Loading...
Virtual Book Talk: The Luxor Obelisk and Its Voyage to Paris
Registration
Details
About the book:
Transporting the Luxor obelisk from Egypt to Paris was one of the great engineering triumphs of the early nineteenth century. No obelisk this size (two hundred and fifty tons) had left Egypt in nearly two thousand years, and the task of bringing it fell to a young engineer, Apollinaire Lebas, a man of extraordinary resolve and ability. His is a tale of adventure, excitement, and drama, but one hardly known to the English-speaking world. Now this first-ever translation of Lebas’ account, including digitally enhanced copies of his beautiful drawings, makes his remarkable story available to a wide audience.
Speakers
Bob Brier
Senior Research Fellow
C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University
Bob Brier is recognized as one of the world's foremost Egyptologists. As Senior Research Fellow at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, he conducts pioneering research in mummification practices and has investigated some of the world’s most famous mummies, including King Tut, Vladimir Lenin, Ramses the Great, Eva Peron (Evita), Marquise Tai (Chinese noblewoman), and the Medici family of Renaissance Italy. In 1994 Brier became the first person in 2,000 years to mummify a human cadaver using the exact techniques of the ancient Egyptians. This research was the subject of a National Geographic TV special titled “Mr. Mummy.” He was the host of several award-winning television specials for TLC, including “Pyramids, Mummies & Tombs” and “Mummy Detective.” More recently, National Geographic TV presented his research in a documentary called “Secret of the Great Pyramid” discussing a new theory of how the Great Pyramid of Giza was built. Brier’s research has been featured in such media venues as CNN, 60 Minutes, and The New York Times. His most recent book is a translation of “The Luxor Obelisk and Its Voyage to Paris” (AUC Press, 2021)