Egyptology PhD / MPhil

Research themes

Our research themes are:

• Fieldwork and material culture studies: Excavation, finds processing and landscape studies including relations with the desert margins – Ancient Egyptian technology – Museum-based studies – The architecture of tombs and temples – The epigraphic recording of the texts and pictures on tomb walls and ancient quarries
• Textual sources & studies: Primary editions and translations of hieroglyphic, cursive hieratic texts or Coptic texts – The nature and use of Egyptian literature: literary criticism, authorship and audience, transmission and the performance of Egyptian literature, ritual and theology, the study of documentary texts as sources of law, administration and social history – Formal linguistic research into the grammar and structure of the ancient language, its writing systems, and the 3,000-year history of the language
• Integration of material, pictorial and textual sources: The ritual landscape of Egypt – The social, cultural and political history of the Ramesside Period – The Old Kingdom and early Egyptian religion and society – Social History and Economic History – Social Anthropology and Ethnography of Pharaonic Egypt.

We particularly welcome research proposals that match those of our researchers including the collection, analysis and interpretation of primary source materials, the excavation and recording of archaeological sites, the study of all categories of material culture, the study of the ancient Egyptian language and its texts (hieroglyphic, cursive hieratic texts or Coptic) and the recreation of ancient Egyptian society in all its aspects. We also welcome interdisciplinary projects focusing on relations between Egypt and the Near East, and Graeco-Roman Egypt.

Facilities

A key focus of our research activities is the Garstang Museum of Archaeology, one of the most important collections of antiquities in the UK including material culture objects excavated in Egypt, the Aegean, Sudan and the Near East. We also maintain research collaborations with other important Egyptological collections in the North West, including those hosted by the Liverpool World Museum and the Manchester Museum.

Our research is supported by excellent library specialist collections including extensive digital resources, bibliographical tools, online reference materials, subject-oriented search engines, and specialist books and journals held in the Sydney Jones and the Harold Cohen libraries of the University of Liverpool (open 24/7 during term time).

Training is available in a wide range of ancient languages, including Egyptian, Coptic, Greek, Latin, Sumerian and Akkadian. Students can also study modern languages which may be necessary for their research via Liverpool’s flagship Open Languages programme.

In 2015 our archaeological science facilities were substantially expanded, with the establishment of the Elizabeth Slater Archaeology Research Laboratories and a dedicated Research Microscopy suite. These facilities support departmental staff & student research on archaeobotany & anthracology, archaeozoology, archaeomaterials, human remains & stable isotopes, lithics & ceramics, post-excavation analysis, GIS applications, experimental archaeology and archaeological photography.

Postgraduate researchers are also allocated shared office space with lockers and data points, access to networked PCs with specialist software, free printing and inter-library loans.

Our postgraduate research community benefits from funding support made available to PGRs to undertake fieldwork and other forms of primary data collection, attend academic conferences in the UK and abroad, and organize postgraduate research events. In addition to the funding and training opportunities provided by the Liverpool Doctoral College, the School of Histories, Languages and Cultures (HLC) and ACE have dedicated budgets for supporting PGR research and training activities including:

• HLC Postgraduate Research Fund (Postgraduate travel and research expenses: up to £500 per year for full-time/FT PGRs; £250 per year for part-time/PT).

• The Peet Travel Award (up to £500) is available to support travel and associated costs for research into the archaeology and languages of the pre-Classical Mediterranean, including Egypt and the Near East, as well as the archaeology of early Greece and Rome.

• Dedicated, tailored support for PGR applications to external competitive funding schemes (e.g., PGR funding opportunities available through independent bodies such as the Arts & Humanities Research Council, the British Institute at Ankara, the British Schools in Athens and Rome, the British Institute for the Study of Iraq, the Council for British Research in the Levant, the Egypt Exploration Society, etc.)

Research groups

Our Egyptology research group provides a dynamic forum for the exchange of new concepts and cutting-edge knowledge produced by staff and postgraduate researchers. This is achieved through our dedicated seminar series which provide opportunities for academic and research staff, and research postgraduates to present their research, develop their research profile, and interact with other leading figures in their fields from the UK and abroad who participate in departmental research events as invited speakers.

The fees below reflect one year of study during the 2024/25 academic year

The fees stated in the table above exclude potential research support fees also known as ‘bench fees’. You will be notified of any fee which may apply in your offer letter.

* Please note that if you are undertaking a PhD within the Faculty of Science and Engineering the fee you pay, Band A or Band B, will reflect the nature of your research project. Some research projects incur a higher fee than others e.g. if you are required to undertake laboratory work. You will be informed of the fee for your programme in your offer letter.

^ Self-funded, full-time international students studying a PhD programme classified as Band A will receive a £2,000 reduction in their fees for the first year only.