Imhotep: The Life and Legacy of the High Priest Who Designed Ancient Egypt's First Major Pyramid

*Includes a bibliography for further reading

Africa may have given rise to the first human beings, and Egypt probably gave rise to the first great civilizations, which continue to fascinate modern societies across the globe nearly 5,000 years later. From the Library and Lighthouse of Alexandria to the Great Pyramid at Giza, the ancient Egyptians produced several wonders of the world, revolutionized architecture and construction, created some of the world's first systems of mathematics and medicine, and established language and art that spread across the known world. With world-famous leaders like King Tut and Cleopatra, it's no wonder that today's world has so many Egyptologists.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of ancient Egyptian civilization was its inception from the ground up, as the ancient Egyptians had no prior civilization which they could use as a template. In fact, ancient Egypt itself became a template for the civilizations that followed. The Greeks and the Romans were so impressed with Egyptian culture that they often attributed many attributes of their own culture‒usually erroneously‒to the Egyptians. With that said, some minor elements of ancient Egyptian culture were, indeed, passed on to later civilizations. Egyptian statuary appears to have had an initial influence on the Greek version, and the ancient Egyptian language continued long after the pharaonic period in the form of the Coptic language.

The pyramids of Egypt are such recognizable symbols of antiquity that for millennia, people have made assumptions about what they are and why they exist, without full consideration of the various meanings these ancient symbolic structures have had over the centuries. Generations have viewed them as symbols of a lost past, which in turn is often portrayed as a world full of romance and mystery. This verbal meaning has become associated with the structures through the tourism industry, where intrigue obviously boosts ticket sales. In fact, the Egyptian pyramids are so old that they were also drawing tourists even in ancient times. In antiquity, the Great Pyramid of Giza was listed as one of Seven Ancient Wonders of the World, and it is the only one still surviving today.

The name Imhotep has since become infused with popular culture through the popular series of Mummy movies, where the mummified remains of Imhotep are reanimated through the power of an ancient curse, leading to the shambling, linen-wrapped and decomposing undead monster haunting the hapless treasure seekers who dared disturb his resting place. In reality, the ancient Imhotep was a talented architect and builder who succeeded in creating something that had never been seen before.

In fact, Imhotep is considered by many to be the world's first true scientist, or at least the first scientist known by name. Although the historical references to Imhotep are disparate, fleeting, and dispersed over a time span of nearly 3,000 years, he is without doubt one of the most influential people in early Egyptian and ancient history in general. Few ancient Egyptians who were not kings are known today, and almost none have been so revered or worshiped long after their deaths as Imhotep was. Later writers, Egyptian and Greek, stated that he was an accomplished physician, magician (the two often went together in ancient Egypt), and astrologer. He was described as a man who knew just about every aspect of nature and science, and he wrote extensively on several different subjects. Imhotep's fame grew so much during his life that he became even more important long after he died, to the extent that he was eventually worshiped as a god.