Amelia Peabody series
Encyclopedia
The Amelia Peabody series is a series of mystery novels written by Elizabeth Peters featuring Egyptologist
Amelia Peabody Emerson
, for whom the series is named. The novels are intended as a blend of parody
(mostly of the adventure novel, such as written by H. Rider Haggard
), mystery, and comedy. The series spans a thirty-eight year period from 1884 to 1923 and is primarily set in Egypt
, with some installments including action in England
and Gaza
. So far, one novel in the series (Deeds of the Disturber
) takes place entirely in England, while the recently published A River in the Sky is set primarily in Ottoman Palestine.
The first installment, Crocodile on the Sandbank
, was first published in 1975. By the late 1990s, new books were published at the rate of one annually, with many of the later books in the series appearing on the New York Times Bestseller List for fiction. The latest installment in the series, A River in the Sky, was released in 2010.. It is the 19th novel in the series, which also includes a non-fiction companion book, Amelia Peabody's Egypt: A Compendium.
The series has primarily been written in chronological order, with the exception of Guardian of the Horizon
and A River in the Sky, which are the 16th and 19th books to be published, but 11th and 12th in the chronology. Elizabeth Peters has suggested that future installments in the series may continue to be written out of sequence, as the series takes place in real time and the aging of the characters might preclude extending the series much further than the point at which it currently ends, in 1923.
The earlier books in the series are written entirely as first-person narrative, with the novels purporting to be edited versions of journals kept by Amelia. According to the series mythology, the initial cache of journals that provided the narrative for the Amelia Peabody series were discovered in the attic of the ancestral home of the Tregarth family in Cornwall
, England, into which Amelia's as-yet unnamed granddaughter eventually married (see the Vicky Bliss series final installment The Laughter of Dead Kings).
Beginning with Seeing a Large Cat
, Amelia's narrative is interspersed with excerpts from "Manuscript H," a third person narrative that follows the adventures of the younger generation of the family, the author of which is eventually revealed to be Walter 'Ramses' Emerson
. On rare occasion, other points of view are introduced in the form of letters and additional manuscripts.
as a confirmed spinster, suffragist, and scholar. She inherits a fortune from her father and leaves England to see the world, with the side benefit of escaping various suitors and family members who were neither aware that she would be the sole beneficiary of her father's estate nor that he had amassed a small fortune over the course of his lifetime.
In Rome, Amelia meets Evelyn Barton-Forbes, a young Englishwoman of social standing who has run off with (and subsequently been abandoned by) her Italian lover, and the two make their way to Egypt. There they meet the Emerson brothers, Egyptologist Radcliffe
and his philologist brother Walter. Over the course of the first book the couples pair up: Amelia marries Radcliffe (referred to throughout the series by his last name "Emerson"), and Evelyn marries Walter.
Following the birth of their son Ramses
(né Walter) Emerson ("as swarthy as an Egyptian and as arrogant as a Pharaoh"), the Emersons initially settle in Kent
, from where Emerson commutes to a job lecturing in Egyptology at university in London
. Despite Amelia's suggestions that he resume seasonal digs in Egypt, Emerson insists on staying in England with his family while Ramses is too young to travel.
Peabody and Emerson return to Egypt at least once without Ramses (The Curse of the Pharaohs) in 1892 before deciding to bring him along on their annual digs (The Mummy Case
), beginning in the 1894-95 season. Amelia's desire to explore pyramids is countered by Emerson's refusal to be diplomatic with the Egyptian Service d'Antiquites
, resulting in their firman (permit) to excavate at Mazghuna
, a minor pyramid field southwest of Cairo
.
While the Emersons are excavating at Mazghuna, they encounter an enigmatic criminal mastermind who runs an illicit underground antiquities trade, stealing artifacts from tombs, which puts him at odds with the Emersons. Amelia initially calls "The Master Criminal," although his nom de guerre is eventually revealed to be Sethos
. Sethos is initially presented as a rival to Emerson for Amelia's affections, but later becomes an important part of the Emerson's large circle of friends, allies, and acquaintances in later books when it is discovered that he is Emerson's half-brother, Seth.
The Emerson family expands during the 1897-1898 season while on an archaeological expedition to Nubia
. The family encounters a hitherto unknown civilization in a remote wadi in the desert (The Last Camel Died at Noon
), becomes embroiled in turbulent politics, and discovers Nefret Forth, the daughter of a long-presumed dead explorer. Nefret returns to England with the Emersons and becomes their ward.
