Mission 3: Code Name: Tomb Raider

Mission 3:
Code Name: Tomb Raider

This is an Image of the Tomb at Abu Simbel

Question

What were Ancient Egyptian Tombs built for?

Mission Instructions

We are very proud of the progress that you have made during your short time in Ancient Egypt. The clues that you obtained during your party and your knowledge from making mummies have proved to be very promising. We have uncovered the whereabouts of several Ancient Egyptian Tombs. We believe that one of these could be the burial tomb for King Tut. You must visit each of the tombs. Study the artifacts and mummy that you find there to determine which tomb is the burial place of king Tut. We suggest that you start with the information below and then access your computer and the books to learn more about the Tombs of the Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs.

Background Information

---Top Secret Document---

If you were an Ancient Egyptian you would have believed that after you die you would move on to the next world, the Afterlife. After you died, you would have to attempt to make it to the Afterlife. The Ancient Egyptians believed that to do this successfully you had to pass many tests as you journey through the underworld. If you passed these tests you would eventually rejoin your body in the Afterlife. Therefore, it is crucial that you preserve your body and any other materials (servants, chariots, boats, food, games...) you may need to live comfortably in the Afterworld, for an eternity.

The wide variety of tombs that the Ancient Egyptians made over their 3,000 years in power ranges from the Great Pyramids of Giza to the hidden tombs in the Valley of the Kings. These tombs often differed in shape, size, and location but they also shared many things in common. First, the tombs were designed to protect the buried Pharos's body and his belongings, forever. Second, most of these tombs can be found on the western side of the Nile River, just into the dry desert. The dry desert heat worked to keep the Pharos's body and his belongings from decomposing and rotting away.

You must assume the role of an archeologist to examine materials from the past to look for the clues that will lead you to find which of these tombs King Tut is buried in. As an archeologist you will use state-of-the-art scientific methods (thermoluminescense, cat scans, x-rays, remote control cameras, and more) and some old fashion methods (digging, questioning Ancient Egyptians, and more.) You must examine any artifacts that you find such as tools, weapons, letters, clothing, jewelry, and buildings. These will give you clues to what this tomb was use for. You will need to search for a mummy that is kept in the tomb. Use your mummification skills and knowledge to carefully examine the mummy to find clues as to whether this is the Mummy of King Tut. We suggest that you start with by examining the mummy's sarcofugace. Investigate the hieroglyphs that you find to get clues about the appearance and dress of the people, as well as showing people at work, houses, boats, and even games that children play. You can gather clues by examining any amulets or other jewelry that you find placed in the mummy's wrappings. Finally, examine their bones and teeth how long the person lived, what they ate, diseases, injuries, and medical attention that the people may have had. Remember, leave the tomb exactly the way that you found it to respect the Egyptian Culture and preserve history.

The revelations you find could give us the information we need to locate King Tut's tomb.

I Want to Learn More

Egyptian Tomb's Offline Resources

Here are a few books on Daily life in Ancient Egypt. For a full listing check out our Ancient Egyptian Annotated Bibliography.

Aliki. Mummies Made in Egypt. 1985
Bunting, Eve. I am the Mummy Heb-Nefert. 1997 Harcourt Brace
Deem, James. How to Make a Mummy Talk. Bantam, Doubleday, Dell Publishing Group, New York. 1997
Harris, Nathaniel. Mummies: A Very Peculiar History. Franklin Watts, New York. 1995
Putnam, James. Eyewitness Books: Mummy. Knopf, New York. 1993

Egyptian Tombs

Egyptian Geography Sites

Explore Ancient Egyptian Geography
Geography Story
Egypt Site Map
A Clickable Map of Ancient Egypt
Exploring Ancient Egypt

Archeology sites

What Does an Archeologist Do?
Epigraphy
Where do you Start to Dig?
Where do you Dig?
Leave No Stone Unturned
Interpreting your Evidence
Learning From Mummies
Theban Tomb Publication Project
Underwater Archeology  (Video Clips)
Alexandria's Submerged Monuments
A Virtual Egyptian Dig
Study of Egyptian Pottery
CT-Scan of a Mummy
The Dig (Mark Lehner (Famous Archeologist))
Mark Lehner (Famous Archeologist) Interview
Genetic Archeology

