The Rape of the Nile: Tomb Robbers, Tourists, and Archaeologists in Egypt, Revised and Updated

Read mainly for research purposes but the story is one that still resonates as this plundering of the Nile treasures began in earnest with Napoleon and continued pretty much unabated until after World War I. The Great Powers (England, France and gradually through the 19th century, Germany and the US) were motivated by a complex mix of greed and true fascination with and desire to understand the pharaonic period. Trying to understand the intersection of proving national superiority by increasing understanding of history while also collecting priceless loot is a little hard to wrap one's mind around, but nonetheless. England and France were engaged to a greater or lesser degree in competition with one another throughout this entire show more period. Fagan, in this updated version, focusses on the gradual shift from almost pure acquisition of the biggest and most fascinating treasures, to a gradual shift to respecting the sites,studying the smallest finds, digging with obsessive care, while honoring the people of the cultures you disturb and unearth in the name of increasing knowledgle. The men themselves, from 'the Great Belzoni' in the early 19th century to Howard Carter in the 20th are the giants of archaeology and one can watch the developments through their ever-evolving methods and approaches and purpose. Fagan does a solid job in outlining this evolution and giving us the characters, the details of each period, what was happening politically in Egypt itself. Informative and entertaining. This was a listen and the reader had some odd quirks and occasional bizarre pronunciations that I am fairly sure were neither standard English nor American (alas, this is the downside of listening, not easy to go back to remind oneself . . .) but he was bearable. **** show less

A strong narrative of the people and events of antiquities theft in Egypt. Spans the 19th and 20th centuries, and is written in an extremely engaging way that almost puts you on the edge of your seat. As with many things in life, the conflict of "who owns the past" is more grey than black and white, though after reading this book, it's hard not to be rooting for Egypt in their battles to get their treasures back from Britain, France, Germany, the US, et al.

Lots of people think the issue of antiquities theft and ownership begins and ends with the Elgin Marbles but this book makes clear both the scale of Egyptian losses and the long history of conflict over the issue. Heck, walk around Rome, or The Met, or the Getty and you see a small show more sliver of the spoils. show less

Interesting, illustrative and quite complete, this book is a fine concise reference for those with a new or awakening interest in the archaeology of ancient Egypt.

This work is a fine history on the rediscovery of Ancient Egypt, but slightly marred by a contemporary moaning of that history from a post-colonial, leftist perspective not holding to the time's context as it should. It is published by the interesting small New England / New York Press, Moyer Bell.

The non-fictional history of how the treasures of Ancient Egypt were plundered by ages of visitors from ancient Greeks to modern-day pillagers. Possibly not for everyone, but certainly of interest to people who like extra historical knowledge while they read other genres. The chapter on Napoleon's invasion of the country is alone worth the time.

Quite enjoyable to read, while seemingly remaining well grounded in the facts.

Group W