The Book of the Pharaohs

This compact reference work attempts to answer the questions""What if we tore off King Tut's gold mask? What lies behind the formalism, the hierarchism, and the majesty of the pharaonic monuments?"" In response, Vernus, director of studies at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, and Yoyotte, chair of Egyptology at the College de France, present brief biographical sketches of each of the pharaohs, with highlights of their lives and reigns, such as military achievements and monuments built. There are also entries for historically relevant peoples and places, such as the Hittites, whose empire competed with that of the pharaohs, and the city of Memphis, strategically located at the juncture of Upper and Lower Egypt. Maps and a chronology of ancient Egyptian history are useful additions, but illustrations, which could have further enlivened this resource, are few and far between.