Product Description

David Rohl continues his quest to reach the historical kernel lying at the heart of some of the greatest unsolved problems and mysteries of Old World history and archaeology. He reveals what really happened in seven famous myths and legends bequeathed to us by the ancients and shows us that the passage of time has not wiped away all the evidence, and it is possible to reach the reality behind the legends. "Legend" reveals the historical truth which lies at the heart of the "Book of Genesis": The Garden of Eden is finally found. Heroes from the "Book of Genesis" are indentified in ancient records. The true site of Noah's Ark is located in Kurdistan. Paradise is discovered on a desert island in the Persian Gulf. The mysterious origins of the first pharaohs are revealed.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #77188 in Books
• Published on: 2001-04-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 603 pages

Customer Reviews

a fascinating book that links biblical legends to history
A book that I have read several times, mainly because it is very convoluted and there is so much information in it that (as i am neither an Egyptologist nor an ancient linguist) it takes more than one read to absorb; but also because it is so interesting. It does not seek to make theological points but merely takes a very common sense viewpoint that a large portion of the old testament is an historical narrative of a people, laced with religion (which was of course much more important in explaining things when it was written than perhaps now). Casting aside the previously accepted chronology and shedding new light on events that happened, rather than any religious interpretation the author has, in my view, produced a compelling argument, soundly supported and cross-correlated that holds water. Although the book has a little too much detail for an easy read (and there may be an opportunity for a shorter book there or transferring further parts into appendices) I found the arguments well researched, coherent and easy to comprehend. I am convinced that by and large his interpretation is far more accurate than the hitherto accepted analysis. I am reminded of my father telling me that when he was a child scientists proved that it was impossible to fly faster than sound!!

Worth the effort in ploughing through and it even started me re-learning Latin and attempting to learn Greek and get to grips with hieroglyphs.

Thought Provoking
For anyone with an interest in Ancient Egypt or Isreal, this book is a must read. Rohl starts by discussing hard archeological evidence that supports his theory that we have been wrongly dating the Egyption civilization by about 300 years. He then shows how using his new dates the stories in the Old Testament Bible make much more sense. The one failing in the book, is that it does not contain counter arguments from other experts who support the conventional dating system.

Radical new approach leads to better view
When looking at history, you will find three types of evidence: the accepted conventional, the awkward and therefore ignored, and the new. Using proper scientific approaches, Rohl has challenged the existing conventional wisdom (to the usual howls of indignation from those too myopic to consider other views) and developed a radical new theory. There are clearly innumerable problems with the conventional wisdom, so Rohl has put his own ideas up - from there they will be tested themselves and either altered, confirmed or abandoned. This is certainly difficult material and is worth a steady reading, but has allowed so many apparently unevidenced or contradictory events to come into focus, all of which give a much clearer view of ancient history. Those who disagree must show where Rohl is wrong and develop their own ideas - the likes of Prof Kitchen merely deny it when their own theories are built on Egyptian sand. Essential reading, which also demonstrates what can be done with proper scientific methodology - in contrast to the kind of nonsense about lost civilisations put up by Hancock and others.