The New York Obelisk (1993)

The New York Obelisk or
How Cleopatra's Needle
Came to New York and
What Happened When
It Got Here

The New York Obelisk by Martina D’Alton is published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art (colloquially known as the Met). This harcover book is a reprint of the Museum’s Bulletin from spring 1993 (designed by Michael Shroyer).

As the subtitle says, this book tells us How Cleopatra’s Needle came to New York and What Happened When It Got Here. The main text is divided into eight chapters (and an epilogue), which follow a chronological line:

      1. The Gift

      2. The Plan
      3. In Pharaoh’s Land

      4. Departure
      5. At Sea
      6. Time Capsules

      7. Landfall and Transport

      8. Installation
      9. Epilogue

The book begins with a preface written by Philippe de Montebello (director of the Met 1977-2008) and a prologue which gives the historical background. The book concludes with picture credits and a bibliography. There is no index, but perhaps we do not need an index in a book, which has less than 100 pages.

On page 16 the obelisk is described with the following words:

“Cleopatra’s Needle measures just over sixty-nine feet from base to tip… It weighs anywhere from 193 to 220 tons.” 

 

Moving an ancient monument of this size and weight from Africa to America was a formidable task. Fortunately, it was given to a man who was ready to deal with it. His name was Henry H. Gorringe, and he was a Lieutenant-Commander of the US Navy. He began his task in 1879, and he completed it in 1881, when the obelisk was erected in Central Park, not far from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In 1882 he published a detailed account of the project. His book – a stately volume published in folio format – includes some chapters about other Egyptian obelisks (written by his friend and assistant Seaton Schroeder), and therefore it has the title Egyptian Obelisks.

D’Alton’s account relies heavily on his book, as she explains in her prologue:

 

“Gorringe gives a most dignified account of his adventures in Egyptian Obelisks, which he published privately in 1882. The quoted text that follows, unless otherwise noted, is taken from his book. Many of the photographs in his book are also reproduced here. They were largely taken by Edward Bierstadt, brother of Albert Bierstadt, the renowned landscape painter of the American West.”

However, D’Alton also uses many other sources, including contemporary reports and illustrations from newspapers and magazines, and she follows the story of the obelisk into the 20th century.

Two obelisks are known as Cleopatra’s Needles, although the famous queen did not have anything to do with them. They were both commissioned by Thutmose III and erected in Heliopolis ca. 1450 BC. In 13 or 12 BC the Roman Emperor Augustus had them moved from Heliopolis to Alexandria where they were placed in front of the Caesareum, a temple for the deified Caesar. Cleopatra lived in this city. Perhaps this is the reason for the nickname, but it is “probably a fanciful attribution more than anything else,” D’Alton writes, “as Cleopatra died some twenty years before the obelisks arrived in Alexandria.”

Around AD 1300 an earthquake struck the city. One of the obelisks fell to the ground, but did not break, while the other remained standing. In 1877 the prostrate obelisk was removed from Egypt, and the following year it was erected on the embankment of the River Thames in London. In 1879 Gorringe arrived in Alexandria in order to pick up the other obelisk which was still standing.

It was easier said than done. Whenever one problem was solved, another one seemed to present itself, but Gorringe did not give up. He was, as we learn from this account, a man of action and a man of ideas. If there was a problem, he took it as a challenge and found a solution.

The New York Obelisk is a great book: the text is well written; the illustrations are numerous and they are well chosen. I have almost nothing to complain about, but I have to mention a few minor flaws:

(1) When was Gorringe born? The text on page 10 says 1840 (which is false), while the caption to the picture on page 11 says 1841 (which is correct). He died in 1885, the result of a freak accident.

(2) The caption to an illustration on page 18 says:

“Launching the Cleopatra, which was specially built to carry the London obelisk under tow from Alexandria to England, September 7, 1878.”

 

The year (1878) must be a misprint, because the Cleopatra left Alexandria for England in September 1877.