Ancient Egyptian Tomb Sites

Abu Simbel
The Great Temple of Abu Simbel    Some very good graphics. The reading is difficult but has plenty of links to help clarify.
Temple at Abu Simbel Fantastic images. There are small bits of writing that accompany each picture to give a clear but brief description of what you are seeing.
Abu Simbel, Egypt  Excellent description of the temple. This page provides addition al links to explore further.
Abu Simbel Temple   Many images accompanied by good descriptions. Click on the image to see a bigger image.
Abu Simbel   A pretty clear description of what this temple was built for

Abydos
Abydos: Holy City of Ancient Egypt    Good Graphics and information but hard to read because of font color.
The God Nun You'll find good information here

Dendera
The Temple of Dendera   Good information with excellent graphics, including maps. There are also links which take you on a tour of the temple.
The Temple at Dendera This is a modern tour page but it has some great images and really great information on the temple.
Dendera Great images and information.
Dendera Virtual Tour A Great Virtual Tour of Dendera

Collusus
Colossus of Memnon Wow!!! PBS has amazed me once again with it's interactive site, excellent information, and great graphics (Quicktime Required)
Colossi of Memnon   Good graphic but information is not as detailed as it could be.
Collossi of Memnon Good Graphics with mediocre information.
The Colossi of Memnon Great graphics provide you with some great views of the Colossi.

Edfu
Edfu Temple  The graphics on this site are excellent.
The Temple of Horus at Edfu (Idfu) This page has difficult reading but the information is excellent.
Edfu Good images.
The Temple of Horus at Edfu Good information

Hatshepsut
Hatshepsut   What a splendorous tomb for the Queen Hatshepsut. Good images with some great descriptions.
The Temple of Queen Hatshesut Excellent images and information on this mysterious temple.

Karnak
The Temple of Karnak    Excellent information.
Karnak   Good information with an image that does not do this great structure much justice.
Karnak: The Sacred Lake Good image with a brief description.
Karnak Temple    All of the sites below are from the PBS site. They have awesome information, are interactive, and have super images. See the temple from all directions.
        Great Court
        Temple of Ramses III
        Great Hypostyle Hall (N Side)
        Great Hypostyle Hall (S Side)

Kom Ombo
The Temple at Kom Ombo    Learn all about this great temple with good information and great images.
Kom Ombo    Great Quick information about this Temple.
Kom Ombo Temple Explore Kom Ombo through a series of pictures with short descriptions.
Kom Ombo QVTR Panorama    These 3-D images let you explore the temple as if you were there in Egpyt.
       High resolution version 400 X 300 (611K)
       Low resolution version 320 X 240 (146k)

Luxor
Luxor    Each image has a detailed description which makes it a snap to learn about this temple.
The Temple at Luxor   Maps, images, and clear descriptions make this site a must when learning about the Temple at Luxor.
Temple Luxor Excellent images with good descriptions make this Luxor page a must.
Luxor QVTR Panorama    These 3-D images let you explore the temple as if you were there in Egpyt.
        High resolution version 400 X 300 (601K)
         Low resolution version 320 X 240 (169K)
Luxor Temple- Nova (PBS) just continues to make such great sites. The images are fantastic and the information is thourough.
        Pylon with Obelisk
        Head of Ramses the Great
        Tomb of Rekhmire

Obelisk
Obelisk   Obelisks represent the rays of sun.
Obelisk Court    Excellent Obelisk site. Great information enhanced with video and images.
Pharaoh's Obelisk A Nova team tries to raise an Obelisk such as the ones found in Ancient Egypt.

Philae
Temple of Philae  Good description of the purpose of the temple.
Philae Excellent images and descriptions of the temple.
Philae Temple A brief description and some great images.
Philae Temple Complex A great picture of the temple.
Philae Great images with brief explanations.

