Who Was King Tut 图坦卡蒙法老 Chapter 7 Valley of the Kings

On the day of Tut’s burial, a long line of people followed his coffin¹ in boats across the Nile. Once on land, the coffin (actually, there were three, like nesting dolls) was pulled on a sled. It was going to a royal graveyard². This dusty, lonely area west of the Nile was called the Valley of the Kings. In some photographs the area looks like a natural pyramid made of rock. Many other pharaohs were buried there, so priests stood guard, day and night. Nearby was a separate cemetery³ for queens and members of the court. It was called the Valley of the Queens.
At the head of the parade to the Valley of the Kings were the priests. Along the way they sang songs and chanted prayers. One of the priests wore a mask with a dog face on it. He was supposed to represent Anubis, the god of mummies.
Tut’s young queen walked nearby. Following behind her were a group of women. They would have all been wailing⁴ and crying and tearing at their clothes. These mourners were there to express sadness over Tut’s death.
After the mourners came servants, hundreds of them. They were carrying all the furniture, food, and other items to go in the tomb. They also brought along many little statues that looked like servants. Once these were placed in the tomb, it was believed that the statues would come to life. Then the dead king would have all the servants he needed to take care of him.
Some of Tut’s servant statues
At the entrance to the tomb, Tut’s mummy was propped⁵ upright. The time had come for a very important ceremony. It was called “The Opening of the Mouth.” While the prayer was said, a priest touched the eyes, mouth, and ears of the mummy. The magic was believed to bring the pharaoh back to life again. He would be able to speak and see and hear.
After that, the only thing left to do was to bury the pharaoh inside his tomb. Once Tut’s mummy was back in its coffins⁶, it was placed inside a great stone box and hidden deep inside the tomb. A pile of rocks sealed up the entrance.
Afterward⁷, all the mourners took part in a great feast. Everyone was joyful⁸ now for the dead king. Tut was about to enter the Land of the Dead. He would live and be happy forever. They were sure that his mummy was safe, hidden away for all eternity⁹.
But they were wrong.

1 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

2 graveyard   

n.坟场

参考例句：

• All the town was drifting toward the graveyard.全镇的人都象流水似地向那坟场涌过去。
• Living next to a graveyard would give me the creeps.居住在墓地旁边会使我毛骨悚然。

3 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

4 wailing   

v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱

参考例句：

• A police car raced past with its siren wailing. 一辆警车鸣着警报器飞驰而过。
• The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。

5 propped   

支撑，支持，维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He sat propped up in the bed by pillows. 他靠着枕头坐在床上。
• This fence should be propped up. 这栅栏该用东西支一支。

6 coffins   

n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物

参考例句：

• The shop was close and hot, and the atmosphere seemed tainted with the smell of coffins. 店堂里相当闷热，空气仿佛被棺木的味儿污染了。 来自辞典例句
• Donate some coffins to the temple, equal to the number of deaths. 到寺庙里，捐赠棺材盒给这些死者吧。 来自电影对白

7 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

8 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

9 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。