Into the Mummy's Tomb: The Real-Life Discovery of Tutankhamun's Treasures

Time Quest

by Nicholas Reeves, Nan Froman

A chronicle of the discovery of King Tut's tomb describes the 1922 excavation and offers photographs of the treasure, diagrams, and a discussion on how mummies were made in ancient Egypt.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Egypt, Historical, Childrens, Archaeology

64 pages, Library Binding

First published October 1, 1992

About the author

Carl Nicholas Reeves (born 28 September 1956) is an English Egyptologist best known for his archaeological work in and writings on the Valley of the Kings. He is currently Sylvan C. Coleman and Pamela Coleman Memorial Fellow for 2010/11 in the Department of Egyptian Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See other authors with similar names.

Background

A specialist in Egyptian history and material culture, Reeves is a graduate (first class honours) in Ancient History from University College London (1979). He received his Ph.D. in Egyptology (Studies in the Archaeology of the Valley of the Kings, with Particular Reference to Tomb Robbery and the Caching of the Royal Mummies) from Durham University in 1984.

He was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1994, and an Honorary Fellow of the Oriental Museum, Durham University in 1996. Between 1998 and 2004 he was Honorary Research Fellow in the Institute of Archaeology, University College London.

Museums

Reeves has been active in various museum and heritage roles, including: Curator in the former Department of Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum (initiating the Survey of Egyptian Collections in the UK - now an important component of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Cornucopia database) (1984–1991); Curator to the seventh Earl of Carnarvon at Highclere Castle (1988–1998); Curatorial Consultant on Egyptian antiquities to the Freud Museum, London 1986-2006); Honorary Curator and Director of Collections for the Denys Eyre Bower Bequest at Chiddingstone Castle, Kent (1995–2002 and 2003–2007); and G.A.D. Tait Curator of Egyptian and Classical Art at Eton College (2000–2010).

Archaeology

Between 1998 and 2002 Reeves worked in the field as Director of the Amarna Royal Tombs Project in Egypt's Valley of the Kings, undertaking four seasons of survey and excavation with an international team in search of evidence for the missing burials of the women of Akhenaten's court. The first stratigraphic excavation of the Valley ever attempted, among the features pinpointed (during the project's 2000 radar survey) was KV-63, subsequently excavated by Otto Schaden then working for the University of Memphis.

Reviews

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read these books all the time as a kid and last year I saw them and at my parents and kifed them. The ones I remembered the most were the books about the Titanic and Mount Vesuvius. I didn't remember this one at all. I have to say, as an adult, I found it wildly enjoyable.

The book tells the tale of Howard Carter discovering King Tut's tomb. It's a story I didn't know and I was completely enthralled. The story read just like a novel. The accompanying photos and diagrams were perfect. I especially appreciated the diagrams of the tomb layout. That really helped me visualize everything.

Great book! I'm glad I can add it to my library! :) (Sorry Mom, it's mine now!)

Last Paragrahph

"The ancient Egyptians believed that if their names were remembered and repeated after their deaths, they would live on in the afterlife. Because of Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter's magnificent discovery, Tutankhamen's story is known throughout the modern world. Every time we speak his name, his wish for eternal life comes true."

[Kristy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It had many pictures and was very well written. This book provided a good background prior to my visit to the exhibition of King Tut. This book specifically discussed how the archaeological dig was funded, what occurred, and how the items were preserved during excavation. There was a small amount dedicated to what newspapers had called was a curse on those who entered the tomb. I remember the reading about the curse of King Tut as a child, but nothing ever discussed the importance of the excavation and significance of this discovery. This book provided a significant amount of information about the entire discovery. Upon going to the exhibit, I looked back at this book and found many of the pictures are also included in the exhibition.

[Child960801 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A much kinder look at Howard Carter than the portrayal in Motel of Mysteries. I've owned this book for 15 years and this was the first time I actually read it. I usually just look at the pictures.

Edit: from October 9, 2019

I received this book as a gift when I was ten years old and I never actually read it until I was an adult. I looked at all the pictures and read their captions and so on, but I didn’t read the actually story of the book until recently. So, author, I’m sorry. Your words just didn’t compare to pictures of golden funeral masks.

This book, written in 1992, is about how Howard Carter in 1922 discovered the tomb of ‘King Tut’ and all that he found there. There are lots of pictures, both actual pictures taken during the excavation and of the treasure found there themselves.

It’s an interesting story. I found that I kept having moments when I winced. Things have changed a lot between now and 1922 (even between now and 1992) and I wonder what things were lost or destroyed because there wasn’t the technology available to preserve them. After reading the book, I looked up ‘King Tut’ on wikipedia and found that a number of modern medical tests have been done on the mummy and so much more is known about him and his health and how this could have led to his death. The moral of that story is: incest is terrible on the offspring.

[Haley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really interesting. I loved all of the pictures that help to illustrate where things were placed in the tombs and the pictures of things that were actually there. I also really enjoyed the way this book was written. It was written like a story, like things were actually happening right in that moment. I kind of forgot the beginning and was so focused on what was happening during the tomb excavation that I didn't remember that there was a whole point to that story, which brings us right back to present day. Overall a super educational and cool way to present this to kids and adults.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book told how Carter found the tomb of the boy king. I was so engrossed when I finally got off the couch it was time for chores! It's not to long but not to short either. I really enjoyed this book.

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second time I've used this book for a project.