As I was selecting books for the Midwestern Library, I came across a title called Journey to the Afterlife: The Egyptian Book of the Dead. This is something I wanted to purchase for the Library since the Egyptians played a huge role in Biblical history. I also thought it would be useful for the archaeology department. Recently, I have had an interest in Egyptians because of the Egypt exhibit at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art(which is an amazing place to visit if you are ever in Kansas City). The Egyptian Book of the Dead is not a book as we would think of it today. It is a collection of spells listed on scrolls, tombs, statues, and other tools for the dead that were suppose to help them in the after life.This book was published by The British Museum. I suppose the best way I could describe this book is an adult picture book/ coffee table book. It is not too text heavy since it is mostly pictures. This book includes beautiful pictures of many Egyptian idols, funeral tools, scrolls, statues, and pottery. It showed how the Egyptians used their sarcophagi to call upon the powers of certain gods. These sarcophagi were especially significant for the pharaohs and other royalty since they believed they inhabited the gods. The spells listed in the Book of the Dead were suppose to help them get through the different phases of the afterlife and help them when they reach Osiris in the judgement hall. One thing that I thought was interesting is how they used different spells to ensure their hearts did not confess their wrong doing during their life. It also explained the different beliefs that the Egyptians had about the afterlife through the different dynasties. If you are looking for more information on the Egyptians or enjoy archaeology, then you should definitely read this book.
Also, in case you missed it, here is a story about a sarcophagus that moved on its own at the Manchester Museum....Kinda creepy! http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/25/world/europe/uk-spinning-statue-mystery/index.html
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