As the general public in Britain read about Egypt’s history, visited collections, and viewed the material remains of a past that had not yet been uncovered by Western scholars, the mysterious nature of Egypt’s past became fertile ground for literary imaginations. Called Egyptomania by some scholars, the public excitement and interest in ancient Egypt ebbed and flowed throughout the nineteenth century. Fear of the unknown shows itself in fictional works about ancient Egypt, contemporary Egypt, Egyptian artifacts, and the people who made them. Authors began to ask questions about magical spells, inexplicable forces, puzzling practices, and strange beings that came from a mysteriously powerful ancient civilization. How did ancient Egypt last for three millennia? Why did Egyptians write with those symbols? Who would agree to be buried in such a way? What power was bestowed on those mummified? As fiction writers and scholars began to answer these questions, they imagined a society with unlimited powers and both unbounded animosity as well as a certain noblesse oblige to their obvious ideological ancestors—the British.
Kathleen L. Sheppard is Professor of history in the History and Political Science department at Missouri S&T, USA. She is also the Director of the Center for Science, Technology, and Society.
Volume IV: ManiaGeneral IntroductionVolume IV IntroductionPart 1. The Mysterious Mummified1. Thomas Legh, ‘Extraordinary Adventure in the Mummy Pits in Egypt,’ The Literary Panorama and National Register Volume 5, no 29 (1817), pp. 811–16.2. John Davidson, An address on embalming generally, delivered at the Royal Institution, on the unrolling of a mummy (London: J. Ridgway, 1833), pp. 1–23.3. Thomas Joseph Pettigrew, A history of Egyptian mummies :and an account of the worship and embalming of the sacred animals by the Egyptians; with remarks on the funeral ceremonies of different nations, and observations on the mummies of the Canary islands, of the ancient Peruvians, Burman priests, &c. (London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green, and Longman, 1834), pp. ii–12.4. Margaret Alice Murray, The Tomb of the Two Brothers (Manchester: Sherratt & Hughes, 1910), pp. 7–10, 53.Part 2. Powerful Magic 5. George Stanley Faber, ‘Remarks on the Pyramid of Cephrenes, lately opened by Mr. Belzoni,’ The Classical Journal Vol. XXI, No. XLI (March 1820), pp. 8–21.6. John Taylor, The Great Pyramid: Why was it built? and Who Built it? (London: Longman, Green, Longman, and Roberts, 1859), pp. 111–28, 201–11.7. E. A Wallis Budge, Egyptian Magic (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1899), pp. vii–xv, 1–4, 182–203.Part 3. Fantastical Fiction8. Percy Bysshe Shelley, ‘Ozymandias,’ The Examiner No. 524 (11 Jan 1818): p. 24.9. Horace Smith, ‘Ozymandias,’ The Examiner No. 527 (1 Feb 1818): p. 73.10. William Alexander installing the Bust of Ramesses II in the Egyptian Sculpture Gallery, a drawing. E. W. Cooke, June 2, 1834.11. Jane Webb Loudon, The Mummy! A Tale of the Twenty-Second Century (London: Henry Colburn, 1827), Vol 1: pp. 214–25, 250–55, 298–303; Vol 2: pp. 42–52.12. Arthur Conan Doyle, ‘Lot No. 249,’ Harper’s New Monthly Magazine (October 1892), pp. 525–44.13. Oscar Wilde, The Sphinx: A poem (London: Elkin Mathews and John Lane, 1894).14. Marie Corelli, Ziska: The Problem of A Wicked Soul (New York: Stone & Kimball, 1897), pp. 7–9, 50–60, 292–315.Part 4. Circulating Egypt15. Owen Jones, Joseph Bonomi, and Samuel Sharpe, Description of the Egyptian Court; Erected in the Crystal Palace by Owen Jones, Architect, and Joseph Bonomi, Sculptor (London: Bradbury and Evans, 1854), pp. 12–34.16. Edouard Naville, The Store City of Pithom and the Route of the Exodus (London: Trübner & Co., 1883), pp. vii–28.17. Collection of Egyptian Postcards, from the American University in Cairo Rare Books Collection, late 19th to early 20th century.BibliographyIndex