Rare Egyptian Book of the Dead Set: Spells & Incantations, 1st Edition

WITHOUT ANY QUESTION, ONE OF THE MOST INCREDIBLE EDITIONS OF THE BOOK OF THE DEAD EVER PRODUCED
1ST EDITION 1ST PRINTINGS 1500 EVER MADE, AND THESE ARE HAND-NUMBERED AS ONE OF THE FIRST 1000 SETS EVER CREATED
INCLUDES TWO BOOKS WITH ORIGINAL CEDAR VENEER HARD SLIPCASE
OCCULTISM, MAGIC, THE AFTERLIFE, THE GODS, CEREMONIES, SPELLS, INCANTATIONS, & MUCH MUCH MORE
ONE OF THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE EGYPTIAN BOOKS OF THE DEAD PUBLICATIONS EVER MADE
INCLUDES A FOLD-OUT SET OF 24 PANELS OF THE EGYPTIAN PAPYRUS THAT MEASURES 18 FEET IN LENGTH!!
TAKEN DIRECTLY FROM THE ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPTS ONLY FOUND IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM
THE BOOK OF THE DEAD, A COLLECTION OF SPELLS FROM THE PAPYRI IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM
THE MANUSCRIPT IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM WAS SPECIALLY PHOTOGRAPHED FOR THE MAKING OF THIS SET

I have been collecting The Book of the Dead for many years, and this is one of the most beautiful, accurate, and masterfully produced editions ever made. This is a very rare set, with only 1500 ever produced. The condition of both of these books is very good, especially considering their age. Contains a very large collection of spells and in-depth writings of one of the most incredible and fascinating literary works ever produced. As stated, the 2nd book in the set folds into a massive reproduction of the original Egyptian Papyrus and measures 18 feet in length. These are the genuine 1st editions and not remakes after the fact. They will come with the original Cedar Veneer box they were sent out from the publishing house. These are special editions of books made for the Limited Edition Club and never produced afterward—translated by Raymond O. Faulkner from Papyri in the British Museum.

Including the Hieroglyphic Transcript and English Translation of the Papyrus of Ani
A fascinating compendium of ancient Egyptian mythology, religious beliefs, and magical practices. Includes spells, incantations, hymns, magical formulas, and prayers. All were explained by one of the most knowledgeable and respected Egyptologists of the early 20th century.

The Egyptian Book of the Dead is a collection of spells that enable the soul of the deceased to navigate the afterlife. The famous title was given to work by western scholars; the actual title would translate as The Book of Coming Forth by Day or Spells for Going Forth by Day, and a more apt translation to English would be The Egyptian Book of Life. Although the work is often referred to as "the Ancient Egyptian Bible," it is no such thing, although the two works share the similarity of being ancient compilations of texts written at different times eventually gathered together in book form. The Book of the Dead was never codified, and no two copies of the work are exactly the same.

The overall condition of these books is stunning and both display beautiful details. The covers and spines are clean and well-kept, and the pages are bright and in excellent condition. The cedar veneer publisher's hard case it comes with has some dings and shelf wear but is still very nice. The Publisher's jackets are in exceptional condition. I would say for a set of books that is now 51 years in the making they are excellent.

The Book of the Dead is an ancient Egyptian funerary text generally written on papyrus and used from the beginning of the New Kingdom (around 1550 BCE) to around 50 BCE. The original Egyptian name for the text, transliterated, is translated as Book of Coming Forth by Day or Book of Emerging Forth into the Light. "Book" is the closest term to describe the loose collection of texts consisting of a number of magic spells intended to assist a dead person's journey through the Duat, or underworld, and into the afterlife and written by many priests over a period of about 1,000 years.

The Book of the Dead, which was placed in the coffin or burial chamber of the deceased, was part of a tradition of funerary texts, which includes the earlier Pyramid Texts and Coffin Texts, which were painted onto objects, not written on papyrus. Some of the spells included in the book were drawn from these older works and date to the 3rd millennium BCE. Other spells were composed later in Egyptian history, dating to the Third Intermediate Period (11th to 7th centuries BCE). A number of the spells which make up the Book continued to be separately inscribed on tomb walls and sarcophagi, as the spells from which they originated always had been.

There was no single or canonical Book of the Dead. The surviving papyri contain a varying selection of religious and magical texts and vary considerably in their illustration. Some people seem to have commissioned their own copies of the Book of the Dead, perhaps choosing the spells they thought most vital in their own progression to the afterlife. The Book of the Dead was most commonly written in hieroglyphic or hieratic script on a papyrus scroll and often illustrated with vignettes depicting the deceased and their journey into the afterlife. 11778.1