This book draws impetus from the crossover between Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie in the 1920s as Christie’s career is accelerating and Conan Doyle reaches his final decade. This forms the lens through which the book explores their engagements with the discovery of Tutankhamun’s resting place in the Valley of the Kings in 1922, and their respective cultural interests in Egypt’s past and present. Through its exploration of the authors’ fictions and travel writings on Egypt, this book examines the positioning of Egypt’s ancient past and present in writings which collectively span the late nineteenth century to the Second World War. This was a period shaped by colonial archaeology and empire.  

Catherine Wynne is Chair in Late Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Literary and Visual Cultures at the University of Hull, UK. An interdisciplinary and publicly oriented scholar, she is a published expert on Conan Doyle, Bram Stoker and the British war artist, Lady Butler. Wynne has contributed to numerous UK and international radio features and documentaries, and delivered talks to museums, festivals, societies and universities. She has published over 30 books, articles and chapters across her career so far. She also sits on the editorial board for the Palgrave Gothic book series.