Egypt: Splendors of an Ancient Civilization
While both these well-illustrated books concern ancient Egyptian culture and art, they are quite different in approach and audience appeal. Director of the Thebes Project, French scholar Siliotti states quite clearly that what distinguishes his survey of Egyptian monuments and art is that every object is reproduced in exquisite full-color photographs. The book is a remarkable visual resource (especially considering the price). Accompanying almost 300 photographs and a succinct, well-written text are maps, plans, and reconstruction illustrations of architectural complexes. The book is organized not in the typical chronological order but geographically, focusing on the major sites from which the objects originated. Egyptologist and Los Angeles County Museum of Art curator Thomas has produced a more scholarly study, which also functions as a catalog for an exhibition organized by the museum and traveling to Saint Louis and Indianapolis this year. The focus here is on the work of pioneering American Egyptologists and the objects they collected. The text includes an interesting essay on ancient Egypt in American popular culture. Though less of a coffee-table book than the Siliotti volume, Thomas's catalog also has excellent photographs of objects (a companion volume of the same name with ten in-depth essays is also available from Abrams, ISBN 0-8109-6313-2, $60). Both the books under review are highly recommended?Siliotti for all libraries and Thomas for academic libraries.?Eugene C. Burt, Art Inst. of Seattle Lib., Wash.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.