Table of Contents
Timeline xiii
Prologue xv
1 The Stakes 1
2 The Find 9
3 The Challenge 15
4 Voices from the Dust 21
5 So Near and Yet So Far 29
6 The Conquering Hero 43
7 The Burning Deck 51
8 Monsieur Smith Makes His Exit 59
9 A Celebrity in Stone 67
10 First Guesses 73
11 The Rivals 81
12 Thomas Young Is Almost Surprised 93
13 Archimedes in His Bathtub, Thomas Young in His Country House 101
14 Ahead of the Field 109
15 Lost in the Labyrinth 115
16 Ancient Wisdom 125
17 "A Cipher and a Secret Writing" 137
18 The Exile 145
19 Here Comes Champollion 155
20 "A Veritable Chaos" 161
21 The Birth of Writing 167
22 The Paduan Giant 175
23 Abu Simbel 181
24 Eureka! 191
25 The Unveiling 201
26 A Duck May Be Somebody's Mother 207
27 Straining to Hear 215
28 Strength in Numbers 223
29 A Pair of Walking Legs 231
30 Clean Robes and Soft Hands 237
31 Out of a Job 247
32 The Lost Pharaoh 251
Epilogue 259
Acknowledgments 265
Notes 267
Bibliography 291
Photo Credits 299
Index 301