Writer Christian Jacques: biography, creativity and interesting facts

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Christian Jacques devoted himself to the study of the history of Ancient Egypt. He holds a doctorate from the Sorbonne in Egyptology. Founder of the Ramses Institute, engaged in the formation of photographic funds of ancient texts and manuscripts, as well as their publication in scientific publications. In addition to being an explorer and archaeologist, this talented scientist, Christian Jacques is a best-selling writer, including the famous Ramses novel series. In addition to historical works set in ancient Egypt, the author also writes modern detective stories using various pseudonyms.

Creative Search

Christian Jacques was born April 28, 1947 in Paris, from an early age the boy discovered a talent for writing. He tried himself in various genres, wrote poetry and plays, read a lot. Fateful for Christian was the work of Jacques Pirenne "History of Ancient Egyptian Civilization", which he met at the age of thirteen.

From that moment on, the passion for Egyptology captured the young man. Under the influence of Pirenne, Christian Jacques wrote his first novel, which takes place in ancient Egypt. Over the next five years, he prepared material and developments for eight books, and also wrote the libretto for the opera.

Memphis

Love, like creativity, captivated Christian quite early, even before graduation, at the age of seventeen, he got married. The newlyweds spent their honeymoon traveling around Egypt, inspired by a common passion for unraveling the secrets stored in the depths of the history of this amazing country. Ancient Memphis struck the young writer, and visual study of the giant statue of Ramses II determined a new direction for the writer. After the Egyptian trip, Christian Jacques became interested in studying the dynasties of the great pharaohs.

Scientific work

At the age of twenty-one, Jacques published his first research paper, which examined the connection between the times of Ancient Egypt and the Middle Ages. At the same time, Christian abandoned his philosophy of research work in the library and moved on to archaeological fieldwork. Such hard work paid off, and the young bachelor and then master eventually received a doctorate in Egyptology.

The dissertation was called "Journey Through the World of the Dead". The work concluded the study of the ideas of the ancient Egyptians about the afterlife. The examples of post-mortem trials and metamorphoses of the soul given in it were collected thanks to the decodinginscriptions found in the pyramids and sarcophagi of the pharaohs, as well as noble dignitaries of the ancient kingdom. This work was the beginning of the university career of Christian Jacques, he publishes more than twenty scientific articles, including the work "The Great Pharaohs of Egypt", awarded the French Academy Prize in 1981.

Creative career

As a great connoisseur and popularizer of history, Christian was an assistant producer on the channel "Culture of France" and worked on the creation of the "Preparation for Knowledge" program. Literary success comes to the author in 1987 with the publication of the novel Champollion the Egyptian. To date, he has more than fifty works to his credit and is one of the most widely read and popular authors.

Attitude towards popularity

It is interesting that the writer Christian Jacques, whose books, whether scientific or artistic, are devoted to his greatest love - Ancient Egypt, always rejoices when his next creation resonates in the soul of the reader. As the author admits, his childhood dream came true, and the public's interest in the topic of Ancient Egypt inspires him to literary and research work.

When Jacques received the House of Press National Literary Union Prize in 1992 for the creation of the trilogy "Judge of Egypt", the writer noted that the success of his novels among readers was the biggest reward for him. A work that remained on the list of literary bestsellers for more than a year, and now continues to be popular.

Christian Jacques: books

The author of the trilogy "Judge of Egypt" was already known in many countries. In 1995, the writer implemented a long-conceived idea and told the world the story of the life and dynasty of the great pharaoh Ramses II. The work of five volumes, written in the period 1995-1997, has the general title "Ramses" and tells the story of the pharaoh, who became a symbol of the power of Ancient Egypt. The reader is presented with the image of not only a tough ruler who sought to preserve the unity of the country and a great commander who won many battles, but also a person with his own weaknesses and affections. All books in the Ramses series are bestsellers, more than eleven million copies of the work have been sold, which is very popular with the reader to this day.

Followed by such successful cycles of novels as:

• "The Stone of Light" - a work of four novels, tells about amazing stories related to the secrets of the tombs of the "Valley of the Kings" and the fate of the guardians, who are called upon to protect the "Places of Truth" at any cost. In pursuit of secret knowledge, many are ready for terrible crimes and betrayals, but there are always those who are ready to stop evil in any of its guises.
• The two novels "Wrath of the Gods" describe the fate of the courageous and courageous queen Ahhotep, who throughout her life fought for the liberation of Egypt from Asian invaders. Like a real warrior, she goes to her goal despite betrayals, intrigues and conspiracies. Her path is difficult and dangerous, but even the loss of the closest people cannot breakthe will of Ahhotep, and she is preparing the army for the decisive battle of Avaris.
• "The Mysteries of Osiris" - a cycle of novels immerses the reader into the world of palace intrigues and secrets. A coup is being prepared and an attempt on the pharaoh's life is being prepared. And the center of the palace conspiracy, for a reason known only to the gods, becomes the poor orphan Iker. He is only a humble scribe apprentice, but somehow his fate was linked to Pharaoh Sesostris.
• Land of the Pharaohs consists of two novels about the adventures of a young man named Narmer. He is destined by providence to become the first pharaoh of Egypt and stop the endless wars of clans. But until that moment, Narmer will have to overcome many obstacles in his path, uncover a lot of secrets and save his only beloved.

Today the author lives and works in Switzerland. Jacques Christian, whose new books are always an event in the literary world, continues to create, and fans of the historical novel genre still continue to look forward to his next bestseller. Like, for example, the novel "Cursed Grave", published in 2015 and taking the reader to the author's favorite era - the reign of Ramses II.