As the author rightly notes, there have been many books written about the ‘daily life’ of the ancient Egyptians, endeavouring to explain the various aspects of their culture and invariably concentrating on the monuments, religion and history. In these the material culture aspects may be noticed in passing, but rarely in exploratory detail. The examination of the material culture of ancient Egypt is really the bedrock of any study, and Peck has met this need head-on in his new book. Drawing on his long-time experience as curator of ancient art at the Detroit Institute of Arts, and on fieldwork in Egypt, he systematically examines the material culture, and the many levels of evidence for it represented in the actual objects, visual representations and textual references, the latter often texts from tomb wall paintings.

An outline of the geography and geology of the land, a brief outline of the history and an overview of the study of the material aspects precede a series of twelve focused chapters on the specific material aspects of ancient Egypt. This really got started in the European consciousness with the French invasion of Egypt in 1798 and the publication of the enormous illustrated volumes of the Description de l’Égypte produced by the French expedition.

The well-produced illustrations, photographs (many by the author) and line drawings are appropriately chosen to explain and focus on their subject. At the end of each chapter there is a short bibliography from which many of the citations, but not all, are reproduced in an extensive final bibliography. An interesting addition at the head of the total of sixteen chapters is a carefully chosen and very apposite quotation taken from various sources, ancient Egyptian texts and modern authors, all identified on pp 203–4.

Many who come to the book simply out of a passing interest will welcome Peck’s lucid style of writing and explanation. At this level of interest his Introduction should also be read first in conjunction with his Conclusions (pp 199–202) as they strongly complement each other in setting out the substance and raison d’être of the book. Nor should the book be overlooked by aficionados of ancient Egypt who will find much here that they may not have recognised previously in following their own, often tightly focused, views and studies.

Overall, the book is extremely informative and capable of being read and digested at different levels – it is a very welcome and useful addition to the plethora of books on ancient Egypt.