Dan Jackson/Manifest Photography -Haggadah Project

Motez talked about the Nubians being African and that they are envied by the Egyptians for their beauty. He said that the ancients used to say their dark skin was a gift from the Gods. Interesting that the Ancients would have held another race in such high regard. The evidence IS there though. Ramses II’s favourite wife Nefirtiri was Nubian. He built and dedicated a massive temple to her at Abu Simbel that I will visit in a few days. The idea that the Ancient Egyptians would allow someone of a different ethnicity to play a role in the Pharaonic government is an extremely important concept for my book. It’s indicative of a society that exhibits tolerance, even reverence for other cultures. It contradicts the biblical characterization of a brutal and racially intolerant regime.

The Egyptian government tightly controls the dissemination of information regarding Ancient Egypt. For a guide to discuss anything about the Ancients is taboo I’ve learned. I’ll discuss it with the Egyptologist I’ve hired in Cairo.