Hi ,

Welcome to November's edition of my Friends' Catchup - the last one before Christmas - and a big hello to those of you who've who's recently joined up 👋

I've had lots on over November, mostly notably I've done two talks, a new project page for Tiny Egypt, a bunch of work on my online shop, and a trip to Bolton to get my Tiny Egypt wishlist going.

In this month's newsletter:

• Update: November talks, Tiny Egypt project page, Tiny Egypt Society and the online shop
• Photo of the month: a teeny tiny agate arrowhead
• A dose of inspiration: Susanna Clarke's Piranesi
• Wise words: my favourite Agatha Christie quote

Updates

November talks

I did two talks in November: one for the EES's online lecture series about Tiny Egypt, and one for Manchester Museum volunteers for the museum's To Have and To Heal project.

The EES talk went so well; I was really happy with it. I was quite nervous, as I'm not used to doing talks, but it all ran smoothly and there were a lot of people there, which was really encouraging. I had some really interesting questions to answer, as well as some wonderful comments from attendees in the Zoom chat. So, to any of you here that came along: thank you!

I know some of you have said that you wanted to attend but couldn't, so I may look at doing the talk again soon myself.

Manchester was another really enjoyable day. First, I talked to the museum volunteers about the photography I did for To Have and To Heal. Then the second half I focussed on how they can use photography as a mindful pastime, with an emphasis on photography at museums and heritage attractions.

Again, the mindful photography part is something I think I'll looking at doing again, perhaps as an online talk, so watch this space!

• See the To Have and To Heal photos on Flickr

Tiny Egypt project page

I've just put together a proper project page on the website for Tiny Egypt.

Previously, I had two pages: a page for photos - a kind of 'gallery' page - which sat alongside galleries for other projects I've worked on, and then a page for supporters.

I've merged the two now, so I have one page with an introduction to the project, the project parameters, a few photos (which I'll swap around from time to time), a link to blog posts relating to the project, and a section for supporters.

I shall probably continue to tinker with it, as you do with website pages, but I think it's an improvement upon what I had previously.

• Tiny Egypt project page here

Tiny Egypt Society

The Tiny Egypt Society now has its inaugural members (woohoo!), who had their first members' update the other day about my day rifling through drawers of artefacts at Bolton. They're lovely, amazing people for becoming patrons of the project 💓

I'll be sending out a wee gift of a postcard with a personalised message to members to say thanks for their support, so if you're thinking of becoming a patron, if do so before Friday 3 December, you'll get in on the postcard list. Membership is done on a pay-what-you-can basis, from only £1.00 per month, and you get your first month half price. So, you could get a year's membership for £11.50. Just click on the link for the Tiny Egypt project page above to join.

Online shop

When the pandemic first hit in 2020, my suppliers had massive problems getting in stock, and delivery companies were experiencing huge delays. Because of that, I decided to temporarily remove a number of items from my online shop, and the whole thing's sat fairly fallow for 18 months.

Despite issues caused by Brexit and by ongoing issues with driver shortages, things are more buoyant than they were, so I spent a significant part of the second half of November reinstating items, and adding new ones, including:

• long-sleeve t-shirts
• lots more t-shirt and hoodie colours
• an Egyptologist at Work tote bag
• more mug designs
• the addition of inclusive sizes. Classic-fit t-shirts now have a few colours available from XXSmall up to 5XL size, and Jet Black and Oxford Blue hoodies are available up to 5XL

Photo of the month

This month's photo is of an agate arrowhead, photographed in November 2018 for the Garstang Museum's Before Egypt exhibition.

It may not look like much at first glance, but this arrowhead is 1.6 cm long, and can sit on the tip of your finger.

Because it's transluscent, I decided to try photographing it over a lightpad, so the light would shine through to reveal textures and details you might not otherwise see. It was the first time I'd used a lightpad in this way, so you can probably understand why I was so excited when I saw what I could achieve with it.

You can read in more detail how I photographed this arrowhead, as well as a fishtail knife, in this blog post:

• Photographing flint tools using a lightbox

A dose of inspiration

This month's dose of inspiration is Susanna Clarke's novel Piranesi.

Piranesi is one of the most imaginative, beautiful tales I've read in a long time. Piranesi lives in the House, wandering its countless Halls and Vestibules. The ground floor contains oceans, the third floor clouds, and Piranesi lives on the floor between. He exists mainly by himself, with just the birds and the bones of the dead for company, writing in his journal, and meeting the Other - the only other human being in the House - just twice a week.

Susanna Clarke has lived with ME/CFS since 2005, and as someone who has lived with the same since 2015, I can see reflections of the isolated, restricted lives we lead in Piranesi's House. But, she brings a beauty to the isolation; Piranesi is generally at peace and living in harmony with his world for much of the book.

If you're looking for a read that will whisk you out of this world and into another, I couldn't recommend it enough.

• Here's Piranesi on bookshop.org
• This interview with Susanna in The Guardian gives you more of the backstory to the novel

Wise words

November is the month in which I begin a new cycle around the sun. This year, I was 21-again-years-old (as I have been for the last couple of decades ...). So, this quote from author Agatha Christie - who was married to an archaeologist - definitely feels humorously appropriate!

An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have. The older she gets the more interested he is in her.

How's your month been? Feel free to hit reply and let me know what you've been up to, or if you have any recommendations for the Dose of Inspiration and Wise Words section of the newsletter. I'd love to hear from you!

If I don't speak to you beforehand, I hope you have a wonderful seasonal break, whether it's one of religious celebration, midwinter festivities, or just a time to kick back and spend some time with your nearest and dearest.

Until next month,

Julia