Setnakht and Thutmose II were real pharaohs who were buried in the Valley of the Kings. Setnakht’s mummy was moved around and eventually disappeared. For the purposes of this story, I have relocated his tomb. Thutmose II’s mummy was discovered in 1881 in a cache of more than fifty royal mummies. No one is certain where his original tomb was—but it may yet be found. In fact, if you become an archaeologist, you may be the one to find it!
That’s one of the most marvelous things about ancient Egypt. There are so many mysteries waiting to be solved.
A Note About Sources
There are entire libraries of books about ancient Egypt, and especially about its tombs. The books that were most helpful to me in writing this story were:
Morris Bierbrier, The Tomb-builders of the Pharaohs. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press, 1989.
Anton Gill, Ancient Egyptians: The Kingdom of the Pharaohs Brought to Life. London: HarperCollins, 2003.
Jaromir Malek, The Cat in Ancient Egypt. London: British Museum Press, 1993.
Nicholas Reeves and Richard H. Wilkinson, The Complete Valley of the Kings: Tombs and Treasures of Egypt’s Greatest Pharaohs. London: Thames & Hudson, 1996.
Ian Shaw and Paul Nicholson, British Museum Dictionary of Ancient Egypt. London: British Museum Press, 1995.
Acknowledgments
Ra and I are very lucky indeed to have Sarah Horne bringing his adventures to life again with her amazing art. Thank you, Sarah!
My warmest thanks also go to Sara Crowe and the entire Pippin team, and to the terrific people at Holiday House, especially Mora Couch, Emily Campisano, Emily Mannon, Terry Borzumato-Greenberg, Mary Cash, Kevin Jones, and my brilliant editor, Sally Morgridge. I’m indebted to copyeditor Barbara Perris, too.
I’m also grateful to Paula Harrison and Kit Sturtevant for their insightful comments on an early draft, and to Paula (again!) and Mo O’Hara for supporting Ra’s debut. I treasure the friends and family who have encouraged me, especially Karl Galle and Sylvia Atalla, who brought me my writing mascots all the way from Cairo. My thanks also go the Ashmolean Museum and the British Museum, whose Egyptian galleries never fail to delight, move, and inspire me.
I would be lost without my husband and daughter, who raced through early drafts, laughed in all the right places, and remain Ra’s biggest fans. Thank you, my sweethearts! I wouldn’t trade you for anything, not even a golden, cat-shaped sarcophagus.
The Great Tomb Robbery Page 13
