John Romer

In this third and last part of his History of Ancient Egypt, John Romer again focuses on correcting the traditional image of the Nile Valley civilization, an image that was mainly shaped by the early Egyptologists of the 19th century, and that imposed modern notions of kingship, empire, and civilization itself upon a period of more than 3.000 years ago. Apparently this distorted view still predominates, even in academic circles: “the overarching narratives of the present academic industry, the quasi-academic consensus that deciphers and explains the relics of pharaonic culture for students and the general public alike, is still firmly stuck inside the ‘ancient Egypt’ of the nineteenth-century West.” The slant of this book therefore is principally revisionist. For example, Romer dwells for a long time on the 19th century identification of the Hyksos as the biblical people of the Hebrews. But this interpretation has been swept off the table already decades ago. Nothing new, then, and that applies to quite a few other debates that Romer focuses on. So for those who expect a new synthesis, this will be a disappointment.
This third part is also a bit disappointing in terms of form. The chapters are not all logically arranged, I have the impression Romer is not giving a systematic exposition but sometimes limits himself to selected topics. And occasionally intriguing phrases pop up that are not further explained (such as evidence of brutality supposedly revealed by tombs found in Amarna, the capital of the "heretical" Pharaoh Akhenaten). But all that does not prevent this part from being chock full of interesting information. And, of course, the expertise of John Romer is beyond doubt.
More in my History account on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5646729484.… (meer)