A world beneath the sands : the golden age of Egyptology
(Book)

Book Cover
Average Rating
Published
New York, NY : W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2020.
Status
Central - Adult Nonfiction
932 WILKI
1 available

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Central - Adult Nonfiction932 WILKIAvailable

Description

"A thrilling history of the West's scramble for the riches of ancient Egypt by the foremost Egyptologist of our time. From the decipherment of hieroglyphics in 1822 to the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon a hundred years later, the uncovering of Egypt's ancient past took place in an atmosphere of grand adventure and international rivalry. In A World Beneath the Sands, the acclaimed Egyptologist Toby Wilkinson chronicles the ruthless race between the British, French, Germans and Americans to lay claim to its mysteries and treasures. He tells the riveting stories of the men and women whose obsession with Egypt's ancient civilization helped to enrich and transform our understanding of the Nile Valley and its people, and left a lasting impression on Egypt, too. Travelers and treasure-hunters, ethnographers and archaeologists: whatever their motives, whatever their methods, a century of adventure and scholarship revealed a lost world, buried for centuries beneath the sands"--

More Details

Format
Book
Edition
First American edition.
Physical Desc
xv, 510 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (chiefly color), maps ; 24 cm
Language
English
ISBN
9781324006893, 1324006897

Notes

Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 433-477) and index.
Description
"A thrilling history of the West's scramble for the riches of ancient Egypt by the foremost Egyptologist of our time. From the decipherment of hieroglyphics in 1822 to the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon a hundred years later, the uncovering of Egypt's ancient past took place in an atmosphere of grand adventure and international rivalry. In A World Beneath the Sands, the acclaimed Egyptologist Toby Wilkinson chronicles the ruthless race between the British, French, Germans and Americans to lay claim to its mysteries and treasures. He tells the riveting stories of the men and women whose obsession with Egypt's ancient civilization helped to enrich and transform our understanding of the Nile Valley and its people, and left a lasting impression on Egypt, too. Travelers and treasure-hunters, ethnographers and archaeologists: whatever their motives, whatever their methods, a century of adventure and scholarship revealed a lost world, buried for centuries beneath the sands"-- Provided by publisher.

Table of Contents

Travellers in an antique land
Description and decipherment
In the footsteps of Napoleon
Englishmen abroad
The Prussian project
French foundations
A thousand miles up the Nile
A permanent occupation
Scholars and scoundrels
Egypt and America
Imperial ambitions
Wonderful things
Epilogue: The future of the past.

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Though A World Beneath the Sands is more accessible than the scholarly Riddle of the Rosetta, both well-researched histories examine the Egyptology craze that dominated the archeology field from the late 18th to early 20th centuries. -- Kaitlin Conner
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These books have the genres "life stories -- people in history -- explorers" and "history writing -- exploration"; and the subjects "egyptologists," "expeditions," and "discoveries (in geography)."
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Published Reviews

Choice Review

Many people find both ancient Egypt and the exploits of archaeologists to be fascinating. Here, Wilkinson (Univ. of Lincoln, UK) wonderfully combines both subjects. According to him, the golden age of Egyptology was from 1822, when Jean-François Champollion deciphered hieroglyphic writing, until the renowned discovery of King Tut's tomb in 1922. The book, however, begins with Napoleon's invasion of Egypt in 1798, which saw the birth of Egyptology as a discipline. From there, Wilkinson recounts the stories of various figures of Egyptology, both great and not-so-great, such as John Gardner Wilkinson and Edward William Lane--Englishmen who fell in love with Egypt. The achievements and significance of the German Egyptologist Karl Richard Lepsius and the Frenchman Auguste Mariette are also described, and novelist Amelia Edwards's contributions to the academic foundations of British Egyptology are presented, along with those of the meticulous and somewhat eccentric Flinders Petrie. Some might consider Wilkinson's portrayal of Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge and Howard Carter a bit too kind. Finally, Wilkinson describes the nationalistic rivalries that disturbed Egyptology, and the slow process Egyptians undertook to reclaim control of their cultural heritage in the wake of the Tut discovery. Summing Up: Recommended. General readers and advanced undergraduates through faculty. --Ronald Harold Fritze, Athens State University

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Publisher's Weekly Review

Historian Wilkinson (The Nile) revisits the whirlwind of archaeological discoveries made in the Nile Valley between the 1822 decoding of the Rosetta Stone and the 1922 unearthing of King Tutankhamun's tomb, in this meticulous and vibrant account. He sketches how Napoleon's 1798 expedition into Egypt inaugurated an "intense Anglo-French rivalry" over the country and its artifacts, and documents the competition between British polymath Thomas Young and French scholar Jean-François Champollion to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Champollion won out, though the Rosetta Stone ended up in British hands--a foreshadowing of the British takeover of the French-built Suez Canal, and the country itself, in the 1880s. In between, Wilkinson highlights the achievements of Prussian explorer Karl Richard Lepsius, who made the first "systematic exploration" of the Great Pyramid of Giza, and Auguste Mariette, who discovered the Serapeum at Saqqara in 1851, among other Egyptologists. He also notes the devastating impact of "treasure-hunting," "slapdash excavation," and Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali's modernization efforts on archaeological sites, and details novelist Amelia Blandford Edwards's campaign to "save Egypt's patrimony for future generations." Wilkinson marshals a wealth of detail into a cohesive and entertaining narrative. The result is an essential portrait of how the rediscovery of " ancient past paved the way for its modern rebirth." Agent: Jon Wood, RCW Literary. (Oct.)

