Egyptian

Published in 1989 by Trio, Secrets of Ancient Gold is a translation of Christiane Eluère’s Secrets de l’or Antique. Rich in color and black-and-white photographs and illustrations, Secrets is an accessible introduction which delves into the history of art created in gold, the artists who worked with it, and the methods they used. A French historian specializing in Celtic metalwork, Eluère currently works for the Museum of National Antiquities in Saint-Germain-en-Laye.

This book was written by Egyptologist Henri Brugsch in 1855. It was the first European attempt to study Demotic—the written and spoken language of the ancient Egyptian people. Brugsch’s project was recognized and supported by Frederick William IV, King of Prussia. He sponsored Brugsch’s visits to various European museums to view objects and monuments containing the Demotic language, in order to complete his knowledge of the subject. Brugsch then documented what he had learned in Grammaire Démotique. The book examines this dialect's grammar, syntax, and phonetics.