Title: Sacred Sexuality in Ancient Egypt: The Erotic Secrets of the Forbidden Papyrus Author: Ruth Schumann Antelme & Stephane Rossini Publisher: Inner Traditions International Publish Date: 1999 Pages: 232 Genres:: Non-Fiction,Reviewer: J. Henry

Rating:

Sacred Sexuality in Ancient Egypt supplies a vast amount of illustrations and back story of life and myths in Ancient Egypt. Ruth Schumann Antelme is an Egyptologist who has partnered with Stephane Rossini before on books about the god Osiris and Egyptian hieroglyphics that are also supplied in this book.

Sacred Sexuality begins with the beliefs of how sexuality begot life in the creation myths. The male genitals and other phallic symbols (such as feathers) are well illustrated by Rossini in imitations of hieroglyphics over the years. We are introduced to the beings that began existence by the ancestral gods, that of Atum who masturbated, swallowed his semen and through this act spat or breathed out his offspring. Atum’s children, Shu and Tefnut were not only brother and sister, but husband and wife as this was the relationship to guarantee population of the earth. This type of marriage would continue through other stories such as the one most often referred to between the gods Osiris and Isis.

The following chapters go on to explore marriage and sexual relationships in ancient Egypt while often referring to the mythical sexual gods that were worshipped. Instances of adultery, polygamy and other sexual crimes are explained. Women received harsh penalties for infidelity. In some cases, mutilation would be deemed by the ruler in which both the offending male and female would be punished, yet the woman was often sentenced to death. Swearing to one’s fidelity would work in a court of law provided there was no physical evidence against the woman. While men could also be punished for their adultery, it was not as badly looked upon as the initiation from a female, especially one of royalty. The text concludes with the revelations that male and female homosexuality were apparent in ancient Egypt as well as erotic writings, sexual mutilations performed by priests and sexually transmitted diseases (gonorrhea was the only disease that is specifically mentioned).

The illustrations are modeled after actual hieroglyphics and can be daunting to look at in addition to being somewhat hard to decipher. The penis and breasts are seen, but not gratuitous or overtly sexual in any way; rather, they seem somewhat cartoon-like because of the lack of detail placed on the physical features of the men and women presented. The animation of the characters' actions draws attention away from the details mentioned in the figure captions. Each picture is telling a detailed story of which all the elements involved have to be understood and noticed.

One of the flaws of this book is that there are so many illustrations peppered throughout the first few chapters that it often interrupts the text that relies on the illustration to further relay the story. The beginning of the story of the sun god Ra is broken up by several illustrations that may or may not pertain to the information received a few pages prior. Instead, the illustrations may reveal details to come; if so, they should be organized better so that the correspond more with the chronology of the story being told.

The author and illustrator have done a fine job of providing details about this period and how sexuality was very public, yet if you are not a fan or an intrigued reader going in, Sacred Sexuality may begin to wear on you after the first chapter. The most enticing sections are chapter two about how relationships were handled and chapter six which tells of uncommon sexual practices. The information is plentiful, but only for those who seek it out.