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Howard Carter

From Tracer to Tutankhamun

Carl Graves author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Egypt Exploration Society

Published:30th Sep '24

Should be back in stock very soon

Howard Carter cover

Howard Carter is often remembered for the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922, but his legacy in the field of Egyptology spreads far further than this single discovery. The youngest of 11 children, Howard Carter began his career as an artist working for the Egypt Exploration Fund in 1891. Despite his young age, he pioneered new techniques in archaeological recording and used those skills to create beautiful, accurate images of tomb and temple scenes preserved on the monuments of Egypt.

Carter’s largest known watercolour painting (EES.ART.224) is a full-scale reproduction of a scene from the shrine to Anubis in Hatshepsut’s temple at Deir el-Bahari. This work, actually comprised of six pieces of paper combined together to create the scene, is testament to his expertise as an artist. It shows Tuthmosis I and his mother Senseneb before an offering table laden with food dedicated to the god Anubis, a jackal-headed god of embalming. Very little is known about queen Senseneb, and this scene represents one of the few known depictions of her.

By shining a spotlight on the painting, Carl Graves provides context to it while uncovering the life and legacy of one of Egypt’s greatest archaeologists.

"This book provides an excellent overview of the life and career of the most famous Egyptologist, Howard Carter. However, while Carter is synonymous with the tomb of Tutankhamun, the book largely focuses on Carter as an artist. It was written to accompany Carter's largest surviving watercolour, which is a masterpiece in epigraphic recording. The book is richly illustrated throughout with archival images, and it is highly recommend for anyone with an interest in Egyptology!" Ken Griffin, Curator, Egypt Centre, Swansea University

"The essential backstory of history's most famous Egyptologist" Dan Snow, TV historian

ISBN: 9780856982620

Dimensions: 234mm x 156mm x 6mm

Weight: 237g

102 pages