An Egyptian floor mosaic depicting a dog and a knocked-over gold vessel. c. 200-100 BC

A floor mosaic using tesserae made of minute stone cubes, ranging from one to four millimetres in the opus vermiculatum technique.

The central medallion or emblem carries the picture of a dog, the first time ever such a motif is found on a floor mosaic in Alexandria. The dog is resting on his hind legs close to an upturned Greek vessel. The naturalistic image expresses strength and vitality, which points to the fine ability of the artist in using this medium to achieve clarity of design and definition. The fell of the dog, its spots and red collar are executed very precisely. The main colours in this medallion include black, white and yellow, yet the artist was able to convey light and shade in a brilliant manner. The angle of the dog's portrait is at three quarters, and the front part reflects light, while the rest of the body is in the shade. The gradation of shading on the upturned bronze pot shows light reflected on the central part, while the sides are gradually darker. The artist has indeed been able to express great depth in a 'hard' medium and this mosaic is a testament to the sophistication of mosaic workshops and artistry in ancient Alexandria.

Perhaps the theme on this floor is a scene of a theatrical story or from a literary work of art of Alexandria during the first three centuries B.C. However, the mosaic does not provide us with a clear idea as to the place where it was housed, but we can deduct that its shape was circular and about three metres in diameter, with this medallion as its centrepiece.

he Greeks used mosaics to decorate their floors in public places and private dwellings by using tesserae in many ways. Tesserae are the small pieces of stone, limestone, marble, glass or clay, which are cut in a small cubic form, hence their name. The Greek floor coverings became a complete tableau depicting plants, animals, geometrical designs and Greek/ Hellenistic motifs.

The Romans adopted also this art to cover their floors in homes and temples, as well as in their tombs. The Romans applied the same techniques of the Greeks. They also introduced new innovations in the manufacturing process.

The most ancient piece of mosaic was discovered in the East, in Ancient Iraq. It is from the Uruk civilization which dates back to 4000 years BC. Mosaic art disappeared after that time and reappeared again at the beginning of the 5th Century BC.

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Breaking the seal on Tutankhamun's tomb.

Real photo of the seal on Tut's tomb. 3250 years untouched

Breaking through the sealed door, Carter found a passageway filled with stone and rubble. Clearing this passageway revealed another sealed door marked with the royal impressions of Tutankhamun. Carter was sure he had found the king's tomb, but he was afraid it may have been pillaged - its contents removed. On November 26th Carter, with Lord Carnarvon at his side, started to break through this second sealed door. It was, as Carter described, "the day of days, the most wonderful that I have ever lived through.

Slowly, desperately slowly it seemed to us as we watched, the remains of passage debris that encumbered the lower part of the doorway were removed, until at last we had the whole door clear before us. The decisive moment had arrived.

I was struck dumb with amazement, and when Lord Carnarvon, unable to stand the suspense any longer, inquired anxiously, 'Can you see anything?' it was all I could do to get out the words, 'Yes, wonderful things.' Then widening the hole a little further, so that we both could see, we inserted an electric torch.

The "wonderful things" that Carter saw encompassed the greatest collection of Egyptian antiquities ever discovered. But this was only the tip of the iceberg. Beyond this antechamber lay another, smaller, room filled with equally magnificent treasures. It took the archeological team 2 1/2 months to carefully clear and catalog the items in these two rooms. Finally, Carter was ready to break through a fourth sealed door into what he believed would be King Tut's tomb - the holy of holies where the pharaoh would be found in his golden casket.

LEFT: The second coffin of Tutankhamun. (1336-1327 BC) Wood covered with gold foil inlaid with red, blue and turquoise glass.

It was the first, and to this day the only, royal tomb in the history of Egyptology to be found practically untouched, even though in ancient times it had been the object of no less than two attempts at robbery.   The emptying of Tutankhamun's tomb lasted several years and made possible the recovery of about 3500 articles, confirming the tomb as the most exceptional archeological discovery ever made in Egypt.

The most precious is the solid gold mask, which rested directly on the pharaoh's mummy inside the third coffin. The pharaoh wears the classic nemes headdress striped with transversal bands of glass paste imitating lapis lazuli and is adorned with a wide collar composed of streaks of semiprecious stones and colored glasses. The eyes are made of quartz and obsidian.   As on the coffins, the lapis-lazuli outline of the eyes reproduces the distinctive kohl eye make-up originally applied to protect against the sun's glare but increasingly employed for its beautifying effect.

The following content list describes the breathtaking treasure and different types of objects, many of which were made of gold and silver and encrusted with precious jewels, which were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun:

Jewelry including Bracelets, Anklets, Buckles, Scarabs, Amulets, Pendants, Pectorals, Necklaces, Earrings, Collars, Ear Studs and Rings

6 Chariots

Couches

Chairs

2 Thrones

Ritual beds and Headrests

Anthropoid (man-shaped) Gilded Coffins and the Solid Gold coffin

Shrines - Canopic shrine and Burial shrines

Funeral Equipment

Naos covered with gold lamina- a shrine in which statues were kept - this naos was empty but decorated with scenes of daily life and hunting

Gilded statues - Anubis and life size sentry statues and other statuettes

Chests

Daggers and other weapons and shields

Musical Instruments

Scribal Equipment

Lamps

Ornaments

Caskets, Vases and jars

139 ebony, ivory, silver, and gold walking sticks

Clothing made of the finest linen - 50 garments including tunics, kilts, gloves, scarves and headdresses

Ostrich fans and Golden Fans

Games - Ebony gaming boards including Senet

Food and Wine - 30 jars of wine

Perfume, oils and ointments

Carter found hundreds of solid gold objects like Tut's throne. This throne is made from wood, which is partly gold plated and inlaid with minute pieces of ivory, ebony, semi-precious stones and coloured glass. 

