Sir

Napoleon's imperial project in Egypt was far from being romantic, as the headline on the Book Review of Nina Burleigh's Mirage: Napolean's scientists and the unveiling of Egypt would suggest ('The ultimate Romantic adventure' Nature 450, 793; 2007). Like other acts of imperialism, it was oppressive and demeaning to the lands and cultures that it claimed to liberate, study or civilize.

Did the learned men who were part of Napolean's imperial adventures ever wonder whether the often-brutal manipulation and subjugation of another civilization was in keeping with the highest ideals of the Enlightenment? Did any real benefit accrue to the peoples of Egypt or India when their treasures were revealed to Europe?

These wonders had been understood, interpreted and revered by the local populations within the context of their own culture and history long before Europeans came across them. Their 'discovery' by Europeans largely paved the way for further exploitation. They filled the coffers of the colonial masters, but often impoverished the colonies. Looked at in isolation from the fundamentally unjust social and political policies that sustained them, the scientific achievements seem to be stunning. But any honest evaluation of the scientific by-products of imperial projects is incomplete without acknowledgement of the exploitative nature of imperialism.