Ancient Egyptian 'Book of the Dead'
Discover the history, culture and civilization of ancient Egypt and the rituals and customs associated with the Book of the Dead. The Book of the Dead is a fascinating subject. What exactly was the Book of the Dead? The 'Book of the Dead' was and ancient Egyptian 'Guide to the Afterlife' providing ancient Egyptians with instructions and magic spells, or incantations, to help them through the terrifying dangers of the Underworld (Duat) to enable them to reach the 'House of Reeds' which was the Egyptian name for paradise.

Book of the Dead and the Papyrus of Ani
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Not only was Ptah a god of creation, but he was involved with the soul's rebirth in the afterlife. He was related to the dead since Old Kingdomtimes, where he was believed to have invented the Opening of the Mouth ritual to allow the spirit to be able to see, hear, speak and eat as a living being.

Book of the Dead and the Papyrus of Ani

The Egyptian Book of the Dead

Negative Confessions

The Hall of Judgement

The Pyramid Texts

The Coffin Texts

The Book of Ani

The Egyptian Book of Death

The House of Reeds

Book of the Dead - Different Versions
The 'Book of the Dead' is not a single book, like the Bible. There is no single definitive version of the 'Book of the Dead'. The 'Book of the Dead' contains a number of texts and spells that are referred to by this highly dramatic name. The Book of the Dead was therefore the product of a long process of evolution from the Pyramid texts of the Old Kingdomto the Coffin Texts of the Middle Kingdom and was fully evolved in the New Kingdom. The original Egyptian name for the texts is translated as "Book of Coming Forth by Day" or as "Book of emerging forth into the Light".  "The Book of the Dead" is not a translation of the Egyptian title, but an invention of the German Egyptologist Karl Richard Lepsius (23 December 1810 – 10 July 1884), who was pioneer of modern archaeology. Lepsius published a selection of the texts in 1842. This section on Book of the Dead is accompanied by pictures and fact sheets or fact files making the study of the Ancient Egyptians easy and informative. Kids and students will enjoy the learning process and demonstrate a high level of understanding of Book of the Dead following research on this site.

The Egyptians view of the House of Reeds (Paradise)
from the Book of the Dead Papyrus of Ani

Book of the Dead
Learning about the ancient Egyptians and Book of the Dead inspires everyone to visit historical sites and undertake Egypt Travel and Tours to experience the wonders of this magical land at first hand. Many people choose to experience a tour of Egypt on a Nile Cruise stopping at the famous destinations and sites of Egypt such as the Pyramids of Giza and the Great Sphinx. There are cheap flights to Egypt and a choice of different hotels or take a leisurely vacation on a Nile cruise. Take a cheap flight and stay at great hotels or join a Nile cruise to visit Egypt. The information and facts about Book of the Dead will provide with a great insight into Egypt and the legacy of the ancient Egyptians. Enjoy a great vacation or holiday with Egypt travel, tours and Nile cruises visiting the Land of the Pharaohs.

Book of the Dead