PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.
To put this book into English, and thus to hand it on to thousands who might not otherwise have enjoyed it, has been to me a very congenial and interesting task. It would be difficult, I imagine, to point to any work of its scope and character which is better calculated to give lasting delight to all classes of readers. For the skilled archaeologist, its pages contain not only new facts, but new views and new interpretations; while to those who know little, or perhaps nothing, of the subjects under discussion, it will open a fresh and fascinating field of study. It is not enough to say that a handbook of Egyptian Archaeology was much needed, and that Professor Maspero has given us exactly what we required. He has done much more than this. He has given us a picturesque, vivacious, and highly original volume, as delightful as if it were not learned, and as instructive as if it were dull.
As regards the practical side of Archaeology, it ought to be unnecessary to point out that its usefulness is strictly parallel with the usefulness of public museums. To collect and exhibit objects of ancient art and industry is worse than idle if we do not also endeavour to disseminate some knowledge of the history of those arts and industries, and of the processes employed by the artists and craftsmen of the past. Archaeology, no less than love, "adds a precious seeing to the eye"; and without that gain of mental sight, the treasures of our public collections are regarded by the general visitor as mere "curiosities"--flat and stale for the most part, and wholly unprofitable.
I am much indebted to Mr. W.M. Flinders Petrie, author of The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh, for kindly translating the section on "Pyramids," which is entirely from his pen. I have also to thank him for many valuable notes on subjects dealt with in the first three chapters. To avoid confusion, I have numbered these notes, and placed them at the end of the volume.
My acknowledgments are likewise due to Professor Maspero for the care with which he has read the proof-sheets of this version of his work. In departing from his system of orthography (and that of Mr. Petrie) I have been solely guided by the necessities of English readers. I foresee that Egyptian Archaeology will henceforth be the inseparable companion of all English-speaking travellers who visit the Valley of the Nile; hence I have for the most part adopted the spelling of Egyptian proper names as given by the author of "Murray's Handbook for Egypt."
Touching my own share in the present volume, I will only say that I have tried to present Professor Maspero's inimitable French in the form of readable English, rather than in a strictly word-for-word translation; and that with the hope of still further extending the usefulness of the book, I have added some foot-note references.
AMELIA B. EDWARDS.
WESTBURY-ON-TRYM,
August, 1887.