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Imagining the Past: Historical Fiction in New Kingdom Egypt
Five hundred years before Homer immortalized the Trojan Horse, the ancient Egyptians had already composed a tale of soldiers hiding Ali Baba-like in baskets to capture a besieged city. Shortly after the rise to power of the warrior pharaoh Ramesses II, Egyptian authors began to write stories
about battles and conquest. However, these stories were not set in the present, but in the past: they were the world's first works of historical fiction. These literary recreations of past events, which preserve fascinating mixtures of fact and fiction, provide unparalleled information about topics
as diverse as ancient Egyptian historiography, religion, and notions of humor and wit.
Imagining the Past is the first volume to provide complete translations and commentary for the historical fiction composed during Egypt's New Kingdom. The four works include The Quarrel of Apepi and Seqenenre, The Capture of Joppa, Thutmose III in Asia, The Libyan Battle Story. An introduction
explores Egyptian conceptions of the past, the universe of historical and literary texts in New Kingdom Egypt, and the definition of a new genre of Egyptian literature. Extensive commentary and new translations appear within each chapter, and a concluding analysis summarizes the audience and
function of historical fiction as well as theology and historiography within the tales. Despite the fragmentary nature of the papyrus copies, the thorough research into the literary, political, and social context of each tale allows a modern reader to explore this forgotten literary subfield and
appreciate the stories as works of historical fiction.
about battles and conquest. However, these stories were not set in the present, but in the past: they were the world's first works of historical fiction. These literary recreations of past events, which preserve fascinating mixtures of fact and fiction, provide unparalleled information about topics
as diverse as ancient Egyptian historiography, religion, and notions of humor and wit.
Imagining the Past is the first volume to provide complete translations and commentary for the historical fiction composed during Egypt's New Kingdom. The four works include The Quarrel of Apepi and Seqenenre, The Capture of Joppa, Thutmose III in Asia, The Libyan Battle Story. An introduction
explores Egyptian conceptions of the past, the universe of historical and literary texts in New Kingdom Egypt, and the definition of a new genre of Egyptian literature. Extensive commentary and new translations appear within each chapter, and a concluding analysis summarizes the audience and
function of historical fiction as well as theology and historiography within the tales. Despite the fragmentary nature of the papyrus copies, the thorough research into the literary, political, and social context of each tale allows a modern reader to explore this forgotten literary subfield and
appreciate the stories as works of historical fiction.
368 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
113 people want to read
About the author
Colleen Manassa Darnell
8 books61 followersAlso credited as: Colleen Manassa, Colleen Darnell, John and Colleen Darnell
Dr. Colleen Darnell is an American Egyptologist known for her Instagram account Vintage Egyptologist as well as a YouTube channel of the same name that she runs with her husband and fellow Egyptologist John Darnell.
She has made numerous contributions and discoveries to the study of Egyptian history and has appeared in documentaries as an expert of the field, including on the Discovery Channel, History Channel, National Geographic, the Science Channel, and Smithsonian, as well as appeared in National Geographic’s “Lost Treasures of Egypt.”
Colleen teaches art history at the University of Hartford and Naugatuck Valley Community College; she has curated a major museum exhibit on Egyptian revival art and design at the Yale Peabody Museum.
Dr. Colleen Darnell is an American Egyptologist known for her Instagram account Vintage Egyptologist as well as a YouTube channel of the same name that she runs with her husband and fellow Egyptologist John Darnell.
She has made numerous contributions and discoveries to the study of Egyptian history and has appeared in documentaries as an expert of the field, including on the Discovery Channel, History Channel, National Geographic, the Science Channel, and Smithsonian, as well as appeared in National Geographic’s “Lost Treasures of Egypt.”
Colleen teaches art history at the University of Hartford and Naugatuck Valley Community College; she has curated a major museum exhibit on Egyptian revival art and design at the Yale Peabody Museum.
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