in Egypt.

Penn Museum and Egyptian archaeologists unearth a 3,600-year-old tomb from the lost Abydos dynasty

The excavation will continue through 2025, which includes protection, site management, and conservation of the structures. "This discovery is a new window to understanding the origins of the enigmatic Abydos Dynasty,” says Josef Wegner, Penn Museum curator of the Egyptian Section and professor of Egyptian Archaeology.

2 min. read

Archaeologists uncover an ancient Egyptian tomb belonging to a mystery king

“It’s a very sort of mysterious, enigmatic dynasty that seems to have basically been sort of forgotten from the ancient records of Egypt,” says Josef Wagner of the Penn Museum and School of Arts & Sciences in discussing an Egyptian king’s tomb discovered by Penn archaeologists.

Archaeologists discovered a mysterious pharaoh from a war-ridden era of ancient Egypt. Take a look inside his tomb

Josef Wegner of the Penn Museum and School of Arts & Sciences, a leader of the team that uncovered an Egyptian tomb, says, “Discovering king’s tombs, new pharaohs, are few and far between.”

Pa. museum archaeologists discover ancient tomb

Researchers from the Penn Museum and Egyptian archaeologists uncovered the tomb of an unknown Egyptian pharaoh who ruled during a turbulent period about 3,600 years ago, with remarks from Josef Wegner of the School of Arts & Sciences.

Archaeologists find huge tomb of unknown pharaoh in Egypt

Josef Wegner of the School of Arts & Sciences and Penn Museum led a team of American archaeologists working with Egyptian researchers to unearth the tomb of an unknown pharaoh at an Egyptian necropolis in ancient Abydos.

Tomb of unidentified ancient Egyptian pharaoh discovered

Josef Wegner of the Penn Museum and School of Arts & Sciences discusses the discovery of an Egyptian king’s tomb by Penn archaeologists.

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