Night #22 - History Lesson

Wherein I go into a broad contextual overview of the history of the gate, the tablet, and the Brothers Egypt.

Ahkmenrah states that he was given the tablet "some three thousand years ago" and that it was "one of [his] people's most prized possessions." However, there is next to no indication that the tablet is a contemporary of his or even his father's. In fact, by stating that the tablet is a prized possession of his people implies that it holds near mythic status in ancient Egyptian society of Ahkmenrah's time and therefore that it had to have been around for a while. The same holds for Kahmunrah's gate, because it has a slot for the tablet where bits and pieces of it still remain. This implies that once upon a time, the tablet was secured firmly to the gate and suggests that they may have been crafted together. Thus, at some indeterminate point in the distant past, the gate and the tablet were made and infused with magical powers. Then they were entrusted into the care of a few select priests and passed on in the order for generations up until the time of Kahmunrah and Ahkmenrah.

The gate and tablet were kept secret most likely because wide-spread knowledge of their powers and location could lead a certain type of person (someone like Kahmunrah, for example) to attempt to steal the items, unleash an army of undead falcon-headed warriors, and launch a siege of the pharaoh's throne. Or invaders could get wind of the location of the artifacts, obtain them, and use the army they now have access to to ensure that they are in power forever. Therefore, keeping the gate and the tablet a closely guarded secret serves as both a resistance measure and a means of keeping order.

However, letting it get out that the tablet has healing powers can lead to near-religious fervor and pilgrimages to the temple for the sick and dying. Letting that bit out into the public allows for a whole other level of religious devotion, on the level of Christian pilgrimages to churches which house the bones or clothes of saints.

This is maintained for quite some time, allowing the artifacts to gain the mythical status that they have, and then Kahmunrah and Ahkmenrah are born (in that order). For whatever reason (since personality tends to not factor into succession but legitimacy does, I lean toward his status as illegitimate more than the excuse of favoritism or his general attitude), Kahmunrah is passed over in favor of his younger (again, likely legitimate) brother Ahkmenrah, being one of the triggers of his resentment of his brother and fueling his motivation to prove his stuff by conquest. This eventually leads to near (or full-blown) civil war and results in Ahkmenrah's death. This could have happened one of several ways: Ahkmenrah was killed in battle, he was assassinated by his brother, or he committed suicide for the sake of the nation. Somehow, the tablet and the gate become separated forcibly, resulting in damage to the former. This could have been magically triggered by the death of Ahkmenrah or it could have been accomplished by something as mundane as trying to pry the tablet from the slot and popping it free to the detriment of the tablet's completeness (though enough of it came out in one piece for it to still be magical). The priests or some of Ahkmenrah's trusted bodyguards, or both, are responsible for the burial of the tablet with Ahkmenrah in an effort to keep Kahmunrah from becoming all-powerful. Given Kahmunrah's tendency toward rage such that it looks like a spoiled child's temper tantrum, it's not likely the priests and/or guards survived their defiant acts.

The next event of note occurs anywhere from a few months to a few years later: Kahmunrah dies, either due to natural causes or because he was killed in battle or by an assassin's arrow. He is buried with the gate he so coveted.

All of this takes place about a thousand years before the birth of Christ in the timeline of the NATM verse, if Ahkmenrah's statement is anything to go by.

Fast forward to 1952. Ahkmenrah's tomb is uncovered by archaeologists, most likely British ones since Ahkmenrah was on display at Cambridge for long enough to start learning English. Chances are he was there for examination and cataloging before being sent off to the states to spend the rest of his days in the sarcophagus begging for a breath of fresh air and not getting anywhere because the exhibits are terrified of him for some reason he doesn't fully understand.

Fifty-four years later, Larry is hired on to replace the three elderly night guards at the Museum of Natural History. In a desperate bid to return the tablet to the museum, Larry releases Ahkmenrah, and it's a good thing he did, because Ahkmenrah is a friendly. All he wanted was some fresh air, after all, and he is more than content to hang out with the other exhibits after the night is won.

Two years after that (approx. 2008), Kahmunrah is awakened from a three-thousand-year sleep to continue his plan to conquer the world, placing the tablet back where it belongs and using it to unleash an army of undead warriors to serve his nefarious ends. He learns the hard way that the gate works both ways, and Larry now has to break the news to Ahkmenrah that his brother isn't coming back.

The gate and the tablet have a long and storied history indeed, and in the words of Cecil, they are "indeed, very, very cool."

Next on "For the Love of Night at the Museum": I answer another question tied to the history of this franchise: How do exhibits learn languages?

Countdown: 354 Days to NATM 3.

NATM 3 Update: Dan Stevens, of Downton Abbey fame, is apparently working on filming right now. This bit is delivered by this website, and really it's a rather small blurb, but I have cause to wonder. Wasn't filming supposed to start in February? Or is that filming in Vancouver and London? Or is this still a pre-filming thing where you work on how exactly you're going to play the role before the cameras start rolling, get fitted for your costume? The stance on filming (a la February 2014) is maintained by IMDb and MovieWeb, and any fan of this series knows that costumes can be elaborate and finding the right "mode", especially for a bad guy, can be a difficult, interesting journey (I'm looking at you, Kahmunrah). Given this is a comedy, Lancelot is pretty much required to be a huge ham, so chances are he's working on that right now. And they've gotta train the monkeys, so....

What? You can't have a NATM movie without Dexter!