Ancient Egypt

A Very Short Introduction

By: Ian Shaw

Narrated by: Mike Cooper

The ancient Egyptians are an enduring source of fascination - mummies and pyramids, curses, and rituals have captured the imagination of generations. We all have a mental picture of ancient Egypt, but is it the right one? How much do we really know about this great civilization?

This second edition of Ancient Egypt: A Very Short Introduction explores the history and culture of pharaonic Egypt, including ideas about Egyptian kingship, ancient Egyptian writing systems, and the history of Egyptology. Ian Shaw introduces the listener to issues relating to ethnicity, race, gender, and sexual relations; the latest ideas about death, funerary rites, and mummification; and thoughts on religion and ethics in ancient Egypt. He also looks at the phenomenon of Egyptomania, whereby certain books and films have sensationalized aspects of Egyptian culture. Finally, Shaw takes the story to the present day by illustrating the impact of the Arab Spring on approaches to Egyptian museums and cultural heritage.

©2021 Ian Shaw (P)2021 Tantor

A lovely book for those beginning Egyptian history

Ian Shaw produces interesting commentary on a variety of topics regarding that of Ancient Egypt. A majority of the book covers archaeology of Egypt, as he has much experience in the field. If you are expecting or desiring a book that instills a greater focus in a historical narrative, you'll likely want to refrain from this purchasing this introductory book. That being said, Shaw demonstrates an incredible array of knowledge of both Ancient Egypt and Egyptian historiography in a very short amount of pages. He, like many veteran historians, are great at framing the evidence and acknowledging the subjectivity of the archaeological finds. For those of you that are reasonably familiar with Egyptian history, I believe this book will serve as a great review of what you know and even more.

Not worth the time

If you want to learn anything about ancient Egyptian history, this isn't for you. Half of it is about race and gender and modern pop culture and political views. Even as short as it is, it's not worth the time. It's very brave.