UNDERSTANDING THE

TEXT
1. Give reasons for the following :
(i) King Tut's body has been subjected to repeated scrutiny.
Ans. Tut was the last heir of the powerful family that ruled Egypt for
centuries. He wasjust a teenager when he died. The modern world has
been interested to know how hedied, and how old he was when he died.
So his body has beensubjected to repeated scrutiny.

(ii) Howard Carter's investigation was resented.

Ans. Howard Carter was the British archeologist who discovered Tut's
tomb in 1922. He had to chisel Tut's mummy out of his gold coffin. He
has to cut it limb by limb. His investigation was resented because he left
the mummy in a very bad condition.

(lii) Carter had to chisel away the solidified resins to raise the
King's remains.

Ans. The ritual resins had so hardened that the mummy was cemented
to the bottom of his solid gold coffin. Even the sun could not loosen the
resins. Every effort to remove the mummy failed. So Carter had to chisel
away the solidified resins to raise the mummy. Had he not done so, the
plunderers would have destroyed the mummy to steal the gold coffin.
(iv) Tut's body was buried along with gilded treasures.
Ans. The ancient royals of Egypt were fabulously wealthy. They believed in
afterlife. They also believed that they could take their wealth with them. So
gilded treasures were buried with them.
(v) The boy king changed his name from Tutankhaten to
Tutankamun.
Ans. Amun was a major God of ancient Egypt. He was worshipped by all.
But Amenhotep IV promoted the worship of God Aten. There was much
turmoil in the empire Tut who succeeded him restored the worship of
Amun. He changed his name to Tutankhamun the living image of Amun,

2 (i) List the deeds that led Ray Johnson to describe Akhenaten as
"wacky".
Ans, According to Ray Johnson Akhenten was wacky because-
1. He promoted the worship of Aten instead of Amun.
2. He moved the religious capital from Thebes to the new city of Akhetaten.
3. He smashed Amun's images.
4. He closed Amun's temples.
5. He changed his name to Akhenaten or servant of Aten.
(ii) What were the results of the C.T. scan ?
Ans. The C.T. machines scanned the mummy head to toe creating 1,700
digital X-ray images. Neck Vertebrae, hand, several images ofribcage, and
transaction of the skullare clearly seen.65%
iii) List the advances in technology that have improved
forensic analysis.

Ans. Today C.T. technology helps us to take hundreds of X-

ray images in cross-sections. They can be put together like
slices of bread tp create three dimensional virtual body.
This provides precise data for an accurate forensic
reconstruction.

(iv) Explain the statement, "King Tut is one of the first

mummies to be scanned- in death as in life..." ?

Ans. There are hundreds of mummies in Egypt. But

Tut's is the first to be scanned. He remains the first even
in death, as he was the first among his countrymen when
he lived. He was a ruler, an emperor.
 Discuss the following in groups of two pairs, each in a group taking
opposite points of view.
1, Scientific intervention is necessary to unearth buried mysteries.

Ans. For: If you think history has any relevance in our life, we must get at
the truth. There are so many mysteries which remain unsolved. For
example, we know very little about the Indus civilisation. The seals remain
un-deciphered. This needs scientific investigation. Without scientific
intervention they will remain in the dark.
Against: No doubt we need to know the past. History has relevance in our
life. But sometimes we take it too far. King Tut's mummy has been
repeatedly investigated. Inspite of spending millions of dollars, nothing new
has been revealed. We must utilise our resources to help the living rather
than investigating the dead
2. Advanced technology gives us conclusive evidence of past events.

Ans.For : Today technology is so advanced that we can reconstruct the

past. For example, we know how Pompeii was destroyed. But now we have
reconstructed the whole city. We know precisely how the people lived.
Against: It is an empty boast that advanced technology gives us conclusive
evidence of past events. Let us take the case of King Tut. It has been C.T.
scanned. What can it tell us how he died. If he was murdered who murdered
him and why ? C.T. scan might give some idea how he died. But it cannot
give conclusive evidence
 3. Traditions, rituals and funerary practices must be respected.

Ans. For : People who buried their dead with rituals and funerary practices did so
withreverence for their dead. They wanted to lie in peace, undisturbed. We must
respect their sentiments.

Against: People in ancient times had some beliefs and funerary rituals. By
investigating into them we can know much about them. It adds to our knowledge
about the progress of human civilisation in different parts of the world

4. Knowledge about the past is useful to complete our knowledge of the

world we live in.

Ans. For : Indeed the present is the outcome of the past. So we must know the
past to understand the present and the world the live in.

