Ancient History


GASTON MASPERO


The Dawn of Civilisation


Gaston Camille Charles Maspero, born on June 23, 1846, in
Paris, is one of the most renowned of European experts in
philology and Egyptology, having in great part studied his
special subjects on Oriental ground. After occupying for
several years the Chair of Egyptology in the École des Hautes
Études at the Sorbonne in Paris, he became, in 1874, Professor
of Egyptian Philology and Archæology at the Collège de
France. From 1881 to 1886 he acted in Egypt as director of the
Boulak Museum. It was under his superintendence that this
museum became enriched with its choicest antique treasures.
Dr. Maspero retired in 1886, but in 1899 again went to Egypt
as Director of Excavations. His works are of the utmost value,
his skill in marshalling facts and deducting legitimate
inferences being unrivalled. His masterpiece is an immense
work, with the general title of "History of the Ancient
Peoples of the Classic East," divided into three parts, each
complete in itself: (1) "The Dawn of Civilisation"; (2) "The
Struggle of the Nations"; (3) "The Passing of the Empires."