One of the most important parts of any scientific research project is to communicate the findings both to fellow scientists and to the public at large. The project hopes to:
Produce a comprehensive and up-to-date catalogue of all the animal mummies in the Cairo Museum. The catalog will include photographs and X-Rays of each mummy as well as all observations made about each mummy, as recorded on the project data sheet. The catalog will include a commentary discussing the environmental and socio-economic implications of these mummies wherever appropriate; the method in which the animals were killed, if it can be determined, and a discussion of the mummies as a cemetery group wherever relevant.
Popular Press
The Project also hopes to produce a well-illustrated popular book about the Animal Mummies, the position of animals in ancient Egypt, and the role of animals in Ancient Egyptian religion. We hope that this volume will be available in both English and Arabic, and possibly French as well.
A children’s book dealing with the subject of ancient Egyptian animals, their mummification, and the study of these subjects might also be produced in conjunction with the project.
A New Exhibition Strategy
The final stage of the project will be to reinstall the mummies in new cases in a refurbished room (see Preservation). This will be an opportunity to create a more informative and interesting presentation of the materials. At present the layout of the Mummy Room is somewhat random and the labeling is sparse. It is the intention of the project to come up with a design and layout strategy that will improve the display not only aesthetically, but also in terms of information and accessibility to a large audience.
The new display strategy will introduce each of the different types of animal mummies (pets, sacred animals, food and votive mummies) and then have specific cases containing the mummies themselves, together with other artefacts related to them. It is hoped that a physical and intellectual reorganization of the Animal Mummy room will provide a more informative and enjoyable, educational museum experience for all ages.
MEET THE PROJECT TEAM
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