“Go ahead Lonnie Joe... try,” said Dr. Scarburg.
“Okay...here goes. We see a ‘quail chick’, a ‘basket”, a ‘vulture’, and ‘water.’ The meaning is ‘Great sea’ or as we would say the ‘Ocean.’
Then the meaning changes - uh, uh, guys I don’t like this. Next is a ‘hand,’ a ‘vulture’ and a uh, uh, ‘mouth’ these are the symbols for…for...
“What Lonnie, what?”
“I don’t want to say it!
“What do those three symbols mean Lonnie?
“Uh...uh... Death!!”
“Next is a number but I’ll just have to make a stab at it - not guaranteeing anything. The number begins with the symbol for the Egyptian God Heh. You all can see Heh is the hieroglyphic resembling a fisherman describing a lost big fish. Egyptians use Heh as the word for one million. The “coil of rope” stands for 100 and the symbol looking like an‘i’ or a straight line means the figure one. Notice there are three ‘lines’. The rest is about the darkening of the sun, moon and stars. There are figures symbolizing blood in the sea, things in the ocean dying and the last drawing indicates burning ships. They end with a drawing of a bull, a man, a bird and a lion. I have no explanation for these last four things. They have never been recorded together!”
“Now try to put it all together for us, in English, Lonnie Joe.”
“Okay. A comet or fireball is falling from the sky into the ocean causing it to turn to blood. Fish and sea creatures die, ships are set ablaze and three hundred million die - maybe it is three hundred million bulls, men, birds and lions but that doesn’t make any sense - there’s nothing more Dr. Scarburg.”
“Tell us what it means!”
“I don’t know WHAT it means but obviously it was extremely important 3300 years ago. Funny thing though Dr. Lou there wasn’t three hundred million people alive 3300 years ago?”
“Is there a date when this happened?” Lou asked.
“Happened? No, you all don’t understand. They drew the hieroglyphics as a warning... it hasn’t occurred. It is GOING to happen - the date is over the entranceway is written in plain English. So future generations would not misinterpret - 21 December 2012....
Everyone was standing in the cool burial chamber letting these new revelations sink in when a loud shout emanated from the vicinity of the rear wall. All lamps and flashlights immediately swung around to ascertain its origin.
It came from Roche.
“What’s happening Roche? What is it,” asked Lou?
“I was leaning against this wall listening to LJ explain the hieroglyphics when all of a sudden a small portion of the wall gave way. Looks like there is another room behind the one we’re in.”
Everyone hurried over to examine the newly discovered find. “Roche you are right. There is another opening. Bring one of those flashlights over and let me peer into the blackness on the other side.”
Down on his knees Dr. Scarburg penetrated the darkness on the other side of the wall seeing for the first time things that had not been viewed for thirty-three centuries.
“What do you see?”
“A room approximately the same size as this one we are in and...and...”
“What? What? Tell us what you see.”
“Like Howard Carter said when he in discovered the tomb of King Tut, that’s what I see also, ‘wonderful things.’
Trying to widen the entrance they all began grabbing pieces of rock and brick. Tossing them aside, opening the hole more and more with each piece removed. Finally they found a small hidden door. It became clear from examining the wall that a regular size door originally filled this space but now the passageway between the two rooms was just a narrow opening. Lou continued to kneel to see the marvelous sight within the adjoining room.
“Without a pick and some more shovels only one of us will be able to get through this opening.”
Gabby stepped forward before Lou could finish. “My scrawny butt was good enough to save your scrawny butts in the sandstorm so it better be good enough now to perhaps make the biggest discovery since King Tut’s tomb.”
“Well spoken Sis. Take this flashlight and see if you can get through.”
“All right lets go.”
Squeezing through the narrow slit in the wall was not as hard as first thought. Once Gabby was securely through the opening and into the dank blackness her flashlight beams darted from one side of the room to the other. Her excitement could not be contained, “Oh! Oh! You all have to see this,” she said to the others lying on their stomachs straining to see in at the narrow entrance.
“Tell us Gabby... tell us what you see!”
