GeoSafari Buried Treasure Digs: Egyptian Dig.

by Educational Insights

Product Features

• Artifacts include a scarab, hieroglyphic tablet, ankh symbol, and jackal. Sand sculpture molds create a pyramid or sphinx
• Clay can be recast again and again with the same artifacts, or with any other items, for hours of archaeological adventures
• Discover the amazing science of archaeology as you uncover "ancient" artifacts
• kit includes easy - to - follow instructions in the Archaeologist's Guide Book, as well as facts about life in ancient Egypt, the Middle Ages, or Mayan culture
• Ages 7 and up

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 3.3 x 6.9 x 8.9 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005C1LA
• Item model number: 5150
• Manufacturer recommended age: 7 years and up
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #56,019 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
  • #99 in Toys & Games > Learning & Education > Science > Geology & Earth Sciences
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Discover the amazing science of archaeology as you uncover "ancient" artifacts. After carefully excavating with tools like real archaeologists use, kids wet the Mystery Matrix Sand to create one of two sand sculptures for display (molding tray provided in each kit). Clay can be recast again and again with the same artifacts, or with any other items, for hours of archaeological adventures. Each kit includes easy-to-follow instructions in the Archaeologist's Guide Book, as well as facts about life in ancient Egypt, the Middle Ages, or Mayan culture.

Product Description

Discover the amazing science of archeology as you uncover "ancient" artifacts in this hands-on kit. Artifacts include a scarab, hieroglyphic tablet, ankh symbol and jackal. Sand sculpture molds create a pyramid or sphinx.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Exactly what i expected, December 28, 2007

By 

Jamie Reed - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: GeoSafari Buried Treasure Digs: Egyptian Dig. (Toy)

We went to the King Tut exhibit this summer, and I thought this would be a good addition to what my daughter had learned. She really enjoyed it, it just went very quickly. The only negative thing she said was that they buried all the stuff together. The book was informative, the artifacts were interesting, and she enjoyed chipping away at the items in the block. If archeology is your child's "thing" this is a good toy to check out.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun being an archaeologist, January 5, 2008

By 

DSW (MA) - See all my reviews

= Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars 

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: GeoSafari Buried Treasure Digs: Egyptian Dig. (Toy)

Santa brought this (along with the Egyptology book) for my 5 year old son this Christmas. He's been really "into Egypt" for about a year.

We thought this would be something he could do himself with minimal assistance from one of us as it was clay. It wasn't. The "clay" was very hard and I had to do most of the digging with the blunt end of the included tool. My son had a ball using the brush to help (and that was actually very useful - we got a slightly larger paintbrush and things went a little faster). The items were all stacked together so they were difficult to remove. While I was annoyed with the process, the little guy thought the whole thing was fantastic and spent an hour with the brush cleaning everything off and looking at his treasures. We "translated" hieroglyphs that were on the tablet we'd uncovered, which was kind of cool too.

You can save the clay, mash it up, and recast it as a pyramid or a sphinx (the kits come with different doo-dads in the clay and different molds - I'm assuming it's a "collect all three!" type deal). We're looking forward to that. This is why I gave it a high "durable" rating - you can recast as often as you wish.

When we were done, my son looked at the box and saw the ad for the "Mayan Dig!" and asked what that meant. We went to the internet and looked up the Mayans and now he's asking to go to the library to get books. In and of itself the toy isn't very educational, but it does lead to questions and looking up answers, so I gave it a high rating there.

If you have an inquisitive kid with an interest in ancient cultures, this is a worthwhile item.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for little Egyptologists, January 16, 2012

By 

C. Cutts (SC, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: GeoSafari Buried Treasure Digs: Egyptian Dig. (Toy)

I just have to tell you how wonderful this product is! I gave it to my 8 ½ year old daughter for Christmas (as she is a huge fan of all things ancient Egyptian) and she chose to do it right away over Christmas break. I expected the "buried treasure" to be little plastic trinkets - how pleasantly surprised I was to see the quality of the artifacts. The background booklet was well-written and provided just enough education to keep it interesting, but not so much that she was rolling her eyes at the end. Her enthusiasm as she discovered each piece was so exciting to watch, my husband and I kept being called in to see the latest "find". Then she completed the data cards, telling the rest of the family all about her find. The best part was the hidden messages within the hieroglyphics that appeared on each piece! What a bonus.

I only downgraded it a little on durability as some children may have trouble using the tools to dig out the artifacts since the tools are plastic. However, had they been stronger, I could see some parent writing in complaining about providing a weapon to kids. The tools worked well for the job and may even have created more anticipation.

The entire excavation, data collection, research/background and translation filled the better part of an otherwise grey rainy morning. The next day, she and Dad re-cast the sand into the included forms of the Sphinx and pyramid, which provided even more discussion and educational, hands-on activity while school was out. Overall, this wonderful little box provided hours of excitement. I was very impressed at the quality and value of this purchase.