GHS Year 11 Tomb Project 1999

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Introduction

Some years ago I decided that a more "hands on" approach to the study of Ancient History would benefit students both in their understanding of the material and in an appreciation of the society and its people. My first tentative steps involved having students research the decorations in Egyptian tombs and then select scenes to go on the classroom walls. This was a mixture of both royal and private burials. Gradually I refined the process into the selection of a specific tomb and one room in that tomb. Last year the class reproduced the burial chamber of Tutankhamun. The benefits of this exercise is still apparent today when those students, now in year 12, can still recall evidence from this tomb. (They refer to the scenes by their position on the classroom walls!) "Wasn’t that the Opening of the Mouth ceremony with Tutankhamun and Ay on the side wall?"

The 1999 Project
This year our selection has been the tomb of Senneferi ( Theban Tomb 99 ) which has been recorded by Nigel Strudwick and his team and posted on the Internet. It was this site which attracted my attention. It is a thorough presentation of the excavation and recording of a tomb. This site provided a readily accessible source of material which could be incorporated into our project. While the choice of tombs seemed an easy task, the actual reproduction has been far from simple! I began to realise that so much was missing. I decided to get in touch with Nigel Strudwick via his e-mail address. His kind responses have made the initial project an even more meaningful one than I had anticipated. We have been provided with such detailed material that has enable us to create a more realistic effect than would have been possible otherwise.

The Teams
As with the Ancient Egyptian workmen, we also have teams allocated to projects, perhaps not in quite the same way, but students do gain an appreciation of having to work in coordinated teams to achieve an overall effect. The class divided into five teams of their choosing. Four teams are responsible for the four walls and the columns and the fifth team has the daunting task of trying to reproduce the artefacts which would have been in the tomb.

The Aims and Objectives
The Tomb project takes on average about 12 weeks of work. The extent of this year’s task has meant that this time-frame may have to be extended. In order to comply with the requirements of the NSW Preliminary Course in Ancient History, it incorporates both the study of an Ancient Society ( New Kingdom Egypt / Deir el Medina ) and a Case Study (Senneferi’s Tomb ).
The knowledge, skills, values and attitudes which students develop cover those listed in the Syllabus:

SYLLABUS REQUIREMENTS	RELATED PROJECT ACTIVITY
understanding the forces which have affected societies, groups, and individuals through time	the development of Egyptian tombs and tomb construction
knowledge and understanding of civilisations which have influenced the ideas, beliefs and values of modern societies	the fascination for, and influence of, ancient Egypt upon the world today
knowledge and understanding of the ways in which the ancient historian interprets and reconstructs the past	using the Internet project on Senneferi and printed sources on Egyptian tombs and their construction
critical evaluation of sources; judgement of sources; communication of logical arguments concerning historical issues and concepts	source studies - texts and reliefs - discussion and written report for posting on the Internet
empathising with people in the past	the actual construction of the tomb and artefacts
asking historical questions	on-going class discussion as tomb progresses
researching and investigating historical problems and issues	Research Assessment Task on Egyptian Society
dealing with gaps in ancient evidence	researching and selecting reliefs to fill the damaged/destroyed areas of the tomb
developing a sense of historical perspective	the use and reuse of the tomb - from the Internet
gaining an understanding of present and possible future circumstances	what similarities and differences occur between beliefs and burials in ancient Egypt and the world today - where are we going given that some people are being cryogenically preserved
developing a life-long interest and enthusiasm for Ancient History	the experience is unforgettable - so the students still tell me
acquiring and clarifying a developing philosophy of life and values	how we can contribute to our future through an understanding of how and why events such as the construction and excavation of Senneferi’s tomb occur
acquiring an appreciation of cultural diversity	beliefs and burials may be different in different cultures and thus reflect diversity in our world and its history

Sue Angelo ( Galston High School History Faculty 1999 )

(Head Teacher English/HSIE Warren Central School 2001 - 2003)

(Head Teacher History East Hills Girls Technology High School 2006 - 2008)

The information in this website has been obtained by the students as an assignment task.