Against: I think it is a wild goose chase. Today there is much interest in dinosaurs,
We wonder how they ceased to exist. But can it help us to complete our
knowledge of the present ? I don't think so, we live in a world that has nothing to
do with dinosaurs world.
 THINKING ABOUT THE TEXT

1. Read the following piece of information from The

Encyclopedia of Language by David Crystal.

Egyptian is now extinct: its history dates from before the

third millennium B.C., preserved in many hieroglyphic
inscriptions and papyrus manuscripts. Around the second
century A.D., it developed into a language known as
Coptic. Coptic may still have been used as late as the early
nineteenth century and is still used as a religious language
by Monophysite Christians in Egypt.
2. What do you think are the reasons for the extinction of
languages ?

Languages die out with the changing times. Changes are

influenced by rulers anD
circumstances. People learn new languages and forget the old,
when the old ones lose their utility.

3. Do you think it is important to preserve languages ?

Ans it is important to preserve languages. If we do not preserve

them, much of literature and history is lost to us.

4. In what ways do you think we could help prevent the

extinction of languages and dialects ?

We can help to prevent the extinction of languages by teaching

them in Colleges andUniversities. Government and institutions
can financially help the scholars of thoselanguages.
 WORKING WITH WORDS

Given below are some interesting combinations of words.

Explain why they have been together:

• ghostly dust devils (vi) dark-bellied clouds

(li) desert sky (vii) casket grey
(iii) stunning artefacts (viii) eternal brilliance
iv) funerary treasures (ix) ritual resins
(v) scientific detachment (x) virtual body

Ans. The first part in these combinations, are describing words. They make
the description of a thing vivid. The word 'ghostly' gives a graphic
description of dust devils

. Similarly, adding 'dark-bellied' to 'clouds' give us a clear picture of clouds

which otherwise was bare.
Q. Here are some commonly used medical terms. Find out their meanings :

C.T.scan - computed tomography is a computerised technique for

displaying a cross-section through the body using X-rays or
ultrasound.
Autopsy - process of post-mortem done on a dead body to examine
causes for various things.

Post Mortem - actual post-mortem done on a dead body when doctors cut it
to investigate for various events.
MRI - it is magnetic resolution imaging

Dialysis - the process of purification of a person's blood by filtering it

through a membrane.

Angiography - radiography of blood or lymph vessels carried out after

introduction of a substance that is opaque to X-rays.

Tomography - a technique for displaying a cross-section througn the body

using X-rays or ultrasound.
ECG - Electro cardiogram-a record of the electric current produced
by heartbeats.
Biopsy - an examination of tissue taken from a living body.
 Extra Questions
1. Who was Tut ?

Tut was the emperor of Egypt who died about 3300 years ago. He was the last
heir of a powerful family that ruled Egypt for centuries. He was a teenager when
he died

2. Who discovered Tut's tomb and when ?

Ans. The British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered Tut's tomb in 1922. He
discovered it in the ancient Egyptian cemetery known as the 'Valley of Kings'.

3. "The mummy is in very bad condition because of what Carter did in the
1920's.“ Who said these words and why ?

Ans. These words were spoken by Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt's
Supreme Council of Antiquities. He spoke these words when he looked at Tut's
mummy. Carter had cut it into pieces to remove it from its gold coffin.

4. What was Tut's body was buried with ?

Ans. Tut's body was buried with stunning artifacts in gold and things of everyday
use like board games, broze razor, linen garments, cases of food and wine.
5. Why were so many things were buried with the mummy ?

Ans. The ancient Egyptians believed in afterlife. They had fabulous wealth and
hoped that they could carry it with them. The eternal brilliance of gold ensured
resurrection. Everyday things they would need in afterlife.

6. How did Howard Carter remove the mummy from its solid gold coffin ?

Ans. Howard Carter found the body firmly cemented to the bottom of the gold
coffin because the ritual resins had hardened through centuries. When the blazing
could not loosen the resins, Carter chiselled the resins to remove the mummy.

7. What is Carter's argument for cutting the mummy limb by limb to remove
it from the coffin ?
Ans. Tut had precious collars, necklaces, bracelets, rings, amulets and other
glittering ornaments. Carter said that if he had not cut the mummy free, thieves
would have destroyed it to remove the gold.

8. Why did an anatomy professor X-rayed Tut's mummy 40 years after its
discovery ?
Ans. Archaeology has shifted its focus on the mysteries of death and life rather
than on treasures. The anatomy professor found that Tut's breast bone and front
ribs are missing.