Barbara Mertz

Barbara Mertz, American historian and author (died 2013)

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Born: September 29, 1927
Died: August 8, 2013
Zodiac sign: Libra
Birth year: 1927

About Barbara Mertz

Barbara Louise Mertz (September 29, 1927 – August 8, 2013), known professionally as Elizabeth Peters and as Barbara Michaels, was an American author. In 1952, she received a PhD in Egyptology from the University of Chicago. She was best known for her mystery and suspense novels, including the Amelia Peabody book series. In the 1960s, Mertz authored two books on ancient Egypt: Temples, Tombs, and Hieroglyphs, a popular history of ancient Egypt; and Red Land, Black Land, which explores daily life in ancient Egypt. Both have remained in print ever since, and revised editions were released in 2007 and 2008, respectively. == Biography == Barbara Mertz was born on September 29, 1927, in Canton, Illinois. She graduated from the University of Chicago with a bachelor's degree in 1947, a master's degree in 1950, and a PhD in Egyptology in 1952, having studied with John A. Wilson. She authored two books on ancient Egypt, Temples, Tombs, and Hieroglyphs (1964; rev. ed. 2007) and Red Land, Black Land (1966; rev.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

Mertz founded "Malice Domestic", a Washington-based organization for women mystery writers, "because she thought men were getting all the prizes." She also started a scholarship for women writers at Hood College.
Her first recognition came when Trojan Gold was nominated for the 1988 Anthony Award in the "Best Novel" category; the following year, Naked Once More won the 1989 Agatha Award in the same category.
In 2012 she was honored with the first Amelia Peabody Award at the Malice Domestic Convention; the award was named after the leading character in her long-running series.

Barbara Mertz timeline

1988Her first recognition came when Trojan Gold was nominated for the 1988 Anthony Award in the "Best Novel" category; the following year, Naked Once More won the 1989 Agatha Award in the same category.
2012In 2012 she was honored with the first Amelia Peabody Award at the Malice Domestic Convention; the award was named after the leading character in her long-running series.

The world when Barbara Mertz was born

Barbara Mertz was born in 1927. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1927

#1 song"My Blue Heaven" – Gene Austin
Top movieThe Jazz Singer (first talking picture)
Best-selling bookElmer Gantry – Sinclair Lewis

Headlines and milestones

Major sports momentBabe Ruth hits 60 home runs
Top headlineLindbergh completes first solo transatlantic flight
Technology milestoneThe Jazz Singer — first feature-length talking film
Defining fadDance marathons peak
Notable inventionPEZ candy dispensers
World population2.04 billion

United States snapshot

U.S. leaderCalvin Coolidge
Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
U.S. population119.0M

1927 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Barbara Mertz's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure	1927	2026
Gas	$0.21	$3.45/gal
Average home	$6,100	$435,000
Average income	$3,700	$67,500
Movie ticket	$0.25	$11.95
Postage stamp	$0.02	$0.73
Population	119.0M	341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.