Virtual visits to elite tombs of Egypt

physorg.com

A number of elite tombs from Ancient Egypt are now accessible to all thanks to the launch of the MastaBase. The MastaBase is a CD-ROM containing descriptions and hieroglyphic inscriptions of scenes of daily life from 337 Mastaba tombs. This resource will make research into these elite tombs a lot easier. On 13 May 2008, Dutch Egyptologist René van Walsem will officially present the MastaBase in Leiden, Netherlands. . . .

An in-depth analysis of the tombs can only be realised if use is made of all available published material on the tombs. This aim has been achieved through the creation of a digital archive for each of the 337 published elite tombs, the so-called Leids Mastaba Project (Leiden Mastaba Project). Part of the solution (created in Leiden) for this aim is based on the use of colour codes for the main themes. Abbreviations of the sub-themes are listed within the coloured fields of the main themes. Thus the thematic layout (dimension and place on the wall) can be seen at a glance. Comprehensive search options enable users to obtain a quick and efficient overview of these tombs.

See the above page for the full story.