(3) The caption to an illustration on page 21 mentions the bronze sea crabs, which the Romans placed under the four corners of the obelisk, when it was erected in Alexandria; and the picture on page 22 shows the Greek inscription on the outside of the only remaining original claw. But the bibliography does not include A. C. Merriam’s book about this ancient item: The Greek and Latin Inscriptions on the Obelisk-Crab in the Metropolitan Museum (1883).

(4) The caption to the illustration on page 39 includes a long quotation from the New York Herald (21 July 1879) about the Dessoug, which carried the obelisk across the Atlantic Ocean. The year (1879) must be a misprint, because the Dessoug arrived in New York in July 1880.

(5) The map on page 55 shows the route the obelisk followed in Manhattan. It is good to have a map, but the size is so small that you need a magnifying glass to read the names of the streets. Why is the map so small?

These flaws are unfortunate, but as you can see, they are minor, and therefore I am not going to complain about them.

If you are interested in history - especially a combination of ancient and modern history - I am sure you will enjoy this slim volume about the Egyptian obelisk in Central Park.

* * *

 

Martina D'Alton,

The New York Obelisk or

How Clepopatra's Needle Came to New York and

What Happened When It Got Here,

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993, 72 pages

 

* * *

 



 

This colour picture from the back cover of the book shows the

New York obelisk in Central Park, AD 1993.

 

 

The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the ancient Egyptian obelisk in Central Park,

a sweeping bird's eye view, ca. 1928 (from page 70).

 

 

The Scottish painter David Roberts (1796-1864) made this drawing of the two obelisks
commonly known as Cleopatra's Needles in Alexandria during a visit to Egypt in 1838.

The drawing is borrowed from Wkipedia.

 

The prostrate obelisk (in the foreground) was removed from Egypt in 1877.
It was re-erected on the embankment of the River Thames in London in 1878.

 

Notice the five persons sitting on the prostrate obelisk, which is partially buried by sand.

They indicate the size of the obelisk.

 

The standing obelisk (in the background) was taken down in 1879 and removed
from Egypt in 1880. It was re-erected in New York Central Park in 1881.

Notice the five persons standing at at the foot of the obelisk.

They indicate the size of the obelisk.

 

* * *

 

 

 



The Queens of Ancient Egypt

This beautiful book about the queens of ancient Egypt is written by Rosanna Pirelli, a classical archaeologist who teaches Egyptology at the University of Naples, Italy. The preface is written by a guest writer, Suzanne Mubarak, wife of Hosni Mubarak, who was the president of Egypt when the book was published. At the time it seemed fitting that the first lady of modern Egypt should make this contribution to a book about the first ladies of ancient Egypt. The introduction is written by another guest writer, Dorothea Arnold, who is the chairman of the Department of Egyptology in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The preface is short, only one page. This is not surprising. I do not expect more than this. The point is just to show that Suzanne Mubarak wants to lend her name to this publication. The introduction is also short, only three pages. This is a bit surprising. I would expect a more substantial contribution, maybe 10-15 pages, because this writer is an expert on ancient Egypt. Why is the introduction so short? Is it because Dorothea Arnold did not want to do more? Or is it because the publisher told her not to write more? I do not know. There is no information about this in the book.

The main text is divided into four long chapters:

# 1: Women, Queens and Goddesses in Ancient Egypt

# 2: Women as Sovereigns

# 3: The Queens of Pharaonic Egypt

# 4: Cleopatra and the Ptolemaic Queens

The book concludes with a chronology, an index and a list of photo credits.

This book is published by White Star, an Italian publishing house which specialises in picture books in large format (also known as coffee table books). It is lavishly illustrated. In addition, it comes in a solid cardboard box that will protect the book whether it is standing on a bookshelf or lying on a desk.

