Curator Egyptian Collections
Dr. Lara Weiss
tel: +31 (0)71 516 3114
e-mail: l.weiss@rmo.nl
Educational background and special fields of interest
Lara Weiss (b. 1980) studied Egyptology in Berlin and Leiden and was awarded her doctorate in Göttingen in 2012. She takes a particular interest in the everyday lives of the ancient Egyptians and their mode of religious experience. Both her Master’s dissertation and her doctoral thesis related to religion in Deir el-Medina, where the labourers who worked in the Valley of the Kings had their homes. Since 2012 she has been involved as a teacher and a researcher in the ERC Advanced Grant project ‘Lived Ancient Religion: Questioning “cults” and “polis religion”’, hosted by the University of Erfurt (Germany). Her research for that project focuses on religion in the Roman town of Karanis (in the Fayoum Oasis).
Reorganization of the Egyptian department and Saqqara
Weiss played a central role in the reorganisation of the Egyptian department at the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities in 2016 and will be involved in developing international travelling exhibitions. Furthermore, since 2018 she has been one of the excavation leaders of the research project that the National Museum of Antiquities is performing in the Egyptian town of Saqqara, in partnership with the Museo Egizio in Turin.
Areas of expertise
- Interdisciplinary methods and ancient Egypt (especially religious studies and sociology/anthropology)
- Deir el-Medina
- museology
Major research projects
- The Walking Dead at Saqqara. The Making of a Cultural Geography (2017-2022)
- Lived Ancient Religion in Karanis (2012-2014)
- Personal religion in Deir el-Medina (2010-2012)

Publications
Pdf’s van publicaties van Lara Weiss kunt u downloaden via haar pagina op Academia.edu
Monographs
- Weiss, L., Religious Practice at Deir el-Medina, Egyptologische Uitgaven 29, Leiden/ The Netherlands Institute for the Near East/Peeters, Leiden 2015.
Edited Volumes
- Kaper, O.E., Weiss, L., Baan , V. & Ter Keurs, P. (eds), LIBER AMICORUM. MARTINO RAVEN DECIESMILLE DIERUM OB STRENUAMFELICEMQUE ANTIQUITATUMAEGYPTIARUM OBLATUSCONTENTIONEM, Leiden 2018.
- Weiss, L. (ed.), The Coffins of the Priests of Amun, Leiden 2018.
- Raja, R. and Weiss, L. (eds), The Role of Objects: Creating Meaning in Situations, Religion in the Roman Empire 1/2 (2015).
Scientific articles (with peer-review)
- J. Albrecht, Chr. Degelmann, V. Gasparini, R. Gordon, M. Patzelt, G. Petridou, R. Raja, A.-K. Rieger, J. Rüpke, B. Sippel, E. Rubens Urciuoli & L. Weiss, ‘Religion in the making: the Lived Ancient Religion approach’, Religion (2018).
- Raja, R. and Weiss, L., ‘The Significance of Objects: Considerations on Agency and Context’, Religion in the Roman Empire (RRE) 2/3 (2016), 297-306.
- Weiss, L., “The Consumption of Religion in Roman Karanis”, Religion in the Roman Empire 1/1 (2015), 71–94.
- Weiss, L., ‘Domestic Cults and Family Religion in Roman Times’, in: M. Bommas (ed.), The Blackwell Companion to Ancient Egyptian Religion, Malden (forthcoming, submitted in May 2014).
- Weiss, L., ‘Personal religious practice: house altars at Deir el-Medina’, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 95 (2009), 193-208.
Excavation reports
- Raven, M., Weiss, L., Aston, B.G., Inskip S and Warner, N. ‘Preliminary report on the Leiden-Turin excavations at Saqqara, season 2015: the tomb of an anonymous official (Tomb X) and its surroundings’, Jaarbericht Ex Oriente Lux 45 (2014-2015), 3-17.
Other scientific articles
- Weiss, L., ‘Aesthetics & Science: The new permanent Egyptian galleries in the Leiden National Museum of Antiquities’, Aegyptiaca. Journal of the History of Reception of Ancient Egypt 2 (2018), 213-234.
- Weiss, L., “The History of the Egyptian Collection in the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden”, in: P. Giovetti, D. Picchi (eds), Egitto. Le collezioni di Leiden e di Bologna / Displaying Ancient Egypt. The collections of Leiden and Bologna, Skirà/ Milano 2015, 22-27.
- Weiss, L., ‘The Power of the Voice’, in: B. Haring, O. Kaper, and R. van Walsem, (eds.) Studies in Hieratic and the Documents of Deir el-Medina. Egyptologische Uitgaven 28, Leiden 2014, 291-303.
- Weiss, L., ‘Perpetuated Action’, in: J. Rüpke (ed.), A Companion to the Archaeology of Religion in the Ancient World, Blackwell, 2016.
Conference contributions
- Weiss, L. (2019). “Female Figurines in Roman Karanis: An Agentive Approach“. In Hellenistic and Roman Terracottas. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.
- Weiss, L. ‘Individuum und Gemeinschaft Methodologische Überlegungen zur Persönlichen Frömmigkeit’, in G. Neunert , K. Gabler and A. Verbovsek (eds.), Sozialisationen: Individuum – Gruppe – Gesellschaft. Beiträge des ersten Münchner Arbeitskreises Junge Aegyptologie (MAJA 1), 3. bis 5.12.2010, GOF IV/51, Wiesbaden 2012, 187-205.
