Bartimaeus (Bartimaeus trilogy)
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Bartimaeus (bar-ti-may-us) is a fictional character in the Bartimaeus Trilogy written by Jonathan Stroud. He is a sarcastic djinni of the fourth level and 5,010 years old at the beginning of the first book. His many masters include Gilgamesh, Ptolemy, Solomon, Tycho Brahe, Faust, and, more recently, the British magician Nathaniel (known as John Mandrake to his peers), who is his master for the duration of the trilogy. His trademark cheekiness and wry, often hilarious side comments annotate the novels. The chapters that he narrates often contain footnotes that add information on the nature of demons and his history.
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[edit] Overview
Bartimaeus has many names. The quote shown at the back of one edition of Ptolemy's Gate states:
I am Bartimaeus (Of Uruk), Sakhr Al-Jinni (Of Al-Arish)!! I am N'Gorso The Mighty, and the Serpent Of Silver Plumes (Of The Iroquois)!! I have spoken with Solomon and Ptolemy, and rebuilt the walls of Uruk, Karnak and Prague!!
His other names include "Reykht Of Alexandria," "Necho Of Jerusalem," and "Wakonda Of The Algonquin." He also had a hand in the building of the Parthenon, the Stone Bridge, Jerico, and the Leaning Tower Of Pisa.
[edit] History
Bartimaeus's past ties in to the plot of the novel. One of Bartimaeus's most important masters was Ptolemy, a young magician of ancient Egypt. Ptolemy was a good master to Bartimaeus and gave him three great gifts: The first gift was that he treated Bartimaeus like an equal, unlike most magicians. The second gift was that he gave Bartimaeus freedom to walk the Earth and the Other Place. The final and greatest Gift was that when death was inevitable, he sacrificed the last few seconds of his life to save Bartimaeus's life. In remembrance, Bartimaeus often wears the form of Ptolemy.
There are also hints during the course of the trilogy that Bartimaeus may be or used to be considerably more powerful and resourceful than he lets on. This is shown by him being able to survive encounters with very powerful spirits, as well as brief asides where he mentions singlehandedly killing an afrit on two occasions and destroying six other djinn alone on another.
[edit] Role in trilogy
In The Amulet of Samarkand, Bartimaeus is summoned by Nathaniel to steal the Amulet of Samarkand from Simon Lovelace. Nathaniel and Bartimaeus end up foiling a conspiracy to destroy the British government, and Nathaniel allows Bartimaeus to return to the other place.
Nathaniel summons Bartimaeus again in The Golem's Eye and Ptolemy's Gate despite having promised not to.
[edit] Books In The Trilogy
- The Amulet of Samarkand ISBN 0-7868-1859-X
- The Golem's Eye ISBN 0-385-60615-X
- Ptolemy's Gate ISBN 0-385-60868-3
[edit] External Links
| Bartimaeus Trilogy | |
|---|---|
| Books | The Amulet of Samarkand | The Golem's Eye | Ptolemy's Gate |
| Main characters | Nathaniel | Bartimaeus | Kitty Jones |
| Other topics | Magic in the Bartimaeus trilogy | Characters of the Bartimaeus trilogy |
