Archaeology, University of Birmingham
Thesis title:
This project examines the practice of adding additional burials into existing tombs, during the Egyptian late Old through Middle Kingdoms (c.2278–c.1813 BCE) to understand how the ancient Egyptians engaged with physical space to create a sense of ‘place’. I examine three case studies from Qubbet al-Hawā’, a cemetery in near Aswan in southern Egypt, which was used during the aforementioned period to bury the elite members of society.
I use the range of material evidence, including human remains, burial items, and alteration to spaces, to investigate practices of reuse, where I exploring identity, memory, and temporality of the local Egyptians who engaged in these practices.
Alteration broadly refers to changes that are done to the original, physical burial space. For example, changes made to accommodate new burials, like decorative/textual changes and the addition of burial shafts, are an example of alteration.
Using an original, interdisciplinary framework, my thesis explores how and why additional burials were integrated into existing mortuary spaces. My thesis also redresses and reframes prevailing colonial narratives regarding these alterations in modern academic discourse.
Most studies of additional burial generally categorise these additional burials as ‘intrusive’ or ‘secondary’. A close analysis of Egyptian engagement with these spaces, however, shows that these burials were considered integral to the continuation of individual mortuary cults.
Redressing colonial interpretations critically reframes additional burials in scholarship to show that these burials are not inherently bad as often described.
Published
Articles
Hutchinson-Wong, R.G., and G. Boswijk, (2024), 'Uncompromisingly unique: Tracing the origins of Waikūmete Cemetery in Auckland, New Zealand, 1870-1886,' New Zealand Geographer 80(3): 209-219, DOI: doi.org/10.1111/nzg.12407.
Chapter
Hutchinson-Wong, R.G., (2024), 'Let's lay the foundations: geomentality in ancient Egypt,' in Current Research in Egyptology 2023: proceedings of the twenty-third annual symposium, University of Basel, 10-14 September 2023, L. Dogaer, C.H.W. Fong, E.L. Hertel, M. Kilani, and G.K.H. Lunden (eds.), 157-178, Oxford: Archaeopress.
Current Research in Egyptology 2023
Edited proceedings
Rogers, J., C. Bishop-Allen, H. Bohun, R.G. Hutchinson-Wong, and M. Sartori (eds), (2025), Current Research in Egyptology 2024: proceedings of the twenty-fourth annual symposium, jointly organised by the University of Liverpool, Swansea University, University of Birmingham, University of Oxford, and University of Wales Trinity Saint David, 2–6 September 2024, Oxford: Archaeopress.
Current Research in Egyptology 2024
Online (non-peer reviewed)
Hutchinson-Wong, R.G., (2024), 'Modest at best: ancient Egypt in contemporary Aotearoa New Zealand,' Egypopcult, published 4 October 2024.
In progress
Hutchinson-Wong, R.G., 'Ancient Egypt and the public in nineteenth-century Aotearoa New Zealand,' in Global history of the reception of ancient Egypt, S. Mota and J. das Candeias Sales (eds).
Hutchinson-Wong, R.G., and C.R. Hamilton, ‘Whakaaro o Īhipa: Ancient Egypt through Māori Eyes, 1800–1919,’ in Beyond the Nile: Ancient Egypt through an Aotearoa lens, C.R. Hamilton, J. Hellum, and E. Leaning (eds).
2025
2024
2023
2022
2018
New Zealand Egyptology Society (2022–)
Kia ora! 你好! Hello!
My name is Reuben, an ancient historian from Aotearoa New Zealand who specialises in the study of ancient Egypt. I am of mixed Pākehā–Chinese descent.
Before I joined the University of Birmingham as a doctoral researcher, I studied at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, New Zealand, where I completed my:
My master's thesis explored local Egyptian identity, memory, and relationships to landscape during the late Old Kingdom and early First Intermediate Period (c.2278–c.2150 BCE) at Qubbet al-Hawā', near modern-day Aswan, Egypt.
In my earlier studies, I undertook research into colonial New Zealand cemeteries in Auckland and Whangārei. These studies explored the influence of national and international trends in the treatment of the dead, and placement and layout of cemeteries during the second half of the nineteenth century.
I also wrote a dissertation examining what the titularies of royal women during the Early Dynastic Period and Old Kingdom (c.3000–c.2200 BCE) said about their status in society.
Since completing my studies, I have worked as a researcher for the History of Egypt podcast, specialising in research of Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period scholarship.
I also worked at the University of Auckland as a Content Curator where I curated web and email content for student use, including the need for accessibility, student voice, and use of plain language.
In my spare time, I enjoy learning about nineteenth century colonial New Zealand history. I previously researched a little known Māori woman, Katerina Nikorima, and her ambiguous position in colonial New Zealand history. This is to reclaim her story from history and make it available for future generations.
I now look at blending ancient Egypt and nineteenth-century New Zealand, exploring public reception of ancient Egypt during this period.
I am also an avid genealogist. I am particularly interested in the journeys that my ancestors made to Aotearoa New Zealand over the last 230 years from Britain, Germany, and China, either directly or via Australia and Malaysia.
Transcriber for the Egypt Centre in Swansea (2024–), helping with the Hilton Price Online Collection project.
Researcher and obtainer for History of Egypt podcast (2021–), specialising in Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period.
University of Birmingham Archaeological Field School (2025).
Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland
I am undertaking a placement with the Egypt Centre in Swansea. This placement involves two small but interrelated projects pertaining to the collection of Egyptian antiquities held within this collection. The first looks at continuing the work of the Hilton Price Online Collection Project, which seeks to trace the dispersal of Egyptian antiquities from a significant private collection after it was sold in 1911. This portion of the placement involves working with an online database run by Abaset to record where objects have managed to end up. The second involves relocating to Swansea to help with the deinstallation, condition check, and recording of objects on display within the Egypt Centre's collection ahead of their exhibition space's refurbishment.
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