The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife
by Erik Hornung
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Description
Ancient Egyptians held a rich and complex vision of the afterlife and codified their beliefs in books that were to be discovered more than two millennia later in royal tombs. Erik Hornung, the world's leading authority on these religious texts, surveys what is known about them today. The contents of the texts range from the collection of spells in the Book of the Dead, which was intended to offer practical assistance on the journey to the afterlife, to the detailed accounts of the hereafter show more provided in the Books of the Netherworld. Hornung looks closely at these latter works, while summarizing the contents of the Book of the Dead and other widely studied examples of the genre. For each composition, he discusses the history of its ancient transmission and its decipherment in modern times, supplying bibliographic information for any text editions. He also seeks to determine whether this literature as a whole presents a monolithic conception of the afterlife. The volume features many drawings from the books themselves--drawings that illustrate the nocturnal course of the sun god through the realm of the dead. Originally published in German and now available in a fluid English translation, this volume offers an accessible and enlightening introduction to a central element of ancient Egyptian religion. show lessTags
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I love this book because unlike many other books (and websites for this matter), it is mostly comprised of material about the Book of the Dead and other tomes of the ancient Egyptian pantheon. This is to the point, that in researching for an essay in which I cited this book, online sources were citing this book as well. I appraise it to be a solid text on the subject, and easily accessible in its content.
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Author Information
36+ Works 1,229 Members
Erik Hornung is Professor Emeritus of Egyptology at the University of Basel.
Some Editions
Common Knowledge
- Original title
- Die Unterweltsbücher der Ägypter
- People/Characters
- Akhenaten (Ahkenaton | Amenhotep IV | Amunhotep IV); Nefertiti; Hunefer
- Important places
- El Amarna, Egypt (Horizon of the Aten, Akhetaten)
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, History, General Nonfiction
- DDC/MDS
- 299.31 — Religion Other religions Religions not provided for elsewhere Of North African Origin Ancient Egyptian
- LCC
- PJ1551 .H67 — Language and Literature Oriental languages and literatures Oriental philology and literature Egyptology Literature. Inscriptions
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 192
- Popularity
- 169,441
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.03)
- Languages
- English, French, German, Turkish
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 8
