• The famous fragment of the Gospel of John in the John Rylands library (#11) in the University of Manchester was discovered in EGYPT • The smallest Jewish coin in the first century AD was the LEPTON Interpretation: • Why is the flask #1 called a pilgrim flask? • What is a mosaic floor? •What archaeological evidence demonstrates that in crucifixion nails were driven through the wrist/forearm area rather than the palms of the hands (#5)? •Why did the Romans mint coins inscribed Judea Capta and with the imagery of #6 after the capture and destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70? • Why are pieces of papyrus like #11 rarely found except in very dry countries like Egypt? Extension& Research: • Research the life and career of the Roman procurator Pontius Pilate. Explain the link between the symbols on his coins and his beliefs as revealed in the gospel of Matthew 27:19. • The fragment of John’s gospel (#11) known as the John Rylands papyrus was discovered in Egypt. It dates to between AD 100 and 110, not long after the crucifixion of Jesus. Explain the significance of such finds to the early spread of Christianity. • There were five king Herods named in the New Testament. Name each and briefly describe who they were and their historical significance Case 38 - The Tools & Art of the Stone Age Observation/ Factual recall: • The term Acheulean refers to one type of style of stone tool made by the HOMO ERECTUS people. • Lady of Brassempuoy (#7) is carved from MAMMOTH IVORY • About how old is the carving of the chamois deer (#8) thought to be? c. 16,000 TO 19,000 YEARS BP • When did the bow to be used? (#11) c. 20,000 YRS BP • The Stone Age is divided into three sections. They are the PALAEOLITHIC the MESOLITHIC and the NEOLITHIC • The Cro-Magnon people used mammoth ivory to make numerous items. List three. (Label #10) NEEDLES, SPEARHEADS, PIECES OF ART Interpretation: • Would stone tools be easy to manufacture? How durable would they be? NO. THE PROCESS REQUIRES GREAT SKILL. NOT DURABLE – CHIP AND BREAK EASILY
TOMB Case 45 – The Small Golden Shrine Panel of Tutankhamun Observation/ Factual recall: • The shrine panel from the rear of the small shrine of Tutankhamun was discovered in the ANTE-chamber of his tomb (#1). • The panel is made of embossed sheet gold attached to the wooden panels of the shrine by GESSO (two layers of plaster-soaked linen #1). • The vulture goddess who protects the land of Upper (southern) Egypt is in the top left- hand corner. Her name is NEKHBET • In the top panel (#1) Tutankhamun wears the Blue or WAR crown. • In the lower panel he wears the RED crown of Lower (northern) Egypt. • In the lower panel (#2) the king holds the CROOK and the FLAIL in his right hand over his right shoulder. • The panel is made of GOLD covered wood, but the sledge is wood covered with SILVER Interpretation: • What object found in the shrine led Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon to conclude that a statue was missing from the shrine? A STATUE BASE BUT NO STATUE • Below the vulture goddess Nekhbet in the top left-hand corner is the ankh or “life” sign as if the goddess is presenting it to Tutankhamun. What do you think this means? GIVE LIFE TO THE KING • What is the meaning of the two loop-shaped signs (like a circle with a straight line under it) on the bottom of the palm ribs (below the tadpoles)? INFINITY, FOREVER Extension& Research: • The scenes on both panels show a very relaxed, informal king and Contrast this with the stiff, formal, severe poses, expressions, and attitudes of kings and queens in other periods. Hint: research Amarna art. AMARNA ART IS CAHARACTERISED BY INFORMALITY PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN IN EGYPTIAN ART. PHARAOH AKHENATEN INTRODUCED IT. • Research the symbols of a pharaoh’s – the crook and flail. What do they symbolize? THE POWER OF THE PHARAOH TO GUIDE AND TO DISCIPLINE THE PEOPLE • Find the translations of the two cartouches of Tutankhamun (reproduced below) which appear in both panels. THEY READ: LEFT CARTOUCHE (RIGHT- TO-LEFT top to Bottom): AMUN -TUT-ANKH. Amun is a god
