Mesopotamia-Egypt

Royal Tomb of Ur

The British version of the account of the Royal Tomb of Ur was told in a story-like manner that a child could understand and enjoy. As opposed to the American version, in which the article seemed to focus on advertising the Museum of Pennsylvania rather than truly giving an educational lesson. The director of the Museum of Pennsylvania, C. B. Gordon, was the one who taught of the idea of having a jointed expedition with the British Museum, contacting the museum director, Sir Frediric Kenyon. Together, they asked a mutual friend, Sir Charles Leonard Wolley to be in charge of the expedition. Through his search, he found a burial ground where some among the dead were royalty. To prevent a leak of information from occurring, Sir Charles Leonard Wolley send a telegram in Latin to the museum directors.  One thing that caught his attention in particular was Queen Puabi’s tomb. There, he discovered a bull-headed lyre. In the beginning of the excavation, the Sir Wolley’s interest was in the architectural aspect of the burial ground; it was only later on that he truly explored the site, revealing its treasure.  

Rosetta Stone

Under the rule of Napoleon, the French army invaded Egypt and found the Rosetta Stone, in Alexandria. In 1801, the English army soon defeated the French who had no choice but to surrender. The French general had sent out a letter asking for back-up but he was considered crazy and his request was denied. His troops consisted mostly of researchers, not fit to be soldiers. Under the supervision of the Englishmen, the Frenchmen were given the right to leave Alexandria with all there personal belongings which included the historical findings. Now, the Rosetta Stone was coveted by the English but the French general simply said it was his private property. Even though, the British ended up with the valuable artifact, how they managed to gain it is where it gets a bit sketchy. Based on the account of two men who had two different memory of how everything happened no one is really sure. The version that makes the most sense would be that the French general was betrayed and that is how he lost the stone. When the English scholar that was put in charge of decipher the writing on the Rosetta Stone, he had only managed to recognize the names of certain royalties. It was a French scholar that made a true breakthrough by understanding how the Egyptian writings worked themselves. It seems like the British owe the French for their discoveries of the ancient times, seeing as how they made all the efforts.

Ramses II

The statue of Ramses II represents the intelligence of the Egyptian culture as well as the power that this King had over his people. The Egyptian took into consideration the concept of proportion when they were making the statue. This showed that mathematics was involved. The number of people that was needed to create this wonderful piece of art is unimaginable. These people had to be trained, housed and fed, because this project most likely took years to accomplish. This showed that the Egyptians were a tight and well organized community. Of course, they needed a leader that made them be this well mannered which would be Ramses II. In the textbook, there is not a lot of talk about the statue rather it focuses on Ramses II himself. The book talks about all of this king’s major achievement and the statue is just one thing out of many. The things he managed to accomplished through the making of the statue can be seen through his other achievements. Like, for example, his control over his people when it describes his military success. The Egyptian people stayed loyal to him even when it seemed like they were going to lose the battle.