Giza Pyramids
Pyramids    Good descriptions of pyramids in general.
Inside the Great Pyramid of Khufu Great information.
How Old are the Pyramids   Super information.
The Pyramids of Giza  Explore all the pyramids of Giza.
Giza Plateau QVTR Panorama   These images are awesome.
         High resolution version 400 X 300 (585K)
         Low resolution version 320 X 240 (149K)
Tour the Great Pyramid  Journey inside the Great Pyramid.
How Did the Egyptians build the Great Pyramid   Learn about the construction of the pyramids.
The Pyramids  Great images and information on the great pyramids.

Saqqara
Saqqara    Great images and good information.
The Step Pyramid of Saqqara   Check out one of the first Egyptian Pyramids.
Saqqara    See images of the pyramid from all sides.
The Saqqara Project   An archeology expedition to the pyramid.
Saqqara, City of the Dead  An excellent resource to learn more about the main pyramid and the surrounding buildings.

The Tomb of Seti
The Tomb of Seti I QVTR Panaroma   Awesome three dimensional images.
        High resolution version 400 X 300 (636K)
        Low resolution version 320 X 240 (183K)
The Tomb of Seti II The Tomb of Seti II. Return to Egyptian Royal Tombs of the New Kingdom.
GeoPanorama - QTVR Tomb of Seti, Luxor See a three dimensional view of the inside of the pyramid.
Professor Weeks takes us on a Tour of Seti   Join one of our foremost archeologists on a tour of Seti.

The Great Sphinx of Giza
The Sphinx    This is a great resource to learn more about the great Sphix.
The Sphinx    See the Gaurdian of the great pyramids.
The Sphinx     A great explanation of what the Sphinx is all about.
The Great Sphinx    Read about the Great Sphinx.
The Sphinx QVTR Panorama    Wow, These images are fantastic.
        High resolution version 400 X 300 (620K)
         Low resolution version 320 X 240 (152K)
Sphinx   Great images.
Riddles of the Sphinx A great resource to learn all about the sphinx.

Valley of the Queens
The Tombs of Valley of the Queens This has great images with a brief description of each tomb found in the Valley of the Queens
Valley of the Queens Good information but lousy picture.
Valley of the Queens Good information.

Valley of the Kings
Valley of the Kings   Click on "Atlas of the Valley of Kings" to visit this secret, hidden valley and the tombs that have been discovered there.
Valley of the Kings   Difficult reading but excellent explanations.
The Valley of the Kings Super images with descriptive captions.
The Valley of the Kings Great descriptions.

Mummy Activities

Operation Tomb Raider

Your party was a huge success and we gathered many clues to the whereabouts of several tombs around Ancient Egypt. You must break up into small groups and travel to one of these tombs. Your job will be locate the tomb, enter the tomb to investigate the artifacts that you find there to determine if this is the tomb that King Tut is buried in. Use the Ancient EgyptianTombs above to help you on your way.

You will need to work collaboratively to gather the required information in the short amount of time that we have. Each person will need to choose an important collaborative role to make sure that this all goes smoothly.

We suggest that each small collaborative group chooses a:

Team Leader
The Team Leaders job is to organize the expedition and help all the members in the group to focus on their job. They must make sure that their group's work is accurate and thorough. The Team leader will be in charge of reporting their team's finding to the larger group. Their presentation must be thorough, well spoken, and have an illustration to go along with it.

Geography Expert
It is the Geography expert's job to look at the maps of Ancient Egypt to locate where your tomb is located. Once you enter the tomb it will be the Geography expert's job to make a map of the tomb, in case we need to return. Use the maps provided to learn more about the geography of Ancient Egypt.

Archeologist
The Archeologist has a very important job. This person must examine the contents of the tomb (artifacts, mummy, statues, and hieroglyphics) to determine the purpose of this tomb. Their main goal is to look for clues to determine if this tomb is the place we are looking for. Is King Tut buried here? The archeologist must make a detailed drawing and written description of one artifact that helped you determine the purpose of this tomb. Use the Archeology Resources provided to learn more about the geography of Ancient Egypt.

Scribe
The Scribe's job is to keep a detailed list of everything that you find out about this tomb. After your mission is complete this person will organize and write a debriefing paper that records your group's findings.

Revisit the Question

What were Ancient Egyptian Tombs built for?

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Created: June 24, 1998
Updated: June 27, 2003

Ancient Egypt Webquest

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