The Egyptian language might have been the first language in human history to have been written down. (Although some scholars have argued that Sumerian was actually the first, and that Egyptian was only the second.) Regardless of whether it was first or second, though, the earliest known records of the Egyptian language actually go back to two or three thousand years before Jesus Christ. But unexpectedly, that is not where this documentary begins its history. This is actually a history of the “New Kingdom” in Egypt, which goes from about 1500 BC to 1000 BC – long after the earliest known records in Egypt. I would presume that PBS wanted to focus on a narrower period of Egyptian history (only five centuries or so), to allow for a simpler story. With less than three hours to tell the story here, you can see why PBS would want to do this. But one can only speculate as to why they decided to focus specifically on the “New Kingdom,” rather than on some other period of a similar duration. There are a number of other periods that would have made for equally interesting television, I think; and if someone decided to cover one of them, I would probably view their coverage with more than a little interest.
Why did PBS choose to focus entirely on the “New Kingdom”?
So why did they choose to focus on the “New Kingdom”? There may be a number of reasons for this choice. For one, this is the particular period in Egyptian history that includes Ramesses II, the Pharaoh that is known to us as “Ramesses the Great.” Indeed, most of the last episode focuses on him personally; and he is certainly one of the most interesting of the Pharaohs. There are some good secular reasons to be interested in Ramesses II, but Jews and Christians have long had a special interest in him for another reason. Many Jewish and Christian scholars believe him to be the Pharaoh that Moses went up against, when he led the Israelites out of Egypt during the Exodus. The movie “The Ten Commandments” makes this interpretation, and thus has Yul Brynner playing a character named “Ramesses II.” The Bible does not offer any specifics on which Pharaoh went up against Moses, and so there is plenty of room for interpretation here. Nonetheless, Ramesses II often comes up as a popular candidate; and the interpretation of “The Ten Commandments” is fairly typical in this regard. I don't have a “dog in this fight” myself, and I don't particularly care which Pharaoh that the Book of Exodus was trying to depict. But as far as choosing the “New Kingdom” goes, I would offer this as one possible explanation - or, at least, a partial explanation - for why they chose this period. The New Kingdom is certainly an interesting period, and so I have no complaints on that score. This was also Egypt's most prosperous period, and marked the peak of its power. This, too, may have played a role in PBS's selection of this period for their program.
Ramesses II, also known as “Ramesses the Great”
What this program covers (and what it doesn't cover)
But this program does not really mention this period's hypothesized connections to the Hebrew Bible, and makes almost no mention of the Jews at all. If you're after a discussion of Biblical history, this may not be the place to go to. Rather, the emphasis is on the political (and primarily secular) history of Egypt – and, to a much lesser extent, on the native religious history of the Egyptians themselves. There is virtually no discussion of either Judaism or Christianity (or the later Islamic invasions), but there is a significant amount of discussion of the native Egyptian gods. There is also much discussion about how the worship of these gods inspired the now-famous building projects of Ancient Egypt (such as the pyramids), and the mummification practices as a “preparation for the afterlife.” This region has long been an archeologist's paradise because of the architectural wonders there. Thus, the art of this period continues to captivate people to this day. This makes the program exciting to watch, and contributes to the visual quality of the episodes. One of the most intriguing aspects of this era's political history was actually the many statues depicting a pharaoh named “Hatshepsut,” portraying the pharaoh with masculine features like beards. But there is very little mention of this pharaoh's accomplishments, and this pharaoh's reign seems to have been expunged somewhat from the record. The reason was very simple: Hatshepsut was probably a woman. There was a significant amount of bias against female rulers at this time, and her various male successors wanted to reinforce this “gender bias” to their own advantage. Thus, there is barely any mention at all of her reign (with most mention expunged). The false beard present on most of these statues was probably meant to make her seem more “legitimate” to her own people in her own time. In some ways, there are probably some parallels to Queen Elizabeth the First of England. Hatshepsut was an important part of Egyptian history, and the documentary makes sure to cover her in its history.
Depiction of Hatshepsut with false beard, a symbol of her pharaonic power
A more realistic depiction of Hatshepsut as a female
Foreign relations with states in Africa and the Near East
Like most other states of this time and place, the foreign relations of Egypt also exerted a great influence on its everyday life. Sometimes, they made war on their neighbors (even taking slaves); while at other times, they engaged in diplomacy and trade with their neighbors. This program brings this diplomacy to life by quoting from the diplomatic letters of the time, which went back and forth between Egypt and her neighbors. The most significant relationships that Egypt cultivated were usually with the states of the Near East, although they did sometimes engage in relations with nearby African peoples as well. These diplomatic relations make for fascinating stories, of course, and the wars are also quite fascinating for someone like me. For better or worse, wars are always an important stage in the life of every empire, and so no responsible historian can afford to ignore them, whatever their views on the morality of these wars. Military history is among the easiest kinds of history to dramatize for television, and PBS's coverage does not disappoint in this regard. (PBS Empires later did another program called “Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites,” which I review here. As with this later program, the brilliant narration of Keith David adds much to this documentary; as does the voice acting of others besides him.)
Tutankhamun, better known as “King Tut”
Some comments on the modern archeology of Egypt
Many of the great breakthroughs in the archeology of Egypt came from the nineteenth and twentieth-centuries, and the documentary does make sure to mention some of them. They interview some American and British scholars, as it turns out, but they also interview some modern Egyptian scholars, to give people a “native” perspective on these matters. Modern Egypt is a very different place from Ancient Egypt, as you might expect; partially because the dominant language in Egypt today is Arabic (and not Egyptian). Nonetheless, a “native” perspective on these matters is invaluable; and helps to give some insights into the period's historiography. Ironically, many of these treasures of Ancient Egypt were raided by later generations of the Egyptians themselves. Famine and economic crisis made it difficult to resist this temptation, and so the monuments were often raided by the people for their own economic gain (which was important when they could barely afford to purchase food). The incompetent rule of Egypt's later rulers contributed to this desire to plunder the monuments. Like me, this documentary presents this raiding in a reasonably sympathetic light, and I am inclined to agree with PBS's take on this subject (as you might have guessed from my previous comments).
Pyramids at Giza
Conclusion: This is a great introduction to Egyptology
When you put these things together, this program makes for a worthy installment in the PBS Empires series. If the reader will pardon a pun on my part, Ancient Egypt is much more than just a “pyramid scheme.” It will hold up for years to come as a great subject. Moreover, their telling of the story is both dramatic and interesting; and will hold the attention of many a history buff; even when they are normally not interested in the ancient world. Sadly, ancient history isn't a popular topic these days; but if you watch this series, you may find it more fascinating than you did before watching it. You may discover that ancient periods can be just as fascinating as modern periods; and that no historical period has a monopoly on importance, drama, or entertainment value.
DVD at Amazon
If you liked this post, you might also like:
Reflections on learning about history of Ancient Egypt
Reflections on learning about history of the Ancient Near East
Reflections on learning about history of Ancient Israel
A review of Bettany Hughes’ “The Spartans”
A review of Bettany Hughes’ “Athens: The Dawn of Democracy”
A review of “The Greeks: Crucible of Civilization” (PBS Empires)
A review of “Rome: Rise and Fall of an Empire” (History Channel)
A review of “Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire” (BBC)
A review of “The Roman Empire in the First Century” (PBS Empires)
Part of the series
PBS Empires
Egypt's Golden Empire
Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites
The Greeks: Crucible of Civilization
Peter, Paul, and the Christian Revolution
The Roman Empire in the First Century
Islam: Empire of Faith
The Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance
Martin Luther
Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire
Napoleon
Queen Victoria's Empire
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