NCERT Solutions For Class 11 English Hornbill: Discovering Tut the Saga Continues

Summary of the Chapter

"Discovering Tut: The Saga Continues" details the story of the last pharaoh of Egypt, Tutankhamun. He was the last of a powerful dynasty and died young, just nine years after taking the throne.

His tomb was discovered in 1922 by a British archaeologist, Howard Carter. It was the richest royal tomb ever found, filled with "stunning artefacts in gold." However, Carter's investigation faced a major problem: the ritual resins used to anoint the mummy had hardened, cementing Tut's body to the bottom of his solid gold coffin. Carter had to "chisel away" the mummy, severing "nearly every major joint" to remove it. This investigation was later resented for the damage it caused.

The chapter then shifts to 2005. Decades after an X-ray in 1968 revealed a "startling fact" (missing breast-bone and ribs), Tut's mummy is "one of the first mummies to be scanned" using a Computed Tomography (CT) machine. This is a "forensic reconstruction" led by Zahi Hawass, the head of Egypt's antiquities. The scan aims to finally answer the mysteries of how Tut died and his age at death.

The text also provides historical context, mentioning Tut's father or grandfather, Amenhotep IV (also known as Akhenaten). Akhenaten was a "wacky" king who changed the state religion from worshipping Amun to worshipping Aten (the sun disk). He moved the capital and "smashed images of Amun." After his death, Tutankhamun took the throne, "restored the old ways," and changed his own name from Tutankh*aten* to Tutankh*amun*.

The CT scan is almost thwarted by a "glitch" when the scanner gets clogged with sand, but it is eventually completed. The "virtual body" of Tut is created. The scan shows no immediate signs of murder (as was previously suspected) and reveals a young man who was healthy at the time of his mysterious death. The mummy is then returned to its tomb to rest in peace.

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NCERT Textbook Questions and Answers

Understanding the Text (Page 28)

Question 1: Give reasons for the following.
(i) King Tut’s body has been subjected to repeated scrutiny.
(ii) Howard Carter’s investigation was resented.
(iii) Carter had to chisel away the solidified resins to raise the king’s remains.
(iv) Tut’s body was buried along with gilded treasures.
(v) The boy king changed his name from Tutankhaten to Tutankhamun.

Answer-
(i) King Tut’s body has been subjected to repeated scrutiny for two main reasons. First, he was the last pharaoh of a powerful dynasty who died young and mysteriously. Second, his tomb was the richest and most complete ever discovered, sparking a global sensation and making him famous. Modern technology has allowed for new investigations to answer old questions about his life and death.

(ii) Howard Carter’s investigation was resented because his methods were crude and damaging. To remove the mummy from the solid gold coffin, he had to chisel away the hardened ritual resins, which involved severing nearly every major joint and his head from the body. Many critics felt this was a disrespectful and unscientific way to handle the pharaoh's remains.

(iii) Carter had to chisel away the solidified resins because the mummy was cemented to the bottom of the solid gold coffin. He first tried to use the "fierce heat" of the Egyptian sun to loosen the resins, but it had no effect. He had no other choice but to cut the mummy free, as he needed to separate it from the coffin and its gold adornments before thieves did.

(iv) Tut’s body was buried along with gilded treasures because the ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife. They believed that the pharaoh, on his "journey to the great beyond," would need the valuable things and everyday items he had in life. These "fabulous treasures," including gold, food, wine, and linens, were intended for his use in the afterlife.

(v) The boy king changed his name from Tutankhaten ("Living image of Aten") to Tutankhamun ("Living image of Amun") to signal a major religious and political restoration. His father, Akhenaten, had shocked the country by promoting the worship of Aten and smashing the idols of Amun. By changing his name, Tut was publicly restoring the "old ways" and the worship of the major god, Amun.

Question 2: List the deeds that led Ray Williams to describe Akhenaten as “wacky”.

Answer-
A.R. Williams described Akhenaten as "wacky" for the following deeds:

1. He attacked Amun, a major Egyptian god, by "smashing his images and closing his temples."
2. He changed the state religion and promoted the worship of the Aten, the sun disk.
3. He changed his own name to Akhenaten, meaning "Servant of the Aten."
4. He "moved the religious capital" from the old city of Thebes to the new, purpose-built city of Akhetaten (now known as Amarna).

Question 3: What were the results of the CT scan?

Answer-
The CT scan produced several key results:

1. It created over 1,700 digital X-ray images in "cross-section," which were assembled into a "three-dimensional virtual body."
2. A "grey head" and other images of his vertebrae, rib cage, and hand were clearly visible.
3. The scan provided new, "startling facts" about his body, most notably that his "breast-bone and front ribs" were missing.
4. While it did not solve the mystery of his death, it provided precise data that allowed archaeologists to rule out certain theories, like a violent blow to the skull, as a cause of death.

