It would have been better to note, somewhere, that there is no evidence that can conclusively tie the Exodus to the reign of any pharaoh, let alone Ramesses II. In such an abbreviated book, a discussion with so few conclusions is not really needed. It's hard to believe that an experienced Egyptologist like Desroches Noblecourt would make such a mistake, so I think it must have been caused by the translation or the abridgement.Īdditionally, I didn't feel the need for a five page discussion of the Exodus and whether Ramesses was involved or not. There was a very obvious mistake made early on, when only the Nineteenth and Twentieth dynasties are assigned to the New Kingdom. I didn't quite buy into this idea, knowing that Ramesses continued the destruction of Akhenaten's monuments and memory, at least, but I would be interested to read more about this theory. Additionally, Desroches Noblecourt discussed Ramesses taking inspiration from pharaohs that would have been taboo in his day: Hatshesput and Amenhotep IV/Akhenaten. There were a number of times where I was reading something, and I wanted to know exactly where it had been sourced from, such as the detailed account of Ramesses's coronation. I did want for footnotes – or at least, a selected biography that listed more than the author's other books. My reaction, so many times, was as follows: The text is littered with complicated words and/or phrases that are simply unnecessary and off-putting for a casual reader. This is disappointing after the blurb singles out the writing style for being "highly entertaining". I'm not sure who is to blame – Desroches Noblecourt herself, the abridger or the translator – but there are clear issues with the text. However, even working with that assumption, the text itself is a major letdown. By the nature of the book, I would – and shouldn't – expect an in-depth biography of Ramesses. It's a smallish coffee-table book style, and completely lacking in footnotes. I will cut it a bit of slack: I think the book is meant for a more casual reader. Nearly every image that Desroches Noblecourt references is included, the only thing that I felt was missing were scenes from the tomb Ramesses' mother, Mut-Tuya. The photos and illustrations are also, generally, high-quality, and it's an excellent visual reference for anyone interested in the life and times of Ramesses II. The presentation is gorgeous – I loved that glossary terms are defined in the margin of the page they first appear, rather than having a glossary section at the back that you'd have to flick to each time you wanted to look something up. I'm still fond of him now, so when I saw this going cheap at a bookshop, I grabbed myself a copy. He was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt.I expected this would be nostalgic: Ramesses II used to be my favourite pharaoh and I read obsessively about him back in 2004/05. Ramesses II was most famous for his military conquests. Ramesses II is the 4th most popular nobleman, the 5th most popular biography from Israel (up from 6th in 2019) and the most popular Israeli Nobleman. His biography is available in 87 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 82 in 2019). Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Ramesses II has received more than 9,424,374 page views. Along with Thutmose III of the Eighteenth Dynasty, he is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the New Kingdom, which itself was the most powerful period of ancient Egypt.In ancient Greek sources, he is called Ozymandias, derived from the first part of his Egyptian-language regnal name: Usermaatre Setepenre. He was the third ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty. Ramesses II ( Ancient Egyptian: rꜥ-ms-sw, Rīꜥa-masē-sə, Semitic pronunciation: c. 1303 BC – 1213 BC), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was an Egyptian pharaoh.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |