Waltari studied theology and philosophy at the University of Helsinki. His early novels were concerned with the crises of the generation that came of age between the world wars. He gained international recognition with the appearance of Sinuhe, egyptiläinen (1945; The Egyptian, 1949), a story of life in Egypt 1,000 years before the birth of Christ. It was made into a lavish Hollywood motion picture (1954). Other works include Mikael Hakim (1949; The Wanderer, 1951), Johannes Angelos (1952; The Dark Angel, 1953), and Turms, kuolematon (1955; The Etruscan, 1957); Valtakunnan salaisus (1959; The Secret of the Kingdom, 1961); and Ihmiskunnan viholliset (1964; The Roman, 1966).