An Egyptian priest that flourished in the third century BC, Manetho wrote ‘Aegyptiaca’ (History of Egypt), which provided a detailed history of his homeland to the Hellenic world. Although his original texts are now largely lost, important remains have survived, transmitted to us as fragments from several ancient authors. For many centuries, before hieroglyphics could be read, Manetho’s writings were one of the chief sources of information on Egyptian history.