Gustave Jéquier
Encyclopedia
Gustave Jéquier, born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland
, in 1868 and died in 1946 in the same city, was an Egyptologist
and one of the first archaeologists
to excavate ancient Persian cities in what is now modern-day Iran
. He was a member of Jacques de Morgan
's 1901 Susa
expedition which led to the discovery of the famous Code of Hammurabi
, now on display in the Louvre
.
Jéquier began his career under the guidance of the Egyptologists Gaston Maspero
and Jacques de Morgan, and specialized in the Predynastic Period
. He participated in major excavations sponsored by the Supreme Council of Antiquities
.
He excavated sites at Saqqara
, Dahshur
, Lisht, and Mazghuna
, and explored pyramids of the Old
and Middle Kingdoms
.
His work on the Pyramid Texts
was a significant step forward in the understanding of these religious works.
Jéquier was an early critic of Eduard Meyer
's Sothic theory, which attempted to fix Egyptian chronology to the Gregorian calendar
.
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, in 1868 and died in 1946 in the same city, was an Egyptologist
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
and one of the first archaeologists
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
to excavate ancient Persian cities in what is now modern-day Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. He was a member of Jacques de Morgan
Jacques de Morgan
Jean-Jacques de Morgan was a French mining engineer , geologist, and archaeologist. He was the director of Antiquities in Egypt during the 19th century , and excavated in Memphis and Dashur, providing many drawings of many Egyptian pyramids...
's 1901 Susa
Susa
Susa was an ancient city of the Elamite, Persian and Parthian empires of Iran. It is located in the lower Zagros Mountains about east of the Tigris River, between the Karkheh and Dez Rivers....
expedition which led to the discovery of the famous Code of Hammurabi
Code of Hammurabi
The Code of Hammurabi is a well-preserved Babylonian law code, dating to ca. 1780 BC . It is one of the oldest deciphered writings of significant length in the world. The sixth Babylonian king, Hammurabi, enacted the code, and partial copies exist on a human-sized stone stele and various clay...
, now on display in the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
.
Jéquier began his career under the guidance of the Egyptologists Gaston Maspero
Gaston Maspero
Gaston Camille Charles Maspero was a French Egyptologist.-Life:Gaston Maspero was born in Paris to parents of Lombard origin. While at school he showed a special taste for history, and by the age of fourteen he was already interested in hieroglyphic writing...
and Jacques de Morgan, and specialized in the Predynastic Period
Predynastic Egypt
The Prehistory of Egypt spans the period of earliest human settlement to the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period of Egypt in ca. 3100 BC, starting with King Menes/Narmer....
. He participated in major excavations sponsored by the Supreme Council of Antiquities
Supreme Council of Antiquities
The Supreme Council of Antiquities is the branch of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture responsible for the conservation, protection and regulation of all antiquities and archaeological excavations in Egypt...
.
He excavated sites at Saqqara
Saqqara
Saqqara is a vast, ancient burial ground in Egypt, serving as the necropolis for the Ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis. Saqqara features numerous pyramids, including the world famous Step pyramid of Djoser, sometimes referred to as the Step Tomb due to its rectangular base, as well as a number of...
, Dahshur
Dahshur
Dahshur , is a royal necropolis located in the desert on the west bank of the Nile approximately 40 kilometres south of Cairo...
, Lisht, and Mazghuna
Mazghuna
Mazghuna , 5 km to the south of Dahshur , is the site of several mudbrick pyramids dating from the 12th Dynasty. The area was explored by Ernest Mackay in 1910, and was excavated by Flinders Petrie in 1911...
, and explored pyramids of the Old
Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom is the name given to the period in the 3rd millennium BC when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of civilization in complexity and achievement – the first of three so-called "Kingdom" periods, which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile Valley .The term itself was...
and Middle Kingdoms
Middle Kingdom of Egypt
The Middle Kingdom of Egypt is the period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the establishment of the Eleventh Dynasty to the end of the Fourteenth Dynasty, between 2055 BC and 1650 BC, although some writers include the Thirteenth and Fourteenth dynasties in the Second Intermediate...
.
His work on the Pyramid Texts
Pyramid Texts
The Pyramid Texts are a collection of ancient Egyptian religious texts from the time of the Old Kingdom. The pyramid texts are possibly the oldest known religious texts in the world. Written in Old Egyptian, the pyramid texts were carved on the walls and sarcophagi of the pyramids at Saqqara during...
was a significant step forward in the understanding of these religious works.
Jéquier was an early critic of Eduard Meyer
Eduard Meyer
Eduard Meyer was a German historian.-Biography:Meyer was born at Hamburg and educated at the Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums and later at the universities of Bonn and Leipzig. After completing his studies, he spent one year in Istanbul. In 1879, he went to the University of Leipzig as privatdocent...
's Sothic theory, which attempted to fix Egyptian chronology to the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...
.
Publications
- Avec J.E. Gautier, Mémoire sur les fouilles de Licht, 1902
- Avec Georges LegrainGeorges LegrainGeorges Legrain was a French Egyptologist.- Research :He was involved in the excavations in Aswan. He spent many years with his research in the Temple of Karnak. Since 1907 he was a main supervisor in Luxor....
et Urbain BouriantUrbain BouriantUrbain Bouriant was a French Egyptologist, who discovered the Gospel of Peter in a tomb at Akhmim. He is best known from his translation of Al-Maqrizi, published as Description topographique et historique de l'Egypte...
, Monuments pour servir à l'étude du culte d'Atonou en Égypte I, 1903 - Décoration égyptienne, plafonds et frises végétales du Nouvel Empire thébain (1400-1000 av. J.-C.), 1911
- Les Temples memphites et thébains des origines à la XVIIIe dynastie, 1920
- Les Temples ramessides et saïtes de la XIXe à la XXXe dynastie, 1922
- Le mastabat Faraoun : douze ans de fouilles à Saqqarah, 1928
- La Pyramide d'Oudjebten, 1928
- Deux pyramides du moyen empire, 1932
- Les pyramides des reines Neit et Apouit, Fouilles à Saqqarah, 1933
- La pyramide d'Aba, 1935
- Rapport préliminaire sur les travaux exécutés en 1935-1936 dans la partie méridionale de la nécropole memphite, ASAE, 1936
- Le monument funéraire de Pépi II, volume I. : Le tombeau royal, 1936 ; volume II. : Le temple, 1938 ; volume III. : Les approches du temple, 1940 - IFAO
- Douze ans de fouilles dans la nécropole memphite, 1924-1936, Université de Neuchâtel, 1940
- Avec Léon et Michel Jéquier, Armorial neuchâtelois. Avec la collaboration de Gustave Jéquier, Neuchâtel, La Baconnière, 1941–1944
- Considérations sur les religions égyptiennes, Neuchâtel, La Baconnière, 1946