The family expands again in the 1899-1900 season when the family encounters David Todros, the son of Abdullah's estranged daughter and her Christian husband. David is living in a state of semi-slavery, working for a forger of antiquities. He is taken in by Evelyn and Walter Emerson as a ward. David later marries Evelyn and Walter's daughter Amelia (known as Lia to avoid confusion with her aunt).
Nefret's introduction initiates a running story arc of sexual tension between her and Ramses. This becomes an important part of the plot in the subset of books beginning with Seeing a Large Cat
in which the younger generation of the family begin a parallel narration to Amelia's through Manuscript H. Among the pitfalls in this story arc is the arrival of Sennia, a young girl initially suspected to be Ramses' illegitimate daughter with a local prostitute. Sennia's arrival, and the suspicions about Ramses that it raises, precipitates Nefret's brief marriage to another man. Sennia is revealed to be the child of Amelia's nephew Percival, first seen in Deeds of the Disturber
, who is reintroduced as an adult in a villainous role for several volumes beginning with The Falcon at the Portal
. Sennia is adopted by the Emersons, who take her back to England at the conclusion of the volume.
The tension between Ramses and Nefret is finally resolved in He Shall Thunder in the Sky
, with their marriage taking place at the end of that book and recounted in flashback sequences in the next. The two eventually have three children: a set of fraternal twins (a son, David John, and a daughter, Charlotte, or "Charla"), and an as-yet unnamed daughter born after the current conclusion of the series. It is through the youngest daughter that John Tregarth, a character in Peters's Vicky Bliss series, is descended from the Emerson-Peabodys.
Additional characters in the series include members of the large Egyptian family who support the Emersons in their digs. The head of the family is Abdullah ibn al-Wahhab, Emerson's reis or foreman, who supervises their archaeological digs. Abdullah has several children, among them his youngest son, Selim, who, originally assigned as a bodyguard of sorts for Ramses (The Mummy Case
), eventually replaces his father as reis.
A number of prominent figures from the time appear in the novel as characters, including Howard Carter
, William Flinders Petrie, Gaston Maspero
, and E. A. Wallis Budge
, whom Emerson considers an arch-rival (even if the feelings are not mutual). Another recurring character is that of Cyrus Vandergelt, an American entrepreneur who finances a number of archaeological expeditions in the Valley of the Kings (with little success) and becomes a close friend and confidant of the Emerson clan. The Vandergelt character is at least partly based on Theodore Davis, the American entrepreneur who first hired Howard Carter to dig in the Valley of the Kings
, and who himself appears in The Ape Who Guards the Balance
.
in 1884 (in Crocodile on the Sandbank
) are based on those conducted by Sir William Flinders Petrie in 1891. Peters has indicated that the character of Radcliffe Emerson is based in part on Petrie, whose meticulous excavation habits were legendary and set a new standard for archaeological digs.
Amelia herself was partly inspired by Amelia Edwards
, a Victorian novelist, travel writer, and Egyptologist, whose well-written and best-selling 1873 book, A Thousand Miles up the Nile is similar in both tone and content to Amelia Emerson's narration.
In other instances, fictional accomplishments are ascribed to Amelia and Emerson. For example, the tomb of the 17th Dynasty Queen Tetisheri
, whose discovery and excavation form the basis of the plot in The Hippopotamus Pool
has, in fact, never been found. Most scholars suggest that the tomb - assuming that it still survives - would be found in the general area where the Emerson-Peabodys discover it. The intact Old Kingdom
burial found in The Falcon at the Portal
is also fictional; in fact, no intact burials from the Old Kingdom
period have ever been found.
, Elizabeth Peters revealed that her overall plan for the Amelia Peabody series was to continue the series chronologically through World War I
and end with events surrounding the discovery of the tomb
of Tutankhamun
in 1922. This stated goal was accomplished with the publication of Tomb of the Golden Bird
in 2006. The events of that book did seem to wrap up most of the series' loose plot lines, although it did not include a definitive ending to the series per se.
In the same talk, Peters suggested that any future installments after this point would "fill in the gaps" in the series' chronology, as she has done with Guardian of the Horizon
and A River in the Sky which fill part of the four-year gap between The Ape Who Guards the Balance
and The Falcon at the Portal
.
