Osiris; Horus; Isis; Thoth; Anubis - the many strange and compelling figures of the Egyptian gods and goddesses seem to possess endless fascination. The renowned Egyptologist Erik Hornung here studies the ancient Egyptians' conceptions of god; basing his account on a thorough reappraisal of the primary sources. His book; now available in English for the first time; is the most extensive exploration yet undertaken of the nature of Egyptian religion.Hornung examines the characteristics; spheres of action; and significance of Egyptian gods and goddesses; analyzing the complex and changing iconography used to represent them; and disentangling the many seemingly contradictory aspects of the religion of which they are a part. He seeks to answer two basic questions: How did the Egyptians themselves see their gods? Did they believe there was an impersonal; anonymous force behind the multiplicity of their deities? Throughout; he attempts to evoke the complexity and richness of the religion of the ancient Egyptians and of their worldview; which differs so greatly from our own.A work of extraordinary distinction; Hornung’s book will appeal to anyone interested in ancient Egypt; in ancient religion; and in the history of religion; as well as students and scholars of ancient history; anthropology; and archaeology. Sensitively translated by John Baines and with a new preface by the author; this edition has been amplified and updated with an English-language audience in mind.
#1106251 in Books Cornell University Press 2008-06Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.02 x .66 x 6.08l; .81 #File Name: 0801474388272 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Glum but needed readingBy Michael GriswoldKevin Bales and Zoë Trodd have brought together numerous slave narratives to paint a picture that is both equal parts depressing; yet sorely needed. Problems like human trafficking need human faces attached to them; because numbers are more likely to ignored by a population who they mostly good at heart and probably not first and foremost concerned with how to deal with slavery today. Each of these stories is both moving and frustrating at the same time; but it is through the unfortunate suffering of others that we are now able to understand the sheer barbarity of the problem of modern day slavery. If I have one criticism it's that the book needed to have even more narratives; but that's just one man's opinion. It's so easy to read many of the other books on modern day slavery with stories of slavery mixed in with the gross failings of governments and police forces in combating the problem of slavery; although I've read many wonderful books of this format...the slave narrative approach is most effective because its' raw and it's a direct account from the actual person not a third person retelling--which can cause it to lose some of its' power.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. I got this for a uni class enjoyed reading itBy Emiko Peterson-YoonExtremely informative and depressing to read. I got this for a uni class enjoyed reading it; but it's got some very disturbing content.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Eye OpeningBy Mac McCormickEye opening read that was well organized.
