The Cultural Atlas of the World: Ancient Egypt

The Cultural Atlas of the World

by John R. Baines

240 pp. with 530 illus ( 380 in color), 36 maps, folio.

Genres: History, Egypt, Nonfiction, Egyptology, Reference, Ancient History, Historical

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

John Robert Baines is the oldest son of Edward Russell Baines and his wife Dora Margaret Jean (née O’Brien). He was educated at Winchester College, an all boys public boarding school in Winchester, Hampshire, England. He went on to study Egyptology at the University of Oxford. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree (BA) in 1967, later promoted to Master of Arts (MA). He gained his Doctor of Philosophy degree (DPhil) in 1976.

Baines was Professor of Egyptology at the University of Oxford from 1976 to 2013. He was one of the youngest tenured professors at the university at the age of 30. He is also the author of multiple scholarly articles and publications relating to ancient Egyptian civilization.

His research interests are in Ancient Egyptian art, religion, literature, and biographies; modelling ancient Egyptian society; comparative and anthropological approaches to ancient civilizations.

Reviews

[Diana Wilder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Sourcebook - works well on a coffee table, too...

This is a very useful book for someone trying to write a novel set in ancient Egypt. Where on earth is the 14th Nome? How far is it from, say, Waset (Thebes)? What's the topography like? (Hint: mostly flat)

I was delighted with this book, it was invaluable to me while writing a book set in Akhenaten's abandoned city and involving people from Memphis and from Hermopolis with a salting of involvement with Thebes.

This atlas has both maps and photos, carefully selected, of good quality. Combining the maps with the photos and the text provides an excellent whole, invaluable for research and enjoyable for simply meandering through the landscape of the book.

...and it is well-written, too. I'm not one of those who reads maps for enjoyment, but this atlas was enjoyable. This one gets five stars.

[A.L. Sirois]

Quite interesting and very well researched, from what I can tell. This omnibus volume covers many aspects of ancient Egyptian civilization, which lasted for thousands of years, with lots of photos and maps. I know I'll find it useful as I move forward with my book project. I would go so far as to say that if you're looking for a splendid introduction to the subject, this book would be an excellent starting point. Originally published in 1980 but updated several times since then. It took me several months to read this, but that's primarily because my project didn't catch fire until last month when the first book was accepted by Regal House for publication -- and they offered me a three-book deal! So now I'm diving in big-time.

[Josef Komensky · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a great book, that describes with great detail each and every facet of Ancient Egypt. It is a must have for every Egyptologist scholar or just history buff alike.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was a bit out dated, lot's of good information though.

[Ken]

>> Per my usual practice, if a publication is a guide I usually do not read it completely as my purpose in obtaining it was to learn about some portion of what it covers, so factor that into whatever I write in my review. <<

[Nikki · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a bit heavy handed and read similarly to a textbook, but it was informative. Far too much info to actually absorb it all while reading but it would make a suitable reference material.