Ancient Egypt
The scale of ancient Egyptian history is overwhelming. Americans (North and South) wrestle with the consequences of five hundred years of invasion, conquest, and settlement. Europeans argue over what delineates different phases of their history (modern, the rise of the nation-state, phases of the Renaissance, medieval, post-Roman, and so on). Well, that gets you back only 1500 years. Classicists pride their discipline on another thousand years. Egyptians look on, bemused. They go back 6000 years without breathing hard. Ancient Egypt (a deep and long category, obviously) represents a civilization that still fascinates us. Think pharaohs, pyramids, mummies, hieroglyphs, the Sphinx, the Nile, "King Tut." Children and adults love such stuff. I debated with myself whether to be a purist on Ancient Egypt and end my listings with Alexander the Great's conquest and the great era of the Ptolemaic dynasty, but you would miss so much in those 275 years leading up to the pragmatic and unimaginative Romans building their empire on Egyptian grain. I wanted to include the Pharos lighthouse, Alexandria and its library, Cleopatra. So I did, and I will. This page, these offerings, like the rest of Whistlestop, will be carefully curated and vetted and supplemented as I find and list interesting items.
The Egyptian Book of the Dead: the Complete Papyrus of Ani
The Egyptian Book of the Dead: the Complete Papyrus of Ani
A New Edition of the Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, Perfect for History Buffs, Budding Archaeologists, or Mythology Enthusiasts!
The Egyptian Book of the Dead is unquestionably one of the most influential books in all history. Containing the ancient ritual to be performed for the dead with detailed instructions for the behavior of the soul in the afterlife, it served as the most important repository of religious authority for some three thousand years. Chapters were carved on the pyramids of the ancient 5th Dynasty, texts were written in papyrus, and selections were painted on mummy cases well into the Christian era. In a certain sense, it represented all history and research of Egyptian civilization.
In the year 1888, Dr. E. A. Wallis Budge, then purchasing agent for the British Museum, followed rumors he heard of a spectacular archaeological find in Upper Egypt, and found in an 18th Dynasty tomb near Luxor a perfectly preserved papyrus scroll. It was a copy of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, written around 1500 B.C. for Ani, Royal Scribe of Thebes, Overseer of the Granaries of the Lords of Abydos, and Scribe of the Offerings of the Lords of Thebes.
This Papyrus of Ani is presented here by Dr. Budge. Reproduced in full are a clear copy of the Egyptian hieroglyphs, an interlinear transliteration of their sounds (as reconstructed), a word-for-word translation, and separately a complete smooth translation. All this is preceded by an original introduction of more than 150 pages. This classic material combined with a brand-new foreword by Dr. Foy Scalf of Chicago University gives the reader has a unique opportunity to experience all the fascinating aspects of The Egyptian Book of the Dead.