“Lou it’s beautiful... the room is full of...of...fabulous objects...golden animals, jars, baskets of beautiful objects, and other things I can’t identify. Gold…gold…there’s gold everywhere.”
“Burial items...those are objects that the dead would need in their afterlife. Obviously this tomb has never been raided by grave robbers in the past.” Lou responded at the ‘door’.
“Lou there is another sarcophagus sitting in the center of the room - it is beautifully decorated. It is made of granite and sits on four legs that support it. I believe the legs are alabaster. There is a small most exquisite looking little vase sitting neatly in the middle of the lid. But the lid has almost been removed. It is barely hanging on the stone box.”
“Be careful Gabby. The mummy probably has already been removed and that lid may only be balanced and ready to fall. Did you say a vase? What the...? Egyptians would not leave anything on a sarcophagus, much less a vase. Describe it.”
“Okay Lou... its about four inches in diameter and about eight inches tall... it is made of alabaster too, I think. Wait... there’s something inside.”
“What is it?”
“It’s a piece of rolled up papyrus with writing on it.”
“Bring it over to the entrance and let LJ decipher the hieroglyphics.”
“Decipher...? Decipher hell... I can decipher this... it’s written in English.”
“What...? English...? No....read it...what does it say?”
“No...no...how can this be...this doesn’t make any sense.”
“Talk to us Gabby, tell us something!”
“The papyrus reads:
‘Hello Gabrielle,
I wish I could meet you in person but I know I will have been gone many centuries when you finally read this.
Your grandfather was present when my captors took me away from your world and transported me here to ancient Egypt. He will have to explain, I have not enough time now, I write this note because I’m begging you to do a couple of favors for me - please tell my daughter Delores and my husband Detlef that I loved them and I would never have left them willingly.
Inside this jar you will find my wedding ring - would you please give it to my beautiful daughter and give her a kiss for me.
Tell Delores and my husband that I have missed them both very much and not to be sad, I led a good life here in Egypt.
Also explain to her that I wished so much that I could have been with her and I have watched her grow up. Tell her I have been very proud of her. And even thought we were centuries apart I have always loved her dearly. Gabrielle, some fantastic technology that my captors possessed allowed me to occasionally ‘peek’ into the future. This is how I kept up with Delores’ life and how I knew you would find me in this place one day. Sorry we could not have met in person in this life, I’ll be waiting for you in the next.
I have to go, someday you will meet a little man - he will explain all of this to you. You will recognize him by the silver necklace he wears.
Thank you - Helga’
“Lou! This is crazy stuff...she has written about me! She mentions me by name. What does this mean?”
“Gabby, get out of there.”
“Wait Lou... I see something else... Oh no...!”
“What is it?”
“Lou there is a piece of furniture that looks lik
e a open faced cabinet. It has five shelves made of a beautiful black wood.”
“Okay, that is not unusual to find in a burial tomb. The wood is probably Egyptian Ebony. It is very hard and made great furniture. Finding that type cabinet would be normal. ”
“No Lou... it’s not the cabinet it’s what on the shelves!”
“What...? What do you mean, Gabby?”
“Skulls. Lou there are a number of human skulls. Well I think they are human.”
“What do you mean, ‘you think they are human’? Why would say that? How many are there?”
“I don’t know, a bunch, twelve maybe fifteen. It’s dusty and dark and I cannot see well enough to count accurately. Lou, they have real skinny faces and the top of the heads are misshapen and elongated. I’m going to bring one over to you.”
Gabby picked up one skull, wiped the dust from it gently and carried it to the small entrance hole where Lou and the rest of the team waited. Lou reached in, took the priceless object from Gabby and backed out into the light holding it outstretched so all could see.
Gabby continued shouting through the hole in the wall, “Lou there is a small box sitting next to the sarcophagus. It appears to have something in it that looks like dried leather. I believe it was alive at one time.”
“Bring it to me too, Gabby, it’s probably a funerary box. It should hold the liver and the intestines of whoever was originally in the sarcophagus.”
“Yuck! It’s all yours,” said Gabby.
