The American Catholic Historical Association is pleased to announce that the 2014 Howard R. Marraro book prize has been awarded to Daniel Stolzenberg of the University of California, Davis for Egyptian Oedipus: Athanasius Kircher and the Secrets of Antiquity published by the University of Chicago Press. In announcing its decision, the Marraro Committee noted that “In this carefully researched and skillfully argued book, Stolzenberg provides both an in-depth analysis of Athanasius Kircher’s work on Egyptian hieroglyphics, and an explanation for the book’s popularity for over a century after its publication. By meticulously re-creating the intellectual milieu of 17th-century Europe, the author demonstrates how, even in its fundamental unreliability, Egyptian Oedipus reflected important intellectual trends, combining both the past and the future of European scholarship.” Professor Stolzenberg will be honored during the annual ACHA Presidential Luncheon to be held on Saturday, January 3, 2015, in New York City.