All illustrations are in colour, except for a few old photos which are in black-and-white. In many cases, one motive gets a whole page. In some cases, one motive gets two whole pages. As you work your way through this book, you will see one great picture after another: pyramids, temples, tombs, statues, portraits, furniture, jewellery and many other items connected to the queens of ancient Egypt. The impact is overwhelming, almost as if you are there yourself.

Pirelli seems to be very familiar with Egyptian history, but there is a mistake on page 244 where she says Ptolemy III was married to Berenice III. In fact, he was married to Berenice II. The same mistake appears in the chronology (page 265). There are two more mistakes on page 252:

Mistake # 1. She writes:

”… but Caesar’s death, far from re-establishing the balance of power between Pompey and Mark Antony, created further conflict…”

Why does she mention Pompey here? Caesar was killed in 44 BC; Pompey (whose Latin name is Pompeius) was killed in 48 BC. When Caesar was killed, Pompey had already been dead for four years.

Mistake # 2. She writes:

“… at home a re-formulation of the agreement with Octavian and Lepidus was ratified by Antony’s new marriage to the daughter of Octavian.”

Mark Antony (whose Latin name is Marcus Antonius) married Octavian’s sister, Octavia, in 40 BC. Octavian’s daughter (Julia) was not even born at that time. Julia was born in the following year, i.e. in 39 BC.

The British Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley has written a book about the same topic: Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt: From Early Dynastic Times to the Death of Cleopatra.

Pirelli’s book was published by White Star in 2008, while Tyldesley’s book was published by Thames & Hudson in 2006. It is natural to compare the two books with each other.

The book from White Star is almost twice as big as the book from Thames & Hudson (27 x 37 cm against 27 x 20 cm), and it is longer (272 pages against 224 pages). But I cannot say that one book is better than the other. The strength of Pirelli’s book lies in the stunning illustrations. The strength of Tyldesley’s book lies in the very informative text.

Inevitably, many motives (illustrations) can be found in both books. For reasons of space, I will mention only a few cases here:

** The huge cedar wood coffin of Meritamun

 

** The famous portrait of Nefertiti that was found in 1912

 

** The temples built for Ramesses II and Nefertari at Abu Simbel

 

** Wall decorations in Nefertari’s tomb in the Valley of the Queens

 

** The model of a boat that was found in the tomb of Ahhotep I

In one case – the devotional stele from Amarna showing Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their three daughters – the people from White Star have made a mistake. In the original, Akhenaten is sitting on the left with one daughter (Meritaten), while Nefertiti is sitting on the right with two daughters (Meketaten and Ankhesenpaaten) (see for instance Tyldesley, page 132). But in Pirelli’s book they have switched places: the huge picture in her book (pp. 199-200) is a mirror image!

Tyldesley seems to be very familiar with Egyptian as well as Roman history. She does not make the same mistakes as Pirelli: she knows Ptolemy III married Berenice II (page 192); she knows Pompey was killed in 48 BC (page 201); and she knows Mark Antony married Octavian’s sister (page 205). If only Pirelli had studied (the last chapter of) this book, she could have avoided the embarrassing mistakes which I mentioned earlier.

These mistakes are unfortunate, and so is the mirror image. But in spite of these flaws I want to say that this is an excellent book. If you are interested in ancient history - in particular the queens of ancient Egypt - this book is an excellent place to start.

* * *

 

Rosanna Pirelli,

The Queens of Ancient Egypt,

White Star Books, 2008, 272 pages

 

* * *

 

 

Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt

Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt:
From Early Dynastic Times to the
Death of Cleopatra



Joyce Tyldesley is a British scholar, who has written several books about ancient Egypt, including the following:

* Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh

* Nefertiti: Egypt’s Sun Queen

* Ramesses: Egypt’s Greatest Pharaoh

* Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt

Her book about the queens of Egypt opens with an introduction about royal consorts and female kings (15 pages). The main text is divided into six chapters:

Chapter 1: Dynasties 0-2. The First Queens – The Early Dynastic Period

Chapter 2: Dynasties 3-8. Queens of the Pyramid Age - The Old Kingdom

Chapter 3: Dynasties 9-17. Chaos and Rebirth – The First Intermediate Period, Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period

Chapter 4: Dynasties 18-20. Queens of the Empire – The New Kingdom

Chapter 5: Dynasties 21-31. Weakened Royal Power – The Third Intermediate Period and Late Period

Chapter 6: The Last Queens of Egypt - The Macedonian and Ptolemaic Periods

At the end of the book there are notes, a chronology, a bibliography, illustration credits and an index.