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Kirkus Book Review

A history of the relatively short period during which Egyptology "emerged from its antiquarian origins to emerge as a proper scientific discipline." More compressed than Jason Thompson's recent multivolume history on the subject, Wilkinson's latest spotlights the great French, English, and German scientists and adventurers who managed to crack many of the mysteries of ancient Egypt--notably, Jean-François Champollion's "decipherment" of hieroglyphics in 1822. His achievement, writes the author, "allowed ancient Egyptian culture to emerge out of the fog of Classical myth and esoteric legend into the spotlight of serious scientific enquiry." After Napoleon's campaign in Egypt (1798-1801) and the ensuing era of Muhammad Ali's brutal modernization of the country (until 1848), an "orgy of destruction" followed, as treasure seekers and some archaeologists were driven by "a desire to record and preserve Egypt's ancient patrimony before it was lost forever." In the 1830s, Prussian archaeologist Karl Richard Lepsius "took Egyptian philology to the next level, enabling, for the first time, the translation of running hieroglyphic texts as opposed to mere names and epithets." In 1850, French scholar Auguste Mariette discovered the Serapeum monument under the sands of Saqqara, the most celebrated discovery since the Rosetta Stone; in 1858, Mariette was appointed director of the newly formed Egyptian Department of Antiquities. The momentous early 1880s, writes Wilkinson, saw the convergence of European discovery of Egypt and "Egypt's discovery of itself." Earlier, in 1874, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York "acquired its first Egyptian objects." When Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon started their excavation of the Valley of the Kings, ancient Egypt had assumed the status of "a complex and vibrant civilization." Refreshingly, Wilkinson dedicates a chapter to two women: Lucie Duff Gordon and Amelia Edwards, whose A Thousand Miles Up the Nile (1877) was published to great acclaim. The author also includes images, maps, and a timeline. A lively survey by an eminence in the field. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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LJ Express Reviews

Wilkinson (The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt) explores the founding and development of Egyptology as a science during the century between the 1822 deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphics by Jean-François Champollion and the 1922 discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun by Howard Carter. Those two crucial events mark the rise and subsequent decline of European domination of Egyptian political, economic, and cultural spheres. The resulting rivalries of the great powers, particularly Britain, France, and Prussia (Germany after unification in 1871), are traced as they impacted the recording, study, and preservation of the ancient monuments. Champollion's Franco-Tuscan expedition of 1828–29 and Karl Richard Lepsius's Prussian expedition of 1842–46 are highlighted for their monumental contributions to these endeavors. Archaeologists Auguste Mariette, Gaston Maspero, and James Henry Breasted and travelers Lucie Duff Gordon and Amelia Edwards are among the luminaries whose careers and activities are examined. The triumph of Egyptian nationalism and independence put an end to this "golden age." VERDICT Wilkinson is a master storyteller, and the narrative is so engaging that readers will find it hard to put down. This comprehensive study is highly recommended for anyone interested in the exploration and study of Egypt, both ancient and modern.—Edward K. Werner, formerly with St. Lucie Cty. Lib. Syst., FL

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Publishers Weekly Reviews

Historian Wilkinson (The Nile) revisits the whirlwind of archaeological discoveries made in the Nile Valley between the 1822 decoding of the Rosetta Stone and the 1922 unearthing of King Tutankhamun's tomb, in this meticulous and vibrant account. He sketches how Napoleon's 1798 expedition into Egypt inaugurated an "intense Anglo-French rivalry" over the country and its artifacts, and documents the competition between British polymath Thomas Young and French scholar Jean-François Champollion to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Champollion won out, though the Rosetta Stone ended up in British hands—a foreshadowing of the British takeover of the French-built Suez Canal, and the country itself, in the 1880s. In between, Wilkinson highlights the achievements of Prussian explorer Karl Richard Lepsius, who made the first "systematic exploration" of the Great Pyramid of Giza, and Auguste Mariette, who discovered the Serapeum at Saqqara in 1851, among other Egyptologists. He also notes the devastating impact of "treasure-hunting," "slapdash excavation," and Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali's modernization efforts on archaeological sites, and details novelist Amelia Blandford Edwards's campaign to "save Egypt's patrimony for future generations." Wilkinson marshals a wealth of detail into a cohesive and entertaining narrative. The result is an essential portrait of how the rediscovery of " ancient past paved the way for its modern rebirth." Agent: Jon Wood, RCW Literary.(Oct.)

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Citations

APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)

Wilkinson, T. (2020). A world beneath the sands: the golden age of Egyptology (First American edition.). W. W. Norton & Company, Inc..

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Wilkinson, Toby, 1969-. 2020. A World Beneath the Sands: The Golden Age of Egyptology. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Wilkinson, Toby, 1969-. A World Beneath the Sands: The Golden Age of Egyptology New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2020.

Harvard Citation (style guide)

Wilkinson, T. (2020). A world beneath the sands: the golden age of egyptology. First American edn. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.

MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)

Wilkinson, Toby. A World Beneath the Sands: The Golden Age of Egyptology First American edition., W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2020.

Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.

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