Papyrus Speaks: Ancient Egypt in Its Own Words

Schedule

Mon, 21 Sep, 2026 at 05:30 pm

UTC+12:00
Location

Tūhura Otago Museum | Dunedin, OT

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Dr Michael Zellmann-Rohrer, a rising star of Australian humanities research, brings the voices of ancient Egypt back to life through papyrus – the plant-based writing material that carried the words of the ancient world for thousands of years.
In this talk, Michael introduces papyrology with a focus on collections held here in Aotearoa New Zealand, including Tūhura's own. Surviving papyri date from the third millennium BCE to the first millennium CE, preserving everything from literature and spiritual texts to the everyday business of daily life. Though used across the Mediterranean, papyrus survives in bulk only in Egypt's dry climate – making it a key source for Egyptian, Greek, Roman, and Near Eastern history alike.
Dr Michael Zellmann is a palaeographer, epigraphist, and papyrologist researching ancient religion and magic. He is a Gale Research Fellow at Macquarie University, Sydney, and a Director-at-Large of the American Society of Papyrologists. In 2024 he was named one of ten "rising stars" by the Australian Academy of the Humanities.
5.30pm, Monday 21 September
Hutton Theatre
Free
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Where is it happening?

Tūhura Otago Museum, 419 Great King St N, North Dunedin, Dunedin 9016, New Zealand, Dunedin

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