- Weiss, L., ‘Some thoughts on the false doors at Deir el-Medina’, in Horn, M., Hoven, C. van den, Kramer, J., Soliman, D., Staring, N.T.B. and Weiss, L. (eds.), Current Research in Egyptology 2010: Proceedings of the eleventh annual symposium which took place at Leiden University, The Netherlands, 5-8 January 2010, Oxford 2011, 197-205.
- Weiss, L., ‘Markings on Oracle Ostraca of Deir el-Medina’, B.J.J. Haring and O.E. Kaper (eds.), with the assistance of C.H. van Zoest,Pictograms or Pseudo Script? Non-textual Identity Marks in Practical Use in Ancient Egypt and Elsewhere. Proceedings of a Conference in Leiden, 19-20 December 2006 (Egyptologische Uitgaven 25), Leiden 2009, 221-30.
- Killen, G. and Weiss, L., ‘Markings on objects of daily use from Deir el-Medina – Ownership marks or administrative aids?’, in P. Andrássy, J. Budka and F. Kammerzell (eds.), Non-Textual Marking Systems, Writing and Pseudo Script from Prehistory to Modern Times (Lingua Aegyptia – Studia monographica 8), Göttingen 2009, 137-58.
- Holwerda, E., Hoven, C. van den, and Weiss, L., “Summary of the Discussions”, in G.P.F. Broekman, R.J. Demarée and O.E. Kaper (eds),The Libyan Period in Egypt: Historical and Cultural Studies into the 21st-24th Dynasties: Proceedings of a Conference at Leiden University, 25 – 27 October 2007, Leiden 2009, 441–5.
Popular scientific articles
- Weiss, L. Staring, N. and Twiston Davies, H., ‘Tagungsbericht: The Walking Dead: The Making of a Cultural Geography, 07.11.2018 – 09.11.2018 Leiden’, in: H-Soz-Kult, 01.12.2018.
- Weiss, L., ‘Sakkara: Meer dan een begraafplaats’, in: P. Ter Keurs (ed.), Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden. Een geschiedenis van 200 jaar,Leiden 2018, 463-468.
- Weiss, L., and Morfini, I., ‘Een belangrijke, raadselachtige collectie’, in: P. Ter Keurs (ed.), Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden. Een geschiedenis van 200 jaar, Leiden 2018, 86-92.
- Weiss, L., ‘Hoe houd je mummiekisten goed?’, in: P. Ter Keurs (ed.), Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden. Een geschiedenis van 200 jaar,Leiden 2018, 250-253.
- Weiss, L., ‘Opgravingscampagne Sakkara 2018’, Archeologie Magazine 4 (2018), 18-21.
- Halbertsma, R. and Weiss, L., ‘Een kunsthistoricus in Oudheden – Karl Schnaase in Leiden’, RoMeO magazine 46 (2018), 26-29.
- Weiss, L., ‘Die neue Ägypten-Ausstellung im Leidener Antikenmuseum‘, SOKAR 36 (2018), 84-95.
- Weiss, L., ‚Sakkara nach Maja und Merit. Neue Forschungen des Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Kooperation mit dem Museo Egizio Torino‘, SOKAR 35 (2017), 28–39.
- P. Del Vesco en L. Weiss, ‘A brief report on the 2017 season (2): The Leiden Turin Expedition to Saqqara: excavating north of Maya’s tomb’, Saqqara Newsletter 15 (2017), 19-26.
- Weiss, L. and Duinker, J., Egyptisch Bier’, RoMeO Magazine 43 (2017), 18-19.
- Weiss, L., ‘Opmerkelijke vondsten in Sakkara’, Archeologie Magazine 3 (2017), 44-47.
- Weiss, L., ‘Ästhetik und Wissenschaft: Ägypten im Leidener Antikenmuseum‘, Antike Welt 1/17 (2016), 86-89.
- Weiss, L., ‘Een belangrijke zaak’ in: O.E. Kaper (ed.), Koninginnen van de Nijl, macht en schoonheid in het Nieuwe Rijk, Leiden 2016, 69-74.
- Weiss, L., ‘Speerpunten van de nieuwe Egyptische zalen’, RoMeO Magazine 42 (2016), 12-16.
- Weiss, L., ‘Het Oude Egypte in een nieuwe jas‘, Archeologie Magazine 5 (2016), 14-17.
- Weiss, L., ‘Egyptische kunst (of kitsch?). Een handleiding uit de praktijk’, Archeologie Magazine 2 (2016), 54-61.
- Weiss, L., ‘Egypte land van onsterfelijkheid’, RoMeO Magazine 41 (2016), 10-14.
- Weiss, L., ‘Egypte land van onsterfelijkheid’, Archeologie Magazine 3 (2016), 14-17.
- Weiss, L., ‘New Evidence of Amenhotep II at Saqqara’, Saqqara Newsletter 13 (2015), 46-50.
- Weiss, L., ‘Nieuws uit Saqqara’, RMO magazine 40 (2015), 10-12.
- Weiss, L., ‘Persoonlijke vroomheid in een Egyptisch dorp’, Ta Mery 8, 2015, 2-16.
- Weiss, L., ‘De schorpioenbezweerder’, in: N. van de Beek, L. Delpeut en M. Kersten (ed.), 40 jaar Dispuut Pleyte (1975-2015), Leiden 2015, 6-11.
- Weiss, L., “De rol van religie in het dagelijkse leven van het Oude Egypte”, Archeologie Magazine 1 (2015), 9-13.