Egyptian Myth and Legend

by Donald A. Mackenzie, Fatma Turkkan (Foreword)

Today we know more about the ancient Egyptians than either the Greeks or Romans knew. From the study of the most simple things—pottery fragments, strings of. beads and rough drawings—to the revelation of the incredibly sophisticated Cleopatra's Needle and Rosetta Stone, archaeologists have been able to recreate the wonders of the ancient Egyptian civilization. One of the most compelling aspects of this wholly fascinating culture was the elaborate mythology that developed. The ancient Egyptians lived in a world full of spirits, spirits which symbolized everything from the most mundane aspects of everyday life to the highest aspirations of a highly developed civilization. There were nature gods, animal gods, human gods, gods of the living, and gods of the dead. In the midst of what has been called "the rabble of deities," however, loom the deities of deities—those beings so powerful, so omniscient that even reading about them today will send shudders of awe through the most sophisticated reader.

Mackenzie has taken the list of Egyptian deities, which reads like a census report of some vast population, and has organized uit by concentrating on the most important gods, the "heads of household. Starting with the early worship of the moon and advancing toward the predominant worship of the sun, Mackenzie relates in detail the forms of reverence these gods inspired, the various cults that developed around them, and the changes in the gods and goddesses themselves as the worshipers became more civilized. He covers the development of the "great mother" goddesses from one who rejoiced in slaughter and had to be propitiated with the mutilation of men and the sacrifice of children, to Isis, a loving, giving, and protective figure. Throughout the book runs the legend of Osiris, who absorbed and outlived all the gods and who represented the beginning and end of Egyptian civilization.

In this one comprehensive volume, Mackenzie has woven a picture of one of the greatest civilizations ever to exist. The myths and legends of ancient Egypt are embraced in a historical narrative that begin with the rise of the great Nilotic civilization and ends with the Greco-Roman Age. By placing the myths, folk tales, song, and poems with this informative context, Mackenzie brings to life the excitement all archaeologists feel with each new discovery and draws the reader into a mystical, exotic world.

Genres: Mythology, History, Nonfiction, Historical, Religion

404 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1907

About the author

Donald Alexander Mackenzie was a Scottish journalist and folklorist and a prolific writer on religion, mythology and anthropology in the early 20th century.

Reviews

[Sarah Holz · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a well-intentioned attempt to explain the various influences on Egyptian cosmology, domestic and foreign, MacKenzie gets bogged down in historical dynastic minutiae that will most likely overwhelm any reader not already familiar with basic pre-Ptolemaic Egyptian history. All this results in a book that reads more like a history book than a mythological survey. That may be a result of the author trying to dress up the fact that we have only fragmentary understanding of Egyptian myth and much of what we do know is contradictory, and even many of the folktales presented here are only pieces of larger lost stories (particularly in light of this collection's older publication date). In short, this is not a book without merit, but it is not for beginners.

[Elan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book two in my series of Mythology books, and what a terrific book.

Combining history with mythology, a glimpse into ancient Egypt is allowed. If you liked Mythos by Stephen Fry, get this book.

Or better yet, go find it in a second hand book store somewhere, go feel the pages from the 1920's (my edition is that old), and just adds to the texture of the tale telling...

[Sue Dounim · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK, I'm not any expert in Ancient Egyptian mythology or religion. Let me share some of my thoughts about it with you.

To provide some context before delving into specifics, this book belongs to a series of reprints of the original 1907 edition. The current edition was published in 1978. Interestingly, the U.S. copyright protection period was once 70 years. Therefore, this is essentially capitalizing on a work whose writing and illustration efforts are complete, without the obligation to pay royalties. My copy, issued by "Bell Publishers, a Division of Crown Books," is commendable for its high-quality binding, appealing color dust jacket, and the inclusion of several color plates, which altogether justify its value. [This paragraph was rewritten by Copilot, not bad work.-Sue D.]

But Egyptology has come a long ways since Mackenzie published his work. There was significant archaeological study done in Egypt by foreign researchers since the late 1800s, but the Tutankhamun discovery, for instance was still years away (1922), and other major discoveries (Golden City of Luxor, Saqqara burial trove) not even dreamt of.

I am guessing Prof. Mackenzie was a devout Scot, devout because there are several Old Testament quotations throughout which he believes refers to Ancient Egyptian history or belief. Later in the book he basically does a lot of speculative tying together of the Old Testament and Ancient Egypt. He was what's now called a "maximalist"; an archaeologist whose first assumption is that the Egypt is completely factually represented in the OT. He devotes an entire chapter to "Joseph and the Exodus", evidence for which, outside the Bible, is inferential at best. A Scot because in his chapter on the Osiris legend, he provides the three-page Robert Burns poem "The Scottish Osiris (John Barleycorn)" which, while a wonderful poem, doesn't really seem very apposite to his subject. (Let me add that I love the Scots and all things Scotch unreasoningly so if Mackenzie is one then I retract all my criticisms.)

He also tries to connect Egyptian legends and folktales to similar ones in Europe and the Levant. I guess I'm sort of complaining it's not scholarly, but maybe that's not the point. I would be interested in reading a similar volume based on more modern research than was available to him in 1907.

There are still print-on-demand copies being sold, but I would recommend getting a hardcover edition from your local library system first; you never know how much care the POD people put into their products.

[Margo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the overall message of this book was the idea that all stories, even ones of myth, are at some point based on truth. The characters all faced problems but were able to overcome them and not be beaten by them. More often than not, the main character of each story was better off in the end. This book was mythology and fact mixed together to create well written, easy to understand stories that can be related to almost any situation, even in today's world. The stories of Osiris were all very interesting because of how they connected to all other parts of the book, even stories were the gods are referenced very little. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to learn both the facts and fiction of Egyptian mythology.

[Jessica✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Partial Reading/A lot of thou's, thee's and wilts. Made it very difficult to read. The only reason I'm not giving it one star is because I enjoyed the story about Anpu and his brother. Other than that I'm glad I did not have access to the entire book.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of good myths and stories, plus some history. Definitely a good overview of Egyptian myth (and legend). :)

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting combination of Egyptian myths and history.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is awsome

[Ian Wells · Rating 1 out of 5]

no my favorite part is when it talks about horus the climax is when the pharaoh dies no because it is
not interesting