Several beds were found in the tomb (including one that folded up for travelling). This example is of gilded wood, with an intact base of woven string. A headrest would have been used instead of a pillow, and the rectangular board at one end of the bed is a foot-board (not a head-board as in modern beds). The frame of the bed is supported on feline legs. 

Tutankhamun's tomb contained a number of gaming boards for the game of Senet. The rules of the game are not certain, but it was for two players, whose aim was to knock their opponent off the board. The number of squares moved was decided by throwing sticks (used like dice today). Clearly Tutankhamun was a keen player and this small version is a 'travelling set' made of painted ivory.

His trumpets- considered to be the oldest operational trumpets in the world. Both of them were sounded for the first time in over 3000 years to a live audience of 150 million listeners through a BBC broadcast aired on April 16, 1939.

Personal dagger, so precious to the pharaoh that it was placed upon his mummy among the wrappings. The blade is highly polished gold with simple and elegantly engraved details. The hilt, also of gold, has alternating bands of granulated gold and cloisonne of red and blue glass. The pommel surmounting the handle has a circlet of two falcons with outstretched wings, while its top is decorated with a floral motif, in the center of which are two cartouches with the names of the king.

Gold sandals with images of Nubian slaves. 

Concealed beneath the gold mask, which covered the head and shoulders of Tutankhamun's mummy, was an elegant gold diadem, closely resembling in style the diadem worn by the king in two of the scenes represented on the small gold shrine found in his tomb. Very probably it was used in his lifetime, placed over a wig. The vulture's head and the cobra, insignia of his sovereignty over Upper and Lower Egypt, were not transferred from one diadem to another - a feature that would suggest that this diadem was one of a set.

These were the treasures of young but ill pharaoh. He probably spent much of his life in pain before dying at 19 from the combined effects of malaria and a broken leg. Tut also had a cleft palate and a curved spine, and was probably weakened by inflammation and problems with his immune system. 

Pharaoh Tutankhamun, represented by this forensic reconstruction based on his skeleton and mummy

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Ancient dentistry: gold and pain

Going to the dentist today is like spending the day at the spa, at least compared to dentistry thousands of years ago. While you walk into an office for a routine check-up and patiently wait to the sound of calming music and stacks of magazines, Egyptians, ancient Greeks or Etruscans were cringing in pain with massive toothaches and a stomach full of anticipation and dread. 

It is agreed that the oldest of those civilizations that knew something of dentistry was Egypt. The earliest indication of any such knowledge, in Egypt is found in the Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus. It is dated in the 17th century B.C., even if the original author's first manuscript was produced at least a thousand years earlier, between 2500 and 3000 B.C. 

Egyptian gold wire, 4000 years old.
The two centre teeth are donor teeth 

Attrition was by far the most common affection in ancient Egypt. Caused by the coarse diet (which may also have lacked necessary minerals and vitamins) and the presence of sand, husks, and sometimes even straw, in their bread, many Egyptians suffered from this condition. The skulls and jaws found in burial shafts and tombs almost all show attrition to some degree. This may not sound like a very serious disease, but attrition, when left unchecked, can be a stepping stone to much more severe issues. It can lead to abscesses, inflammation of the gums and jawbone, and tooth loss. Despite a diet free of refined sugar, caries was still fairly well represented amongst Egypt’s pearly whites. Interestingly enough, this disease seemed to have been much more common among the elite than it was among lower classes. This may be attributed to the higher sugar content in the diet of higher class Egyptians. The papyrus has eleven recipes which pertain to oral issues. Four of these are remedies for loose teeth: the tooth in question is either ‘packed’ or ‘filled’ (the translation and therefore our interpretation is a little ambiguous) with a mixture that is akin to a modern day composite filling: a filler agent (ground barley) is mixed with a liquid matrix (honey) and an antiseptic agent (yellow ochre). This is either used as an actual filling, or as a splint to keep the tooth in place.

Etruscan people were the first to take basic work in the mouth to a more artistic level. Etruscan's were incredibly intelligent people who were always striving to increase their knowledge and improve their image. Luxury was important to them, and they continued to test boundaries in the medical field. The courage to travel across sea to trade with other civilizations is proof of their industrious and courageous personalities. Using the knowledge of dentistry they learned from travel, they began to experiment with filling gold teeth. In one preserved mouth, gold bands were wrapped around the teeth and cemented by soldering with heat. Human and animal teeth were used as artificial teeth and held in place by gold bands. Performed around 700 B.C this is the first time in history a form of prosthetics was ever used in the mouth, and would be the only use for many years.

Etruscan, 4th century BC

While exploring and researching Greek mummies, archeologists have learned a mouthful of information on ancient dentistry. One mummy was found with many devastating dental problems. It is hard to imagine that cavities could kill you, but this mummy died from a basic sinus infection caused from a life of painful cavities. This mummy was a young man somewhere in his twenties. Greek dentists struggled to stop and cure his cavities. Linen soaked in medicine was packed in the holes in his teeth in an attempt to relieve the pain. Cloth in the tooth prevented food from entering and festering in the area. Greeks prided themselves in their strength and ability to handle pain. So, when cavities were found in the teeth, Greeks would often deal with the pain rather than have the tooth pulled. Losing a tooth would be a great loss and the pain was a small price to pay.

But the oldest example of therapeutic dentistry was found in Slovenia. The tooth is 65 centuries old and was part of a man's jaw. The jaw, which once belonged to a 24- to 30-year-old man, included a left canine tooth possessing a vertical crack in its hard enamel and softer dentin layers. The researchers found beeswax had been applied to the left canine at about the time of the man's death.

Generally speaking dentists had a lot work with ancient people. All the treatments were extremely painful. 

Etruscan denture with false teeth

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