The Egyptians

by Cyril Aldred

Book Overview

The twin themes - the overwhelming importance of the Nile and the pharaoh - provide the unifying thread running through Cyril Aldred's classic text. Aidan Dodson has completely revised the book whilst... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0500280363
• ISBN13: 9780500280362
• Release Date: August 1998
• Publisher: Thames & Hudson
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.3" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Emergence of Egypt: 'Antiquity' to the ancients

This is a good bird's eye view of the emergence of Egyptian civilization as it appears almost in parallel to the rise of the Sumerian world. The earliest period of Egyptian civilization after the unification of the upper and lower kingdoms is, as Aldred suggests, the most creative, and the entire cycle of civilization stretches as long as the period in our tradition from the Classical Greeks to modern times, a tremendous range, with an amazing overall continuity. A closer look shows the change in character of the civilization and many interior transformations. This account is a fine beginning to Egyptian history. To the ancient Greeks this world was what they meant by 'ancient'

Ideal introductory book for beginners to Ancient Egypt

I recommend Aldred's "The Egyptians" more than Grimal's book "A History of Ancient Egypt," which is vague and confusing. Aldred's book is definitely a much better and more reliable introduction to all aspects of this civilization, from history to religion, geography to social ranks.

Ideal introductory book for beginners to Ancient Egypt

Well illustrated, this classic book, written by a remarkable Egyptologist, is a comprehensible overview of Egyptian civilization. The author discusses the discoveries which led to the beginning of Egyptology; he presents Egypt's geography starting with Sudan and Nubia, ending with the Delta; he describes the history and formation of Egypt from the Predynastic to the Late Periods; he describes Egyptian social groups from the pharaoh to the peasants. Extensively updated by Egyptologist Aidan Dodson, it is an excellent introduction for all students.

A masterful work by a master of the field.

"The Egyptians" is a wonderful piece, spanning the whole of Egyptian history minus Ptolmiac times, which duly belong more to Greek and Roman history than to Egyptian. However, unlike Nicolas Grimal's "A History of Ancient Egypt," this work is written much better and Cyril's very formal, yet oddly casual style makes for quite the enjoyable read. A chapter is spent on Egyptian social classes, ranging from the Pharaoh to the peasantry to slaves, a delightful bite of information concerning Deir el-Medina hidden within. However, I must confess that one of the greatest pleasures came to me when I found among the wonderful plates a long sought after photo of the author, standing in the temple of Seti I at abydos; I like to have faces to go along with my favorite Egyptological authors. I also send my admonitions to Aidon Dodson for a wonderful job of updating; he made the book current without undermining Cyril's style, and nowhere can you detect his presence save for his well-said preface.

A masterful work by the a master of the field.

"The Egyptians" is a wonderful piece, spanning the whole of Egyptian history minus Ptolmiac times, which duly belong more to Greek and Roman history than Egyptian. However, unlike Nicolas Grimal's "A History of Ancient Egypt," this history is written much better and Cyril's very formal, yet oddly casuall style makes for quite the enjoyable read. A chapter is spent on Egyptian social classes, ranging from the Pharaoh to the peasantry to slaves, a delightful bite of information concerning Deir el-Medina hidden within. However, I must confess that one of the greatest pleasures came to me when I found among the wonderful plates a long sought after photo of the author, standing in the temple of Seti I at abydos; I like to have faces to go along with my favorite Egyptological authors. I also send my admonitions to Aidon Dodson for a wonderful job of updating; he made the book current without undermining Cyril's style, and nowhere can you for certain know something has been changed.