Cleopatra's Needles

April 15, 2016

Brier (philosophy, Long Island Univ.; Egyptomania: Our Three Thousand Year Obsession with the Land of the Pharaohs) is a popular interpreter of ancient Egyptian civilization for the general public through his books and television documentary programs. Best known as a mummy maven, the author now explores the looting of Egypt's most majestic yet portable monumental forms, such as obelisks, from the height of the Roman Empire to the 19th century. Contemporary illustrations help explain the engineering applied to the transport and reerection of these massive spires of Aswan granite, also highlighting the individual engineers who devised the methods. Brier tells the story of nine obelisks in Rome with an entire chapter devoted to the one in St. Peter's Square. All had been brought to the city by Roman emperors and reconstructed through Papal interest and patronage. Three structures were presented as "gifts" in the 1800s by desperate Egyptian rulers: one from Luxor Temple now in Place de la Concorde in Paris, and two from Alexandria currently on the Thames embankment in London and in New York's Central Park behind the Metropolitan Museum of Art. VERDICT Well researched and entertaining with amusing historical anecdotes, this study will fascinate those interested in Egyptian antiquities as well as engineering.--Edward K. Werner, formerly with St. Lucie Cty. Lib. Syst., FL

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