Motel of the Mysteries (Paperback, None)

It is the year 4022; all of the ancient country of Usa has been buried under many feet of detritus from a catastrophe that occurred back in 1985. Imagine, then, the excitement that Howard Carson, an amateur archeologist at best, experienced when in crossing the perimeter of an abandoned excavation site he felt the ground give way beneath him and found himself at the bottom of a shaft, which, judging from the DO NOT DISTURB sign hanging from an archaic doorknob, was clearly the entrance to a still-sealed burial chamber. Carson's incredible discoveries, including the remains of two bodies, one of then on a ceremonial bed facing an altar that appeared to be a means of communicating with the Gods and the other lying in a porcelain sarcophagus in the Inner Chamber, permitted him to piece together the whole fabric of that extraordinary civilization.

General

Imprint:	Houghton Mifflin (Trade)
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	December 1979
First published:	October 1979
Authors:	David MacAulay
Dimensions:	279 x 210 x 8mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	86
Edition:	None
ISBN-13:	978-0-395-28425-4
Categories:	Books > Fiction > General & literary fiction > Modern fiction Promotions
LSN:	0-395-28425-2
Barcode:	9780395284254

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

Thu, 18 Aug 2022 | Review by: Alan H.

Motel of the Mysteries is a hilarious send-up of archaeology. It is some time in the very distant future, and archaeologist Howard Carson has made the archaeological discovery of the century or, perhaps, the millennium (and no, it is not a coincidence that Howard Carter was the actual discoverer of the tomb of Egyptian pharaoh Tut-ankh-amun). As you read this excerpt from Macaulay's book, it will become clear that Carson is excavating nothing more than a sleazy twentieth-century motel, though he manages to construe the place as an ancient, sacred necropolis. The book is especially hilarious if you know a bit about the history of archaeology. Some of the lines achieve their humour (at least for archaeologists) by being actual quotes from Howard Carter (he's the real archaeologist, and he really did reply in response to the question, "Can you see anything?" as he first gazed into Tut's Tomb, "Yes, wonderful things.") Reading Motel of the Mysteries can be a humbling experience for an archaeologist. But it also is a valuable reminder of the mistakes we can make when we impose a preconceived perspective on the archaeological record. And besides, it's very funny.

Did you find this review helpful? Yes (0) | No (0)