The day began with an introduction and hands on exploration of ancient artefacts. Our tour was led by Karen who has had experience in the field and spoke to us about the importance of the work in archaeology. The students then had their own opportunity to explore an artefact of their choosing from the vast collections in the room. They were able to become an archaeologist themselves drawing and recording what they saw and felt.  

Over the last term our students have been studying preserved human remains with a specific look into Egyptian mummification and the use of technology in research. The mummies in the ‘Mummy Room’ were on display with their own 3D scans. 

Some reflections from our students on what they enjoyed about the museum visit:

“Our Year 9 History Elective Excursion to the University of Sydney was a wonderful experience that for a number of us will be a fond memory for many years to come. When we pulled into the campus, all you heard was gasps as we saw Sydney Uni’s famous site ‘The Quadrangle’ (well-regarded as an exquisite piece of architecture, with similarities to Hogwarts). After we took a stroll and took a copious amount of photos, we started our tour of the Chau Chak Wing Museum. We were given the opportunity to participate in an interactive session where we examined and formed theories about several artifacts. We then began our tour where we visited several exhibits relating to Ancient Greece, Egypt and Rome as well as others devoted to art and other time periods. Overall, it was a fun and educational excursion that I will be reminiscing about for years.”  Rebecca M

‘I found the Greek statues and pottery to be extremely intriguing and I wanted to see more of them. I also enjoyed the art and I would have liked to have learned the meanings behind them.’ Lyla F

‘It was fascinating to realize that there were other civilizations with their own complex society and lifestyle that contrasts our own.’ Natalie S 

‘A thing that I liked  about the excursion was the lego model of Pompeii and all the hidden gems found in it like a miniature  ‘Indiana Jones’ Gissenia C

‘Something that I enjoyed was the Egyptian section of the museum because I found it really cool being able to see canopic jars, mummies and human remains in person. I enjoyed the whole excursion and it will definitely be an unforgettable experience. We also got to see many other things such as a Lego Pompeii, taxidermied animals and Sydney Uni which some of us thought looked like a castle.’ Olivia K 

‘The best part of the Year 9 Excursion for me was when we got to look at and hold the artifacts. I really enjoyed learning about the artifacts, not only in front of me, but also hearing about what my classmates had found about their artifacts. I also loved seeing the mummies and being able to look inside using CT scanning. This excursion was a wonderful experience that should be repeated for the future years.’ Hailey B

‘The thing I liked about the excursion was being able to see the mummies and coffins. I also enjoyed learning about the history of the artifacts that we looked at’. Janae B

‘I liked the stuffed animals that were on display, the bus ride and the croissants from  the university cafe!’ Lily B

‘I liked the mummy exhibition and and taking photos of the stuffed animals in the natural history display’ Claire S

‘This excursion was a wonderful experience. I got some time with my friends and classmates where we got to laugh and enjoy the exhibits. I enjoyed looking at the interesting pots, bugs and learned the history of certain mummies and got to look at many things’ Hannah B

Aisha Aboud - HSIE Teacher