Ancient Egypt: A beginner's guide
Personalities
Websites
Hatshepsut: The queen who would be king
www.bediz.com/hatshep/index.html
A pharaoh in the 18th dynasty, Hatshepsut was one of a handful of
female rulers in ancient Egypt. This excellent website by an enthusiast
looks at the story of her long reign and of her temple, which still stands
as a tribute to her rise to power.
Queen Nefertiti
www.touregypt.net/featurestories/nefertiti.htm
Surprisingly well-written and well-illustrated article on the Egyptian queen.
Tutankhamun
www.egyptologyonline.com/tutankhamun.htm
Concise website on the young pharaoh, his attendants, death and burial
and the discovery of his tomb.
Cleopatra
www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/
rome/cleopatra.html
A thorough examination of Cleopatra's life and the consequences of her
liaison with Mark Antony. Part of Channel 4's AD1 website.
The Allure of Cleopatra
www.csmonitor.com/2002/0125/p13s02-alar.html
Article from the Christian Science Monitor (US) reflecting
on the Cleopatra encountered at the 2002 exhibition at the Field Museum
in Chicago, which originated at the British Museum.
Books
Who's Who in Ancient Egypt by Michael Rice (Routledge, 2001) £9.99
This guide and sourcebook introduces the inhabitants of ancient Egypt,
allowing us to encounter their world through their own eyes.
The Pyramid Builder: Cheops, the pharaoh behind the Great Pyramid
by Christine El Mahdy (Headline, 2003) £20
More than 4,500 years ago, the largest of the wonders of the ancient world
was built: the Great Pyramid at Giza. But how was it built? Why and by
whom? This book takes a look at the man behind the monument.
Akhenaten: King of Egypt by Cyril Aldred (Thames & Hudson,
1991) £16.95
Brings to life one of the ancient world's most enigmatic and fascinating
characters, a man who briefly revolutionised the political, social and
religious norms of his time by introducing the concept of monotheism (through
the worship of the Aten, or sun disc) into Egyptian society in the 14th
century BC.
Akhenaten: History, fantasy and ancient Egypt by Dominic Montserrat
(Routledge, 2002) £17.99
This provocative biography examines both the real Akhenaten and the myths
that have been created around him. It scrutinises the history of the pharaoh
and his reign, which has been continually written in Eurocentric terms
inapplicable to ancient Egypt, and the way he has been invoked to validate
ideas as diverse as psychoanalysis, racial equality and fascism.
Tutankhamen: The life and death of a boy king by Christine El
Mahdy (Headline, 2000) £7.99
In Egypt 3,500 years ago, a little boy was crowned pharaoh. Nine years
later, he was dead. After a hasty and secretive burial, Tutankhamen lay
in peace until 1922. This book tells the story of his life and death and
the political infighting of ancient Egypt.
Pharaohs of the Sun: Akhenaten, Nefertiti, Tutankhamen edited
by Rita E Freed, Yvonne J Markowitz and Sue H D'Auria (Thames & Hudson,
1999) £36
In this catalogue of the millennium exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts,
Boston, the world of ancient Egypt comes to life through more than 250
illustrations. Essays by leading Egyptologists describe the Amarna period,
a time of unprecedented changes in art and architecture, technology and
women's roles, and the dramatic shift in religion, with polytheism being
rejected in favour of monotheism.
Ramesses: Egypt's greatest pharaoh by Joyce Tyldesley (Penguin,
2001) £7.99
Ramesses II was the most powerful king ever to rule Egypt, well known
for his profusion of wives who gave him more than 100 children. This book
introduces the reader to the world of high politics and international
intrigue that were part of the very fabric of life in the court of Ramesses,
and to the opulent existence of the aristocratic élite.
Reflections of Osiris: Lives from ancient Egypt by John Ray (Profile
Books, 2002) £7.99
This book tells the stories of 12 people, the last five being linked:
Imhotep, architect and sage, the Leonardo of ancient Egypt; Heqanakhte,
a peasant farmer with problems; Hatshepsut, female pharaoh, Egypt's Elizabeth
I; Horemheb, self-made politician, general and pharaoh; Khaemwise, a prince
who was the first Egyptologist; Petiese, a temple scribe with a grievance;
Nectanebo, the last pharaoh of an independent Egypt and legendary magician;
Ptolemaios, Greek-Egyptian recluse in the Serapeum temple complex; Apollonios,
his youngest brother, would-be soldier, and police informant; Taous and
Taw, twin sisters whose job was to impersonate goddesses; Hor, minor priest
and secretary at the Ibis shrine of Thoth in the same complex.
