Monday 25 February 2013 Children learned how to write like an Egyptian during a fun-packed ‘We Love Ancient Egypt’ day at Leeds City Museum in February half-term. At the event, which came about thanks to a partnership between the museum and The Grammar School at Leeds (GSAL), children worked out how to spell their names in hieroglyphics to make cartouche bookmarks and had their faces painted with hieroglyphic initials. Visitors also learnt to dance like an Egyptian with Helena from Orientale Dance Company, who performed and ran workshops in cane dance and other traditional dance for boys and girls, mums and dads. The museum’s range of attractions enhanced the theme of the day, with visitors allowed to touch for once, under the knowledgeable gaze of curator Lucy Moore at the object handling table. A spooky tour of the ancient worlds gallery brought visitors face to face with the museum’s resident mummy – 3,000 year old Nesyamun from the temple of Karnak in Thebes. Back in the arena children saw how it was done using a model mummy with removable innards and had a go themselves by mummifying peg dolls. Sisters Emi and Maya Kern, from Wetherby, were partners in the cane dance. Older sister Emi said: “Dancing was lots of fun. When we studied ancient Egypt at school my favourite part was learning about mummies and how the insides were taken out ready for the coffin, so it was great today making a mummy.” The partnership between GSAL and the museum launched last October with an animal-themed half-term event, and continues with a ‘We Love Leeds’ day in May half-term. General News
