Expanding on the basic ideas of Reading Egyptian Art, Wilkinson's second book delves into other symbologies and iconographies of Egyptian art, including the canon of proportion, color palette, materials used, shapes, relative size and other artistic/stylistic elements, explaining his points with photographs of actual objects, Kemetic temples, tombs and papyri. Very highly recommended.
Suggested Reading List
The following books about ancient Egypt's religion, culture and philosophy are recommended (not required) reading for devotees of Kemetic Orthodoxy. Inclusion of a book on this list does not mean we must agree with everything any book says or that our recommended readings must include official Kemetic Orthodox teachings. We believe familiarity with these texts can enhance understanding of our religion, as well as make readers aware of modern controversies and issues concerning ancient Egypt and its religion. Longer "book reviews" of selected texts can be found on our book review pages.
Be sure to visit our online bookstore where you can acquire some of the books listed below!
Theology and Philosophy
Symbol & Magic in Egyptian Art
By ibid, Thames & Hudson, 1994. ISBN 0-500-23663-1A Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
By Hart, George, Routledge, 1986 .ISBN 0-415-05909-7An encyclopedic look at the Names of Netjer in alphabetical order. Not exhaustive by any means, but handy, easily accessible and better than Budge.
Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt: The One and The Many
By Hornung, Erik; [translated from German by John Baines], Cornell University Press, 1982. ISBN 0-8014-1223-4A thought-provoking look at the philosophy behind Kemetic religion, Kemetic concepts of Deity, and their contribution to the development of other world religions and philosophies, masterfully translated from the original German by Egyptologist John Baines. Not for beginners. Very highly recommended.
The Great Goddesses of Egypt
By Lesko, Barbara S, University of Oklahoma (Norman) Press, 1999. ISBN 0-8061-3202-7A refreshing indepth study of some of the female Names: Nut, Nit, Nekhebet/Wadjet, Hethert, Mut; and their temples and clergy, by an accredited Egyptologist, but written for a wider general audience. Borders on feminist preachiness here and there, but otherwise an excellent, well-thought out resource for those interested in the feminine aspects of Kemetic deity.
Daily Life of the Egyptian Gods
By Meeks, Dimitri and Christine Favard; [translated from French by G. M. Goshgarian], Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-801-43115-8The next groundbreaking book since Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt, Daily Life may well replace Hornung as the most comprehensive study on Kemetic theology. The Meeks take an interesting perspective, which is to present the Names of Netjer as if they were a people and the book were an anthropological study of a living tribe. Covers the philosophical intricacies of ancient Egyptian religion as well as some of the hard facts: rites, temples, priesthood, and the three-tiered calendrical system tied into the festival days of the Names. May not be for beginners, but is more accessible than Hornung. Available both in hardback and paperback. Highly recommended.
Egyptian Religion
By Morenz, Siegfried. [translated from German], Cornell Paperbacks. ISBN 0-8014-8029-9A wonderful discussion of Kemetic religion from both theological and philosophical perspectives. Not an easy book to read, but a valuable one; I believe it to be superior to Henri Frankfort's book of the same title.
Mythological Papyri
By Piankoff, A, Bollingen Series, Egyptian Religious Texts and Representations, 1957. Out of printA collection of funerary papyri from a cache of tombs for priests of the Name of Netjer known as Amen-Ra. A book with a transcription of hieroglyphs and their English translation is accompanied by more than 30 full reproductions of the papyri being discussed, several in color. Rare but useful information regarding different manifestations of Netjer and New Kingdom/Late Period funerary literature.
The Mechanics of Ancient Egyptian Magical Practice
By Ritner, Robert Kriech, Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization #54, 1993. ISBN 0-918986-756-3Perhaps the most ambitious study of ancient Egyptian "magic" to date, Ritner's dissertation is a compendium of source material for the structure and form of rites practiced in Kemet. While materials are limited for periods before the end of the New Kingdom (an issue for all Egyptology), Ritner has done a spectacular job of bringing together diverse symbolic, physical and theological points of interest, from the use of prayer for medicinal purposes to execration, blessing, divination and other ritual as "magic." Not for beginners; as a dissertation it expects readers to be familiar with a number of Kemetic philosophical arguments, and passages are rendered in hieroglyph, hieratic, demotic, Arabic, Coptic and European languages without translation.
Myth and Symbol in Ancient Egypt
By Rundle-Clark, R.T, Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-27112-7A concise discussion of the theology of Kemet as well as its differing myth cycles, symbolic language, cosmology, etc.
Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myths and Personal Practice
By Schafer, Byron E., ed, Cornell University Press, 1991. ISBN 0-8014-2550-6A collection of scholarly papers on Kemetic religion, sacred kingship and conceptions of Netjer.
