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The Obelisk and the Englishman: The Pioneering Discoveries of Egyptologist William Bankes Hardcover – May 12, 2015

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Dorothy U. Seyler (Author)
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4.9 out of 5 stars 11 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 304 pages
  • Publisher: Prometheus Books (May 12, 2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1633880362
  • ISBN-13: 978-1633880368
  • Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.1 x 9.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,030,393 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsA rich and rewarding story
By Ruth Stewart on July 27, 2015
Format: Hardcover
Dorothy U. Seyler's biography of William Bankes unequivocally shows the importance of Bankes's discoveries and accurate records and drawings of ancient Egyptian ruins and hieroglyphics in the competitive world of early Egyptologists. Yet Seyler's research is always in service to the rousing good adventure story of Bankes's life and travels. Along the way, we have glimpses into the gossipy salons of Regency England's landed gentry, the suites of Cambridge school boys discovering their homosexuality, and the danger that the climate and the unruly local chieftains presented to European travelers in post-Napoleonic Egypt. Above all, in William Bankes we meet a brilliant and fascinating man well worth knowing.

Seyler shows us Bankes in all his human complexity. A gifted scholar of Greek and Latin, he is more remembered among his college friends as "the father of all mischiefs," as Lord Byron, one of the circle, dubbed him. At once desiring the approval of his politically powerful, wealthy father, William bridles at the pressure and expectations of being his father's heir and following in his political footsteps. Never entirely comfortable at London social gatherings, Bankes is at times an over-talkative and shallow conversationalist. Yet when traveling up the Nile, exploring Egypt's monuments and antiquities, he seems utterly at home - supremely confident to the point of recklessness in his ability to overcome all obstacles, however dangerous, to reaching the ruins he wishes to study. He resorts to disguises, gifts to secure passage, and armed guards. He executes harrowing escapes, and survives robberies, malaria, and knife wielding Bedouins. Throughout, Bankes's enthusiasm, physical energy and dogged perseverance is something to behold.Read more ›
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4.0 out of 5 starsAn intriguing biography of a dedicated, important and troubled explorer
By Si Dunn on May 12, 2015
Format: Kindle Edition
Early in the 19th century, a young Englishman repeatedly risked death and overcame numerous dangers as he sailed along the Nile River and journeyed into deserts, discovering and documenting important details about ancient Egypt, Syria and Jordan.

William John Bankes and his various crews dug away tons of sand from ruins, giant statues, and other artifacts of ancient cultures. Photography was still several decades in the future, so Bankes used the best available technologies of his time, including drawings and paintings, to create images of ruins, shrines, temple floor plans, and hieroglyphs found on walls and in pyramids. He sometimes dangled dangerously from ropes, as well, as he worked in high places to document details he could not decipher, yet knew were important. On occasion, he even hired teams of artists to travel with him so he could record as many images as possible.

Once he returned to Great Britain after a few years of travels, he entered politics as his father had desired. He was elected twice to the House of Commons, and he maintained a friendship–and possibly more–with the poet Lord Byron, whom he had known since school days.

But Bankes soon found himself again facing death, this time at the hands of the English justice system. Homosexuality was punishable by imprisonment and execution in early 19th-century England, and Bankes was arrested twice on “unnatural behavior” charges that could have gotten him hanged. In his first trial, he was acquitted, thanks in part to testimony in his favor by the Duke of Wellington. Bankes’s second arrest, however, left him little choice but to flee England and go to France and then Italy, where he would die in 1855 at age 68.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsWilliam Bankes, Ancient Egypt, and Regency England
By Arnold B. on November 14, 2015
Format: Hardcover
This intriguing and readable biography illuminates an individual personality of considerable interest, an era of scholarship when Egyptology was the realm of gifted amateur adventurers, and an era of social history when failure to meet conventional behaviors meant calamity. Dorothy Seyler has brilliantly and meticulously researched her subject, yet she writes with a graceful clarity that draws the reader into her compelling narrative. William Bankes was a friend of the poet Byron, yet the author makes her case for Bankes being the more interesting, not to mention functional, individual. In recounting his travels in pursuit of Egyptian antiquities, Seyler discusses the significance of Bankes' work in enough depth and detail to make clear how important it was, yet keeps a fluidity and focus appropriate for the nonspecialist reader. And when Bankes' life is overthrown by accusations of criminal behavior, the narrative communicates the strength of Bankes' character without hyperbole or sentimentality. This is a book that introduces an historical personality of whom few are aware, and shows him in the context of intellectual, personal, and social pursuits that define him and the very fascinating era in which he lived.
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5.0 out of 5 starsFascinating life of an early adventurer and Egyptologist who delved deep into ancient pyramids and tombs
By Barbara S. on June 16, 2015
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
No one knows her subject better than this author. Scholarly yet eminently readable, this is an intimate and fascinating account of the life and phenomenal discoveries of a little-known early Egyptologist, Born to landed gentry, William Bankes' classical education helped to prepare him for the lengthy study and analysis he undertook as he delved into the relics in the ancient lands of Egypt and Petra. However, an upbringing aimed at making him a proper member of upper class society must have done little to prepare him for his explorations. Life in desert tents and camel caravans and in the depths of ancient tombs was arduous and hazardous. This narrative describes the drama in Banke's life and adventures (which makes the book hard to put down) and explains the lasting importance of his discoveries, Recommended!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsFABULOUS!

All I can say is FABULOUS!!! This book was recommended by a friend and I can honestly say that it is a gem. What an adventure and an adventurer, who was way ahead of his time. Read more

Published 16 days ago by Susan M. Saccomando
5.0 out of 5 starsSmitty the Bookman

***** Great read for those interested in how thieves transported Africa's treasures abroad ...

Published 2 months ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsDon't miss this great adventure story

This intriguing book takes you on a rare journey which will enlighten and delight both travelers and historians. Don't miss it.
Bravo Ms. Seyler.

Published 4 months ago by Sheila Regina
5.0 out of 5 starsA valuable addition to our current understanding of the history of...

This is the kind of book that I like. It is rich in history and is the story of an intellectual and a pioneering discoverer of Egyptian antiquities. Read more

Published 4 months ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsExcellent writing style and almost reads like a novel

Intriguing and engrossing book on a person and subject I knew very little about prior to this. Excellent writing style and almost reads like a novel. Read more

Published 8 months ago by Timothy R. Bray
5.0 out of 5 starsHighly Recommended!

Provides much insight into both the life of Bankes and the culture/mores of his times. Easy and interesting reading. Read more

Published 9 months ago by M E Golembieski
5.0 out of 5 starsAn Exciting and Informative Adventure

Reading this book is an exciting and informative adventure. The vivid and descriptions of William Bankes's archeological expeditions into Egypt, Syria and Jordan make the reader... Read more

Published 10 months ago by M. Delmore

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