Appunti per un progetto di storia delle idee

Zamagni, Gianmaria

Abstract

This contribution publishes Anselmo Cassani’s research project in the history of ideas on the passage from an idealized image of Egypt to egyptology as a science (1775-1848). His proposal was to show and discuss some of the mutations brought about by Jean-François Champollion’s discoveries. New methods, such as the comparate linguistics, archaeology, and a historical-critical approach in biblical his - tory will lead – on one hand – to revise the enthusiasms of the beginning of the XIX century, but on the other hand to discuss the biblical chronology. In his brief introduction, Gianmaria Zamagni contextualizes Cassani’s research project in its time and place (the Department of philosophy of the University of Bologna at the end of the 90s), also showing Cassani’s literary acquaintance with an Egyptologist of Faenza (F. Salvolini [1809-1838]), with the then most recent work of Jan Assmann (Moses the Egyptian), and sketching the main connections with catho - lic ultramontanism, german idealism, and with the quest of the historical Jesus of the 1910s.