Tombs mummies and funerary items make up a significant portion of the archeological remains that survive ancient Egypt and have come to define the popular perception of Egyptology Despite the many sensational discoveries in the last century such as the tomb of Tutankhamun the tombs of some of the most famous individuals in the ancient world Imhotep Nefertiti Alexander the Great and Cleopatra have not yet been found Archeologist Chris Naunton examines the famous pharaohs their achievements the bling they might have been buried with the circumstances in which they were buried and why those circumstances may have prevented archeologists from finding these tombs In Searching for the Lost Tombs of Egypt Naunton sheds light on the lives of these ancient Egyptians and makes an exciting case for the potential discovery of these lost tombs Searching for the Lost Tombs of Egypt
site_link post a commentA fascinating look at the history of the search for some of the lost tombs of famous personalities from ancient Egypt including those of Imhotep the Amarna Royals Alexander the Great and Cleopatra VII Dr Naunton has done a great job in summarizing not only the search for the tombs and the likely candidates but also the lives and stories of the individuals involved. I was particularly interested in the chapter on the Amarna Royals and the story of how at least some of these men and women were buried and then reburied before being re buried yet again Additionally the now accepted theory that at least some of Tutankhamun s burial equipment and tomb were in fact created for someone else perhaps Nefertiti. Essentially The Search for Lost Tombs captures the excitement of populist Egyptology that surrounds finding treasures and the bodies of ancient celebrities but importantly the book serves as a reminder that these people are and were than treasures to be found and are of critical importance in writing new chapters and re writing old ones of ancient Egypt English English Chris Naunton presents a fascinating account of the mysteries held in the burial grounds of important figures in ancient Egyptian history Dr Naunton uses his extensive knowledge and gift of storytelling to take readers on a captivating journey through Egyptology. I am not a professional in this area in any way whatsoever but I am someone who is fascinated by ancient Egyptian history culture and mythology This book presents information in a way that is understandable and captivating to even a casual reader with interest in the subject. I ve heard that Dr Naunton will be coming out with another book on Egyptology and I will definitely be reading it I highly reccomend this book to anyone with interest in Egyptology English English A very interesting and enjoyable read even though I am someone with little to no knowledge of Ancient Egypt I found this book very accessible It did give me lots to search and read up on especially visually to see the locations and tombs along with the various treasures found within This book focuses on the Tombs that have yet to be found such as Antony and Cleopatra Alexander The Great to name two Showing attempts and giving conjecture as well as the authors conclusions regarding whether we may see a breakthrough in the future It whetted my appetite to delve into the ancient Egypt books that I own and I m looking forward to expanding my knowledge and enjoyment of this new to me history It goes a lot deeper than Tutankhamun and Antony and Cleopatra A book I would highly recommend but keep your phone handy to google the many references for photographs to picture what is being described and I feel prior knowledge would enrich the experience of this book certainly is one I will be returning to someday English Dr Chris Naunton is probably familiar to many as one of the talking heads on documentaries about ancient Egypt This which I believe is his first book is a great and at the same time educational read. Naunton s subject is the search for several of the major missing tombs from ancient Egypt Some will be fairly well known Imhotep Cleopatra others are obscure including that of the semi pharaoh Herihor which Howard Carter was in search of for a time One might expect a tight focus but Naunton has selected wisely to surround each account with enough information for any reader to thoroughly understand the time the personalities and the searches This is a good thing because what most people think they know about ancient Eqypt is pretty much limited to Khufu Tutankhamun and Ramesses the Great in other words the Fourth Dynasty and the New Kingdom That s just a sliver of a vast space of geography and time So Naunton covers completely the latest scholarship regarding the Amarna dynasty and their lost tombs where did Nefertiti end up and was she pharaoh for a time the peregrination of Alexander the Great s corpse and best of all he covers thoroughly the discoveries of Pierre Montet at Tanis which are ridiculously poorly known because they happened just before and during World War II but resulted in the discovery of intact royal tombs. I had a great time reading this and I suspect anyone else interested in the period will enjoy it thoroughly The book is well illustrated with maps greyscale images in the body of the text and a section of color plates and the up to date king list at the back a moving target as scholarship advances is very handy Two years later I went back to re read the chapter on Amenhotep I and found myself rereading the book in its entirety Readable and interesting English An interesting book in that it focuses on the tombs of major Ancient Egyptian figures yet to be identified While at first consideration this book might seem like it could make for an enjoyable read to anyone interested in Ancient Egypt the truth is slightly complicated than that The depth in the material including the usage of the actual Egyptian prenomen names of the subjects in question Djeserkare Amenhotep I is great for people like me but will quickly turn into a very complicated mess for someone who s extent of Ancient Egyptian history is king Tut This is in no way a criticism of the author or the overall quality of the book but in many ways this issue could have been resolved with greater usage of illustrations maps can t tell you how many place names are included here with no reference to their current location and photographs Being a photographer myself I often wonder why authors of this type of material don t take advantage of a visual language which needs no translation I know that it s a cost issue Take Adian Dodson s books for instance also about Ancient Egypt Dodson packs his books with photos illustrations and maps making a sometimes exceedingly difficult storyline to follow much easier to digest Once again I want to be clear If you like Ancient Egypt and have a decent grasp on naming conventions places and timelines of various dynasties you are going to enjoy this book very much You are also going to learn many things which have been forgotten to time It s interesting to think that while thousands of years is an acceptable timeframe for history to be buried turns out that all it takes is decades English Egyptology is always fascinating and Naunton s exploration of tombs that are unlikely to be found is an interesting one English Review English What it says on the cover: Interesting look at various excavations in Egypt A must read for anyone interested in either archaeology or Egyptology English.