The Burgomaster's Wife

Ebers early conceived the idea of popularizing Egyptian lore by means of historical romances. Eine gyptische K nigstochter was published in 1864 and obtained great success. His subsequent works of the same kind-Uarda (1877), Homo sum (1878), Die Schwestern (1880), Der Kaiser (1881), of which the scene is laid in Egypt at the time of Hadrian, Serapis (1885), Die Nilbraut (1887), and Kleopatra (1894), were also well received, and did much to make the public familiar with the discoveries of Egyptologists. Ebers also turned his attention to other fields of historical fiction-especially the 16th century (Die Frau B rgermeisterin, 1882; Die Gred, 1887)-without, however, attaining the success of his Egyptian novels.