Question 4: List the advances in technology that have improved forensic analysis.

Answer-
The text shows significant advances in technology:

1. Early 20th Century (Carter, 1920s): Forensic analysis was limited to basic investigation and manual chiseling.
2. Mid 20th Century (1968): An anatomy professor used a "portable X-ray machine" to X-ray the mummy, revealing a few "startling facts" underneath the resins.
3. Modern Day (2005): The text highlights "Computed Tomography (CT)," which can take "hundreds of X-rays in cross-section" to create a "three-dimensional virtual body." This allows for a detailed, non-invasive "virtual autopsy."

Question 5: Explain the statement, “King Tut is one of the first mummies to be scanned — in life as in death...”

Answer-
This statement means that King Tut has always been at the center of attention, both during his life and in his afterlife.

• "In life": He was a pharaoh, the last of his family's line, and the focus of his kingdom as he oversaw a major religious restoration.
• "In death": His tomb's discovery in 1922 made him the most famous pharaoh in the world. He was "one of the first" mummies to be X-rayed (in 1968) and the absolute first to be put through a CT scanner (in 2005), placing him at the forefront of modern scientific investigation.

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Talking about the Text (Page 29)

Discuss the following:

Question 1: Scientific intervention is necessary to unearth buried mysteries.

Answer-

It is true that scientific intervention is necessary. Early archaeology, like Carter's, was focused on treasure and often destroyed what it was investigating. Carter's chiseling damaged Tut's body, losing evidence forever. Modern science, however, like non-invasive CT scanning, allows us to "unearth" mysteries about Tut's health, age, and cause of death without physically destroying the mummy. It helps us find facts and separate them from legends like the "curse of the pharaoh."

Question 2: Advanced technology gives us conclusive evidence of past events.

Answer-

Advanced technology provides better and more detailed evidence, but it is not always conclusive. For example, the 1968 X-ray led to suspicions that Tut was murdered by a blow to the skull. The 2005 CT scan, which was far more advanced, disproved this specific theory but still could not provide a conclusive "cause of death." It did, however, reveal new "startling facts," like the missing breast-bone. Technology provides clearer data, but the interpretation is still left to experts.

Question 3: Traditions, rituals and funerary practices must be respected.

Answer-

This statement highlights the ethical dilemma of archaeology. The ancient Egyptians mummified Tut and buried him with treasures as part of their deep religious beliefs about the afterlife. Carter's investigation, which involved chiseling the body apart, was a complete violation of these practices. Even Zahi Hawass, while using science, showed respect. He expressed concern about the mummy's condition and was relieved to finally "rest him in peace" back in his tomb, showing a modern respect for the dead, even in the pursuit of knowledge.

Question 4: Knowledge about the past is useful to complete our knowledge of the world we live in.

Answer-

This is true. Studying the past, such as the era of King Tut, is essential for understanding our present. Tut's story provides a window into the history of religion (the shift from polytheism to Akhenaten's monotheism and back), politics, art, and science in one of the world's first great civilizations. Understanding this history helps us see how our own cultures, religious beliefs, and political structures were formed.

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Thinking about Language (Page 29-30)

Question 1: What do you think are the reasons for the extinction of languages?

Answer-
The reasons for the extinction of languages, such as the fate of ancient Egyptian, which developed into Coptic and eventually became extinct for common use, include:

(a) Assimilation and domination by politically or economically more powerful languages, leading speakers to adopt the dominant language for necessity or advancement.

(b) Lack of practical use across generations, meaning the older speakers do not pass the language on to their children, thereby ending the continuity of the linguistic tradition.

(c) Migration, war, or catastrophic societal changes that reduce the population of native speakers drastically.

(d) Failure to adapt the language to modern contexts, education, and technology, reducing its relevance in the contemporary world.

Question 2: Do you think it is important to preserve languages?

Answer-
Yes, it is important to preserve languages. Languages are essential for preserving historical records, such as the hieroglyphic inscriptions and papyrus manuscripts that tell the history of ancient Egyptian dating from before the third millennium B.C.. Furthermore, languages encapsulate unique cultural knowledge, traditional customs, and specific ways of viewing the world. Preserving them ensures cultural diversity and completes our knowledge of the world we live in.

Question 3: In what ways do you think we could help prevent the extinction of languages and dialects?

Answer-
To prevent the extinction of languages and dialects, measures can be taken such as:

(a) Encouraging active use of the language within the family and community, particularly ensuring it is taught to the younger generation.

