Between the 1880s and 1980s, British excavations
at locations across Egypt resulted in the discovery of hundreds of thousands of
ancient objects that were subsequently sent to some 350 institutions worldwide.
These finds included unique discoveries at iconic sites such as the tombs of
ancient Egypt's first rulers at Abydos, Akhenaten and Nefertiti's city of Tell
el-Amarna and rich Roman Era burials in the Fayum.
Scattered
Finds explores the politics, personalities and social
histories that linked fieldwork in Egypt with the varied organizations around
the world that received finds. Case studies range from Victorian municipal
museums and women's suffrage campaigns in the UK, to the development of some of
the USA's largest institutions, and from university museums in Japan to new
institutions in post-independence Ghana. By juxtaposing a diversity of sites
for the reception of Egyptian cultural heritage over the period of a century,
Alice Stevenson presents new ideas about the development of archaeology,
museums and the construction of Egyptian heritage. She also addresses the
legacy of these practices, raises questions about the nature of the authority
over such heritage today, and argues for a stronger ethical commitment to its
stewardship.
Praise for Scattered Finds'Scattered
Finds is a remarkable achievement. In charting how British excavations in Egypt
dispersed artefacts around the globe, at an unprecedented scale, Alice
Stevenson shows us how ancient objects created knowledge about the past while
firmly anchored in the present. No one who reads this timely book will be able
to look at an Egyptian antiquity in the same way again.'
Professor
Christina Riggs, UEA
'Beautifully illustrated with colour and greyscale images...This volume successfully proves that there is still so much to be learned from an in-depth study of 'scattered finds' from Egypt, for readers of scholarly and popular literature alike.'
Ancient Egypt