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Making Meaning

About Tutankhamun

Tutankhamun (circa 1341–1323 b.c.) was an Egyptian pharaoh, or monarch, who ruled from approximately 1332 to 1323 b.c. King Tut, as he has come to be known, was only nine or ten years old when he ascended to the throne. Evidence suggests that he suffered from a variety of health problems, including malaria and a rare bone disease, and probably walked with a cane. He died at the age of nineteen. Given his youth and health problems, it is likely that most of his political decisions were made by advisors. During Tutankhamun’s reign, Egypt renewed neglected relationships with other kingdoms and states, and engaged in several military campaigns. (The image shown here is a mask that was found on Tutankhamun’s mummy. It was made in his likeness out of gold and precious stones and was used to cover the king’s mummified face.)

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LOOk at each image and determine whom or what it portrays.

CONNECT details in the images to other media you’ve experienced, texts you’ve read, or images you’ve seen.

NOTE elements in each image that you find interesting and want to revisit.

RESPOND by completing the Comprehension Check.

Fit for a King: Treasures of TutankhamunTechnical VocabularyThe following words or concepts will be useful to you as you analyze, discuss, and write about ancient objects.

Egyptology: study of the language, culture, and history of ancient Egypt

• Someone who studies Egyptology is called an Egyptologist.

• In the United States, Egyptology is more associated with archaeology, or the scientific study of human history. In Europe, it is more associated with the study of language.

artifact: portable object made, modified, or used by people

• Rare artifacts often have great scientific, historic, and cultural value.

•Artifacts that are very rare, made of precious materials, or culturally significant may have high monetary value.

iconography: system of symbolic images that conveys a subject, worldview, or concept

•Most cultures have iconography that is unique and recognizable.

•Changes in a culture’s iconography may signal shifts in its economy, religion, politics, or another fundamental aspect of a society.

context: position and immediate surroundings of an artifact or other feature in the location where it is found

•An artifact’s context helps archaeologists understand its function and importance.

• If the location has been undisturbed since the artifact was first placed there, it is called primary context. If the location has been changed by human or other activity, it is called secondary context.

First Review MEDIA: ART AND PHOTOGRAPHYApply these strategies as you conduct your first review. You will have an opportunity to complete a close review after your first review.

StandardSReading Informational TextBy the end of grade 10, read and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 9–10 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

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ANCHOR TEXT | PHOTO EssAy

NOTESPHOTO 1: Objects in the Antechamber Harry Burton was an archaeological photographer who was part of Howard Carter’s team. Burton took this photo of objects in the tomb’s Antechamber. These include a cow-headed couch and boxes containing joints of meat.

BACKGROUNDIn 1922, a British archaeologist named Howard Carter discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor, Egypt. It had taken Carter more than ten years to locate the tomb, and the discovery changed the world. Unlike most Egyptian tombs that had been unearthed, Tutankhamun’s was nearly undisturbed. For more than three thousand years, the four chambers of the tomb had protected the mummified remains of the pharaoh—the first intact mummy ever found—as well as a trove of nearly four thousand objects. The tomb held jewelry, beds, couches, chairs, vases, statues, chariots, thrones, weapons, and shrines. There were musical instruments, lamps, vessels containing ointments and oils, board games, fine clothing, fans, numerous bottles of wine, and food. The ancient Egyptians believed their pharaoh would need these items in the afterlife. The discovery of the glories within King Tut’s tomb captured the world’s imagination and sparked widespread interest in ancient Egypt that continues to this day.

Fit for a King:

Treasures of Tutankhamun

SCAN FOR MULTIMEDIA

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photo 2: Cobra Uraeus Diadem This diadem, or crown, was found on Tutankhamun’s mummy in the tomb’s Burial Chamber. It features representations of a vulture and a cobra, both of which symbolize the power of the pharaoh. The vulture represents Upper Egypt, and the cobra uraeus—or rising cobra—represents Lower Egypt. The vulture’s head is made of solid gold. The cobra is also gold inlaid with precious stones. Tutankhamun wore this diadem, or one like it, during his lifetime.

photo 3: Alabaster Funerary Barge This alabaster vessel was probably used to hold perfume. Egyptologists believe it is a replica of Tutankhamun’s funerary barge. It is fourteen inches tall, highlighted with gold leaf, and inlaid with glass and semiprecious stones. The object was found in the tomb’s Annex, a room that was originally used as a storage chamber.

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PHOTO 4: Golden Flabellum, or Fan Tutankhamun was buried with eight large fans, including the one shown here. This gold fan was originally mounted on a long pole and fitted with 42 ostrich feathers. One side shows a hunting scene with the figure of the young pharaoh in a chariot. The other side shows his return from the hunt. This object was found in the tomb’s Burial Chamber.

PHOTO 5: Canopic Chest Canopic jars were used to hold the internal organs of the deceased—the liver, lungs, stomach, and intestines—which were removed during the mummification process. Ancient Egyptians believed the dead would need these organs in the afterlife. This chest was found in the tomb’s Treasury. It holds four canopic jars made of alabaster. The four lids (two of which are shown here) represent Tutankhamun wearing a headdress that features the vulture and cobra, symbols of the pharaoh’s power.

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MAKING MEANING

Close ReviewLook at the photo essay again. Write down any new observations that seem important. What questions do you have? What can you conclude?

Analyze the Media Notebook Respond to these questions.

1. Generalize What do these objects suggest about the types of things ancient Egyptians felt were important?

2. Infer Photo 1 shows part of the tomb’s Antechamber as Carter’s team first found it. What does this image reveal about the organization of objects in the Antechamber? Explain.

3. Analyze The treasures with which Tutankhamun was buried were seen as necessary to his existence in the afterlife. What do these objects suggest about ancient Egyptians’ views of both earthly life and the afterlife? Explain.

4. Extend The discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb and its treasures generated worldwide interest in ancient Egypt. Using your knowledge of the discovery, explain why you think this is so.

5. Essential Question: What do our possessions reveal about us? What have you learned about materialism from examining this photo essay?

TECHNICAL voCAbuLARy

Use these words as you discuss, analyze, and write about the photo essay.

Egyptologyartifacticonographycontext

WoRD NETWoRK

Add words related to materialism from the text to your Word Network.

Comprehension CheckComplete the following items after you finish your first review.

1. What objects are represented in each of the four color photographs?

2. Cite three other types of objects that were found in Tutankhamun’s tomb but do not appear in these five photographs.

3. What symbolism appears on the objects represented in both Photo 2 and Photo 5?

STANDARDSLanguageAcquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.

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