In this chapter, Waxman examines the effects, both good and bad, of antiquarianism and meddlesome Europeans in Egypt. The author begins by describing the work undertaken by Napoleon and his savants, Jean-Francois Champollion and Giovanni Belzoni. Although, they have helped in the gathering of information and understanding of Egypt’s ancient past, one cannot ignore the negative effects, such as looting, that they have caused. The chapter ends in a discussion of the controversy surrounding the infamous bust of Nefertiti and asking the reader whether it is Germany or Egypt that the bust belongs to. Rather than answering the question, Waxman concludes that perhaps we should concentrate on an exchange of culture instead of arguing over who possesses what. …show more content…
The invaluable information that the French gathered was the beginning of Egyptology and Europe was entranced by Egypt’s exotic and awe-inspiring designs. However, Waxman argues that this craze for Egypt opened the door to the exploitation of its cultural heritage. The rediscovery of Egypt by the savants started the many years of looting as all of Europe clamored to own a piece of Egyptian history. Conversely, Waxman believes that Jean-Francois Champollion’s work on the Rosetta stone completely changed what we know of ancient Egyptians. By discerning that the hieroglyphics were comprised of ideographic and phonetic signs, he made a wealth of information accessible. That being said, Waxman thought it important to note that despite all the good Champollion achieved, he too, was not above looting and bringing back to tomb
The Chronicle of the French Occupation, 1798 – Napoleon in Egypt, was written by the Egyptian born scholar and jurist, Abd al-Rahman al-Jabarti (c. 1753-c.1825) between 1798 and 1801, framing the French occupation of Egypt. Both the Middle East and Europe, during the late 17th century were in a state of redefinition. Although the chronicle had covered only the brief period during first seven months of 36, it serves as a crucial accounting. Clearly illustrated is a paradigmatic shift between a modern culture and an antiquated system with a chronicle of events that swings between something that is merely observational to something written by an emotionally charged spectator. Although the work has been widely accepted, there is still some speculation as to degrees of censorship and possible omissions through various translations.
Assmann, Jan. The Mind of Egypt: History and Meaning in the Time of the Pharaohs.
Egypt has one of the longest histories of any nation in the world. Written history of Egypt dates back to about 5,000 years, the commencement of civilization. While there is divergence in relation to Early Egyptian times, it is said that Egypt came to be around 3200 B.C., during the reign of a king by the name of Menes and unified the northern and southern cities of Egypt into one government. In 1675 B.C., Egypt was invaded by the Hyksos, people from the east, bringing along the very first of chariots and horses ever to come across Egyptian soil. Approximately 175 years later in 1500 B.C., the Egyptians had gotten rid of the Hyksos and driven them out. In 1375 B.C., Amenhotep IV had become the king of Egypt. During his reign he eliminated the worship of Egyptian gods and initiated the idea of only worshipping one god. But after his death, his ideas were retired and old ways were reestablished. Egyptian supremacy then started to decline around 1000 B.C. Between 1000 B.C. and 332 B.C., Egypt was ruled by many such as the Libyans, Assyrians, Ethiopians, and Persians. In 640, Muslims conquered Egypt and founded the city of Cairo in 969 and deemed it as the capital of Egypt. For many centuries Egypt was ruled by Muslim caliphs. A prominent ruler of this period was Saladin, who battled the Christian Crusaders at the conclusion of the twelfth century. In 1798 Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Egypt but was then forced to withdraw in 1801 Turkish and British armed forces. In 1805 Mohamed Ali began ruling Egypt till 1848 and great changed the country in terms of modernization and its military. During Mohamed’s conquest, he borrowed a lot of money from the French and British, which later resulted in Egypt’s coloniza...
The researcher learned that the Rosetta stone is one of the most important artifacts of the Egyptians. It was written in three ancient scripts and is located at the British museum in London.
When first looking at the Chronicle of the French Occupation, it looks as if it is merely a depiction of Napoleon's time in Egypt, however there is much more to this article than meets the eye. The article being written by an Egyptian and not a European provides an alternative viewpoint to the events that happened in Egypt as opposed to the accounts that have been read and taught by Europeans. Although the article is a different perspective it does show strong cultural bias and ethnocentrism towards the French people from the eyes of the Egyptians. The article shows bias in the tone it is written, the unkindness used to mock the French and the incomplete tales of the battles that took place.
