A short story about ... Ancient Egypt:
3000 years of high culture on the Nile. No empire existed longer, none was so far ahead of its time. Monumental temples, the tombs in the Valley of the Kings and especially the pyramids of Giza bear witness to the achievements of the ancient Egyptians.
What was the secret of this unique "success story"? What was the meaning of the cult of the dead? Mirko Drotschmann searches for traces in Egyptian museums, meets mummy researchers and is there when engineers at the University of Kassel decode an ingenious technique that was used to build the pyramids. Computer animations show what the pyramids of Giza looked like at the time of their construction and which secrets are still hidden inside today.
Incest as a common marriage policy
The history of the pharaonic kingdom begins with a treasure of nature: the Nile. The majestic stream crosses around 1000 kilometers of dry desert and gave Egypt fertility and wealth. Egyptian civilization developed on its banks. After the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, the pharaohs ruled over the first centrally controlled state in history. Religious myths, the many gods and godlike pharaohs became the "glue" of society. The film shows how the rulers worshiped like gods, what their life in the palace looked like and why incest was part of the usual marriage policy.
Magnificent tombs such as the pyramids of Giza or the underground tombs in the Valley of the Kings were built for the dead pharaohs. Deep chutes and mock doors should mislead grave robbers. But only the chamber of a rather unknown pharaoh remained undiscovered until the beginning of the 20th century: Tutankhamun's tomb. Hundreds of items such as precious jewelry, cult objects, amulets, weapons and everyday objects are still captivating to this day. Mirko Drotschmann travels to London, where, among other things, this legendary grave treasure will be exhibited until May 2020.
The forefathers of our modern medicine were the Egyptians. The ancient travel writer Herodotus reported: Every place is full of doctors; there are doctors for the eyes, for the head, for the teeth, for the abdomen and for internal diseases.

Egyptian doctors far ahead of their time
The dead in ancient Egypt were saved from decay with incredible meticulousness. Some mummies still look like they died only a few years ago. For the researchers of the German Mummy Project, mummies are very special "organic archives" that provide information about the life and suffering of the ancient Egyptians: How did they eat? How old did they get? What did they die from? Have you tried to cure them? And what medications did they take or did they use drugs? The viewer learns that the Egyptian doctors were far ahead of their time. They operated on the head, amputated limbs and treated fractures. Successful - as studies on mummies prove.

Tough power politics and the cult of the dead held the empire together for 3000 years. So-called foreign countries repeatedly tried to conquer rich Egypt, but it was not until 500 BC that the Persians, then Alexander the Great and finally the Roman Caesars succeeded in weakening the Pharaohs' land and finally bringing them to their knees. The intruders shaped the culture and the language. But have they also been immortalized in genetic terms? Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human History have for the first time succeeded in deciphering the genetic makeup of ancient Egyptian mummies. The results are amazing.