First, finding the truth
about mummies is harder than you might suppose. As
I researched my first book on mummies, How
to Make a Mummy Talk, I quickly discovered that there was no "Mummy
Central"--that is, a library or research organization that collected and
maintained information about world mummies. I learned that researchers tend to
specialize in a certain mummy type and often have little interest in other
mummies.
When I finished my second mummy book, Bodies
from the Bog, I was too interested in mummies to forget the subject. So
I decided to put my knowledge to good use and keep learning with you, by
building The Mummy Tombs to help answer
questions about mummies--not just from Egypt, but from around the world. As I
discover more information, I will post it here as soon as I can (remember,
though, I am only one person).
Why bother to do all this for
mummies, you may be wondering?
1. My overall goal is to
encourage learners of all ages.
I am a retired reading
professor (and children's author) who wants to make sure that kids grow up to be
literate. That means producing adults who can read, write, and can get their
question answered. Mummies are such a fascinating subject that children can read
and write about them. Mummies are also a great way to learn about history
and science (rather painlessly, I think).
2. Mummies are a serious
subject that many people misunderstand. Many
people have mistaken ideas about mummies; it is my hope that The
Mummy Tombs will
help clarify information. Explore the stories and facts I have posted here. Then
if you have questions, send me an email.
I grew up watching old mummy
movies on Chiller Theater--and was engaged by their scary plots. I never gave a
thought to the history and science behind mummies, though. Only later, when I
saw my first bog body in the
British Museum (his name is Lindow
Man) did I decide to write a book. I have interests in all sorts of
things (I have written many books), but the most
fascinating subject I have ever researched is mummies. I hope you enjoy reading the
information I have put together for you. The information here is free, and I pay
all costs of this website myself.
Most of the books mentioned on my
site can be found in libraries. I do, however, provide links to an on-line
store, Amazon.com, in case you are
interested in adding them to your own library. Any profits from the commission
that Amazon pays me (and they are very small) subsidize the monthly cost of
maintaining this website.
I try to do some mummy-related
traveling each year.
- In recent years, I have been
able to visit the British
Museum's newly refurbished Egyptian Mummy Rooms as well as Ötzi the
Iceman's new home in the South
Tyrol Museum in Bolzano, Italy.
- In Germany, I have visited the Landesmuseum
in Schleswig, the Landesmuseum
in Hannover, the Moor-
und Fehnmuseum in Elisabethfehn, the Roemer-
and Pelizaeus-Museum in Hildesheim, the Landesmuseum
in Oldenburg, and two smaller Munich museums, including Archäologische
Staatssammlung Museum and Staatliches
Museum Ägyptischer Kunst.
- In the Netherlands, I have visited
the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden
in Leiden, the Allard Pierson
Museum in Amsterdam, and the Drents
Museum in Assen.
- In England, I have visited the Liverpool
Museum where its Egyptian exhibit is getting ready for new quarters;
the Ashmolean
Museum and the Pitt-Rivers Museum in Oxford.
- In Italy, I have visited the
archaeology museums in Naples and Florence and the Egyptian Museum in Turin,
Italy. In researching my book on the human remains found in Pompeii
I visited the site multiple times.
If you visit these links, you
will meet some bog bodies and Egyptian mummies, world mummies, and related
artifacts. Whenever I visit a mummy museum I hope to post more information and
photos.
If you have any mummy news to
share, I'd like to hear from you.
Need help deciding what
research project to do? Or do you want
to share your own project to give other students an idea? Click here
for some suggestions.
Or
would you like to read some recent questions that I have received? Here
they are.
I have visited many
mummy museums around the world, read hundreds of mummy books and articles, and written
three
of my own books about mummies (