The protagonist, a young Parisian writer, purchases a mummy’s foot, on that would “suit [him] as a paper-weight; for [he] cannot endure those trumpery bronzes which the stationers sell, which may be found on everyone’s desk” (Gautier, 13). This conflicts with the protagonist’s previous comments, complaining that “every petty stockbroker” (12) must have his own collection of rare antiques. This critique, within the story, as well as the protagonist’s obsession with a unique paperweight, reflects on the idea of commercialist desires being petty and unnecessarily materialistic. Further into the story, the protagonist is thrust into “a fluid and grayish expanse” (15) and later arrives in what seems to be ancient Egypt and consults with the pharaoh Xixouthros, the father of Hemonithis, whose foot the protagonist restores. In this portion of the story, it seems as though the protagonist no longer owns his prized paper-weight, but that his paper-weight owns him. He is invited to consult with the pharaoh, rejected by him when he asks for the hand of his daughter, claiming “the last particles of your dust will have been scattered abroad by the winds” (17) when Xixouthros would “be present on the last day of the world” (17). This contrast and reversal of “ownership” exemplifies, symbolically, the challenge to the new commercialist society that was developing in France at the
to 2650 B.C., changed his name to the more commonly known Zoser. It was Zoser
As I look at the colorful walls of Beni Hasan tomb painting in the article, I am intrigue by these beautiful paintings. Egyptians are known for many breathtaking art monuments. The article explained images in the painting, interpretations and abuses of Beni Hasan painting. Comparing the differences from this article to our textbook and Wikipedia sites, the article did a great job on presenting correct information to the readers. Wikipedia sites were more detailed orientated on the tomb paintings than the others.
“We are getting very close men.’’ I said. I was searching for the missing statue of King Rameses the second. That was why I am walking along the Nile River in the blazing sun. It had taken months for me to find the lost pyramid. The trail ended at Alexandria, but after studying several maps and stories, I was sure that the face plate was in Goshen. I hired these second rate guides to take me to the spot. But that didn’t mean I trusted them.
Jean Francois Champollion and Thomas Young combined their talents to decipher the Demotic script and Egyptian hieroglyphics. They compared them to the Greek text. The Stone was the code that unlocked Egyptian hieroglyphics, without the Stone we would have never figured out the hieroglyphics that the Egyptians made. It was the Stone that allowed scholars
Although the main narrative of a work of art may not immediately jump out and engrain it’s reasoning in your mind, in a way all art works are interconnected through the topic of authority. For example, the French impressionist artist Claude Monet painted hundreds of works centered around gardens; one way that it interconnects with the idea of authority is that French gardens were originally used by the royal and rich to showcase something of high presentation but were nearly fruitless. In this short essay I will discuss three different works all relating to authority in reference to their cultural significance and how all three are interconnected. First, we can project ourselves back into the grey area between the Egyptian Predynastic period and the amalgamation of Upper and Lower Egypt.
The Nile, is the longest river in the world, and is located in northeastern Africa. Its principal source is Lake Victoria, in east central Africa. The Nile flows north through Uganda, Sudan, and Egypt to the Mediterranean Sea, with a total distance of 5584 km. From its remotest headstream in Burundi, the river is 6671 km long. The river basin covers an area of more than 3,349,000 sq km. Not only is the Nile considered a wonder by Herodotus, but by people all over the world, due to its impotance to the growth of a civilization.The first great African civilization developed in the northern Nile Valley in about 5000 BC.
Mock, Geoffrey. "The Egyptian Revolution, As Told Through Graffiti." Duke Today. 18 Sept. 2013. Web. 21 May 2014. .
Napoleon Bonaparte left behind both positive and negative consequences in his attempt to take control of Egypt. The most important thing he did positively was finding the Rosetta Stone, but in the end he failed at capturing Egypt. It was one of Napoleon Bonaparte’s solider that found a lack basalt slab which was inscribed with ancient writing near the city of Rosetta. One of his scholars who was part of his army to take control of Egypt, made progress with the initial hieroglyph analysis of the Rosetta Stone. Later on, a French Egytptologist named Jean-Francois Champollion cracked the code and deciphered the message using Greek knowledge. This led to the language and culture of ancient Egypt which allowed scientist more discoveries. Looking
To describe a few of the galleries within the Vatican Museums, the Gregorian Egyptian museum was founded by Pope Gregory XVI in 1839. It contains statues and stelae with hieroglyphic inscriptions, bronze and clay figures from Hellenistic and Roman Egypt, mummies, cuneiform tablets and seals from Mesopotamia, and other Egyptian statuary mostly donated from private collections of the 19th century. The papal interest in Egypti...