Gift of the Nile

Author: Liang Xiaopeng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-09-01
Features: This book includes nine chapters: Nile River, Pharaohs, Priests, Nobles, Architecture, Craftsmen, Commoners, History, and Conclusion. The ancient Egyptians transformed the Nile Valley where they lived into a museum, leaving behind seemingly inexhaustible documents and artifacts for those who study ancient Egyptian civilization. From this perspective, it is not yet appropriate to say that the builders of Luxor and Karnak have turned to dust and ashes; however, it must be admitted that from all the evidence preserved to this day, people still cannot understand much, draw important clues, or reconstruct the beginning of ancient Egyptian culture. This culture is shrouded in a non-personalized shadow, and the reason is not hard to see. The ancient Egyptians recorded tirelessly, but their recording also used a uniform and repetitive pattern: tombstones were all the same, and personal letters used formal and bland language. They seemed to have no intention of innovating or expressing individuality, striving to be as identical as possible and as much like their ancestors as possible. They hardly possessed the historical dynamism that we know.