Sun, Sand, Mosquitoes and the Dead

Digging the Middle Cemetery at Abydos, Egypt

Last week the Year 10 and 11 students who are enrolled to do Ancient History in 2014 had an introduction to their course of Ancient Egypt.

This time, the students were teleported into the ancient Egypt by their vivid imagination and the help of our enchanting guest speaker, Heather Tunmore, an experienced Egyptologist and Epigrapher from the WA Museum.

Mrs Tunmore's fascinating presentation, based on her professional involvement, was enlightening and provided an interesting insight into the archaeological discoveries at Abydos, one of the oldest cities in Upper Egypt, 11 km west of the Nile, which hosted thirty dynasties in its rich history (3100 - 343 BC).

The sacred city of Abydos was the site of many ancient temples, including Umm el-Qa'ab, a royal necropolis where early Pharaohs were buried.

The focus of the lecture was on the most recent excavations of the Middle Cemetery at Abydos that contains many burials ranging from the poorest to the most extravagant tombs.

Unfortunately, this site has been plundered and excavated over time by numerous archaeologists searching for treasure and artefacts.

Consequently, a lot of material is either missing or scattered throughout the world.

Along with the most attractive aspects in the lives of archaeologists which are associated with the deciphering of mysteries, especially those related to the role of mummies and magic in the Egyptians' beliefs in the afterlife, there is the other inevitable aspect of the reality which is connected to all the hardship faced by these scholars in the arduous scientific process of discovering and transferring the knowledge of archaeological material from the physical environment into lavishly illustrated educational and academic textbooks and other publications.

Listening to our guest's stimulating descriptions and looking at the authentic photographs from the site, everyone is much more aware of everyday challenging demands which are implied in the lecture's title: 'Sun, Sand, Mosquitoes and the Dead: Digging the Middle Cemetery at Abydos, Egypt'.

Evidently, the dedication and persistence of these experts, as well as the advancement and effectiveness of new technologies and methods applied in the modern archaeology, continue to inspire ceaselessly ancient history lovers at our school.

Hopefully, similar opportunities will find a way to our classrooms again in the future and nobody will deprive us of such terrific learning experiences.