professor_x's review
5.0
A most excellent introduction of ancient Egypt. These 48 lectures are narrated by Professor Bob Brier, and it doesn't take long to see that he absolutely loves talking about everything Egypt. Everything is covered here -- pharaohs, pyramids, human and animal mummification, religion and mythology, art and architecture.
I thought the lecture of the "heretic" king Akhenaten was very interesting. He was the only pharaoh to declare one god, thus introducing monotheism for the first time in recorded history. Egypt, being a polytheistic society for centuries, reeled under his rule. Once he passed away, it didn't take long for the other gods to make their return.
A wonderful course indeed!
I thought the lecture of the "heretic" king Akhenaten was very interesting. He was the only pharaoh to declare one god, thus introducing monotheism for the first time in recorded history. Egypt, being a polytheistic society for centuries, reeled under his rule. Once he passed away, it didn't take long for the other gods to make their return.
A wonderful course indeed!
nelsta's review
5.0
The history of Ancient Egypt is incredible. This collection is a mere summary of its 3,000+ year history and it spans twenty-four hours of lectures. It was difficult for me to comprehend one nation's history enveloping so much time until Dr. Brier pointed out all the places Egyptian influence can be found. I grew up learning that civilization began with the Fertile Crescent, but I'm convinced by Dr. Brier's argument that culture begins with Ancient Egypt.
This lecture series proceeds through Egyptian history in chronological order with a handful of exceptions. Dr. Brier--called Mr. Mummy--discusses religion, writing, culture, history, geography, architecture, and more in forty-eight lectures. The whole thing is well done, but I felt like everything after the eighteenth dynasty was covered in increasingly rapid summarization. Just about the entire Ptolemaic dynasty (300 years) is summarized in two lectures. When history covers three millennia, cuts have to be made, but I was left wishing that the final years of ancient Egypt had been given more attention.
One of the most incredible things I learned was that the pyramids were built in the Old Kingdom (the first of three semi-unique civilizations in Egypt), long before most of the history with which I'm familiar. Egypt had its own archaeologists studying ancient Egyptian structures like the pyramids, the Sphinx, and other temples to the gods. Imagine a civilization so old that it has archaeologists studying its own buildings from three thousand years before. I was in awe from start to finish. I also enjoyed Dr. Brier's descriptions of the "Joseph in Egypt" and Exodus stories. It was remarkable to learn about them from the point of view of an egyptologist.
If you have any interest in Egypt, consider picking these lectures up. It's long, but not bland or boring. It was interesting enough to keep me engaged for ten straight days of listening, which is more than I can say for other reads.
This lecture series proceeds through Egyptian history in chronological order with a handful of exceptions. Dr. Brier--called Mr. Mummy--discusses religion, writing, culture, history, geography, architecture, and more in forty-eight lectures. The whole thing is well done, but I felt like everything after the eighteenth dynasty was covered in increasingly rapid summarization. Just about the entire Ptolemaic dynasty (300 years) is summarized in two lectures. When history covers three millennia, cuts have to be made, but I was left wishing that the final years of ancient Egypt had been given more attention.
One of the most incredible things I learned was that the pyramids were built in the Old Kingdom (the first of three semi-unique civilizations in Egypt), long before most of the history with which I'm familiar. Egypt had its own archaeologists studying ancient Egyptian structures like the pyramids, the Sphinx, and other temples to the gods. Imagine a civilization so old that it has archaeologists studying its own buildings from three thousand years before. I was in awe from start to finish. I also enjoyed Dr. Brier's descriptions of the "Joseph in Egypt" and Exodus stories. It was remarkable to learn about them from the point of view of an egyptologist.
If you have any interest in Egypt, consider picking these lectures up. It's long, but not bland or boring. It was interesting enough to keep me engaged for ten straight days of listening, which is more than I can say for other reads.
mel_reviews_in_a_pinch's review
3.0
This is the first Great Courses lecture that I really struggled getting through. Normally I love them and my struggle is whether it should get 4 or 5 stars. Not so with this one.
First and foremost, the book had a TON of great information. I learned a lot about Ancient Egypt that was never covered in school or that we quickly skipped through (I don’t remember spending much time on it, TBH). Professor Bob Brier clearly knows his stuff and absolutely loves being an Egyptologist.
Having said that, we come to my issue with the lecture series. Professor Bob Brier. His accent was grating for me (can’t remember if he said Bronx or Brooklyn). I felt myself cringing every time he used a word that started with H because it would become a silent H (i.e. huge and human became uge and uman). He also has a tendency to repeat himself; I’m assuming for emphasis. The problem with that here is that he does it every other sentence.
If I’m being completely honest, those irritations didn’t start to stop me from wanting to finish until about 3 hours from the end. Then it became a battle with myself to get through it.
I would recommend this lecture series if you absolutely love Egypt and Egyptology and if you’re not too finicky about accents and grammar. I would even read future books by Professor Brier, but I would never listen to another one.
First and foremost, the book had a TON of great information. I learned a lot about Ancient Egypt that was never covered in school or that we quickly skipped through (I don’t remember spending much time on it, TBH). Professor Bob Brier clearly knows his stuff and absolutely loves being an Egyptologist.
Having said that, we come to my issue with the lecture series. Professor Bob Brier. His accent was grating for me (can’t remember if he said Bronx or Brooklyn). I felt myself cringing every time he used a word that started with H because it would become a silent H (i.e. huge and human became uge and uman). He also has a tendency to repeat himself; I’m assuming for emphasis. The problem with that here is that he does it every other sentence.
If I’m being completely honest, those irritations didn’t start to stop me from wanting to finish until about 3 hours from the end. Then it became a battle with myself to get through it.
I would recommend this lecture series if you absolutely love Egypt and Egyptology and if you’re not too finicky about accents and grammar. I would even read future books by Professor Brier, but I would never listen to another one.
kahawa's review
4.0
An excellent overview of ancient Egypt. Brier really knows his stuff, and obviously loves it. My biggest gripe with this is that he almost never gave the date of events, he would just mention the dynasty, which made it very hard to connect with contemporary history. Speaking of which, I wish he'd talked more about what was going on around the world during certain events. The other thing I didn't love about this, and he obviously did, was how much he would speculate about matters the history of which we know nothing (especially in the Cleopatra lecture). Fortunately he would disclose his personal speculations, but it was a bit of a waste of time, TBH. I learnt a lot, though I wouldn't say it sparked a love for ancient Egypt. The professor exuded enough passion for the both of us.
nati's review
informative
slow-paced
5.0
Incredibly informative and fun!! Hearing someone talk about the subject rather than recite it makes it much easier to pay attention. You may think 24 hours is a lot but I wish it was longer, I don’t know what to do with my life now that I’ve finished. Highly recommend.