The Book of the Pharaohs" is an encyclopaedia made up of short essays on the pharaohs themselves, as well as on places, dynasties, personages, subjects and themes relating to the kings and their rule. Entries range from "Adoratrices" (priestesses of Hathor, the Egyptian Aphrodite, whose role was to arouse the erotic impulse in the creator gods) and "Amarna" (the capital created by the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten) to "Scorpion" (who ruled before the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt) and "Zero Dynasty" (the designation for pre-pharaonic Egypt). In addition, Vernus and Yoyotte include a substantial essay on the sources for Egyptian history, a bibliography of books for general readers and a chronological table that organizes the major periods of Egyptian history and notes the most illustrious royal names from each.