The Egyptian
SynopsisPlot
It is a full-bodied re-creation of a largely forgotten era in the world’s history: the Egypt of the 14th century B.C.E. when pharaohs and gods contended with the near-collapse of history’s greatest empire. This epic tale encompasses the whole of the then-known world, from Babylon to Crete, from Thebes to Jerusalem, while centering around one unforgettable figure: Sinuhe, a man of mysterious origins who rises from the depths of degradation to become a personal physician to Pharaoh Akhnaton.
Story
About this book
The Egyptian is a historical novel by Finnish author Mika Waltari, set in 14th-century BCE Egypt during one of the most turbulent periods of the ancient world. The story follows Sinuhe, a man of uncertain origins who eventually becomes the personal physician to Pharaoh Akhnaton. Sinuhe's life takes him through severe hardship and degradation before his rise, and the novel uses his perspective to portray the political and religious conflicts shaping the Egyptian empire at a time when its power was under serious threat.
Waltari's narrative stretches well beyond Egypt's borders. Sinuhe's path crosses through Babylon, Crete, Thebes, and Jerusalem, offering a wide view of the interconnected ancient world as it existed during this period. The tensions between pharaohs, priests, and rival powers form the background to a story that is also personal, tracing one man's shifting fortunes across decades.
First published in Finnish in 1945, the novel appeared in English translation in the United States in 1949. According to the supplied record, it outsold every other novel published that year in the US, despite being widely condemned at the time as obscene.
