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The National Geographic Museum's Queens of Egypt exhibition has been on our "to do" list for awhile now. We loved Nat Geo's Tomb of Christ exhibit last year so much that Meg and Clare went twice. The 3D and virtual reality experiences messed with Anne's sense of balance a bit too much, so we weren't sure she would join us for this outing. I am happy to say Meg and Clare talked her into going.
Meg has been excited to see the Queens of Egypt exhibit because she has been taking an online reading course about Ancient Egypt. She aspires to be an archaeologist, so she is our resident expert on all things ancient. Clare will be studying ancient cultures in school this coming year and she has an ongoing fascination with Egyptian princesses as you can see from her most recent Halloween costume. (Meg is the mummy. I have no idea if I can make an Egyptian connection to Anne's Ninja Turtles costume.)
Meg has been excited to see the Queens of Egypt exhibit because she has been taking an online reading course about Ancient Egypt. She aspires to be an archaeologist, so she is our resident expert on all things ancient. Clare will be studying ancient cultures in school this coming year and she has an ongoing fascination with Egyptian princesses as you can see from her most recent Halloween costume. (Meg is the mummy. I have no idea if I can make an Egyptian connection to Anne's Ninja Turtles costume.)
My own interest in Egyptian archaeology has increased greatly since I began reading the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters. You can find my blog post on the series here. I am now on book 7 in the series and continue to love it. I do recommend beginning with the first book, Crocodile in the Sandbank, though I admit the early books in the series can be difficult to locate in libraries.
We enjoyed the Queens of Egypt exhibit quite a bit. While the older girls were disappointed there was no virtual reality element, there is an amazing 3D exploration of the tomb of Nefertari. Additionally, the accompanying displays were far more extensive than the displays for the Tomb of Christ. A scavenger hunt, provided by the museum, helped us to fully explore these displays. Anne and I learned about the shabtis, tiny wooden statues that were included in the tomb to provide workers for the afterlife. Here is a picture of Anne trying to look scared of the shabtis.
We enjoyed the Queens of Egypt exhibit quite a bit. While the older girls were disappointed there was no virtual reality element, there is an amazing 3D exploration of the tomb of Nefertari. Additionally, the accompanying displays were far more extensive than the displays for the Tomb of Christ. A scavenger hunt, provided by the museum, helped us to fully explore these displays. Anne and I learned about the shabtis, tiny wooden statues that were included in the tomb to provide workers for the afterlife. Here is a picture of Anne trying to look scared of the shabtis.
The exhibit also included hands-on displays. There was a display teaching how to play Senet, the oldest known board game. There was a display that allowed visitors to use hieroglyphic cards to create words. A touch screen display allowed Meg and Clare to learn about hieroglyphics and the role of scribes in Egyptian society. One of Meg's favorite rooms in the exhibit was about the assassination of Ramses III through the plotting of one of his secondary wives. She was fascinated that researchers had only recently been able to solve the mystery of how he died, though his body was found over a hundred years ago.
We highly recommend this exhibit, which is open until September 15, 2019. There is a family day about the Secrets of Egypt at the National Geographic Museum on July 20, 2019. If your child is interested in reading fictional books inspired by Ancient Egypt, Meg highly recommends Rick Riordon's The Kane Chronicles and R.L. LaFevers' Theodosia series.
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