Ramesses II [Hardcover]

Being an avid collector of any book related to Egyptian history I was still knocked over by this superb new volumne exploring the life and times of one of Egypt's greatest Pharaohs, Ramesses The Second of the Nineteenth Dynasty. Utilising all the latest in information about this legendary ruler of one of the worlds greatest ancient civilisations author TGH James weaves an informative, non bias account of this Pharaoh enriched by some of the most magnificent photography that has ever been seen in any work devoted to Ancient Egypt.

Having been long associated with the Egyptian Antiquities department of the British Museum the author is more than well qualified to talk on the life of Ramesses the Second and his lavish volumne spends time in the introductory chapters painting a picture of the lead up to Ramesses' reign through the Amarna Period and Tutankhamun to the life of his father the magnificent Pharaoh Sethos the First. Various chapters deal with specific periods of Ramesses life and are devoted to the period as a young prince in his father's kingdom through to his military activites as Pharaoh and in particular Ramesses' well chronciled clashes with the Hitties culminating in the Battle of Qadesh. Of great interest in the book is the research that has gone into reconstructing the complex family situation of Ramesses and fascinating chapters are spent creating vivid images of Ramesses' great royal wife Nefertari, the royal harem and his many children. Of particular interest is the research devoted to the foreign brides of Ramesses especially the two Hittite princesses who became the brides of Ramesses as a result of his lasting treaty with the Hittites.

Of course no work on Ramesses the Great would be complete without an examination of his great reputation as a builder and the volumne is rich in many previously unpublished photos documenting many of the works attributed to Ramesses the Second. Ample space is devoted to his elaborate work in the temples of Karnak and Luxor, his work at his new capital of Piramesse, the beautiful tomb in the Valley of the Queens created for his wife Nefertari and of course the two great temples at Abu Simbel. A particularly interesting amount of space in devoted to the grand and still not entirely excavated tomb of Ramesses' son's in the Valley of the Kings which contains a summary of some of the very latest finds from this rich and still not totally explored site. All these places illustrated in this book are accompanied by eye catching and extremely beautiful colour photographs more sumptous than I have seen in most works on Ancient Egypt. So vivid are most of them that they almost seem to transport you to the very temple of sculpture being discussed.

For any Egyptologist or lover of ancient civilisations "Rammesses 11", is unsurpassed reading of the first order filled with terrific information, stunning photography and much new information that really enables the reader to get a vivid picture of Ramesses the Great and Egypt at this time. I highly recommend this book to all lovers of history and of ancient art in particular, it is a true treasure that deserves a special place on any book lovers shelves.

I couldn't wait to get this book and I wasn't disappointed. The photos are great and I highly recommend this book. Ramesses reign was magnificent. The building during his reign is unequalled. The Abu Simbel is absolutely fantastic,but there is so much more. He truly was the master builder. I love this book and it doesn't disappoint. Also,buy Tutankamun his other book.

This book is a detailed look into the life of Ramses II. Much has been written about Ramses by other authors, therefore, this was a pleasent surprise. T.G.H.James is one of the most outstanding and important egyptologists alive today. His newly published book on Ramses should be in every good egyptologists library.

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