Synopses & Reviews
From one of the world's greatest Egyptologists, an original and brilliant study of the inner life of ancient Egypt
The Mind of Egypt presents an unprecedented account of the mainsprings of Egyptian civilization-the ideals, values, mentalities, belief systems, and aspirations that shaped the first territorial state in human history. Drawing on a range of literary, iconographic, and archaeological sources, renowned historian Jan Assmann reconstructs a world of unparalleled complexity, a culture that, long before others, possessed an extraordinary degree of awareness and self-reflection.
Moving through successive periods of Egyptian civilization, from its beginnings in the fifth millennium b.c.e. until the rise of Christianity 4,500 years later, Assmann traces the crucial roles of the pharaohs, the priests, and the imperial bureaucracy. He explores the ideal relation of man to God and explains monumental architecture and ritual celebrations as expressions of that ideal. Most strikingly, he focuses on the meaningful world of ancient Egypt-the multiple notions of time, the structures of immortality, and the commitment to the principle of social justice and human fellowship.
Widely acclaimed for his cross-disciplinary approach, Assmann has produced a tantalizing study of an ancient civilization, even as he has opened new directions in historical investigation.
Review
Praise for Jan Assmann:
"Jan Assmann is one of the most talented historians of the ancient world."-Saul Friedlander
Review
"Jan Assmann is one of the most talented historians of the ancient world."--Saul Friedlander
"Magnificent . . . Every student of early civilization has something to learn from these pages."--Los Angeles Times
"Masterful . . . brilliant . . . a scholarly tour de force."--Carlo Ginzburg, author of The Cheese and the Worms
"A keen analysis . . . A captivating exploration of a distant world."--San Francisco Chronicle
About the Author
Jan Assmann, a world-renowned professor of Egyptology at the University of Heidelberg and winner of the prestigious German Historians Prize, has taught at Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Rice, the Getty Research Center, the British Museum, and the Royal Anthropological Society. He has published, among other works,
Moses the Egyptian and
The Search for God in Ancient Egypt.