NBC News reported recently that archeologists in Egypt have made a profound discovery of ancient artifacts dating back more the 2600 years. The sarcophagi, statues, and various other relics were found completely intact, untouched since they were sealed into their tomb over two-and-a-half millennia ago. Also of note: the collection spans several thousand years, from the 1st Dynasty, which began in 2920 B.C., to the end of the Coptic period, in 642. Scientists will start carefully deconstructing the sarcophagi, studying the collection, and intend to display everything, along with these findings, at the Grand Egyptian museum sometime next year.
I love stories like these because I truly appreciate any time we discover something that's been lying around here, sight unseen, this whole time. I love these stories because I love practical science, especially in a world that's becoming increasingly ephemeral. And I love these stories because it's not every day you think about the year 642. That year...that decade...that century...may as well have been on a different planet than the one we're on today; no part of our lives now is even remotely similar, and yet we're so lucky to have survived long enough to trip over these discoveries. So I wonder what these profoundly religious and spiritual people were thinking about when they sealed the tomb for the last time. What future did they envision, without the benefit of science fiction to help them imagine it?
Ancient Egyptians were so focused on the past, present, and afterlife with such intense commitment that they must have thought about the future. They must have dreamed that it would all be so fantastic because they built pyramids and shrines and crypts to enshrine their most revered to protect them for millennia into the future. They were entranced by the myths. By contrast, the books and films and television we consume tend to project the future with such frequency that it barely holds any creative curiosity for us today.
I love these stories because they are reminders of how important it is that we think of the future in terms of protection and preservation.
Which brings me to my last point: as incredible as this discovery may be, it's like these archaeologists have never seen a haunted-mummy movie before. It's 2020. It's Halloween season! We've got enough bad stuff going around. Let's marvel at how beautiful these discoveries are, snap a couple of photos, and then throw them in a dark closet for the next few months and see what the world feels like around February. Stop opening these things. Even Tom Cruise couldn't save the mummy from becoming a disaster. Read the room. Leave the sarcophagi closed for now. Ain't nobody got time for mummies.