(b) Documenting the language thoroughly by linguists, including creating dictionaries, grammar guides, and recording oral traditions.

(c) Promoting the use of the language in educational settings and administrative contexts.

(d) Utilizing modern technology and digital media to produce content, music, and literature in the language, increasing its visibility and usage globally.

Working with words (Pages 28-29)

Question 4: Given below are some interesting combinations of words. Explain why they have been used together.

Answer-
These combinations are used as adjectival collocations to provide descriptive detail and enhance the atmospheric quality of the narrative:

(a) ghostly dust devils
This phrase combines 'ghostly' (suggesting a supernatural, eerie presence) with 'dust devils' (a natural phenomenon of swirling wind). It emphasizes the unsettling atmosphere and the disturbance caused by King Tut's removal from his resting place.

(b) desert sky
This simply identifies the setting of the action. It specifies the immense, arid sky above the Valley of the Kings.

(c) stunning artefacts
'Stunning' means extremely impressive. It is used to describe the artefacts found in Tut's tomb, which were rich royal collection items, notably made of gold, causing a sensation due to their impressive beauty and craftsmanship.

(d) funerary treasures
This refers to the collection of riches, including gold collars and rings, that were specifically meant to accompany the deceased pharaoh on his journey to the great beyond.

(e) scientific detachment
This refers to the objective, unbiased approach used by the archaeologist, Howard Carter, when he described the necessary but destructive method of chiselling away the consolidated material from Tut's remains.

(f) dark-bellied clouds
This visually describes the clouds that had scudded across the sky. The 'dark-bellied' appearance indicates heavy, ominous clouds that obscure the light, setting a foreboding mood.

(g) casket grey
This is a metaphor that describes the color of the sky which was veiling the stars. It means the sky was a deep, somber grey, invoking the image of a casket or coffin and symbolizing death.

(h) eternal brilliance
This phrase refers to the stunning gold artifacts. 'Eternal' suggests lasting forever, emphasizing that the gold's brilliance was meant to guarantee the pharaoh's resurrection.

(i) ritual resins
These were the solidified, hardened substances (resins) used by funerary priests in the traditional mummification process. They are 'ritual' because their application followed specific religious rites.

(j) virtual body
This describes the computer-generated three-dimensional image of Tut's body. It is 'virtual' because it exists only in digital form, created from 1,700 digital X-ray images.

Question 5: Here are some commonly used medical terms. Find out their meanings.

Answer-
These terms represent the advanced medical technology used in modern forensic analysis:

(a) CT scan
CT stands for Computed Tomography. It is a diagnostic imaging method that uses X-rays taken in cross section to create a three-dimensional virtual body.

(b) MRI
MRI stands for Magnetic Resonance Imaging. It is a diagnostic technique that uses strong magnetic fields and radio waves to create detailed images of organs and soft tissues.

(c) tomography
This is the general technique of imaging a section or slice of a body or object. The CT scan is a form of computed tomography.

(d) autopsy
A surgical examination of a corpse to determine the cause and circumstances of death; synonymous with post mortem.

(e) dialysis
A medical procedure that artificially filters waste and fluid from the blood when the kidneys are unable to perform this function.

(f) ECG
ECG stands for Electrocardiogram. It is a test that records the electrical activity of the heart.

(g) post mortem
A Latin term meaning 'after death.' It refers to the examination of a body after death; synonymous with autopsy.

(h) angiography
A medical technique using X-rays to visualize blood vessels, typically after injecting a special dye.

(i) biopsy
The removal and microscopic examination of tissue from a living subject to discover the presence or extent of a disease.

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Important Keywords from the Chapter

• Mummy: The preserved body of a person or animal, especially as in ancient Egypt.
• Pharaoh: A ruler in ancient Egypt.
• Artefacts: Objects made by a human being, typically of cultural or historical interest.
• CT Scan (Computed Tomography): A sophisticated X-ray technology that creates a 3D, cross-sectional image.
• Forensic Reconstruction: The process of recreating the face of an individual (in this case, from their skull).
• Resins: A sticky, flammable substance, insoluble in water, used in the mummification process.
• Chiselled: To cut or shape something with a chisel (a metal tool).
• Dynasty: A line of hereditary rulers of a country.
• Akhenaten: A pharaoh who changed the religion to worship the sun disk (Aten).
• Amun: A major Egyptian god.
• Zahi Hawass: The famous Egyptian archaeologist who led the CT scan.
• Howard Carter: The British archaeologist who discovered Tut's tomb in 1922.
• Casket: A coffin.
• Virtual Body: A 3D computer-generated image of a body.