Mariette, (Francois) Auguste Ferdinand

(1821–1881)

   French excavator. He was born in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, on 11 February 1821, and he first became a teacher. His interest in Egypt was aroused by papers of a relative who had visited the country, and he taught himself both the Egyptian and Coptic languages. In 1850, he was sent to Egypt to purchase Coptic manuscripts but used the money to discover and excavate the Serapeum at Saqqara. In 1858, he was appointed head of the newly founded Egyptian Antiquities Service (now the Supreme Council forAntiquities) and organized archaeological excavations at all major sites in Egypt, notably Abydos, Thebes, Dendera, Saqqara, Giza, and various sites in the Delta region. In 1863, he opened the first Cairo Egyptian Museum. Mariette tried to put an end to illicit excavation and restricted foreign excavators. The bulk of his discoveries went to the Cairo Egyptian Museum, which henceforth had first choice of excavated material in Egypt. He died in Cairo on 18 January 1881, and he was later reburied in front of the new Cairo Museum.

   See also Carter, Howard; Montet, Pierre Marie; Naville, Edouard; Petrie, William Matthew Flinders; Reisner, George Andrew; Winlock, Herbert Eustis.

Historical Dictionary Of Ancient Egypt by Morris L. Bierbrier