The Civilization Of Ancient Egypt [Hardcover]

Paul Johnson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 3, 1999

A leading historian and bestselling author re-creates the growth, decline, and legacy of 3,000 Years of Egyptian civilization with an authoritative text splendidly illustrated with 150 illustrations in full color.

Ancient Egypt, with its legacy of pyramids, pharaohs and sphinxes, is a land of power and mystery to the modern world. In The Civilization of Ancient Egypt Paul Johnson explores the growth and decline of a culture that survived for 3,000 years and maintained a purity of style that rivals all others. Johnson's study looks in detail at the state, religion, culture and geographical setting and how they combined in this unusually enduring civilization. From the beginning of Egyptian culture to the rediscovery of the pharaohs, the book covers the totalitarian theocracy, the empire of the Nile, the structure of dynastic Egypt, the dynastic way of death, hieroglyphs, the anatomy of perspective art and, finally, the decline and fall of the pharaohs, Johnson seeks, through an exciting combination of images and analysis, to discover the causes behind the collapse of this, great civilization while celebrating the extra-ordinary legacy it has left behind.

Paul Johnson on Ancient Egypt and the Egyptians

"Egypt was not only the first state, it was the first country.... The durability of the state which thus evolved was ensured by the overwhelming simplicity and power of its central institution, the theocratic monarchy."

"The Egyptians did not share the Babylonian passion for astrology, but they used the stars as one of many guides to behavior. No Egyptian believed in a free exercise of will in important decisions: he always looked for an omen or a prophecy or an oracle."

"The development of hieroglyphics mirrors and epitomizes the history of Egyptian civilization. . . . No one outside Egypt understood it and even within Egypt it was the exclusive working tool of the ruling and priestly classes. The great mass of Egyptians were condemned to illiteracy by the complexities (and also the beauties) of the Egyptian written language."

"The affection the Egyptians were not. ashamed to display towards their children was related to the high status women enjoyed in Egyptian society."

"If we can understand Egyptian art we can go a long way towards grasping the very spirit and outlook on life, of this gifted people, so remote in time. The dynamic of their civilization seems to have been a passionate love of order (maat to them), by which they sought to give to human activities and creations the same regularity as their landscape, their great river, their sun-cycle and their immutable seasons."

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Johnson has dressed up his noteworthy 1978 history of Egypt, revising the text and adding lots of full-color illustrations.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Paul Johnson is a historian whose work ranges over the millennia and the whole gamut of human activities. He regularly writes book reviews for several UK magazines and newspapers, such as the Literary Review and The Spectator, and he lectures around the world. He lives in London, England.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 255 pages
• Publisher: Harper (November 3, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060194340
• ISBN-13: 978-0060194345
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #725,110 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Beginning with Modern Times (1985), Paul Johnson's books are acknowledged masterpieces of historical analysis. He is a regular columnist for Forbes and The Spectator, and his work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Think Like An (Ancient) Egyptian, January 21, 2000

By 

Bruce Loveitt (Ogdensburg, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Civilization Of Ancient Egypt (Hardcover)

I just came off of reading another book by Paul Johnson, "A History Of The American People", so this was quite a switch! Once again, Mr. Johnson has impressed me with his erudition and pleased me with his smooth style. Right up front, let me say that I was as ignorant as you can get concerning this subject before I read this book, so my knowledge level had nowhere to go but up! If you already know a lot about this subject you may not find this book worthwhile. That being said, if you don't know much about ancient Egypt this book is a good starting point. Mr. Johnson gives you some actual history as far as talking of events and dynasties, etc. but the majority of the book deals with the religious beliefs of the Egyptians and their art, and how the two were intimately connected. There is also an excellent chapter on hieroglyphs. One of the strong suits of the book is how it gets you into the mind of the ancient Egyptians and you start to see things the way they might have. Mr. Johnson explains such things as why, on wall paintings, people were shown in profile rather than giving us a frontal view and why the Egyptian artist intentionally chose not to use aerial perspective. (Sorry, you'll have to read the book to find out!) Suffice it to say, when you look at things after knowing what the Egyptians believed you will be able to appreciate their achievements all the more. The book is also useful in showing the link between Egyptian art and religion and what came later (Greek and Roman culture; Christianity; Judaism, etc.) Highly recommended!

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Civilization of Ancient Egypt, January 7, 2000

By 

Andrew M. Gombos, Jr. - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Civilization Of Ancient Egypt (Hardcover)

I visited Egypt in October and received this book for Christmas. I could not put it down. It is the most informative book I have ever read about ancient Egypt. It includes excellent photographs and well designed and well placed tables. It answered all of my questions about the various dynasties, religion, culture, daily life and the fall of the kingdom. The geographic isolation of Egypt is an important factor in its development that I had not considered. As is the fact that Egypt was the first unified nation and that it was ruled by relgious principles, not militarism. This is an excellent book and should be on every educated person's bookshelf.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A first-rate popular synthesis--surprisingly uncontroversial, March 24, 2000

By 

The Sanity Inspector (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Civilization Of Ancient Egypt (Hardcover)

Like many of Mr. Johnson's admirers, I can just barely see how he manages to read so much. But how he is able to write so much on top of that--incredible. Now he has turned his attention to ancient Egypt. Because this is a dead civilization, there is not much occasion here for political controversy, and so some of Mr. Johnson's fans may miss his pungent polemics. They needn't. He has compiled an largely satisfying popular account of the land of the pharaohs, which also leaves the reader curious to read more deeply.

The book is not a history. The historical narrative portion stops at the last great pharaoh, Ramesses III, and we turn instead to chapters devoted to the Egyptian attitudes of government, religion, art, and death. Johnson does a great job taking us inside the minds of the ancients by showing how, to them, these ideas were inseparable. His sources and illustrations are well chosen, though he continues to be plagued by sloppy editing. A couple of incorrect captions, a reference to an work of art "now in Leningrad", that sort of thing.

Each of his chapters are distillations of subjects which could have been (and are) the subjects of entire books. The account of the Western rediscovery of Egypt during the Age of Science flitted by too quickly for me--I wanted to read more about the adventures of Napoleon's very talented egyptologists. And the classical Greek historians like Herodotus are dismissed as little more than purblind tourists. Well, sure; based on what we now know.

This is a fast-paced book about a static civilization, a coffee-table book with serious, substantial text. Sounds oxymoronic? Well, it's true. Paul Johnson does it again!