Color in this mask of Ngaady a Mwaash. She was the first queen of the Kuba (in Democratic Republic of Congo). The lines under her eyes are tears of the joy and pain she feels from the responsibilities of being queen.
Color in this image of a chief from the Benin Kingdom standing with four merchants from Portugal. Chiefs wore red necklaces made of coral to show their wealth and power.
The ancient Egyptians had hieroglyphs to represent letter sounds, whole words, parts of words, and even complex ideas. They also had symbols to represent numerals. The ancient Egyptians had to be pretty good at math too! Think of all those pyramids, tombs, sphinxes, massive statues, and palaces that they were famous for building. You can’t make any of that stuff without mathematics. You also need math to trade goods and measure the land for planting crops.
Mancala is an ancient game from Africa. Originally played by digging shallow holes in the ground, today it is played around the world using wooden boards.
Mummify plants at home! Use our recipe to mix natron and keep track of how long it takes to create a fruit or veggie mummy of your own.
Prac tice writing like an ancient Egyptian and create a wearable cartouche to display your work for all to see.
Canopic jars are covered vessels used in the ancient Egyptian mummification process: they stored and preserved specific organas as offerings for the afterlife of that individual. Explore their materials, design, and mythical connections to the gods- then design your own.
Learn about Adinkra symbols, ideographic writing used by the Akan people in Ghana. Create a homemade stamp inspired by the meaning and beauty of these symbols.
Kangas are East African traditional garments with bold borders and colorful interior designs containing messages written in Swahili. Design and illustrate your own kanga and personal message in your language.
The Penn Museum is lucky to have a large collection of mummified animals. These preserved creatures can teach us about the beliefs of people who lived thousands of years ago.