The Traveler's Key to Ancient Egypt: A Guide to Sacred Places [Paperback]

John Anthony West (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1996

To appreciate the extraordinary treasures of ancient Egypt, a traveler needs an extraordinary guidebook. The Traveler's Key explains the deeper meaning and spiritual significance of Egypt's art and architecture. This revised and updated edition includes Serpent in the Sky author West's startling evidence for redating the Sphinx.

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Quest Books (January 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0835607240
• ISBN-13: 978-0835607247
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #377,087 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > Travel > Africa > Egypt

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent guide, a must for any traveller to Egypt., January 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Traveler's Key to Ancient Egypt: A Guide to Sacred Places (Paperback)

John West really out performed himself with this book. We have just returned from a trip to Egypt and we took this book along. It was super. We visited Cairo, Memphis, Sakkora, Aswan, Luxor and more. Our Egyptian tour guide also had this book and thought it was very good. The detail is great and it is easy to read. The size of the book makes it very easy to carry around but does not limit it's information. The book is very informative with lots of background information about each site. The appendices contain very intersting travel tips and a good overall historcal review. Do not go to Egypt without this book. Highly recomended.

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For any mind that is even slightly ajar, let alone open..., March 7, 2001

By 

Tim Haines "tuppennyblue" (Evesham, Worcs United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Traveler's Key to Ancient Egypt: A Guide to Sacred Places (Paperback)

This book is essential for any traveller to Egypt with a mind that is even slightly ajar, let alone open.

West gives an alternative account of the meaning of the monuments and antiquities to be seen in Egypt, more esoteric (though certainly not more difficult to understand) than that which is usually presented in guide books. He points out the details which brought him to the conclusion that the Giza Sphinx is in fact closer to 13,000 years old than the 4,500 years old that has been traditionally believed, and has a different viewpoint to the orthodox school in many cases. He presents both sides of the argument, and gives the information necessary to make up one's own mind based on observation of what is actually there to be seen.

On my first visit to Egypt, my companions and I felt rather sorry for tourists in groups with official guides, because they seemed to be missing out on at least half of the story, and in many cases the whole point.

I was particularly impressed with West's analysis of the architecture of the Temple of Luxor, based on the work of Schwaller de Lubicz, and once it was pointed out how the whole building maps onto a plan of the human skeleton, I found it very difficult to refute.

Whilst I did not always agree with his conclusions on every occasion, it cannot be disputed that West has raised thoroughly pertinent questions which conventional Egyptology has either glibly brushed under the carpet or failed to address at all.

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worthwhile, but remember the author's New Age mindset, December 21, 1998

By 

M. Broderick "mikebinok" (Oklahoma City, OK USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Traveler's Key to Ancient Egypt: A Guide to Sacred Places (Paperback)

I used this book as one of my guides on a trip to Egypt, and believe it would be helpful to anyone who wants to understand what they're seeing there. It has good explanations of what you will see, and of the author's view of the significance of it. But you must keep in mind that the author takes Ancient Egyptian beliefs more seriously than most 20th Century Americans--Some of his ideas are a bit dotty by my lights. But he is fair and reasonably unbiased. The book format is tall, narrow, and thick--probably about as small as possible to get the information across, but still larger than ideal if you plan to take it into the field with you in Egypt. The size ends up not being totally satisfactory for either leisurely reading or as a field companion. Still the only book I'm aware of that makes a serious effort to be an "on-the-spot" companion for viewing Egyptian antiquities in a studious way.