The Oldest Book in the World

The Oldest Book in the World

by Bill Manley
Epub (Kobo), Epub (Adobe)
Publication Date: 09/06/2023

Share This eBook:

  $43.99

The Teaching of Ptahhatp, composed two millennia before the birth of Plato, is the oldest surviving statement of philosophy in the ancient world and the earliest witness to the power of the written word. It ought to begin the list of the worlds philosophy classics, yet it has been largely forgotten since it was rediscovered in the nineteenth century. Egyptologist Bill Manleys new translation corrects this oversight, rendering into approachable modern English for the first time Ptahhatps profound yet practical account of the meaning of life, written many centuries before the supposed dawn of western philosophy.


Manley introduces Ptahhatp, who served as Vizier to the Old Kingdom pharaoh Izezi (c. 24102375 BC), and the world of dynamic ideas and new technologies writing among them within which he worked, illuminating the nuances of his language and philosophy. In addition, Manleys new translation of Why Things Happen, the oldest surviving account of creation from anywhere in the world, reveals how Ptahhatps account of the human condition is founded in distinctive ancient Egyptian beliefs about the nature of truth and reality. Taken together, Manleys new translations and expert commentary provide a new perspective on the Pyramid Age and overturn traditional prejudices about the origins of writing and philosophy. The oldest book in the world is a testament to a common thread that connects humanity across time; Ptahhatp grapples with the pitfalls of greed, ambition, celebrity, success, confrontation, friendship, sex and even the office environment, and his teachings remain remarkably relevant in the modern day.

ISBN:
9780500778319
9780500778319
Category:
Ancient history: to c 500 CE
Format:
Epub (Kobo), Epub (Adobe)
Publication Date:
09-06-2023
Language:
English
Publisher:
Thames and Hudson Ltd
Bill Manley

Bill Manley is an Egyptologist, university lecturer, museum curator and best-selling author. He teaches Egyptology and Coptic at the University of Glasgow, and is Co-Director of Egiptología Complutense, Honorary President of Egyptology Scotland and an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Liverpool.

He was formerly Senior Curator for Ancient Egypt at National Museums Scotland, and continues to work with archaeological projects in Egypt.

His specialist output includes books, catalogues, articles, and exhibitions covering such diverse subjects as ancient texts, the history of Egyptology, gold jewelry, the archaeology of Palestine, and the world’s earliest philosophy.

This item is delivered digitally

Reviews

Be the first to review The Oldest Book in the World.