As for future installments, Peters provided a clue in the final volume of the Vicky Bliss series, The Laughter of Dead Kings. In that book, the fictional editor of Amelia Peabody's journals makes a cameo appearance while looking for more of Amelia's journals. By the end of the book, she has acquired at least three more of the "missing journals" to document the adventures of the Peabody-Emersons.
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
Amelia Peabody Emerson
Amelia Peabody
Amelia Peabody Emerson is the protagonist of the Amelia Peabody series, a series of mystery novels, written by author Elizabeth Peters. Peabody is married to Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson and has one biological child, Walter "Ramses" Peabody Emerson, who provides a parallel voice in many of the...
, for whom the series is named. The novels are intended as a blend of parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
(mostly of the adventure novel, such as written by H. Rider Haggard
H. Rider Haggard
Sir Henry Rider Haggard, KBE was an English writer of adventure novels set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and a founder of the Lost World literary genre. He was also involved in agricultural reform around the British Empire...
), mystery, and comedy. The series spans a thirty-eight year period from 1884 to 1923 and is primarily set in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, with some installments including action in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
. So far, one novel in the series (Deeds of the Disturber
Deeds of the Disturber
Deeds of the Disturber is the fifth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody...
) takes place entirely in England, while the recently published A River in the Sky is set primarily in Ottoman Palestine.
The first installment, Crocodile on the Sandbank
Crocodile on the Sandbank
Crocodile on the Sandbank is a novel by Elizabeth Peters, first published in 1975. It is the first in the Amelia Peabody series of novels and takes place in 1884-1885 .-Plot summary:...
, was first published in 1975. By the late 1990s, new books were published at the rate of one annually, with many of the later books in the series appearing on the New York Times Bestseller List for fiction. The latest installment in the series, A River in the Sky, was released in 2010.. It is the 19th novel in the series, which also includes a non-fiction companion book, Amelia Peabody's Egypt: A Compendium.
The series has primarily been written in chronological order, with the exception of Guardian of the Horizon
Guardian of the Horizon
Guardian of the Horizon is the 16th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
and A River in the Sky, which are the 16th and 19th books to be published, but 11th and 12th in the chronology. Elizabeth Peters has suggested that future installments in the series may continue to be written out of sequence, as the series takes place in real time and the aging of the characters might preclude extending the series much further than the point at which it currently ends, in 1923.
The earlier books in the series are written entirely as first-person narrative, with the novels purporting to be edited versions of journals kept by Amelia. According to the series mythology, the initial cache of journals that provided the narrative for the Amelia Peabody series were discovered in the attic of the ancestral home of the Tregarth family in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, England, into which Amelia's as-yet unnamed granddaughter eventually married (see the Vicky Bliss series final installment The Laughter of Dead Kings).
Beginning with Seeing a Large Cat
Seeing a Large Cat
Seeing a Large Cat is the ninth mystery novel in the Amelia Peabody mystery series by Elizabeth Peters. The story takes place during the season of 1903-1904.-Plot summary:...
, Amelia's narrative is interspersed with excerpts from "Manuscript H," a third person narrative that follows the adventures of the younger generation of the family, the author of which is eventually revealed to be Walter 'Ramses' Emerson
Ramses Emerson
Walter Peabody Emerson, known universally as “Ramses,” is a fictional character in the Amelia Peabody series of mystery novels set in Victorian Egypt and England, written by author Elizabeth Peters. He is the son of Egyptologists Amelia Peabody and her husband, Professor Radcliffe Emerson...
. On rare occasion, other points of view are introduced in the form of letters and additional manuscripts.
Series narrative
Amelia Peabody is introduced in the series' first novel, Crocodile on the SandbankCrocodile on the Sandbank
Crocodile on the Sandbank is a novel by Elizabeth Peters, first published in 1975. It is the first in the Amelia Peabody series of novels and takes place in 1884-1885 .-Plot summary:...
as a confirmed spinster, suffragist, and scholar. She inherits a fortune from her father and leaves England to see the world, with the side benefit of escaping various suitors and family members who were neither aware that she would be the sole beneficiary of her father's estate nor that he had amassed a small fortune over the course of his lifetime.
