Hidden Treasures of Antiquity

This beautiful book about the hidden treasures of antiquity is published by White Star, an Italian publishing house that specialises in picture books. It is edited by Alberto Siliotti, an Italian journalist who specialises in ancient Egypt. The chapters are written by the editor and eleven other experts.

 

A message from the publisher on the back cover explains that “this extraordinary book explores every corner of the Earth in a voyage through the cities of the dead in search of the meaning of life in these lost civilisations and the relationship they had with the afterlife.”

The text is divided into four sections. Each section covers a region of the world and presents a number of ancient locations (some of which comprise more than one site). There are 23 locations with a total of 35 sites. Here is a brief overview:

EUROPE

New Grange (Ireland), Essé, Carnac, Gavrinis, Barnenez, Locmariaquer (France), Cerveteri, Tarquinia (Italy), Xagra, Hal Saflieni (Malta), Mycenae, Vergina (Greece)

AFRICA AND THE NEAR AND MIDDLE EAST

Palmyra (Syria), Petra (Jordan), Ur (Iraq), Nemrud Dagh (Turkey), Giza, Bahariya, Valley of the Kings, Deir El-Medina, Sheikh Abd El-Qurna (Egypt)

ASIA AND THE FAR EAST

Issyk, Berel (Kazakhstan), Sanchi (India), Angkor (Cambodia), Xian, Qianling, Zhaoling, Anping, Mancheng, Maoling (China)

THE AMERICAS

Teotihuacán, Palenque, Monte Alban (Mexico), Sipán (Peru)

The book concludes with a reference section where we find a glossary, an index, brief biographies of the authors and a bibliography that is divided into 23 sections, one for each of the 23 locations.

The book is fully illustrated with photos, drawings and maps that show the layout of the ancient sites. All illustrations are in colour, except for the maps and some old photos which are black-and-white.

Over the years I have visited several of the locations presented here. Using my personal experience as a yardstick, I will say that each location gets a fair presentation.

Since this book presents so many sites, we cannot expect to find every detail about every site. What we can expect is that every detail that is mentioned here is correct. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. There are some misprints and factual mistakes. Here are some examples:

* A caption on page 84 reads in part: “The painting was produced by Ch. Brochtorff in 1894 following the first discovery in 1820.” In fact, the painting was made in 1820, following the first discovery. The date 1894 must be a misprint.

* The tomb of Tutankhamun is presented as “the only sepulchre from ancient Egypt to have survived until modern times intact” (page 111). The tomb was not intact, it was only practically intact, because it was broken into during antiquity, and the author (Siliotti) knows it. This fact is mentioned several times on the following pages (148, 154, and 170).

* On page 217 we hear about King Antiochus I of Commagene; we are told he “reigned from 62 to 38 BC.” A few lines further down we are told he “maintained his power solidly for more than 30 years.” But the period 62-38 BC is less than 30 years. Something is wrong here. What is the answer? Antiochus I ruled 69-38 BC.

* On page 220 we hear about the famous “astrological lion relief” at Nemrud Dagh, which presents an ancient horoscope, and we are told:

 

“The most probable date [of the horoscope] is therefore 7 July 61 BC, the day that corresponds to the official concession of the kingdom to Antiochus by [the Roman politician] Pompey.”

 

The same date is given in a caption on page 219. In fact, scholars do not agree on the date. Otto Neugebauer, whose work from 1959 is listed in the bibliography (page 429), gives two dates: 7 July 61 BC and 7 July 62 BC. The latter date may be the day when the king ordered the construction of the funerary monument.

Henri Stierlin prefers the latter date. See Splendors of Ancient Persia (2006) (page 187). For more information about this ancient monument see my blog: Mount Nemrud: The Throne of the Gods.

* A caption on page 228 for a picture of the Palace Tomb in Petra (on pages 230-231) reads in part: “At close quarters it resembles a typical pediment of a Roman theater.” But the pediment is a triangular space usually connected with a temple. The author must be thinking about the stage-building of a Roman theatre which often had three storeys of columns.

* The introduction to the section on the Americas says Teotihuacán covered 22 square kilometres and had 125,000 inhabitants (page 368). But the chapter about this site says 20 square kilometres and 120,000 inhabitants (page 372). What is the truth? Nobody knows. Both figures are estimates, but why give us two different sets?

* The introduction to the section on the Americas says the tomb of Pacal in Palenque was discovered in 1951 (page 368). But the chapter about this site says 1952 (page 383). The last date is correct.

In general, the English translation is fine, but there are a few mistakes:

(a) On page 111, Ra is presented as “the Sun god, whom was believed to be his father.” Not “whom” but “who.”

(b) On page 225 we are told the ancient city of Petra “was then remained inaccessible to Europeans for centuries.” Not “then” but “and.”

(c) On page 259 the text reads: “Their discover, Leonard Woolley, recounts…” Not the verb (discover) but the noun (discoverer).

(d) On page 403 the text mentions the “need to trascend and escape the fate...” The correct spelling is “transcend.” Maybe this is only a misprint.

Misprints and mistakes like these are unfortunate. But in spite of these flaws I have to say this is a great book with an informative text and some splendid illustrations.

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Alberto Siliotti, editor,

Hidden Treasures of Antiquity,

White Star Books, 2000, 2006,

Format 26 x 36 cm, 432 pages

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