366:, who had brought them back from the Egyptian Library, a library sacked and looted during Alexander's conquest of Egypt (a campaign that Anaxarchus was a part of). The author’s claim here is altogether historically erroneous. Democritus was born eighty or so years before Anaxarchus and would have been dead forty years before Anaxarchus’ return to Ionia. Similar cases of (glaring) historical negligence are rife throughout James’ book.
331:. Terrasson had no access to Egyptian sources and he would be long dead before Egyptian hieroglyphics could be deciphered. But Terrasson knew the Greek and Latin writers well. So he constructed an imaginary Egyptian religion based upon sources that described Greek and Latin rites as if they were Egyptian Hence one of the main sources for Afrocentric Egyptology turns out to be Greece and Rome. The Greeks would have called this
406:
James misrepresents his masonic sources, who in discussing the "Egyptian mysteries" actually mean Greco-Roman mysteries operating in Egypt, and cites other outdated sources on Egypt that do not take modern scholarship into account. ("Thus most ironically," she writes, "the 'Egyptian
Mystery System'
343:
dismissed the book in a 1955 review, writing that "only social psychologists and collectors of paradoxes will find here grist for their mills" and presenting some of James's claims as self-evidently ridiculous. Historian
Stephen Howe wrote that the book "is a work of utmost intellectual naivety,
357:
Though one can appreciate what James was trying to do for
African people and tradition, especially given the context in which this work was written, this is a book wrought with historical inaccuracies, sketchy dating, dubious referencing, and philosophical misunderstandings. James claims that
402:
was founded after
Alexander's conquest of Egypt and never integrated into Egyptian society, and the Library of Alexandria was built still later; therefore, it contained no repository of Egyptian culture for the immigrant Greeks to
492:
235:
when
Alexander the Great "invaded Egypt and captured the Royal Library at Alexandria and plundered it", and that Aristotle's ideas came from these stolen books and that he established his school within the
910:
382:
showed that the book tries to look scholarly but is ultimately a pseudohistory that is disingenuous and extremely tendentious in its conclusions. Lefkowitz makes the following arguments:
980:
353:, states that it is not a genuine work of scholarship, but rather "a plea for justice and reformation, a call to turn the tide of racism washing over his time". He writes that:
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960:
421:
Similarities found by ancient writers between Greek and
Egyptian deities do not imply Egyptian origin. Egyptian philosophy does not include a doctrine of
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The book received positive responses by
Afrocentrist authors despite the harsh criticism by historians and other scholars. Afrocentrist author
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314:. The Masons in turn derived their misconceptions about Egyptian mystery and initiation rites from the eighteenth century work of fiction
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is unscholarly, relying heavily on repetition of claims about
Alexander's "theft" of Egyptian material, and lacking precise footnoting.
608:
568:
387:
221:
Stolen Legacy: The Greeks Were Not the
Authors of Greek Philosophy, But the People of North Africa, Commonly Called the Egyptians
263:
originate from an "Egyptian
Mystery System", although as historians point out, James does not cite these sources accurately.
444:
wrote in support of the book's key premises, including its conclusion that the Greeks stole the knowledge of the Egyptians.
715:
990:
186:
227:), first published in 1954. In this book, James claims that the ancient Greeks were not the original authors of
422:
206:
153:. His parents were Reverend Linch B. and Margaret E. James. James earned bachelor's and master's degrees at
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who describe the cultural debt of Greece to Egypt. He also mentions prominent Greek philosophers such as
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390:(and therefore its cultural legacy does not represent an inherently "black" or "African" contribution).
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The Skeptic's Dictionary: A Collection of Strange Beliefs, Amusing Deceptions, and Dangerous Delusions
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described by James is not African, but essentially Greek, and in its details, specifically European.")
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did not write those books commonly attributed to him. Instead, he came to possess them from
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Professor of philosophy Ulstad Karin, reviewing the book in the academic journal
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Not Out Of Africa: How 'Afrocentrism' Became An Excuse To Teach Myth As History
414:) that James presents as predecessors to Greek philosophy were composed in the
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emerged as a prominent critic of Afrocentrism and of James. Her critique of
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Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry
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Invented Knowledge: False History, Fake Science and Pseudo-religions
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innocent of even the outward appearances of academic procedure".
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522:"An Investigation into the Death of Professor George G. M. James"
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An Investigation into the Death of Professor George G. M. James
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Stolen Legacy: Greek Philosophy is Stolen Egyptian Philosophy
635:
Egyptomania: A History of Fascination, Obsession and Fantasy
599:. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. p.