The Neteru of Kemet: An Introduction
By Siuda, Rev. Tamara. (published as Tamara Siuda-Legan), Eschaton Productions, 1994. ISBN 1-57353-105-7While my first book, a short (80-page) illustrated workbook introducing 13 of the Names of Netjer, is becoming outdated as I continue my studies (and will be replaced by a new and larger edition in the near future), I still think it is a useful beginner's reference to Netjer and Kemetic religion. Includes hymns and meditations.
Reading Egyptian Art: A Hieroglyphic Guide to Ancient Egyptian Painting and Sculpture
By Wilkinson, Richard H, Thames & Hudson, 1992. ISBN 0-500-27751-6First in a series of two excellent books, Wilkinson walks the reader through Gardiner's hieroglyphic sign-list, explaining the symbolic and artistic uses of each symbol with illustrated and/or photographed examples. Highly recommended.
Literature
Voices from Ancient Egypt: An Anthology of Middle Kingdom Writings
By Parkinson, R.B, University of Oklahoma Press, 1991. ISBN 0-8061-2362-1A collection of writings from Kemet's Middle Kingdom, including hymns, short stories, letters (even "hate mail"!) and magical formulae. An interesting look at one period of Kemetic history from its own literature, with good interpretations alongside the texts. Highly recommended.
The Literature of Ancient Egypt: An Anthology of Stories, Instruction and Poetry
By Simpson, William Kelly, ed, Yale University Press, 1972. ISBN 0-300-01711-1Another anthology of Kemetic texts, collected from different Egyptologists' translations. Often used as a textbook in college courses and a good selection of material from different time periods in Kemetic history.
Tutankhamen's Gift
By Sabuda, Robert, writer & illustrator, Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster, 1994. ISBN 0-689-31818-9Another wonderful book for children, Tutankhamen's Gift tells a story of the 18th Dynasty boy-king and how he righted wrongs committed against Netjer by his predecessor, Amenhotep IV/Akhenaten. A fresh look at a still-controversial period of Kemetic history.
The Litany of Ra
By ibid, Bollingen Series, Egyptian Religious Texts and Representations, 1957. Out of printThis Bollingen volume features the Great Litany of Ra and other solar hymns, as well as a description of the Senet-board (considered to be one of the world's first board games but attributed with a religious context by ancient sources) from a theological perspective.
Mythological Papyri
By Piankoff, A, Bollingen Series, Egyptian Religious Texts and Representations, 1957. Out of printA collection of funerary papyri from a cache of tombs for priests of the Name of Netjer known as Amen-Ra. A book with a transcription of hieroglyphs and their English translation is accompanied by more than 30 full reproductions of the papyri being discussed, several in color. Rare but useful information regarding different manifestations of Netjer and New Kingdom/Late Period funerary literature.
Ancient Egyptian Literature
By Lichtheim, Miriam, transl, (3 volumes). University of California Press, 1976. ISBN 0-520-03615-8A collection of Kemetic literature arranged chronologically in three volumes: Old and Middle Kingdoms, The New Kingdom, and Late Period and beyond. Covers well-known Kemetic religious and philosophical texts and includes poetry, short stories and instructional literature. Highly recommended.
Selections from the Husia: Sacred Wisdom of Ancient Egypt
By Karenga, Maulana, University of Sankore Press, 1989. ISBN 0-9434-1206-4Maulana Karenga, the founder of the African-American winter holiday called Kwanzaa, has put together a very good collection of Kemetic texts in the Husia, (a word Karenga coined from Hu and Sia, the two guardians of Ra) an anthology of ancient Egyptian wisdom texts, hymns and other spiritual works. As part of Karenga's project to create one central source for African spirituality texts, this book is a wonderful addition to any Kemetic or African or spiritual/religious library. A disappointment is that he appears not to have done his own translations from the hieroglyphs but to have relied on other authors' translations - perhaps in a future version Karenga will take his own turn at translating the ancient texts, as his current paraphrases are insightful and uplifting.
Cry of the Benu Bird: An Egyptian Creation Story
By Greger, C. Shana, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1996. ISBN 0-395-73573-4This wonderfully illustrated (by the author) modern interpretation of the An (Heliopolis) creation story of Tem (Atum) is a beautiful little book to share with children or the young at heart.
Echoes of Egyptian Voices: An Anthology of Ancient Egyptian Poetry
By Foster, John L., trans, University of Oklahoma Series in Classical Culture Volume 12, 1992. ISBN 0-8061-2411-3. Out of printA collection of poetry including love songs, hymns and wisdom literature spanning Kemet's history, rendered in beautiful modern English prose. Highly recommended.
History and Society
The Calendars of Ancient Egypt
By Parker, R.A, Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, 1950. Out of printA detailed comparison of different papyri and texts to complete a calendar of Kemet, with festivals, etc. Compares the three different types of Kemetic calendars as well (solar/lunar/civil).
