Amelia B Edwards: The ‘Queen of Egyptology’

REVIEW BY HILARY FORREST

Most Egyptology enthusiasts will be familiar with the name of Amelia B Edwards. This new biography sets out to reveal aspects of her life that have, although sometimes hinted at, hitherto been kept private. As the author explains, ‘until recently Amelia’s story was promoted within Egyptology as a conventional tale of a girl raised on reading who went on to have several accomplished and multi-talented careers’. While this picture in general terms is true, the current volume, based on thorough and recent research, presents a very different view.

The only child of older parents, she had a large family of cousins and was able to develop a wide range of talents. She enjoyed drawing, and was already writing sketches and poetry from an early age. While studying music, she became engaged to a ‘Mr Bacon’, but realising that this marriage was not for her, she broke it off. In her twenties, she travelled all over Europe with a series of cousins and friends, and came into contact with many different groups. During this time, she seems to have explored areas that were not talked of openly. At times she favoured androgynous styles of dress, and in Paris she dressed fully as a man in order to visit all-male establishments.

Amelia was clearly a very emotional person, and her earlier life seems to reveal a needy individual who suffered bouts of loneliness and depression. Examples of her poetry, usually addressed to her female companions, reveal a deeply ardent individual. In several cases, she proposed marriage to female friends, and in at least one case a ceremony was held. But while her relationships were full of passion, it cannot be proved that they were physical in character.