Amsterdam, May 9 : Dutch Egyptologists have created a digital archive for each of the 337 Mastaba tombs from ancient Egypt, in a CD-ROM called the Mastabase, which will make research into these elite tombs a lot easier.

According to the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), a Mastaba is an elite tomb from the Memphite area in Ancient Egypt (2600-2150 BC). The tombs contain scenes depicting daily life, often accompanied by inscriptions.

They contain various main themes, which are further divided into sub-themes.

Main themes are, for example, scenes depicting offerings, farming and fishing. The theme fishing, for instance, can then be broken down into various sub-themes, such as fishing with a dragnet or seine, the transportation of fish and the processing of fish.

An in-depth analysis of the tombs can only be realised if use is made of all available published material on the tombs.

This aim has been achieved through the creation of a digital archive for each of the 337 published elite tombs, which contains descriptions and hieroglyphic inscriptions of scenes of daily life in ancient Egypt.

Part of the solution for this aim is based on the use of colour codes for the main themes. Abbreviations of the sub-themes are listed within the coloured fields of the main themes. Thus the thematic layout (dimension and place on the wall) can be seen at a glance.

Comprehensive search options enable users to obtain a quick and efficient overview of these tombs.

Using a research tool such as the Mastabase is very useful for conducting research into the Mastaba tombs.