Raymond Weill (28 January 1874 – 13 July 1950) was a French archaeologist specialized in

Egyptology Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , '' -logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native relig ...

Biography

Born on 28 January 1874 in

Elbeuf Elbeuf () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography A light industrial town situated by the banks of the Seine some south of Rouen at the junction of the D7, D321 and the D313 roads. ...

, 28 January 1874 in

began his career in the military before starting a career with

Gaston Maspero Sir Gaston Camille Charles Maspero (23 June 1846 – 30 June 1916) was a French Egyptologist known for popularizing the term "Sea Peoples" in an 1881 paper. Maspero's son, Henri Maspero, became a notable sinologist and scholar of East Asia ...

at the

École pratique des hautes études The École pratique des hautes études (), abbreviated EPHE, is a Grand Établissement in Paris, France. It is highly selective, and counted among France's most prestigious research and higher education institutions. It is a constituent college o ...

at the age of 30, where he taught from 1928 to 1945. He specialized in the history of Ancient Egypt, specifically the

Second Intermediate Period The Second Intermediate Period marks a period when ancient Egypt fell into disarray for a second time, between the end of the Middle Kingdom and the start of the New Kingdom. The concept of a "Second Intermediate Period" was coined in 1942 b ...

. He published several works on the end of the

12th dynasty The Twelfth Dynasty of ancient Egypt (Dynasty XII) is considered to be the apex of the Middle Kingdom by Egyptologists. It often is combined with the Eleventh, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth dynasties under the group title, Middle Kingdom. Some ...

and the

Hyksos Hyksos (; Egyptian '' ḥqꜣ(w)- ḫꜣswt'', Egyptological pronunciation: ''hekau khasut'', "ruler(s) of foreign lands") is a term which, in modern Egyptology, designates the kings of the Fifteenth Dynasty of Egypt (fl. c. 1650–1550 BC). T ...

. Towards the end of his life, he came to the conviction that Hyksos had reigned as local kings in the

Nile Delta The Nile Delta ( ar, دلتا النيل, or simply , is the delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to ...

during the late 12th Dynasty. Weill was one of the first archaeologists to undertake excavations in Wadi Hilweh, Jerusalem, a site he first referred to as "

City of David "City of David" is a biblical and religious epithet for the ancient city of Jerusalem. It may also refer to: * City of David (archaeological site) - an archaeological excavation associated with ancient Jerusalem * Jerusalem Walls National Park ...

" after identifying it as the place where

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

is said to have set up his capital. He died on 13 July 1950 in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

Works

* ''Les Décrets Royaux de l'Ancien Égyptien … étude sur les décrets royaux trouvés à Koptos … 1910 et 1911.'' 1912. * ''La fin du Moyen Empire Égyptien: étude sur les monuments et l'histoire de la période comprise entre la 12e et la 18e dynastie.'' 1918. * ''La Cité de David, 1913-1914'', Paris: P. Geuthner, 1920. * ''Bases, méthodes et resultats de la Chronologie Égyptienne.'' 1926–1928. * ''Douzième Dynastie, royauté de Haute-Égypte et domination Hyksos dans le nord.'' 1953 (postum).

Bibliography

* Morris L. Bierbrier: ''Who Was Who in Egyptology''. 4th revised edition. Egypt Exploration Society, London 2012, , p. 571.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weill, Raymond 1874 births 1950 deaths École pratique des hautes études alumni École pratique des hautes études faculty French Egyptologists People from Elbeuf