What could be scarier than a mummy all wrapped in rags rising out of its tomb. A favorite Halloween motif is based in ancient history. Cheryl Carpinello shares some facts. Dang it! No walking mummies! Check out Cheryl's Egyptian adventures, Sons of the Sphinx and Tutankhaman Speaks, on Amazon. Find Cheryl on her blog: http://carpinelloswritingpages.blogspot.com
4 Facts About Ancient
Egypt You may Not Know
by Cheryl Carpinello
Since our visit to Egypt in 2008, I’ve
been researching and plan what eventually became my Tween/YA novel
Sons of the Sphinx. I’ve learned so much and wanted to share
with Marva’s readers four of the many amazing facts about Ancient
Egypt.
1. The Rosetta Stone
Discovered by Napoleon’s soldiers during the invasion of Egypt. This stone, with the same message
written three times in Greek, Demotic, and Hieroglyphs, was
instrumental in relearning how to pronounce the hieroglyphic symbols
from Ancient Egypt.
It was later captured by the British and now
resides in the British Museum. I took this picture during our visit
in September 2014. On the top of the stone are the hieroglyphs, in
the middle the demotic script, and on the bottom the Greek.
2. The Egyptian Museum
Located in Cairo, Egypt,
this museum houses the most amazing collection of Egyptian artifacts
in the world. The entire outside of the building is pink!
3. Cartouches of the
Pharaohs
Ancient Egyptian pharoahs
had as many as five names. The birth name and the throne name of the
pharaohs were enclosed in oval called Cartouches. We are most
familiar with Tutankhamen’s throne name and his birth name.
Tutankhamen’s throne
name—Nebkheperure—appears on artifacts found in his tomb like his
golden throne. It is shown below.
At the top of the cartouche is
the sun disk with a basket under it. Next is the bettle with the
three dashes underneath. The name means “Lord of the forms of Re”
(the Sun god).
Tutankhamen’s birth
name or son of Re
was given at birth. This is the name we know him by although
originally his name was Tutankhaten. Tut changed his birth name to
Tutankhamen after the death of his father. This was also when he
abandoned the worship of the Aten and return to worship the Amun.
This is what it looks like.
4. The Opening of the Mouth
Ceremony
In Sons of the Sphinx, the ghost
of Tut must perform this ceremony on another dead pharaoh in order to
take another step forward in his search.
The Opening of the Mouth was often
conducted on a statue of the deceased. The purpose was to enable the
body’s spirit to be able to partake of food and drink in the after
life. It is an elaborate ceremony with prayers said to Re. If the
ceremony is not performed, then the deceased’s spirit will not
survive in the afterlife.
And now that Sons of theSphinx is published and waiting for readers, I am still drawn to
that Ancient and Mysterious land. I continue to read and absorb all I
can. Who knows, I may revisit that land in a future book. For now,
here are some of my favorite reads. Maybe you’ll get hooked on
Ancient Egypt also!
Bibliography
Beneath the Sands of Egypt by
Archaeologist Donald P. Ryan; non-fiction
Omm Sety's Egypt By Dorothy Eady; a memoir
Discovering Tut-ankh-Amen's Tomb edited by Shirley Glubok; non-fiction
The Lost Army of Cambyses by Paul Sussman; fictional series
Description De L’Egypte by Franco Serino. A look at the diaries and drawings of Napoleon’s savants from 1798.
Omm Sety's Egypt By Dorothy Eady; a memoir
Discovering Tut-ankh-Amen's Tomb edited by Shirley Glubok; non-fiction
The Lost Army of Cambyses by Paul Sussman; fictional series
Description De L’Egypte by Franco Serino. A look at the diaries and drawings of Napoleon’s savants from 1798.
The Nile: A Journey Downriver
Through Egypt’s Past & Present by Toby Wilkinson;
non-fiction
