Egypt: Art & Architecture

Art & Architecture

by Matthias Seidel, Regine Schulz, Abdel Ghaffar Shedid

Egypt--the land on the Nile has fascinated its visitors throughout the millennia. But it was the deciphering of Egypt's hieroglyphic writing in the 19th century that provided the key to a forgotten world--the great civilization of Ancient Egypt. Even today, the pyramids of Giza, the treasures of Tutankhamun and the temple city of Karnak still exude an almost magical attraction. This art guidebook provides rapid orientation and well-founded art-historical descriptions, including:

*Complete descriptions of the most important places of interest and monuments
*A depiction of every monument discussed
*Numerous essays on cultural and historical themes
*Pictorial city maps and ground plans
*An illustrated chronological table
*Pharaonic names in hieroglyphs
*A calendar and time calculation
*Numbers, weights and measures
*A glossary of architectural terms
*The Ancient Egyptian gods
*A descriptive glossary
*A comprehensive index

Genres: History, Art, Nonfiction, Egyptology, Egypt

608 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Rebecca Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. The layout was chronological and the size and feel of the book, pages, glossiness added to the great experience that took me back in time and let me explore places I'll probably never get to go in my lifetime. Seeing the insides of beautiful mosques and the tombs of ancient mummies one page at a time. Also, with over 600 pages, you learn that there is way more to Eqypt than just the striking pyramids.

[Dimitra · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be honest, I bought this book for its photographs.
I love Egypt but I never had the chance to visit!
So, this book has everything! History, photos of amazing places around Egypt, statues and sights...
Whenever I want to "visit" Egypt, I open this book (which is amazing by the way! The layout, the pages, the cover...) and let my mind travel there!

[Two Readers in Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful photographs, but what I really appreciated about this book was its Appendix. It includes an excellent selected chronology with a foldout timeline, a selected list of hieroglyph cartouches (royal names), a list of hieroglyphs for nomes, a visual list of standard depictions of the Egyptian gods, a short guide to basic Egyptian architectural forms, and more.

So, while this book is a short, very high-level overview that packs in (and by necessity, skims over) a great deal of Egyptian history, it is also a handy, user-friendly reference guide to refer back to as I try to keep myself oriented as I delve deeper into specific eras.

[Kaleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

very informational and it is the one best book about eygpt you can read

[Carolina Proença · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book's great for people obsessed about ancient Egypt like myself. A huge guide through egyptian art and culture, I specially recommed it to people who take interest in art history. Probably useful while travelling to Egypt :)

[Kristen (belles_bookshelves) · Rating 2 out of 5]

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BEAUTIFUL pictures, but reads so much like a textbook that I sometimes found it hard to follow. Once you understand the information, it's very informative. But I would have enjoyed it more if it had been more easily understandable.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

For a subject I truly enjoy, this book was very difficult to read. It was worse than a high-school textbook. The only good part are the lovely pictures.

[John Morrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love all things Egypt and this book is a great guide throughout Egypt.