Handbook to Life in Ancient Egypt - Hardcover

David, A. Rosalie

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9780816033126: Handbook to Life in Ancient Egypt

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0816033129 ISBN 13: 9780816033126

Publisher: Facts on File Inc., 1998

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Spanning the years from c. 5000 B.C. to the early centuries A.D., the Nile Valley civilization was one of the earliest created by humankind. It remains one of the most fascinating and influential. This handy yet encyclopedic reference work offers a comprehensive overview of ancient Egyptian history, from Predynastic times to the Old and New Kingdoms to the Ptolemaic and Roman periods. Accessible, authoritative, and clearly organized, the Handbook to Life in Ancient Egypt affords an engaging look at a culture whose art, architecture, religion, and medicine came to form the basis of Western Civilization.

The thematically arranged chapters allow readers easy access to several key topics, including historical background, geography, government, religion, funerary customs, architecture, literature, the military, the economy, and everyday life. Drawing on written sources dating from c. 3100 B.C. and such widespread archaeological evidence as monuments, artifacts, inscriptions, and preserved human remains, noted Egyptologist Rosalie David covers everything from the Sun Cult and the pyramids to the arrival and dispersal of Christianity. Her useful Handbook also features:

* 112 maps, photographs, and original line drawings

* suggestions for further reading at the conclusion of each chapter

* a chronological table of over five millennia of Egyptian history

* an appendix listing museums with Egyptian collections

* a timely and extensive overall bibliography as well as a thorough index

Combining archaeological and historical sources, this Handbook provides all the essential data required by anyone interested in Egyptian history, archaeology, religion, or culture.

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About the Author:

Rosalie David is Keeper of Egyptology at the Manchester Museum and Reader in Egyptology at the University of Manchester. She is the author of twenty books on Egypt-related subjects, including Discovering Ancient Egypt.

From Booklist:

This is an ambitious book--a summary of a civilization that lasted more than 5,000 years. For the most part it succeeds. In 11 chapters, David, a respected Egyptologist, surveys Egypt from predynastic times through the arrival of Islam, although the work concentrates on the period before the establishment of the Greek Ptolomies as the royal line. Arrangement is thematic. The first chapter surveys the history of Egypt, historiography, and the various dynasties. The second chapter covers geography, the Nile and its inundations, and agriculture. The third chapter covers society and government and describes the nature of kingship, local government, and the substantial bureaucracy that kept Egypt running.

Religion and funerary beliefs and customs are covered in the fourth and fifth chapters. Egypt had a rich and complex religious life, both public and private, and the chapter on "Religion of the Living" samples it generously. The next chapter explores the changes in the cult of the dead over time and gives a graphic description of the mummification process and the status of those who did the work.

The chapter on architecture describes how the pyramids were built, including a description of how the workforce was recruited, organized, and paid. There are also sections on the building of palaces and temples and town planning. The chapter on "Written Evidence" begins with a cursory description of how Egyptian writing was deciphered. The art and technique of writing, writing materials, and the education of the professional scribes are summarized. There is a brief glance at religious and secular literature, but none is quoted.

Although Egypt was a peaceable and self-contained place, in time the kingdom grew to an empire. To do that, and to secure building materials and trade in what Egypt did not mine or grow itself, it needed an army and a navy. Chapter 8 describes the Egyptian military and includes a short section on the Medjay, nomads from the Nubian desert who were enrolled in the police force. "Foreign Trade and Transport" and "Economy and Industry" could probably have been one chapter, as they overlap extensively. Transport problems are discussed as are foreign sources of materials, and the various domestic industries including glassmaking, jewelry, and food production. "Everyday Life" looks at the Egyptians outside the royal family, what they ate, who they were, and what they did for amusement.

Each chapter cites relevant sources from the bibliography. Many of the citations are to academic journals or books which may not be available in public libraries. Besides the bibliography, the volume concludes with a chronological table, a list of museums with Egyptian collections, and a detailed index, essential given the book's arrangement. Black-and-white photographs, drawings, and maps complement the text.

Because of the attempt to survey 5,000 years of history in about 400 pages, chapters and sections tend to be cursory. The chapter on daily life will not be much help to a student with a homework assignment, but in conjunction with something like John Romer's Ancient Lives: Daily Life in Egypt of the Pharaohs (Holt, 1984) it can be useful. Some topics overlap chapters, including descriptions of the Medjay, construction practices, and the donkey. One curious omission is cats, which were first domesticated in Egypt and were pets and rat-catchers throughout Egyptian history.

This volume is a companion to Handbook to Life in Ancient Greece [RBB Ag 97] and Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome (Facts On File, 1994). Recommended for high-school and public libraries, especially those serving students who get that annual ancient Egypt assignment. Lower-division undergraduates should find it useful as well.

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