Holidays of the Ancient World

About Dr. Colleen Darnell

A Yale-trained Egyptologist, Dr. Colleen Darnell has traveled the world researching hieroglyphic inscriptions. She led an archaeological expedition in Egypt that discovered a fifteen-hundred year old Roman settlement in the Eastern Desert, and with her husband, Professor John Darnell, published the first complete English translation of the texts in the Valley of the Kings. Dr. Darnell was the first to identify works of historical fiction written by the ancient Egyptians themselves. Colleen and her husband Professor John Darnell have been hard at work on an exciting new biography of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, the parents of King Tut, entitled Egypt's Golden Couple: When Akhenaten and Nefertiti Were Gods on Earth, published November 1, 2022 by St Martin's Press. She shares her passion for Egyptology with “kids” of all ages.

About the class

It’s the holiday season, so around the world communities are getting together to give thanks, celebrate the dawn of a new year, and honor the most important people and traditions of their religions–just as people have done for many thousands of years. And in this live, interactive class, we invite you to celebrate the tradition of holidays themselves by learning about the holidays of the ancient world. Join archaeologist and Egyptologist Dr. Colleen Darnell to examine holidays from Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, Asia, the Americas, and beyond.