So his name is first. The name is read: (pro. Toot –arnkh-ar-moon) RIGHT CARTOUCHE (RIGHT-TO-LEFT top to Bottom): NEB- KHEPER-U-RE (pro. Neb Khepper –oo-ray). THESE CARTOUCHES ARE THE PERSONAL NAME AND THE THRONE NAME RESPECTIVELY. Case 47 – Troy and the Trojan War Observation/ Factual recall: • The ancient city of Troy is in the modern country of TURKEY • Who was the poet who composed the and the Odyssey? HOMER • How many levels (layers of occupation) do archaeologists usually say the ruins of Troy have today? (see yellow sidebar). THIRTY • The archaeologist who believed that Troy was a real place and not imaginary was HEINRICH Schliemann • Most scholars think that Homer lived in IONIA on the west coast of Turkey. • What find (discovery) made by Heinrich Schliemann at Troy led him to believe that II was that of Homer’s city? Hint: find the red pin. THE “JEWELS OF HELEN“ (ALSO CALLED “PRIAM’S TREASURE”) FOUND NEAR THE RAMP ON THE SOUTHWEST SIDE OF LEVEL II BUT PROBABLY BURIED IN A HOLE DUG DOWN FROM LEVEL III ABOVE. Interpretation: • Schliemann thought that or Level IIc was the ruins of the Troy of the period of the Trojan War. Most scholars today believe that layer or Level SIX is the remains of Homer’s Troy. • Note that three of the soldiers descending from the wooden horse have “figure of eight” shields made of oxhide. How might this explain that the Greek soldiers suffered wounds to their sides? THE SHIELDS FAILED TO PROTECT THEIR SIDES SUFFICIENTLY • How does the proverb “Beware of Greeks bearing gifts” relate to Homer’s story of the Trojan War? THE TROJAN CITIZENS ACCEPTED THE APPARENT GIFT OF THE WOODEN HORSE TO THEIR PERIL Extension & Research: • Research the weapons and armour of the Mycenaean soldier. Remember Homer probably lived in the iron age when iron weapons came into widespread use. However the weapons in the Iliad and the Odyssey are bronze. THE BRONZE WEAPONS REFLECT THE
USE OF BRONZE IN THE EARLIER BRONZE AGE RATHER THAN THE PREDOMINANCE OF IRON IN HOMER’S TIME. SOME WEAPONS USED INCLUDE THE FIGURE OF EIGHT SHIELDS, SCALE ARMOUR AND THE BOAR’S TUSK HELMETS CONSTRUCTED OF BOAR’S TUSKS FITTED OVER A LEATHER CAP. •Archaeology is a destructive science – evidence is destroyed in the very process of discovering it. Research the damage Schliemann’s excavations caused to tell Hissarlik and the difficulties this made for those who followed him. SCHLIEMANN’S WILD DIGGING DESTROYED MANY OF THE LAYERS ABOVE ALMOST COMPLETELY. THOSE FOLLOWING HAD GREAT DIFFICULTY SORTING OUT THE LAYERS THAT WERE LEFT. What happened to the hero Achilles? What part of the body and sports injury relates to his wound? HE WAS SHOT BY AN ARROW IN THE ONLY UNPROTECTED PART OF HIS BODY – HIS HEEL. THE TENDON THERE IS CALLED THE ACHILLES’ TENDON – DAMAGE TO IT RESULTS IN AN INJURY CALLED “ACHILLES' HEEL.” Case 61 – New Kingdom Egyptian Temple Model Observation/ Factual recall: • Who is bathing in the sacred lake? A PRIEST • The faces of the pylons show the pharaoh in red and white crowns clubbing (or smiting) his CAPTIVES or prisoners (Hint: look behind the obelisks for a label). • On the pylons the pharaoh the double crown made up of the RED Crown of Lower (North) Egypt and the WHITE Crown of Upper (Southern) Egypt. • There are two huge STATUES of the pharaoh either side of the temple gate. • How many columns are there in the colonnades surrounding the courtyard? Interpretation: • Why would a scribe set up office near the temple gate? TO OFFER HIS/HER SERVICES TO THE WORSHIPPERS • Inside the courtyard a man & wife are presenting a votive tablet to the god. Look up the word votive and suggest a reason why they be doing this. A VOTIVE OFFERING IS A GIFT PRESENTED TO A GOD/GODDESS TO SECURE THE DEITY’S FAVOUR. PERHAPS THE COUPLE ARE REQUESTING A CHILD • Why the temple complex need to be surrounded by walls? TO SECURE THE TREASURES STORED FROM OFFERINGS Extension & Research: • Egyptians believed that the fluttering pennants on the pylons indicated the presence of the god inside the sanctuary of the temple. Research the association between wind and the presence of the God of Israel as recorded in the • The obelisks outside the temples were frequently very massive - 200-260 tonnes.