There are 273 illustrations, 173 in colour.

Today, nobody can write a biography (in the modern sense of the word) of any Egyptian queen. There is not enough information. In some cases we have a name, a tomb, a portrait and maybe other items. In a few cases we have more than that. But in many cases we have less or simply nothing. So it is not an easy job to write a book about the queens of ancient Egypt. Tyldesley mentions the problem in a separate sidebar on page 19:

“For all periods we are lacking the personal records that would really make the queens come alive for modern readers.”

In the long line of Egyptian queens, four persons stand out, because of who they were; because of who their husbands (or partners) were; and because fate has given us a good deal of historical evidence about them:

# 1 Hatshepsut (pages 94-109). [In her 1998 book about this queen, Tyldesley used an unusual spelling of the name: Hatchepsut. But in this book about all the queens, she follows the conventional English spelling: Hatshepsut.] When her husband (Thutmose II) died, her stepson (Thutmose III) was too young to rule, so she ruled in his place; first as a queen, but later as a king. She was a female pharaoh.

# 2 Nefertiti (pages 125-134). She was married to Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten; who changed the Egyptian religion; and who moved the capital to Amarna. The portrait of her that was found in 1912 is considered as one of the most beautiful and important works of art in the whole world.

# 3 Nefertari (pages 145-153). She was married to Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great, who ruled Egypt for more than 60 years. At Abu Simbel, in the south of Egypt, he built two impressive temples: one for himself and one that is dedicated to Nefertari.

# 4 Cleopatra (pages 201-209). She was the last queen of the Ptolemaic dynasty. First, she teamed up with the Roman politician Gajus Julius Caesar; they had a son. After his death in 44 BC, she teamed up with another Roman politician, Mark Antony (whose Latin name is Marcus Antonius); they had three children.

Tyldesley seems to be very familiar with Egyptian history, but there is a mistake on page 199 where she writes:

 

“After the death of Ptolemy IX in 62 BC, the widowed Berenice III took her father’s throne.”

The year (62 BC) is wrong. Berenice III was married three times: the first time to her uncle Ptolemy X (who died in 88 BC); the second time to her father Ptolemy IX (who died in 88); the third time to her stepson Ptolemy XI (who was killed in 80 BC a few days after he had killed his wife). No king named Ptolemy died in 62 BC. Certainly, Berenice III did not do anything in that year: she had been dead for 18 years. Everything else in this book seems to be correct. Therefore this mistake is all the more perplexing.

The Italian Egyptologist Rosanna Pirelli has written a book about the same topic: The Queens of Ancient Egypt.

Pirelli’s book was published by White Star in 2008, while Tyldesley’s book was published by Thames & Hudson in 2006. It is natural to compare the two books with each other.

The book from White Star is almost twice as big as the book from Thames & Hudson (27 x 37 cm against 27 x 20 cm), and it is longer (272 against 224 pages). But I cannot say that one book is better than the other.

Inevitably, many motives (illustrations) can be found in both books. For reasons of space, I will mention only a few cases here:

* The statue of Menkaure and his wife Khamerernebty II; today in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.

* The alabaster statue of Ankhnespepi II and her son Pepi II; today in the Brooklyn Museum.

* The back panel of “the Golden Throne” showing Tutankhamun sitting and his wife Ankhesenamun standing; today in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Tyldesley’s chronicle of the queens of ancient Egypt is an important and interesting book. The material is well organised, and the text is written by an author who knows what she is talking about; in addition, there are many fine illustrations, more than half in colours. If you are interested in ancient Egypt, I am sure you will this book.