In Rome, Amelia meets Evelyn Barton-Forbes, a young Englishwoman of social standing who has run off with (and subsequently been abandoned by) her Italian lover, and the two make their way to Egypt. There they meet the Emerson brothers, Egyptologist Radcliffe
Radcliffe Emerson
Professor Radcliffe Archibald Emerson , M.A. Ox., D.C.L. , L.L.D. , F.B.A., FRS, FRGS, MAPS, Fellow of the Royal Society, Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society, Member of the American Philosophical Society, is one of the main characters in the Amelia Peabody series by mystery author Elizabeth Peters...
and his philologist brother Walter. Over the course of the first book the couples pair up: Amelia marries Radcliffe (referred to throughout the series by his last name "Emerson"), and Evelyn marries Walter.
Following the birth of their son Ramses
Ramses Emerson
Walter Peabody Emerson, known universally as “Ramses,” is a fictional character in the Amelia Peabody series of mystery novels set in Victorian Egypt and England, written by author Elizabeth Peters. He is the son of Egyptologists Amelia Peabody and her husband, Professor Radcliffe Emerson...
(né Walter) Emerson ("as swarthy as an Egyptian and as arrogant as a Pharaoh"), the Emersons initially settle in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, from where Emerson commutes to a job lecturing in Egyptology at university in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Despite Amelia's suggestions that he resume seasonal digs in Egypt, Emerson insists on staying in England with his family while Ramses is too young to travel.
Peabody and Emerson return to Egypt at least once without Ramses (The Curse of the Pharaohs) in 1892 before deciding to bring him along on their annual digs (The Mummy Case
The Mummy Case
The Mummy Case is the third of a series of mystery novels written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring the character Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
), beginning in the 1894-95 season. Amelia's desire to explore pyramids is countered by Emerson's refusal to be diplomatic with the Egyptian Service d'Antiquites
Supreme Council of Antiquities
The Supreme Council of Antiquities is the branch of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture responsible for the conservation, protection and regulation of all antiquities and archaeological excavations in Egypt...
, resulting in their firman (permit) to excavate at Mazghuna
Mazghuna
Mazghuna , 5 km to the south of Dahshur , is the site of several mudbrick pyramids dating from the 12th Dynasty. The area was explored by Ernest Mackay in 1910, and was excavated by Flinders Petrie in 1911...
, a minor pyramid field southwest of Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
.
While the Emersons are excavating at Mazghuna, they encounter an enigmatic criminal mastermind who runs an illicit underground antiquities trade, stealing artifacts from tombs, which puts him at odds with the Emersons. Amelia initially calls "The Master Criminal," although his nom de guerre is eventually revealed to be Sethos
Sethos (Peabody mysteries)
Sethos is the nom de guerre of the shadowy "Master Criminal" in the Amelia Peabody series of mystery novels.-Role in the Novels:He is first encountered in The Mummy Case, as the mastermind of an organized gang of thieves attempting to steal antiquities from Dahshoor, in which he is partially foiled...
. Sethos is initially presented as a rival to Emerson for Amelia's affections, but later becomes an important part of the Emerson's large circle of friends, allies, and acquaintances in later books when it is discovered that he is Emerson's half-brother, Seth.
The Emerson family expands during the 1897-1898 season while on an archaeological expedition to Nubia
Nubia
Nubia is a region along the Nile river, which is located in northern Sudan and southern Egypt.There were a number of small Nubian kingdoms throughout the Middle Ages, the last of which collapsed in 1504, when Nubia became divided between Egypt and the Sennar sultanate resulting in the Arabization...
. The family encounters a hitherto unknown civilization in a remote wadi in the desert (The Last Camel Died at Noon
The Last Camel Died at Noon
The Last Camel Died at Noon is the sixth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody. Although most of the Amelia Peabody series are fairly "hard" historical detective stories, "Last Camel" is an exception, and...
), becomes embroiled in turbulent politics, and discovers Nefret Forth, the daughter of a long-presumed dead explorer. Nefret returns to England with the Emersons and becomes their ward.
The family expands again in the 1899-1900 season when the family encounters David Todros, the son of Abdullah's estranged daughter and her Christian husband. David is living in a state of semi-slavery, working for a forger of antiquities. He is taken in by Evelyn and Walter Emerson as a ward. David later marries Evelyn and Walter's daughter Amelia (known as Lia to avoid confusion with her aunt).