Case 10 – ANCIENT SUMER 1 Observation/ Factual recall: • Both the Sumerian and Akkadian civilizations wrote on clay tablets using different types of CUNEIFORM script for their differing languages. • Name two Sumerian rulers who stamped inscriptions naming themselves on mud bricks UR-NAMMU and his son SHULGI. • The stone lamp is (# 2 ) carved in the form of a bull with HORNS AND BEARD • Name four Sumerian cities UR, LAGASH, KISH, URUK, NIPPUR (see right-hand side-bar) Interpretation: • Both the Sumerian and Akkadian civilizations wrote on clay tablets using CUNEIFORM script. • What is the Sumerian man (# 5) wearing? WOOLEN KILT OR And what was one type of animal the Sumerians raised? SHEEP or GOATS • The Sumerian man (#5) is a votive figurine. What does this mean? OFFERED IN A TEMPLE TO WIN A DEITY’s FAVOUR • The Sumerian duck weight has a mass of 5 minas. How heavy is this in grams? 2478 • Shulgi, king of Ur “standardised” the mass of 5 mina weights. What does this mean and why did he do this? HE REGULATED WEIGHTS TO ENSURE FAIRNESS IN BUYING & SELLING Extension & Research: • Research the Sumerians and what they contributed to the technology used in Mesopotamia. • Research the gods of the Sumerians. Explain the relationships between the deities. • Name a god or goddess mentioned in the cuneiform inscriptions in this case (10)? ENLIL and NANNAR . Note CRESCENT MOON OF NANNAR ON LOWER SIDE OF DUCK WEIGHT Case 40 – The Valley of the Kings Observation/ Factual recall: • The Valley of the is located on the WEST bank of the Nile because burials were made where the sun set (and "died" every day) • Three types of sedimentary rocks are sandwiched together in the valley. They are LIMESTONE, SHALE, and MARL. • How many streams still occasionally flood into the valley? 7 • The tombs in the Valley of the Kings were constructed during the 18th to 20th dynasties (lines of pharaohs from 1550 BC to 1050 BC).
• Most of the tombs were ROBBED in ancient times. • List some of the types of workmen who excavated the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. STONEMASONS, DRAUGHTSMEN, SCULPTORS, ARTISTS, CARPENTERS, OVERSEERS, and GUARDS Interpretation: What does the abbreviation KV stand for? KINGS VALLEY. Some nobles were buried in the Valley of the Kings in addition to pharaohs as well as some queens. Why do you think some nobles are buried here? BECAUSE OF THEIR HIGH POSITIONS, HIGH INCOMES, and GOOD STANDING WITH THE PHARAOH Who were the Medjay and what was their role? THE MEDJAY WERE AFRICAN SOLDIERS RECRUITED FROM NORTHERN NUBIA (MODERN SUDAN). IN THE NK THEY WERE USED AS DESERT SCOUTS AND THE PHARAOH'S POLICE. The Valley of the Kings is located near a mountain resembling a pyramid. Since pharaohs were buried in pyramids in the Old Kingdom so that they would be protected by the structure of the pyramid and so that the shape of the pyramid would assist in sending the dead pharaoh to the starry heavens above. Why might this have influenced the Egyptians to choose the current valley as a royal necropolis ("city of the dead")? THE MOUNTAIN CALLED TA DEHENT (pro. TAR DE-HENT) AND SACRED TO THE GODDESS OF SILENCE MERIT SEGER (pro. MEREET SAY-GAR) WAS PYRAMID SHAPED. SO PRESUMABLY IT ACTED AS A KIND OF "COLLECTIVE PYRAMID” FOR ALL THE BURIALS IN THE VALLEY, WHILE THE TOMBS WERE LOCATED IN SECRET LOCATIONS AWAY FROM THE MOUNTAIN. • Some of Tutankhamun's (tomb KV 62) possessions were buried in a pit (KV 54) away from the King's tomb. Why? THE EGYPTIANS BELIEVED THAT ANYTHING WHICH HAD COME INTO CONTACT WITH THE CORPSE OF THE PHARAOH COULD BE USED TO PLACE A CURSE ON THE KING IN THE AFTERLIFE. SO THIS MATERIAL WAS SECRETED WHERE IT WAS UNLIKELY TO BE DISCOVERED AND USED IN THIS MANNER. Approximately how far across is the eastern valley? 700 METRES Extension & Research: Research the Deir el-Bahari (pro. Caysh NOT cash-ay). The mummies of which pharaohs were found in this cache and why were they found here and not in their own tombs? THE MUMMIES OF MORE THAN FIFTY KINGS, QUEENS, ROYALS AND NOBLES HAD BEEN MOVED AND HIDDEN THERE BY THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN PRIESTS AROUND 969BC WHEN THEIR ORIGINAL TOMBS WERE DISCOVERED TO HAVE BEEN LOOTED AND DESECRATED.