The Greco-Roman conquest of Egypt : changes and continuities in afterlife beliefs

This thesis explores the Greco-Roman conquest of Egypt with a focus on the changes and continuities in afterlife beliefs. The first chapter focuses on Pharaonic Egyptian conceptions of death and burial practices. It specifically examines the exclusivity of the afterlife and the importance of the preservation of the body. The second chapter explores the funerary culture of Greek Egypt discussing the shift from the sustainable worship of the community to individualized worship for the purpose of immortality. The third chapter focuses on Roman Egypt and the repression of Pharaonic burial practices due to colonization and foreign imperial influence. In an attempt to discover the effects of imperial colonization on Egyptian funerary religion, I have selected the Greco-Roman conquest due to the considerable amount of cultural interaction that occurred during this time. Using secondary sources, I have researched the changes and continuities in the afterlife beliefs of both the Greek and Roman periods of control in Egypt. I have concluded that although the Pharaonic importance of immortality prevailed, traditional funerary practices and burial methods were repressed due to foreign cultural influence and disregard for the indigenous people of Egypt