* * *

 

Joyce Tyldesley,

Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt:

From Early Dynastic Times to the Death of Cleopatra,

Thames & Hudson, 2006, 224 pages

 

* * *

 

 

 

The Realm of the Pharaohs

This beautiful book about ancient Egypt is written by the Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass, who is the secretary-general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities. The book begins with a short introduction. The main text is divided into four major parts. Here is an overview:

Part I –
“A Brief history of Ancient Egypt” – an introduction and seven chapters

Part II –
“The Land of the Living” - an introduction and four chapters

Part III –
“The Domain of the Divine” – an introduction and 18 chapters

Part IV –
“The Netherworld” – an introduction and 25 chapters

The book concludes with an alphabetical index. The illustrations are colour photos most of which are taken by the professional Italian photographer Araldo De Luca, who works for White Star Books.

This is a great book is every sense of the word. Let me explain:

(1) The format is very large (26 x 36 cm), and there are more than 400 pages. This hardcover edition comes in a special cardboard box which will protect the book whether it is placed on a shelf or on a desk.

(2) The text is written by an author who knows his topic extremely well. Since he is the top man of Egyptian archaeology, he has personal knowledge of all the ancient sites in the country. In some cases he has even done excavation work there. To illustrate this point let me quote a passage from page 325:

“One of the most beautiful and best-preserved tombs in the Western Cemetery [of Giza] belongs to a man named Kapunisut Kai, whose titles include priest of the cults of Khufu, Djedefre, and Sneferu… I discovered this tomb during clearance work in the area.”

(3) The illustrations are numerous and fabulous. In many cases a picture gets a full page. In some cases a picture gets two pages. And in two cases we have a special fold-out system which means that a picture gets four pages (pp. 355-358 & 389-392). In both cases the format is 36 x 96 cm. Every picture is carefully chosen and placed in the right context. Extensive captions give additional information about the photos.

Please note: This is not a guidebook that you want to take with you when you are going to Egypt. It is far too big and far too heavy. Read the text and study the photos at home before you go to Egypt in order to learn about the country and in order to plan your visit. This book covers all the ancient sites, the pyramids, the temples and the tombs. Most visitors will only be able to visit some of them. Return to the book when you have been to Egypt. When you read the text again and you study the photos again, I think you will understand everything in a much better way.

This is a great book, but even in a great book there can be mistakes. I have to mention some examples:

* On page 68 Hawass mentions Merimde: “By about the mid-fifth century BC, Merimde was a large village built of mud…” The date is wrong. It is not the fifth century BC; it is the fifth millennium BC.

* On page 77 the text reads: “It was not only the where the mayor and his family lived, it was also …” A word like ‘house’ is missing here. The text should read: ‘It was not only the house where the mayor lived, but also…’

* On page 85: “… covering an area of about 125,000 kilometres.” This passage is about an area; therefore it should be 125,000 square kilometres.

* On page 86: “… it covered about 75 hectares (750 square meters).” The last figure (in brackets) is wrong. One hectare is 10,000 square meters, so 75 hectares must be 750,000 square meters.

* On page 190 Hawass mentions a pharaoh: “Ptolemy IX (107-116 BC).” The dates are reversed. It should be 116-107 BC. But even this correction is not enough. This pharaoh ruled no less than three times. In order to be accurate, we must mention all three periods: 116-110, 109-107 and 88-81.

* On page 210 we hear about the “Raman” period. I think it is the Roman period.

* On page 327 the caption to a large picture reads as follows:

 

“Aerial view of the Teti Pyramid Cemetery at Saqqara, with the pyramid of Teti in the background and a number of elite tombs, including the mastabas of Ti and Mereuka [sic!], in the foreground.”

