Secrets Of The Ancient Dead

Secrets of the Ancient Dead

Whether in tomb, grave, burial pit, or peat bog, all around the world the ancient dead represent a challenge to make sense of their remains. How did they live? How did they die? How did they view the inevitable prospect of their death? And how did their society prepare for the soul's destiny after the body had met its mortal end? Secrets of the Ancient Dead offers a worldwide survey spanning many centuries of some of the most intriguing enigmas posed by death and the afterlife. By citing well-described, specific cases and basing his work on a combination of painstaking archaeology, dogged detective work, in-depth historical knowledge, and high-tech scientific analysis, author Tony Allan pursues his study across cultures, shedding fascinating new light on the beliefs, rituals, hopes, and fears of such peoples as the Germanic and Celtic warriors of northern Europe and the imperial dynasties of ancient China.

All the Year Round

The Essential Guide to Mummy Literature

Few historical relics have exerted such a hold on our imaginations as the mummy. In 1834, Thomas J. Pettigrew's A History of Egyptian Mummies was the first scholarly work wholly devoted to the subject, providing, for its time, a remarkable analysis of the different mummification techniques used by the ancient embalmers. Such volumes of serious nonfiction have been supplemented over the years by additional works, both scholarly and otherwise, as well as works of fiction that incorporate and expand upon mummy lore. Indeed, the popular concept of the mummy as a malevolent monster dates back to the nineteenth century, when stories about mummies rising from the dead to terrify the living first captured the imagination of the reading public and set the revivified corpse on the path to becoming a major horror icon. In The Essential Guide to Mummy Literature, Brian J. Frost provides the first in-depth survey and bibliography of works of fiction featuring mummies. In this comprehensive volume, Frost traces the development of the mummy story, paying particular attention to works by Victorian authors and pulp fiction writers, as well as stories from the American pulp magazines. The annotated bibliography provides synopses of all the key works of fiction in the mummy canon, as well as others not so well known. Full publication details for each entry, with plot summaries of more than 500 works of fiction and abridged descriptions of 250 nonfiction books, are provided. Additionally, a filmography is included, along with listings of young adult novels, children's storybooks, and reference works for both adults and children. Well-organized and comprehensive, The Essential Guide to Mummy Literature will appeal to devotees of the horror genre and students of popular literature, as well as researchers and librarians.