Nefret's introduction initiates a running story arc of sexual tension between her and Ramses. This becomes an important part of the plot in the subset of books beginning with Seeing a Large Cat
Seeing a Large Cat
Seeing a Large Cat is the ninth mystery novel in the Amelia Peabody mystery series by Elizabeth Peters. The story takes place during the season of 1903-1904.-Plot summary:...
in which the younger generation of the family begin a parallel narration to Amelia's through Manuscript H. Among the pitfalls in this story arc is the arrival of Sennia, a young girl initially suspected to be Ramses' illegitimate daughter with a local prostitute. Sennia's arrival, and the suspicions about Ramses that it raises, precipitates Nefret's brief marriage to another man. Sennia is revealed to be the child of Amelia's nephew Percival, first seen in Deeds of the Disturber
Deeds of the Disturber
Deeds of the Disturber is the fifth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody...
, who is reintroduced as an adult in a villainous role for several volumes beginning with The Falcon at the Portal
The Falcon at the Portal
The Falcon at the Portal is the 11th in a series of mystery novels by Elizabeth Peters, featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
. Sennia is adopted by the Emersons, who take her back to England at the conclusion of the volume.
The tension between Ramses and Nefret is finally resolved in He Shall Thunder in the Sky
He Shall Thunder in the Sky
He Shall Thunder in the Sky is the 12th in a series of mystery novels by Elizabeth Peters, featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody....
, with their marriage taking place at the end of that book and recounted in flashback sequences in the next. The two eventually have three children: a set of fraternal twins (a son, David John, and a daughter, Charlotte, or "Charla"), and an as-yet unnamed daughter born after the current conclusion of the series. It is through the youngest daughter that John Tregarth, a character in Peters's Vicky Bliss series, is descended from the Emerson-Peabodys.
Additional characters in the series include members of the large Egyptian family who support the Emersons in their digs. The head of the family is Abdullah ibn al-Wahhab, Emerson's reis or foreman, who supervises their archaeological digs. Abdullah has several children, among them his youngest son, Selim, who, originally assigned as a bodyguard of sorts for Ramses (The Mummy Case
The Mummy Case
The Mummy Case is the third of a series of mystery novels written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring the character Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
), eventually replaces his father as reis.
A number of prominent figures from the time appear in the novel as characters, including Howard Carter
Howard Carter
Howard Carter may refer to:* Howard Carter , English archaeologist who discovered Tutankhamun's tomb* Howard Carter , American basketball player...
, William Flinders Petrie, Gaston Maspero
Gaston Maspero
Gaston Camille Charles Maspero was a French Egyptologist.-Life:Gaston Maspero was born in Paris to parents of Lombard origin. While at school he showed a special taste for history, and by the age of fourteen he was already interested in hieroglyphic writing...
, and E. A. Wallis Budge
E. A. Wallis Budge
Sir Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge was an English Egyptologist, Orientalist, and philologist who worked for the British Museum and published numerous works on the ancient Near East.-Earlier life:...
, whom Emerson considers an arch-rival (even if the feelings are not mutual). Another recurring character is that of Cyrus Vandergelt, an American entrepreneur who finances a number of archaeological expeditions in the Valley of the Kings (with little success) and becomes a close friend and confidant of the Emerson clan. The Vandergelt character is at least partly based on Theodore Davis, the American entrepreneur who first hired Howard Carter to dig in the Valley of the Kings
Valley of the Kings
The Valley of the Kings , less often called the Valley of the Gates of the Kings , is a valley in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th century BC, tombs were constructed for the Pharaohs and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom .The valley stands on the west bank of...
, and who himself appears in The Ape Who Guards the Balance
The Ape Who Guards the Balance
The Ape Who Guards the Balance is the tenth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
.
Character inspirations
Most of the archaeological achievements attributed to the Emerson-Peabodys were, in reality, accomplished by many of the archaeologists who pass through the novels as supporting characters. For example, the excavations that Emerson and Walter are undertaking at AmarnaAmarna
Amarna is an extensive Egyptian archaeological site that represents the remains of the capital city newly–established and built by the Pharaoh Akhenaten of the late Eighteenth Dynasty , and abandoned shortly afterwards...
in 1884 (in Crocodile on the Sandbank
Crocodile on the Sandbank
Crocodile on the Sandbank is a novel by Elizabeth Peters, first published in 1975. It is the first in the Amelia Peabody series of novels and takes place in 1884-1885 .-Plot summary:...