569:"The secret history of the jazz greats who were freemasons"
240:. James also cites earlier Ancient Greek sources such as
711:
Afrotopia: The Roots of African American Popular History
452:
school of history, including leading exponents such as
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James's chief reference on the Egyptian mysteries is
306:James's principal sources were Masonic, especially
231:, but that ideas and concepts were stolen from the
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795:Afrocentrism: Mythical Pasts and Imagined Homes
685:Afrocentrism: Mythical Pasts and Imagined Homes
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869:Lefkowitz, Mary, "The Myth of a 'Stolen Legacy
537:
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274:and its thesis have generally been considered
125:historian and author, known for his 1954 book
8:
981:University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff faculty
335:. I don't know what Afrocentrists call it.
31:
843:
586:
584:
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520:Johnson, Charles D. (December 29, 2015).
121:(November 9, 1893 – June 30, 1956) was a
832:Kritike: An Online Journal of Philosophy
708:Moses, Wilson J.; Gelpi, Albert (1998).
541:Muzorewa, Muzorewa, "Stolen Legacy"; in
308:The Ancient Mysteries and Modern Masonry
197:. James died two years after publishing
986:Alumni of St Cuthbert's Society, Durham
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436:are not said to have traveled to Egypt.
252:who are said to have studied in Egypt.
27:Guyanese-American historian (1893–1956)
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487:Ancient Mysteries and Modern Masonry
410:The Egyptian writings (notably the
961:Alumni of the University of London
890:Hansberry, William Leo Hansberry,
826:Urstad, Kristian (March 3, 2010).
255:The book draws on the writings of
25:
298:all call the book and its claims
951:20th-century Guyanese historians
662:. Basic Books. pp. 91–121.
553:; Thousand Oaks: SAGE, 2005; p.
966:American Prince Hall Freemasons
687:. Verso Books. pp. 66–67.
637:. Reaktion Books. p. 317.
259:to support its claim that the
1:
782:, 29(2), Spring 1955, p. 232.
591:Carroll, Robert Todd (2003).
551:Encyclopedia of Black Studies
567:Lewis, John (July 2, 2014).
448:has strongly influenced the
327:(1670-1750), a professor of
161:and gained his doctorate at
119:George Granville Monah James
46:George Granville Monah James
976:Livingstone College faculty
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971:Columbia University alumni
896:Journal of Negro Education
742:Fritze, Ronald H. (2009).
716:Cambridge University Press
633:Fritze, Ronald H. (2021).
278:by historians. Historians
877:31(3), March/April 1994;
490:(1909). Vail's source is
191:Arkansas AM&N College
187:Salisbury, North Carolina
658:Lefkowitz, Mary (2008).
219:James was the author of
205:and was associated with
428:The great philosophers
423:transmigration of souls
302:. Carroll writes that:
207:Prince Hall Freemasonry
879:doi:10.1007/BF02693227
845:10.3860/krit.v3i2.1536
792:Howe, Stephen (1999).
683:Howe, Stephen (1999).
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919:Charles D. Johnson, "
442:William Leo Hansberry
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261:Greco-Roman mysteries
201:in 1954. James was a
18:George James (writer)
621:Skeptic's Dictionary
195:Pine Bluff, Arkansas
189:, before working at
129:, which argues that
99:Historian and author
916:listed on WorldCat.
898:24(2), Spring 1955.
773:Levinson, Ronald B.
458:Yosef Ben-Jochannan
310:(1909) by the Rev.
296:Robert Todd Carroll
183:Livingstone College
163:Columbia University
90:Columbia University
543:Molefi Kete Asante
462:Molefi Kete Asante
416:Hellenistic period
386:Ancient Egypt was
341:Ronald B. Levinson
151:Georgetown, Guyana
149:James was born in
53:Georgetown, Guyana
36:George G. M. James
809:978-1-85984-228-7
759:978-1-86189-674-2
725:978-0-521-47941-7
694:978-1-85984-228-7
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644:978-1-78023-685-8
233:Ancient Egyptians
155:Durham University
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892:Book review
800:Verso Books
498:Albert Pike
450:Afrocentric
257:freemasonry
72:Nationality
935:Categories
547:Ama Mazama
508:References
496:(1872) by
482:C. H. Vail
400:Alexandria
374:professor
364:Anaxarchus
360:Democritus
246:Pythagoras
854:1908-7330
434:Aristotle
267:Criticism
242:Herodotus
203:freemason
171:Professor
169:. He was
145:Biography
914:editions
430:Socrates
372:classics
167:New York
135:religion
894:in the
549:(eds),
350:Kritike
238:library
159:England
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526:Medium
403:steal.
317:Sethos
112:(1954)
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615:See "
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333:irony
329:Greek
250:Plato
179:Greek
175:Logic
850:ISSN
804:ISBN
754:ISBN
720:ISBN
689:ISBN
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605:ISBN
460:and
432:and
322:Abbe
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60:Died
42:Born
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