The Ancient Egyptian World

World in Ancient Times

by Eric H. Cline, Jill Rubalcaba

Taking readers back 4,000 years, to the fertile land around the Nile River, The Ancient Egyptian World tells the stories of the kings, queens, pharaohs, gods, tomb builders, and ordinary citizens who lived there. Using papyri, scarabs, tomb inscriptions, mummies, and a rich variety of other primary sources, Eric H. Cline and Jill Rubalcaba uncover the fascinating history of ancient Egypt. Scarabs, which scholars call "imperial news bulletins," record important moments in a pharaoh's reign.

The Edwin Smith Papyrus details the injuries sustained by the builders of the great pyramids, and the remedies used to treat them. For a worker who has had a stone fall on his head, it suggests: "bind it with fresh meat . . . and treat afterward with grease, honey and lint." A complex recipe for a top-of-the-line mummy describes a process that could take 70 days and involved drawing the brain out through the nose with a crooked piece of iron.

These primary sources also tell the stories of the people of ancient Egypt: Pepi II, the six-year-old boy king who commanded armies; Ramesses II, whose mortuary temple boasts of his expertise in battle against the Hittites; Queen Hatshepsut, the only woman to rule Egypt as pharaoh; and Cleopatra, who courted Roman statesman Mark Antony as part of her quest to extend the Egyptian empire. The Ancient Egyptian World honors the history of a civilization whose monuments and tombs still capture the imagination of the world thousands of years later.

Genres: History, Egyptology, Nonfiction, Egypt, School

192 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

DR. ERIC H. CLINE is the former Chair of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations and current Director of the Capitol Archaeological Institute at The George Washington University. A National Geographic Explorer, NEH Public Scholar, and Fulbright scholar with degrees from Dartmouth, Yale, and the University of Pennsylvania, he is an active field archaeologist with 30 seasons of excavation and survey experience in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, Greece, Crete, and the United States, including ten seasons at the site of Megiddo (biblical Armageddon) in Israel from 1994-2014, and seven seasons at Tel Kabri, where he currently serves as Co-Director. A three-time winner of the Biblical Archaeology Society's "Best Popular Book on Archaeology" Award (2001, 2009, and 2011) and two-time winner of the American School of Archaeology's "Nancy Lapp Award for Best Popular Archaeology Book" (2014 and 2018), he is a popular lecturer who has appeared frequently on television documentaries and has also won national and local awards for both his research and his teaching. He is the author or editor of 20 books, almost 100 articles, and three recorded 14-lecture courses. His previous books written specifically for the general public include "The Battles of Armageddon: Megiddo and the Jezreel Valley from the Bronze Age to the Nuclear Age" (2000), "Jerusalem Besieged: From Ancient Canaan to Modern Israel" (2004), "From Eden to Exile: Unraveling Mysteries of the Bible" (2007), "Biblical Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction" (2009), "The Trojan War: A Very Short Introduction" (2013), "1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed" (2014), “Three Stones Make a Wall: The Story of Archaeology" (2017), and “Digging Up Armageddon” (2020). He has also co-authored a children's book on Troy, entitled "Digging for Troy" (2011). For a video of his "Last Lecture" talk, go to http://vimeo.com/7091059.

Reviews

[Catie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really solid history text for late elementary/junior high or a quick refresher for high school.

[Jenevieve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Check out all my reviews on My Blog

Middle-school ancient history covering from the earliest records of ancient Egypt through the 3rd Intermediate Age with a brief synopsis covering the Ptolemys through Cleopatra and Rome. This looks at not just the lives of the Pharaohs and the gods of Egypt but also how the common man lived, the advancements they made throughout the ages, their art and literature, and the discoveries that have led to our current understanding of their culture.

I love this series so much and it really makes the high school world history I'm having to read just look awful in comparison as we learn so much about each culture, not just what they did but what we believe are the reasons behind what they did and how we came to those conclusions. It's not just boring and dry names and dates with little else behind it but works hard to bring it more alive.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written in the most entertaining fashion, Eric H. Cline and Jill Rubalcaba deliver an interesting look into the life and times of the Ancient Egyptians. Move over stuffy historians, you have some new competition nipping at your heels!

[CairoErica · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a lot to cover in ancient Egyptian history, but this book is balanced and engaging for children to read. It also doesn't make Egypt too exotic the way so much Egyptian history for children does.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book as much as the Ancient Rome from this series. I know it is a history book for junior high kids, but I don't need to be constantly told to imagine if I was there. It was a bit juvenile for its target audience.

[JENNA MCGUIRE]

want to read.