Book excerpt: Ancient Egyptso familiar and yet so distant. In this new compendium in the popular Seventy series, an international team of Egyptologists and archaeologists probes the most compelling mysteries in the light of recent research and discoveries. First, there are the puzzles that set the ancient Egyptians apart from other cultures. Where did these people come from originally, and why did they believe their king was a god? Why did they mummify their loved ones in deathand then write letters to them? Some mysteries revolve around Egypt's relations with other peoples such as the lost African kingdoms of Yam and Punt, the Israelites and their exodus to the Promised Land, or the Sea People warriors of the ancient Mediterranean. Even today, Egyptologists continue to unearth new mysteries: evidence that Tutankhamun was murdered, unexplained shafts inside the Great Pyramid that seem to align with the stars, and a massive mausoleum built for the sons of Rameses II. All the famous people and places of ancient Egypt are discussedRameses the Great, Cleopatra, Akhenaten, the Great Pyramid, the Valley of the Kingsas well as fascinating but shadowy figures such as Senenmut, Smendes, and Khababash. Hundreds of evocative photographs and specially commissioned diagrams, maps, plans, and reconstructions complement the intriguing texts. 420 illustrations, 354 in color.