 

The pyramid of Teti is indeed in the background, and the mastaba of Mereruka (not Mereuka) in the foreground. But the mastaba of Ti lies more than 500 meters further northeast, and it is not visible in this photo.

* The index is useful, but not always reliable. According to the index, the French scholar Jean-François Champollion is mentioned on page 124. But the correct page is 136. According the index, the mastaba of Kagemni at Saqqara is mentioned on page 128. But the correct page is 124.

* The English text in the book is excellent, but there is at least one case where the English editor (Janice Kamrin) failed to do her job: on page 361 Hawass mentions the tomb of Amenhotep IV, who later changed his name to Akhenaten: “Only the deeply descending stairs were completely before the cutting was abandoned, and the court moved to Tell el-Amarna.” The word ‘completely’ should be replaced with ‘completed.’

Despite these mistakes I want to recommend this book. The text is well written, the material is well organised, and the illustrations are splendid.

There is, of course, one final point to consider: the price. It is a rather expensive book, but when you consider the contents, I believe you get full value for your money.

* * *

 

Zahi Hawass,

The Realm of the Pharaohs,

White Star Books, 2006, 415 pages

 

* * *

 

 

 

The Monuments of Egypt and Nubia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Monuments of Egypt and Nubia presents drawings and paintings made by the Italian 19th century Egyptologist Ippolito Rosellini during his first and only trip to Egypt. The book – published by the American University in Cairo Press and White Star Books – comes with a text written by Franco Serino and translated into English by Richard Pierce.

 

The graphic design is done by Clara Zanotti.

 

The book is published in a large format: 26 x 36 cm.

Ippolito Rosellini (1800-1843) was born in Pisa and educated in Bologna. In 1824 he was appointed as a lecturer of Oriental languages at the University of Pisa. In 1825 he met the young French scholar Jean-François Champollion (probably) in Florence. This was just three years after the latter had cracked the code of the hieroglyphs.

The two men became good friends and met again in 1826. They dreamed of going to Egypt together, and their dream became true when the Franco-Tuscan Expedition was approved and funded by Charles X (who was king of France 1824-1830) and Leopold II (who was the Grand Duke of Tuscany 1824-1859).

During the expedition, which lasted from July 1828 to December 1829, Rosellini made many drawings and paintings of ancient tombs and temples, which were published in nine volumes from 1832 to 1844.

A similar project was undertaken by the French scholar Emile Prisse d’Avennes, who visited Egypt two times (1827-1844 and 1858-1860). Some of his drawings and some of his paintings are published in Atlas of Egyptian Art.

In The Monuments of Egypt and Nubia you will find a broad selection of Rosellini’s work. The book is divided into two parts:

(1) Rosellini and the Rediscovery of Ancient Egypt in the Nineteenth Century

(2) Egyptian and Nubian monuments

All illustrations in this book are interesting and valuable, because they document the condition of the ancient monuments in the 19th century. Since then some monuments have suffered further damage, and the colours of some paintings have faded a great deal. But some of these illustrations are more than just interesting and valuable; they are outstanding.

In fact, they are so good that they are often used in modern books about ancient Egypt, for instance Ramesses II by T. G. H. James and The Realm of the Pharaohs by Zahi Hawass. Here are some of the best cases:

THE BATTLES AND VICTORIES OF RAMESSES II; from Abu Simbel

* Ramesses in his chariot: pp. 2-3

* Ramesses presenting prisoners of war to the gods: pp. 6-7

* Ramesses smiting foreign prisoners: pp. 38-39

* Ramesses crushing foreigners: page 42

* Ramesses in triumph: pp. 44-45

THE BATTLE OF KADESH, ca. 1274 BC; from Abu Simbel

* Line drawings: pp. 46-47 and 52-53

* Colour paintings: pp. 48-51

* People at work: pp. 74-83

* Domestic life: pp. 86-87

* Furniture: pp. 100-101

* Musicians and dancers: pp. 102-107

* Funerary scenes: pp. 112-117

* Seti (or Sethi) I among gods; from his tomb in the Valley of the Kings: pp. 118-119

* Ramesses X makes offerings to the gods; from his tomb in the Valley of the Kings: pp. 120-121

* Ramesses III makes offerings to the gods; from his tomb in the Valley of the Kings: page 125

The text is reliable except for one baffling mistake on page 22 where Serino describes the Horus temple in Edfu. He claims work on this temple began “in 327 BC under Ptolemy III,” and that it was “completed in the first decades of the Christian era.”