Chronicle of the Pharaohs: The Reign-By-Reign Record of the Rulers and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt
By Clayton, Peter, Thames & Hudson, 1994. ISBN 0-500-05074-0Exactly as the title suggests, this coffee-table book is a perfect crash course in Kemetic history, going through the lines of rulers from the shadowy Horus Qaa, Scorpion and Nar-mer to the last of the Ptolemies, Cleopatra VII. Plenty of pictures, charts and information for any Egyptophile, and remarkably error-free for a mass-market book. Highly recommended.
Egyptian Grammar: Being An Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs
By Gardiner, Sir Alan, Griffith Institute, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1957 (3rd ed., 1988). ISBN 0-900416-35-1The authority in college courses, Gardiner's book remains the best comprehensive resource on learning to write and read hieroglyphs (Old through Middle Kingdom), though a worthy successor by professor James Hoch is in the works and should be available by the end of 1998. Gardiner's tome is expensive ($70 at this writing) but essential for the serious student of Kemetic language and the hieroglyphic script.
Ancient Lives: Daily Life in Egypt of the Pharaohs
By Romer, John, Henry Holt & Company, 1984. ISBN 0-8050-1244-3A social history of one well-documented Kemetic community: the New Kingdom to Late Period "City of the Artisans" at Deir el-Medina outside the Valley of the Kings at modern-day Luxor. Useful for a glimpse of the lives of the families of one village across several centuries, and Romer's nonscholarly style will engage even a beginner.
Blacks in Antiquity: Ethiopians in the Greco-Roman Experience
By Snowden, Jr., Frank M, Belknap-Harvard, 1970. ISBN 0-674-07626-5An excellent treatment of the subject of Africans, including ancient Egyptians, in the classical Mediterranean world: their function and expression in Greco-Roman history, their contributions to classical culture, etc. An important and often overlooked subject.
Ancient Egypt: A Social History
By Trigger, B.G.; Kemp, B.J.; O'Connor, D.; and Lloyd, A.B, Cambridge University Press, 1983What Erman began for the study of Kemetic culture with Life in Ancient Egypt, this team of scholars brings full circle. Chronologically arranged from Predynastic to Late Periods, this book details the social structure of Kemetic life as evidenced through hard data (archaeological finds, study of bodies, structures, texts and other contemporary societies). One of the most useful introductions to Kemetic culture in print. Additionally important is its detailed history of Nubia, and Kemet's relation to other African nations before and after its time, not often seen in Egyptology books.
Funerary Texts
The Book of the Dead or Going Forth By Day: Ideas of the Ancient Egyptians concerning the hereafter as expressed in their own terms
By Allen, T.G., trans, Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization #37, 1974. ISBN 226-6240-2This is the best direct English translation currently available of all known source texts collectively referred to as the "Book of the Dead."
The Pyramid Texts of Unas
By Piankoff, A, Bollingen Series, Egyptian Religious Texts and Representations, 1957. Out of printComprising another volume in Bollingen's set of reproductions/translations of Kemetic texts, the Pyramid Texts of Unas are perhaps the best known and most complete of the Pyramid Texts. Highly recommended.
The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Book of Going Forth By Day: The First Authentic Presentation of the Complete Papyrus of Ani, featuring integrated texts and full color images
By ibid, Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 1994. ISBN 0-8118-0767-3The title says it all: a retranslation and new presentation of Papyrus Ani, in the correct sequence and with the reproductions of the papyrus corresponding to where the words are. Corrects many of Budge's mistakes, and has wondrous commentary. A must for any Kemetic library. Oversized.
The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts
By ibid, Warminster: Aris & Phillips. Out of printBefore the Book of the Dead and the Coffin Texts, there were the Pyramid Texts, enigmatic funerary formulas for the transition of the deceased Old Kingdom ruler into the afterworld. These are some of Kemet's oldest surviving religious texts. A paperback version of this compilation is sporadically available; if you see one, pick it up, as the book is hard to find.
The Ancient Egyptian Coffin Texts
By ibid, Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1978. Out of printA volumes-long look at the Middle Kingdom funerary texts painted onto the tops and sides of coffins.
The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead
By Faulkner, R.O., trans, University of Texas Press, Austin, 1990. ISBN 0-292-70425-9Another direct translation, this one containing full-color reproductions from different papyri. More accessible than Allen due to its chapter-and-paragraph layout. Highly recommended.
Awakening Osiris: The Egyptian Book of the Dead
By Ellis, Normandi, Phanes PressA retranslation of the contents of Papyrus Ani into modern English, with additional chapters written by the author. Not a scholarly text (Ellis bases her work on a paraphrase of the work of Sir E. A. Wallis Budge), but thought-provoking and beautiful. An audio version is available.
Designed by Andi Mancuso.