Handing the small elaborately decorated box through the hole to Dr. Lou Gabby. Her face illuminated by the beams from her flashlight turned back into the darken room to see what else she might uncover.
* * * ~~~ * * *
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE LOST QUEEN FOUND
Centuries of accumulated ancient dust became apparent as the unusual human-like object emerged into modern day Egypt.
“Whoa…! LJ and Roche come look at this.”
LJ was the first to reach for the unusual skull. “Lou, this skull appears to be a dolichocephalic.”
“A doli...dolicho...what? Speak English LJ,” said Gabby yelling through the hole..
Roche reacted immediately, “Dolichocephalic... it means ‘long skull’.
“Darn right,” said Gabby now listening intently from behind the separating wall, “they got that name right!!
“I have examined a couple of them before,” LJ continued. “Families elongate their baby’s heads on purpose; especially the Mangbetu and the Zande tribes in parts of Central Africa.
The young children of these tribes have their heads bound tightly with bands of cloth as they grow, creating elongated skulls; however this particular skull does not exhibit the usual banded serrations on the skull itself. This skull is smooth and its appearance indicates it formed naturally. Lou…I do not believe this is one of those tribal heads…look at the orbital sockets - they are elongated too - and much larger than we see in normal human heads. It may be some type of genetic defect.”
“Your’re right, LJ,” said Dr. Lou. “You are certainly correct about the African tribes but elongated heads have also appeared on many members of the 18th dynasty royal Egyptian families. We are looking at a skull that is way beyond the normal human shape.”
“You are right Lou but this long head type was first noticed on a Pharaoh and also on his wife nearly a hundred years later than Mrs. Friedman’s time,” said Lonnie Joe.
Lou answering, “Correct LJ, it was Akhenaten and wife Nefertiti. Both had the long heads; however Nefertiti was believed to be Akhenaten sister signifying the long heads could be caused by a genetic family trait. Marrying within the royal family was not uncommon, in fact, it was considered normal. The paintings on ancient Egyptian walls show both with elongated heads. Anthropologists thought this was only an artistic rendition and did not portray them as they actually were. Later when their mummies were discovered it was learned their heads were indeed elongated. Recent studies on the Egyptian royal mummies have, without a doubt, proved dolichocephalic heads are not the result of bindings but seem to be genetic.”
“Lou, what are you suggesting?” Asked Roche.
“Honestly guys, I don’t know. The head you are observing Roche is at least a century older than any elongated skull found before in Egypt.
One other thing - look at the lower mandible. Notice the missing teeth and the deterioration of the jaw bone,” commented Dr. Lou.
Roche responded, “What does that suggest Doc?”
“I don’t know. LJ come look at this skull again and tell me if you see anything unusual.”
While Lou and Roche had been engrossed in the unusual elongated head, LJ had been examining the box of ‘human remains.’ Looking up he said, “Okay Doc be right there.”
Moving the beam of light from the flashlight he was using to inspect the content of the funerary box back to the skull he gently took the skull from Lou and turned it over and over in his hand. “Well Lou what else do you see besides the long skulls?”
“Lonnie Joe, the jawbone and the missing teeth, see anything there?
“Lou, you’re right it looks like those missing teeth could be caused by Gangrenous Stomatitis.”
“Lonnie speak to us in English.”
“Gangrenous stomatitis is a type of gangrene that destroys mucous membranes of the mouth. Its cause is unknown, but some doctors think it may be due to bacteria called the fusospirochetal organisms. This bacterium causes a quick, rapidly worsening tissue-destroying condition. The gums and lining of the cheeks can become infected and develop terrible ulcers.
The infection spreads to the skin, and next the tissues in the lips and cheeks die. The process will eventually destroy the soft tissue and bone. This destruction of the bones around the mouth will cause loss of teeth. If left untreated it is usually fatal.”
“Lonnie, what would be the treatment employed three thousand years ago.”
“None...they would have needed to use an antibiotic such as Penicillin which wasn’t discovered until the twentieth century over three thousands years later.”
Bending down onto his knees at the small door Lou yelled to Gabby. “Sis...those skulls on the shelves do any of them have teeth missing?”
