susananne.kelly(at)ff.cuni.cz   +420 221 619 615   Academia

Sue Kelly obtained her PhD (2021) and completed her initial post-Doc (2023) in Egyptology at Macquarie University, Sydney. She is an early career researcher who is dedicated to shedding light on the contributions and impact of ancient Egyptian women on society by exploring their social power. Her forthcoming book Unveiling Female Social Power (c. 3080­–2180 BCE), examines women’s titles in Early Dynastic-Pyramid Age Egypt, offering fresh perspectives on their roles. Based on statistical data, it challenges traditional narratives on female involvement in Egyptian society. She has recently begun her Marie Curie Actions Fellowship at the Czech Institute of Egyptology, under the guidance of Doc. PhDr. Hana Vymazalová, Ph.D. Her new research extends her chronological survey of ancient Egyptian women into the First Intermediate Period (FIP), where she is investigating “The Impact of Political and Climate Change on Women’s Agency: A Social Power Analysis” (IPOCCWWA Grant No 101148700). This project aims to identify royal and private women’s public activities, influence, rights, or authority that offers the ability for comparative analysis to her existing dataset to trace any changes, transitions, and fluctuations due to the political and social changes experienced in the FIP.

Education

• 2017–2021: Doctor of Philosophy, Macquarie University, Sydney: Conferred 24.6.2021. Thesis: Female Engagement in Domains of Social Power in Ancient Egypt’s Dynasties 1–6: An interdisciplinary approach to women’s titles
• 2015–2016: Bachelor of Philosophy/Master of Research, Macquarie University, Sydney: Conferred 21.4.2016. Thesis: Identifying the Women of Early Dynastic Egypt: An Analysis of the Women’s Funerary Stelae/Slabs from Abu Rawash, Helwan and Abydos
• 2011–2013: Bachelor of Ancient History, Macquarie University, Sydney: Conferred 15.4.2014

Grants

• Marie Curie Actions Fellowship (2024-2026)
• Australian Centre for Egyptology Support Grant (2022)
• Macquarie University, Covid Research Fellowship (2021-2022)
• Macquarie University, Covid Research Fellowship Travel Subsidy (2021-2022)
• Australian Centre for Egyptology Support Grant (2022)
• Michelle McLean Egyptology Scholarship (2021)
• Macquarie University Faculty of Arts Candidate Conference Travel Scheme (2019)
• Australasian Women in Ancient World Studies Research Grant (2018)
• Macquarie University Post Graduate Research Fund (2018-2019)
• Macquarie University Faculty of Arts Candidate Conference Travel Scheme (2018)
• Macquarie Research Excellence Scheme. Full research scholarship for selected PhD candidates (2017–2020)
• Master of Research Scholarship, Higher Degree Research Faculty (2015-2016)
• Macquarie Ancient History Association Travel Scholarship (2015)
• Macquarie Equity Cost Scholarship (2012-2013)

Lectures & Conference presentations

• Basel University, Switzerland, September 202: Current Research in Egyptology: New Insights into Prevalent Old Kingdom Women’s Titles (refereed)
• Australian Centre for Egyptology/Rundle Foundation Public Lecture, Sydney August 2023: New Technology Illuminating Ancient Evidence: Meretneith – A Case Study (by invitation)
• Institute of Mediterranean and Oriental Cultures, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, June 2023: Tenth European Conference of Egyptologists: Perspectives of Research, Political Power: More Than a Title (refereed)
• American University Press Cairo (hybrid), March 2023: Mariam Ayad and Contributing Scholars Discuss ‘Women in Ancient Egypt’ (invited panellist)
• Macquarie University, Sydney, November 2022: Reflections: Covid-19 Fellowship: Lifting the veil Female Social Power in Early Egypt (c. 3080-2180 BCE) (invited)
• Institut National d’Histoire de l’Art, Paris, September 2022, Origins, the 7th International Conference on Predynastic and Early Dynastic Egypt: Lifting the Veil: Female Social Power in Early Egypt (Dynasties 1–3) (Poster Presentation) (refereed)
• Université Paul-Valéry, Montpellier, September 2022, Current Research in Egyptology: Women’s Engagement in the Ideological Domain Dynasties 1–6 (refereed)
• Macquarie University, Sydney June 2022, 6th Australasian Egyptology Conference: Women’s Engagement in the Ideological Domain Dynasties 1–6 (refereed)
• Australian Centre for Egyptology/Rundle Foundation Public Lecture, Sydney February 2022: Lifting the Veil: Female Social Power in Early Egypt (c. 3080-2180 BCE) (by invitation)
• American University, Cairo, October-November 2019, Women in Ancient Egyptian Current Research and Historical Trends Conference: Old Data–New Perspectives: Changing the Lens on Early Dynastic Women’s History (refereed)
• University of Oxford, England, February 2019, Graduate Seminar: Her-story v His-story: New Insights into Early Dynastic Egyptian Women (by invitation)
• University of Auckland, Auckland, September 2018, 5th Australasian Egyptology Conference: Evaluating the evidence of Female Sovereignty at the Dawn of Egyptian Civilisation (refereed)
• Macquarie University, Sydney, September 2018, Lecture for AHIS340: Women and Gender in the Ancient World (by invitation)
• University of Naples L’Orientale, Naples, May 2017, Current Research in Egyptology: Fact or Fiction: The Real Female Roles of Early Dynastic Women (refereed)

Selected bibliography

Books

• Kelly S. A. 2024, Unveiling Female Social Power in Early Egypt (c. 3080–2180 B.C.E.), Oxford: BAR Publishing

Book Chapters

• Kelly S. A. (2022), “Women in the Economic Domain: First to Sixth Dynasties,” in M. Ayad (ed.), Women in Ancient Egypt: Revisiting Power, Agency, and Autonomy, Cairo: American University Press.
• Kelly S. A. (in preparation), “Re-Excavating Women’s Agency in Ancient Egyptian’s Economic and Political Structure,” in M. Ayad and J. Williamson (eds.), Ancient Egyptian Women: Beyond Misrepresentation, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press.
• Kelly, S. A. (2024), “New Insights into Prevalent Old Kingdom Women’s Titles,” Current Research in Egyptology 2023. The Proceedings of the Twenty-Third Annual Symposium, Basel University, Switzerland, 10-14th of September 2023, Oxford: Access Archaeology.

Peer Reviewed Journal Articles

• Kelly S. A. (2019), “Women’s Work in the Early Dynastic Period,” Prague Egyptological Studies XXIII, pp. 92–105.