Mission 2: Code Name: Mummy

Mission 2:

Code Name: Mummy

Question

Were Ancient Egyptians successful mummy-makers?

Why did the Ancient Egyptians make mummies?

What process did the Ancient Egyptians use to make mummies?

Have their mummies performed the job that they were created for?

Mission Instructions

Your mission is to learn as much as you can about mummies. We have pulled some strings to get you on a crew that is making several of the Pharaohs' royal pets into mummies. Study carefully and learn from this mummification process because it is the same process the Ancient Egyptians used to mummify Pharaohs like King Tut.

You should focus your studies on why the Ancient Egyptians made mummies.

Look into how the Ancient Egyptians made mummies.

Look for modern evidence to that would lead one to a conclusion about the success or failure of the Ancient Egyptians at making mummies.

You will use your acquired knowledge to gain clues to the whereabouts of King Tut and to positively identify King Tut when we find him. Start with the information below and then access your computer and the books we sent with you to learn more about mummies.

Background Information

---Top Secret Document---

Do you want to live forever in eternal happiness? You know, eat the best food, have the perfect weather, have the perfect friends, and have a ton of fun. According to the Ancient Egyptians, you only need to do a few things. 1) Be a Pharaoh (king.) 2) When you die, get mummified. 3) Be buried in a pyramid. ("House of Eternal Life") 4) Have servants take care of your mummy, forever. Easy enough!
We have heard some scary stories about mummies. You know "The Mummy Fights Frankenstein" or the "Curse of King Tut." In reality, Ancient Egyptians buried their dead kings, queens, and even some pets this way. You see, mummies aren't that scary when you look at it that way. In fact, we can learn a lot about the life of the Ancient Egyptians by studying mummies and the pyramids or tombs that they are buried in.
I Want to Learn More

Egyptian Mummy 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 Mummies Online Resources

Explore the Head of the Virtual Mummy
(Need QuickTime VR. Free download from here.) Use your mouse to unwrap the mummy. By moving down you remove layers. Moving up replace layers. Move side to side to rotate the mummies skull.
The Mummy Page
The Clickable Mummy
Mummification
Why did the Egyptians make Mummies?
Oasis of the Dead
Royal Mummies: The face of Pharaoh
An Egyptian Mummification
How to Make A Mummy
Mummies in Ancient Egypt
Mummies of the World
Mummification: EGYPTIAN MUMMIES
Making Mummies
What is a Mummy?
Mummification
Newton's Apple Mummies
Mummification
Egyptian Mummies
Ask the Mummy?
Clickable Mummy
Mummy Masks
Canopic Jars

Mummy Activities

Operation Squid Mummy
We have managed to pull some strings to get you on a crew that is making several of the Pharaohs' royal pets into mummies. Study carefully and learn from this mummification process because it is the same process the Ancient Egyptians used to mummify their Pharaohs.
First, you must work together with your team of experts to investigate and determine the steps that the Ancient Egyptians used to make a mummy. Make sure that you make a complete list of steps for yourself. You will need to follow these steps as you make your own squid mummy. Next, your group will need to obtain a fresh squid. Make this squid into a mummy that your pharaoh will be proud of, using the guidelines that your team created. Make sure that you take digital images of each step you take to make the squid into a mummy.
Create a PowerPoint slideshow of the process you took to make your squid mummy. Make sure that each slide has an image and a detailed description of what you did at this step. You will need to share your slide with the other teams. Then, send your slide show back to our homebase using your computer. Send it by e-mail to homebase@iwebquest.com where we can use your slideshow to teach other secret agents the ancient ways of mummy making.
Other suggested activities:
Preservation Activity
Make a Mummy Activity
Make Your Own Mummy Activity
Exploratorium: Make a Mummy
Experiment: Make a Fruit Mummy

Revisit the Question

Explain why the people of Ancient Egypt made mummies?

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

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