The reference to Ptolemy III (246-222 BC) is correct. But the year is wrong. The work began in 237 BC and was completed in 57 BC. The reference to “the first decades of the Christian era” is completely misplaced.

Rosellini and Champollion were not only scholars, they were also collectors. One example of this aspect is described on pp. 26-27 where Rosellini goes to see a recently discovered tomb in the west necropolis of Gurna. Inside he finds four mummy coffins. In his diary he writes:

 

“I bought the lot for 32 thalers, plus a bakshish [a tip] of 16 piastres.”

On page 27 we are told that the members of the expedition arrived at the Valley of the Kings “where they found comfortable lodgings in the tomb of Ramesses IV.” Today you cannot use an ancient royal tomb as your hotel room!

On the same page Serino mentions “the stupendous tomb of Seti I, which had been discovered by [the Italian explorer] Giovanni Battista Belzoni in 1817.” Then he adds:

 

“Champollion and Rosellini removed two low reliefs from this tomb; they can now be seen at the Louvre in Paris and the National Archaeological Museum in Florence.”

 

Today this would be considered as an act of vandalism.

Prisse d’Avennes did something similar during his first visit to Egypt: one night in May 1843 he entered the Karnak temple complex with a team of workers and dismantled the so-called king list in the Hall of the Ancestors. The blocks with the king list were placed in boxes, and the following year they were smuggled out of the country and transported to France. Today they are in the Louvre in Paris.

However, the purpose of this review is to evaluate the book, and not the man. On page 8 Rosellini is described as “an illustrious citizen who became the pupil and spiritual heir of Champollion” and as “the father of Italian Egyptology.”

On page 29 Serino says:

 

“… for his total dedication to the study of the new discipline and his great virtues as a historian, philologist, and researcher, Rosellini deserves to stand alongside Champollion and [the Prussian scholar Karl Richard] Lepsius as one of the three founders of modern Egyptology.”

I agree with him. The Monuments of Egypt and Nubia is a fitting tribute to the memory of an important scholar. If you like ancient history, in particular ancient Egypt, I am sure you are going to love this book.

* * *

 

Ippolito Rosellini (illustrator) and Franco Serino (text),

The Monuments of Egypt and Nubia,

American University in Cairo Press and White Star Books, 2003, 128 pages

 

* * *

 

A pharaoh making offerings to the gods - frontispiece.

 

Ramesses II - in the guise of the sun god Ra - seated between the god Amun (left) and

the goddess Mut (right). From the great temple at Abu Simbel (page 7).

 

 

A procession of divinities and pharaohs. From the Valley of the Kings (page 27).

 

 

Ramesses III making offerings to the god Ptah-Sokar (not shown here).

From his tomb in the Vally of the Kings (page 31).

 

 

The battles and victories of Ramesses II. From the great temple at

Abu Simbel in the south of Egypt (page 39).

 

 

The battle of Kadesh: three princes (sons of Ramesses II) in battle against the Hittites.

From the great temple at Abu Simbel (page 41).

 

 

The pharaoh and a god: Merenptah (or Merneptah), son and successor of Ramesses II

receives the gift of stability and peace from the god Ra-Horakhty.

From his tomb in the Vally of the Kings (page 55).

 

 

A funerary scene (page 117).

 

Seti I among gods (page 118).

Seti I and the goddess Hathor (page 119).

 

*****