That Post-Modernist, Maury Povich

During the spring of 1999, an Egyptian tomb was opened with much fanfare and foofaraw, over a two hour period, live on the Fox Network television stations all over the world. Invited to the fete, in addition to the Dr. Zahi Hawass, Undersecretary of the State for the Giza Monuments, was a spokesman for the long-dead psychic Edgar Cayce and a fellow who insists that the "monkey face" on Mars proves that Martians built the pyramids. As exercises in multivocality go, this one was what one might call off the wall.

But aren't we used to this by now? Do we really expect science from the Fox News Network? Does Maury Povich have any expertise or any real interest in the study of archaeology? The tabloid press (perhaps this is becoming redundant these days) has never been a particularly appropriate place to obtain information on any subject, let alone one that has been hyped over the past few years by the Indiana Jones movies. The pyramids in Egypt have always been fascinating to people, and will continue to be, in spite of the occasional terrorist attack on tourists. Curses and Howard Carter; that's what the general public thinks of when they think of Egyptology; that's bad for all of us.

There's not a thing we can do about Maury Povich and his ilk, about getting them to understand the scientific aspects of archaeology, or to present archaeology as anything more than gold and curses. That should be clear from the presence of Dr. Hawass, who, despite his credentials and high international profile made no discernible difference to the scientific content of the program. There's only one real solution to the problems created by the tabloid press: We publish, too. And we publish our results in a sane, interesting way. Now, because of the Internet, we can present our data in something other than unreadable technical treatises or $200 coffee table books. It is the responsibility of the archaeological community to undo the damage done by the popular press.

Want to learn about how Egyptian tombs are excavated? Try the Tomb of Senneferi page, an excellent introduction by Nigel Strudwick to the science and meaning of excavations on the West Bank at Luxor. Or Kent Week's brilliant Theban Mapping Project. Not Maury Povich. Please!