Ahmose I, founder of the New Kingdom, came to a broken Egypt and expanded it to the largest size it would ever reach. Readers will learn about how the familial bonds of the women who eagerly and expertly guided the rulers of Thebes sustained him, as a lineage of war-making young men came of age on the throne. They will make connections between how modernizing and adjusting to a specific enemy enabled the Thebans to take on the previously dominant Hyksos, while thought-provoking sidebars describe topics like why naming is important, and what differentiates the factions that sought power.

The Historical Dictionary of Ancient and Medieval Nubia covers the period from the Paleolithic, all the periods of ancient Nubia (Predynastic, Kerma, Dynasty XXV, Napatan, Meroitic, Post-Meroitic) and to the end of medieval Christianity in Nubia (Sudan). This resource focuses on Nubian history through a Nubian perspective, rather than on the more common Egypto-centrism perspective, and the coverage is based on the latest and best archaeological and epigraphic evidence. Newly created maps of the general area and its specific regions and place names and a photospread showing important related features of the region are included. A detailed chronology provides a timeline of historical events, and an introductory narrative shapes the overall history and leads to the main body of the work in the form of a cross-referenced dictionary. The descriptive entries cover the main features of the region in the various periods that are key not only to Nubian events, but also to the important interactions they had with Egypt to the north. Nine appendices and an extensive bibliography conclude this work. Lobban has been teaching Nubian studies in undergraduate classrooms for thirty years, and this book is a product of his hands-on experiences as well as extensive anthropological fieldwork and travel in Sudanese and Egyptian Nubia.

The A to Z of Ancient Egyptian Warfare covers the period from the emergence of the Egyptian state around 3000 BC to the Arab conquest in the mid-7th century AD. The book is divided into three main sections. An introductory section includes a chronology of Egypt, with all known military actions, and an essay highlighting the problems of the surviving evidence and its interpretation and the major changes in military technology and organization over the period involved. The central section covers a wide range of issues, including pharaohs for whom military activities are documented; foreign rulers and countries against whom the Egyptians fought or who invaded Egypt; weapons and military technology; major archaeological sites; gods and goddesses associated with warfare; arms trade; literature; and social advancement. The third section is a detailed bibliography of the historical phases and archaeological sites, and the broader subject areas covered by the dictionary. There are maps of Egypt and the surrounding regions and a list with rulers, their dates, and the dynasties and kingdoms to which they are assigned by Egyptologists.

These studies are based on the careful examination of three texts (stelae and inscriptions) which paint a very different picture of how the Theban chiefs overthrew their overlord who resided at Avaris from earlier notions about this crucial period in Egyptian history.

The biblical figure of Moses has been the center of fascination for over 2,000 years, but what do we actually know about him? Was he a real person? Did the Exodus truly happen? Or is the story in the Pentateuch a mythical account written centuries after the alleged events? Why does Moses's story resemble that of other, older lawgivers and legendary predecessors? Why are there so many elements of sun and wine god myths in the tale of Moses? What does the focus on the serpent in his story signify? Who were Yahweh and the Elohim? Did Moses Exist? includes: Maps and 126 illustrations Extensive bibliography, table of contents and index Hundreds of footnotes and citations from primary sources in multiple languages Best modern scholarship from credentialed authorities Did Moses Exist? provides a massive amount of information from antiquity about the world's religious traditions and mythology, including how solar myths, wine cultivation and fertility cults have shaped the Bible and Judaism. This book may be the most comprehensive study to date, using the best scholarship and state-of-the-art research methods. "The existence of Moses as well as the veracity of the Exodus story is disputed amongst archaeologists and Egyptologists, with experts in the field of biblical criticism citing logical inconsistencies, new archaeological evidence, historical evidence and related origin myths in Canaanite culture." --"Moses," Wikipedia "There is no historical evidence outside of the Bible, no mention of Moses outside the Bible, and no independent confirmation that Moses ever existed." --Dr. Michael D. Coogan, lecturer on the Old Testament at Harvard Divinity School "We cannot be sure that Moses ever lived because there are no traces of his earthly existence outside of tradition." --Egyptologist Dr. Jan Assmann, Moses the Egyptian "The life of Moses contains elements--canonical and apocryphal--that mark him as a true mythic hero, and certainly he is Judaism's greatest hero and the central figure in Hebrew mythology." --Dr. David Leeming, The Oxford Companion to World Mythology "...the stories of the creation, of the flood, of Abraham, of Jacob, of the descent into and the exodus from Egypt, of the career of Moses and the Jews in the desert, of Joshua and his soldiers, of the judges and their clients, are all apocryphal, and were fabricated at a late period of Jewish history." --Dr. Thomas Inman, Ancient Faiths and Modern Table of Contents List of Illustrations Preface Introduction Who Wrote the Pentateuch? Was Moses an Egyptian Pharaoh or Priest? The Exodus as History? The Exodus in Ancient Literature Hyksos and Lepers Who Were the Israelites? The Exodus as Myth The Lawgiver Archetype The Dionysus Connection The Life of Dionysus The Vine and Wine The Great God Sun Yahweh and the Sun Moses as Solar Hero Conclusion Bibliography Index