) are based on those conducted by Sir William Flinders Petrie in 1891. Peters has indicated that the character of Radcliffe Emerson is based in part on Petrie, whose meticulous excavation habits were legendary and set a new standard for archaeological digs.
Amelia herself was partly inspired by Amelia Edwards
Amelia Edwards
Amelia Ann Blanford Edwards was an English novelist, journalist, traveller and Egyptologist.Born in London to an Irish mother and a father who had been a British Army officer before becoming a banker, Edwards was educated at home by her mother, showing considerable promise as a writer at a young age...
, a Victorian novelist, travel writer, and Egyptologist, whose well-written and best-selling 1873 book, A Thousand Miles up the Nile is similar in both tone and content to Amelia Emerson's narration.
In other instances, fictional accomplishments are ascribed to Amelia and Emerson. For example, the tomb of the 17th Dynasty Queen Tetisheri
Tetisheri
Tetisheri was the matriarch of the Egyptian royal family of the late 17th Dynasty and early 18th Dynasty.-Family:Tetisheri was the daughter of Tjenna and Neferu. The names of Tetisheri's parents are known from mummy bandages found in TT320....
, whose discovery and excavation form the basis of the plot in The Hippopotamus Pool
The Hippopotamus Pool
The Hippopotamus Pool is the eighth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
has, in fact, never been found. Most scholars suggest that the tomb - assuming that it still survives - would be found in the general area where the Emerson-Peabodys discover it. The intact Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom is the name given to the period in the 3rd millennium BC when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of civilization in complexity and achievement – the first of three so-called "Kingdom" periods, which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile Valley .The term itself was...
burial found in The Falcon at the Portal
The Falcon at the Portal
The Falcon at the Portal is the 11th in a series of mystery novels by Elizabeth Peters, featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
is also fictional; in fact, no intact burials from the Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom is the name given to the period in the 3rd millennium BC when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of civilization in complexity and achievement – the first of three so-called "Kingdom" periods, which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile Valley .The term itself was...
period have ever been found.
Chronology
This list includes the year a story takes place, the location, and the title of the book. The archaeologist's "season" generally begins in the fall and concludes in the spring, so each story spans parts of two years.- 1884-85, AmarnaAmarnaAmarna is an extensive Egyptian archaeological site that represents the remains of the capital city newly–established and built by the Pharaoh Akhenaten of the late Eighteenth Dynasty , and abandoned shortly afterwards...
, Crocodile on the SandbankCrocodile on the SandbankCrocodile on the Sandbank is a novel by Elizabeth Peters, first published in 1975. It is the first in the Amelia Peabody series of novels and takes place in 1884-1885 .-Plot summary:... - 1892-93, Valley of the KingsValley of the KingsThe Valley of the Kings , less often called the Valley of the Gates of the Kings , is a valley in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th century BC, tombs were constructed for the Pharaohs and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom .The valley stands on the west bank of...
, The Curse of the Pharaohs - 1894-95, MazghunaMazghunaMazghuna , 5 km to the south of Dahshur , is the site of several mudbrick pyramids dating from the 12th Dynasty. The area was explored by Ernest Mackay in 1910, and was excavated by Flinders Petrie in 1911...
, The Mummy CaseThe Mummy CaseThe Mummy Case is the third of a series of mystery novels written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring the character Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:... - 1895-96, Dashur, Lion in the ValleyLion in the ValleyLion in the Valley is the 1986 fourth novel in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
- Summer 1896, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and KentKentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, Deeds of the DisturberDeeds of the DisturberDeeds of the Disturber is the fifth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody... - 1897-98, The Lost Oasis (SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
), The Last Camel Died at NoonThe Last Camel Died at NoonThe Last Camel Died at Noon is the sixth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody. Although most of the Amelia Peabody series are fairly "hard" historical detective stories, "Last Camel" is an exception, and... - 1898-99, Amarna, The Snake, the Crocodile, and the DogThe Snake, the Crocodile, and the DogThe Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog is the seventh in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
- 1899-1900, Dra' Abu el-Naga'Dra' Abu el-Naga'The necropolis of Dra' Abu el-Naga' is located on the West Bank of the Nile at Thebes, Egypt, just by the entrance of the dry bay that leads up to Deir el-Bahri, and north of the necropolis of el-Assasif....
