Tales From the Tomb

They strike at night, without warning, ransacking the tombs of Egypt’s great kings and queens. These robbers of the dead have been stealing riches since the beginning of time. It’s a centuries old cat-and-mouse game between tomb robbers and royalty. Learn how royal architects began fitting the pharaohs’ crypts with anti-tomb raider features. Hear from the voices of these ancient robbers themselves, as they face the adventure, dangers, curses, intrigue, and profits involved in stealing from the dead.

He was ancient Egypt’s greatest warrior-king. A courageous commander, master tactician, and undefeated in battle. He was Tuthmosis III - known to present-day Egyptologists as the ‘Napoleon of Egypt.’ But, how was this pharaoh able to conquer so many of his enemies and bring Egyptian imperialism to its zenith? National Geographic explores the factors that drove Tuthmosis III to excel as warrior. Follow his military campaigns on the sand-swept battlefields, and, with the help of modern-day archaeologists, watch as we put his ancient weaponry to the test.

Ramses III was one of Egypt’s greatest pharaohs…a warrior and master strategist whose army saved Egypt from ruthless invaders. His exploits, temples, and fortresses are the stuff of legend the world over. But his reign ended in a mysterious death. Was he undone by his harem and defeated by sexual intrigue? Now, 3,000 years later, an archaeologist turned detective is cranking up the heat in a new investigation. She’s sorting through tales of sex, poison, and treason….and will lift the veil on the death of Ramses III. Was it natural causes, an accident, or murder?

He's Ancient Egypt's mystery man: a 3500-year-old mummy with no name, no identity at all. Yet he's found in a secret cache with some of Egypt's most famous pharaohs. A closer look reveals an even stranger clue: He was hastily and clumsily mummified. And in ancient Egypt, an anonymous and improper burial was a fate worse than death. Was this man purposely denied the one thing every Egyptian most wanted: the chance for eternal life? Our story goes step-by-step through the evidence and shows how the latest scientific discoveries are shedding new light on this baffling case. Who was he? How did he die? What crime might he have committed to warrant such an ignoble end?

Murder, succession, and a 18-foot scroll of papyrus that reads like an ancient Egyptian episode of Law and Order. We get the lowdown on the Judicial Papyrus of Turin. For more information on this episode visit nationalgeographic.com/overheard