Excavating Meroe (Sudan): or Calgarians on the Nile

Join us for our November Lecture Series talk, Excavating Meroe (Sudan): or Calgarians on the Nile, as part of the ASA Calgary Lecture Series, partnered with the Calgary Public Library! This in-person event will be held at the Central Library - Room 3-16B. Secure your spot now!

Presenter: Dr. Kris Grzymnski

Date: November19, 2025

Time: Lecture start at 7:00p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

Location: Central Library - Room 3-16B

ABSTRACT:

The site of Meroe in the Sudan is one of the largest archaeological sites in Africa. It was the residence of the royal family of the ancient Kingdom of Kush from at least the 6th century BC until 3rd century AD. Archaeological explorations carried out in the 20th century unearthed numerous temples, palaces and domestic structures. Some of the most important discoveries were made in the 1970s by a joint University of Khartoum – University of Calgary expedition led by Professor Peter Shinnie. The Canadian – Sudanese fieldwork at Meroe was resumed in 1999 with the Royal Ontario Museum replacing the University of Calgary as partner to the University of Khartoum. The co-directors of this project were Shinnie’s former students, Ali Osman and Krzysztof Grzymski. Political upheavals, the pandemic and civil war in the Sudan brought archaeological and conservation work at Meroe to an end.

ABOUT OUR SPEAKER:

Dr. Krysztof Grzymski

Curator Emeritus, Egypt and Nubia

Royal Ontario Museum

Dr. Krzysztof Grzymski was until recently a Senior Curator at the Royal Ontario Museum and is presently Curator Emeritus of ROM's Egypt and Nubia collection. From 2004 until 2011 he also served as Vice-President in charge of the art and archaeology collection. He also served for many years as Vice-President of the Canadian Institute in Egypt. Dr. Grzymski also serves as Associate Professor of Egyptian and Nubian archaeology in the Department of Near & Middle Eastern Civilizations at the University of Toronto. Born in Kalisz, Poland, Dr. Grzymski joined the ROM in 1984. His work has included developing the Museum’s Egyptian and Nubian Galleries (opened in 1992). He curated several feature exhibitions including, The Gold of Meroe (1994), Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids (2000), and Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from the British Museum (2004). He also served as curator for Out of the Vaults: Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead (2009) and the Fryderyk Chopin and the Romantic Piano (2010) exhibitions.

Dr. Grzymski is active field archaeologist and in 1993 and 1994 he co-directed a joint Canadian-Egyptian excavation project at Pelusium West (North Sinai). Since 1982, he has directed numerous field projects in Sudanese Nubia, involving the excavation, survey and conservation in the Letti Basin, at Hambukol and co-directing the joint ROM - University of Khartoum project at the site of Meroe.

With gratitude for the first, past and present caretakers of the land now also known as Calgary, including the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksika, Kainai, Piikani), the Tsuut’ina, the Îyârhe (Stoney) Nakoda Nations, the Otipemisiwak Métis Government and Métis nation, and all people who make their homes in the Treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta.

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