“Let me check Lou...Yes Lou! Yes, they all do!”
As Lou was conversing with Gabby about the teeth missing, pointy-headed skulls Lonnie had continued examining the funerary box
“Lou I see a cartouche on the front of this box. I’m going to examine it up closer.”
“Can you read the name LJ?”
“I think so. Ya’ll know a cartouche is only hieroglyphic symbols, displayed in a oval circle, indicating a royal name, don’t you?”
Excitedly Dr. Lou responded, “Forget the history lesson. Who is it?”
“Let me see…now the cartouche displays a “bread loaf”, “quail chick”, “bread loaf”, “owl”, “quail chick”, “folded cloth”, “vulture” and two “reed leaves”, LJ said reading the hieroglyphics on the beautiful little box.
“All right…all right…already... LJ I don’t want to wait for the movie. What do the pictures indicate?” Roche spoke angrily.
“Thutmose II!”
“No…can’t be! Read them again Lonnie Joe…that can’t be right.”
“Doc, I can read them a hundred times…it’s still “Thutmose II.”
“Damn! Damn! Now it makes sense Maatkare and Thutmose II.”
Roche said excitedly to Lou, “What is it Doc? Is this “Tut the Second” important or something?”
“Important? Important? This is probably one of the greatest Egyptian finds since King Tutankhamen himself.”
Before he could give Roche an explanation he quickly turned and began running down the corridor toward the steps leading up and out of the tomb.
“Damn, Doc what’s the hurry? Where are you going?”
Shouting back over his shoulder Lou yelled, “I remember seeing something up there by the entran
ce door.” Ascending the stone steps two at a time he approached the object of his search. “Found them he yelled excitedly!”
Roche looking at Lonnie Joe quizzically asked, “What? What could he have found?”
Shrugging his shoulders LJ said, “Don’t know. I seemed to have misplaced my crystal ball.” No sooner had LJ uttered the word ‘ball’ Lou bounded down the steps and the ‘click-clack’ of his boots could be heard running toward them.
“I found them. Shovels and sledgehammers the workmen had left.”
“Okay, Doc. Now that you found them what are we going to do with them?” Said Roche sarcastically.
“We are going to knock a bigger hole in that wall,” he said motioning toward the wall with the small entrance hole that Gabby entered.
Roche appreciating the magnitude of Lou’s intentions spoke up, “Now Lou, lets not be hasty…that wall looks pretty thick…and strong…why not wait and let the workmen tear it down for us. They seem more experienced at this sort of thing than we.”
“No…no…this is to important to wait…grab a shovel and one of the sledges and lets get busy.”
Reaching for one of the sledgehammers Roche questioned Lou again, “Now Lou who is this Tut? And why is he so damn important he can’t wait until the workmen tear down the wall for us tomorrow?”
“Sorry, I didn’t explain who Thutmose II was, did I? I’ll fill you in as we attack this wall.” Bending over the hole Lou yelled to Gabby on the other side, “Gabby, can you hear me? Stand back from the wall. Roche, LJ and I are getting ready to knock part of it down.”
Swinging the sledge hard against the brick wall Roche demanded, “Damn Lou…who is this person?”
“Thutmose II was a Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty. We are in a royal tomb…the first one found since Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamen in 1922.”
Striking another blow to the wall and grunting Roche said, “Yeah, I know him - King Tut. Oh…now I see King Tut and our ‘Tut’ behind this wall are related - right? Who is our ‘Tut’ his son?”
“Yeah they are related, but not his son... ‘our Tut’ as you refer to him is King Tut’s Great-Great-Great-Grandfather. Our ‘Tut’, Thutmose II died in 1479 bc. King Tutankhamen in 1343 bc, or 136 years later. Pharaoh Thutmose I had a son, our Thutmose II and, it was always believed, a daughter by a second wife. This daughter was Hatshephut. Tut II married his half sister, or so it was thought. They had a son Thutmose III but he died young and Hatshephut assumed the role of Pharaoh when Thutmose II died, with the name Maaktare. Get it now Roche?”