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| Written By Rick
Ellis, Monday, August 21st, 2006 For most people, the phrase "Book Of The Dead" probably sounds more like the plot point of a bad horror film than anything else. You've seen those films...a group of college kids are on a desert archeological dig and they discover some long-forgotten cave containing a musty copy of the leather-bound "Book Of The Dead." The next thing you know, a headless mummy and few random ghouls are killing the students and threatening to destroy the world. In truth, the Book of the Dead was more like spiritual life insurance for ancient Egyptians. They believed that the afterlife was a dangerous, tricky place, and to find your way to their equivalent of heaven involved battling all sorts of scary, tricky beasts. The only way to survive was to have a scroll called the "Book Of The Dead" nearby. It contained a series of spells designed to ward off all sorts of evil, and provide the owner with the knowledge necessary to survive until they reached the beloved "Land of the Reeds." The History Channel special "The Egyptian Book Of The Dead" focuses on perhaps the most famous known example of the scroll. It was commissioned by a temple scribe named Ani at a period around 1250 B.C.E. While most scrolls tended to be straightforward (often generic) groupings of spells, Ani spent an enormous amount of money commissioning the creation of a magnificent Book Of The Dead. "The Egyptian Book of The Dead" intertwines Ani’s story with that of the British Museum curator, Ernest Wallis Budge, who, in 1887, risks arrest, prison or worse in a quest to bring what is now called the Scroll of Ani to London. Budge collected thousands of Egyptian artifacts, but his methods, recreated for the program, bring mixed opinions from the experts. While many modern archeologists appreciate the fact that Budge's controversial collection methods saved many artifacts from ending up in private hands, they also complain that by sneaking them out of the country, he essentially stole from Egypt and its heritage. This two-hour special is incredibly informative, and gives the viewer a real sense of both the history and tradition behind the scrolls known as "The Book Of The Dead." It also provides a nice glimpse of what it was like to track down ancient objects in the anything goes period of archeology. It's a real treat to watch, but my only complaint is that it includes a bit too much unnecessary padding. It would have been a much better 90-minute special than it is weighing in at two hours. Cutting the extra time wouldn't have excised anything of importance, and would have drastically increased the pacing. Still, "The Egyptian Book Of The Dead" is a must see for fans of archeology and the ancient Egyptians. You might just want to bring a magazine to read during the slow parts. "The Egyptian Book Of The Dead" premieres on the History Channel on Tuesday, August 22nd, 2006 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. |
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