Ludwig Borchardt(1863 — 1938)
Ludwig Borchardt
Reich allemand
6 min read
Ludwig Borchardt (1863-1938) was a German Egyptologist and architect. He led the excavations at Tell el-Amarna, where his team unearthed the famous bust of Nefertiti in 1912. He founded the German Archaeological Institute in Cairo.
Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Born in 1863 in Berlin, trained as an architect before turning to Egyptology
- Founded the German Imperial Institute for Egyptian Archaeology in Cairo in 1907
- Led the excavations at Tell el-Amarna, the ancient capital of Akhenaten
- On 6 December 1912, his team discovered the bust of Nefertiti in the workshop of the sculptor Thutmose
- Died in 1938 in Cairo; the bust of Nefertiti, displayed in Berlin, remains the subject of a restitution dispute with Egypt
Works & Achievements
Archaeological campaigns on the Fifth Dynasty mortuary temples, providing major documentation of Old Kingdom architecture.
Unearthed at Tell el-Amarna, one of the most famous masterpieces of Egyptian art, now held in Berlin.
Creation of a permanent research center that made Germany a major player in Egyptology.
Landmark scholarly publication on the mortuary temple of Sahure, with detailed architectural surveys.
Groundbreaking study of timekeeping and calendars in ancient Egypt.
A work analyzing the sculpted portraits of Nefertiti discovered at Amarna.
Anecdotes
On December 6, 1912, Ludwig Borchardt's team was excavating the workshop of the sculptor Thutmose at Tell el-Amarna. In his journal, Borchardt recorded the discovery of a painted bust and wrote the now-famous line: “Describing it is useless — you have to see it.” He had just unearthed the bust of Nefertiti, one of the most celebrated masterpieces of Egyptian art.
The finds were divided with the Egyptian Antiquities Service through a regulated drawing of lots. The bust of Nefertiti went to the German expedition, and many later accused Borchardt of having played down its value — describing it as a mere head of painted plaster — to make sure he could take it back to Berlin. The controversy over this division still continues today.
Borchardt was not only an archaeologist but also an architect by training. This dual expertise allowed him to analyze the construction of temples and pyramids with great precision, and to propose rigorous reconstructions of the monuments he studied.
In 1907, Borchardt founded a German research institute in Cairo that would become the German Archaeological Institute. Thanks to him, Germany had a permanent base from which to conduct its excavations in Egypt, at a time when the English and the French dominated Egyptology.
Borchardt took a keen interest in the astronomy and calendars of ancient Egypt. He sought to understand how the Egyptians measured time and organized their year, publishing studies on ancient water clocks and sundials.
Primary Sources
A life-size head of the queen, painted in colours… The work is quite exceptional. Describing it is pointless, you have to see it.
Study published by Borchardt presenting and analysing the sculptures of Nefertiti discovered in the workshop of Thutmose at Amarna.
Scientific publication by Borchardt on the excavations of the funerary temple of Pharaoh Sahure at Abusir, with detailed architectural surveys.
Study by Borchardt on the instruments and methods used by the Egyptians to measure time, water clocks and sundials.
Key Places
Borchardt's birthplace and home to the museum where the bust of Nefertiti is displayed. The capital from which German Egyptology set out.
Site of Akhenaten's ancient capital where Borchardt led the excavations and discovered the bust of Nefertiti in 1912.
A Fifth Dynasty necropolis where Borchardt excavated the funerary temples of the pharaohs, including that of Sahure.
The city where Borchardt lived, worked, and founded the German archaeological institute that became a major research center.
The city where Ludwig Borchardt died in 1938.