, The Hippopotamus PoolThe Hippopotamus PoolThe Hippopotamus Pool is the eighth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:... - 1903-04, Seeing a Large CatSeeing a Large CatSeeing a Large Cat is the ninth mystery novel in the Amelia Peabody mystery series by Elizabeth Peters. The story takes place during the season of 1903-1904.-Plot summary:...
- 1906-07, Valley of the Kings, The Ape Who Guards the BalanceThe Ape Who Guards the BalanceThe Ape Who Guards the Balance is the tenth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
- 1907-08, The Lost Oasis, Guardian of the HorizonGuardian of the HorizonGuardian of the Horizon is the 16th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
(published out of sequence) - 1910, Palestine, A River in the Sky (published out of sequence)
- 1911-12, Zawyet el'AryanZawyet el'AryanZawyet el-Aryan is a town in Egypt, located between Giza and Abusir. To the west of the town, just in the desert area, is a necropolis, referred to by the same name. Almost directly east across the Nile is Memphis. In Zawyet el-Aryan, there are 2 pyramid complexes.* The Layer Pyramid was built in...
, The Falcon at the PortalThe Falcon at the PortalThe Falcon at the Portal is the 11th in a series of mystery novels by Elizabeth Peters, featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:... - 1914-15, Giza, He Shall Thunder in the SkyHe Shall Thunder in the SkyHe Shall Thunder in the Sky is the 12th in a series of mystery novels by Elizabeth Peters, featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody....
- 1915-16, Giza, Lord of the SilentLord of the SilentLord of the Silent is the 13th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot introduction:...
- 1916-17, GazaGazaGaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
and Deir el-Medina, The Golden OneThe Golden OneThe Golden One is the 14th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:... - 1919-20, Children of the StormChildren of the StormChildren of the Storm is the 15th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
- 1922-23, Valley of the Kings, The Serpent on the CrownThe Serpent on the CrownThe Serpent on the Crown is the 17th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
- 1922-23, Valley of the Kings (tomb of TutankhamunKV62KV62 is the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings , which became famous for the wealth of treasure it contained. The tomb was discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter, underneath the remains of workmen's huts built during the Ramesside Period; this explains why it was spared from the worst of...
), Tomb of the Golden BirdTomb of the Golden BirdTomb of the Golden Bird is the 18th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
Future of the Series
In a 2003 book talk at the Library of CongressLibrary of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
, Elizabeth Peters revealed that her overall plan for the Amelia Peabody series was to continue the series chronologically through World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and end with events surrounding the discovery of the tomb
KV62
KV62 is the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings , which became famous for the wealth of treasure it contained. The tomb was discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter, underneath the remains of workmen's huts built during the Ramesside Period; this explains why it was spared from the worst of...
of Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun , Egyptian , ; approx. 1341 BC – 1323 BC) was an Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th dynasty , during the period of Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom...
in 1922. This stated goal was accomplished with the publication of Tomb of the Golden Bird
Tomb of the Golden Bird
Tomb of the Golden Bird is the 18th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
in 2006. The events of that book did seem to wrap up most of the series' loose plot lines, although it did not include a definitive ending to the series per se.
In the same talk, Peters suggested that any future installments after this point would "fill in the gaps" in the series' chronology, as she has done with Guardian of the Horizon
Guardian of the Horizon
Guardian of the Horizon is the 16th in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Plot summary:...
and A River in the Sky which fill part of the four-year gap between The Ape Who Guards the Balance
The Ape Who Guards the Balance
The Ape Who Guards the Balance is the tenth in a series of mystery novels, written by Elizabeth Peters and featuring fictional sleuth and archaeologist Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
and The Falcon at the Portal
The Falcon at the Portal
The Falcon at the Portal is the 11th in a series of mystery novels by Elizabeth Peters, featuring fictional archaeologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
.
As for future installments, Peters provided a clue in the final volume of the Vicky Bliss series, The Laughter of Dead Kings. In that book, the fictional editor of Amelia Peabody's journals makes a cameo appearance while looking for more of Amelia's journals. By the end of the book, she has acquired at least three more of the "missing journals" to document the adventures of the Peabody-Emersons.
Sources
- Maps and timelines of the Emersons' travels at the official Amelia Peabody website