Table of Contents

Prologue: Egyptomania; 1. Hieroglyphic ‘Delirium’ before Champollion; 2. A Revolutionary Childhood; 3. Reluctant Schoolboy; 4. Egypt Encountered; 5. Paris and the Rosetta Stone; 6. Teenage Professor; 7. The Race Begins; 8. Napoleon and Champollion; 9. Exile and Revolt; 10. Breakthrough; 11. An Egyptian Renaissance; 12. Curator at the Louvre; 13. To Egypt, At Last; 14. In Search of Ramesses; 15. First Professor of Egyptology; 16. The Hieroglyphs after Champollion; Postscript: Geniuses and Polymaths

Promotional Information

Cracking the Egyptian Code is the first biography in English of Jean-François Champollion, widely regarded as the founder of Egyptology and the man who finally interpreted the hieroglyphics of Ancient Egypt

About the Author

Andrew Robinson is the author of twenty-five books in the arts and sciences, nine of them on aspects of Indian history and culture. They include two definitive biographies: Satyajit Ray: The Inner Eye, described by V. S. Naipaul as ‘an extraordinarily good, detailed and selfless book’, and the coauthored Rabindranath Tagore: The Myriad-Minded Man. He holds degrees from Oxford University and the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, has been a Visiting Fellow of Wolfson College, Cambridge, and is currently a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society.

Reviews

'This is a spirited account of a fascinating subject: the birth of Egyptology' - John Ray, author of 'The Rosetta Stone and the Rebirth of Ancient Egypt'

'An entertaining, highly readable and authoritative biography of the greatest decipherer of all time, the man who almost single-handedly enabled us to read the hitherto mysterious Egyptian hieroglyphs' - Michael D. Coe, author of 'Breaking the Maya Code'

'At last, a definitive biography of Champollion in English! … A memorable, enjoyable and beautifully written historical detective story' - Brian Fagan, author of 'The Rape of the Nile', and 'Floods, Famines and Emperors'

'Robinson's biography is a most welcome and long-overdue study in English of an enigmatic and still controversial genius. His splendidly produced and absorbing book should be in every Egyptologist's library' - Egyptian Archaeology