Our Sources & Research Standards

Every article, guide, and page on Explore Luxor begins with research — not a search engine. We approach the history, archaeology, and culture of Luxor the same way a careful scholar would: by going to the primary sources first, cross-referencing claims, and being honest about uncertainty when it exists.

We draw on six categories of sources, applied according to the nature of the content being written:

The following institutions and organisations are among our most frequently consulted authorities:

Our historical and archaeological content draws primarily on peer-reviewed academic journals. The following publications are among those most frequently consulted:

Beyond journal literature, our content regularly draws on the following authoritative reference works:

Academic literature alone does not capture everything that matters about Luxor. The city is a living place, and many of the most valuable insights come from people who work there every day.

We consult and collaborate with:

Practical travel information is among the most time-sensitive content we publish. We apply different sourcing standards to this type of content:

We always encourage readers to treat our practical information as a useful starting point and to verify critical details directly with official sources before their trip.

Our Artworks section, which focuses on 19th-century Orientalist paintings and historic illustrations of Luxor and ancient Thebes, applies specific sourcing standards for image attribution and provenance:

If you believe an image on our site has been incorrectly attributed or is not in the public domain, please contact us at [email protected] immediately.

Being clear about what we do not use as sources is as important as listing what we do use. The following are explicitly excluded from serving as sole or primary sources for factual claims:

Egyptology is not a settled field. Significant disagreements exist among qualified scholars on questions ranging from the dating of specific reigns to the interpretation of religious texts. We take these disputes seriously.

Our approach to scholarly disagreement:

We actively welcome challenges from researchers, Egyptologists, archaeologists, and informed readers who believe we have misrepresented a source, relied on outdated scholarship, or overlooked important evidence.

To challenge a source or research claim, please email [email protected] with:

We take every such challenge seriously, investigate it thoroughly, and respond directly. If the challenge is substantiated, we update the content and acknowledge the correction. Our full corrections process is described in our Corrections Policy.